[Bluesman]

I'm just starting to prep my Nova and am a total noob with any body work. Today I started on the hood: Sanded all the old paint off down to bare metal; wiped it down with MEK; Used ppg DP50LF cut 2:1 withDP402LF just like the tech sheet said; shot it thru a deVilbis Finishline with the 1.5 orifice (just guessing at what size to use); and it isn't a flat as I had expected it to be. This is a nice way of describing ORANGE PEEL!!

My questions:
1. Does primer/sealer just not get very flat??? Somehow I doubt this is true...
2. It was warm today (maybe 90F) -- did I use too much catalyst? I noticed that it seemed to dry pretty quick; by the time I had cleaned up all the bugs were happily dancing across it without sticking!!
3. The gun calls for 23 psi at the handle. When I set it at that there isn't enough pressure to spray. I dialed it up to almost 40 psi static (without spraying...it drops to zero when I pull the trigger anyway) before it sprayed. At that point it looked to these unsophisticated eyes like it was cooking right along.
4. I tried to keep the gun about 4" away from the surface. Is that too close? ... too far??

On the other hand.......now that dingy old hood has a nice light gray coat of primer and (from a distance) looks great!!

Thanks for your advice!!

Dave

 

[RatNova71]

I won't pretend to be a body man, but I do know that the faster the paint dries the more orange peel you will get. So i think maybe you need a slower reducer.

Also, from what i have gathered I think 10 to 12 inches away from the surface with the gun is preferred.

You are a brave man, good luck!

Andy (doing the dirty work on mine, gonna let a pro do the skill work)

 

[new2novas]

40 psi is usually right around what i use, 6-8" away from surface...1.5 is ok, but primer is better shot with slightly larger like 1.8, get the tech sheets, not just the info on the can and they will have recommended tip sizes as well as a bunch of other very relavant info...the amount of catalyst should be mixed the same regardless of temperature, you should have added exactly what it called for, reducers come in different speeds for different temps....sometimes its hard to spray primer and have it come out nice and flat, never for me, but you will need to block sand with 200(180-220), then i usually go with 500 or so wet before putting some paint on it

 

[Bluesman]

Thanks for the advice. I'll ask the guys at Ned's for the tech sheet. So cutting back on the catalyst won't let it flatten out more? OK...get out the sanding blocks!!

Dave

 

[CDJr]

I replied to this post the other day on the old site, Dave, but it seems to have disappeared. It sounds to me like you are lacking enough air. Youre pressure shouldnt be dropping to 0 when you pull the trigger, I usually set the pressure at the gun to 25-30 with the trigger PULLED. This is just a rule of thumb for most HVLP guns, so it may vary a lil. A lotta things can cause orange peel and lack of air is one of them, and thats what it sounds like to me. And like New2 said, I like to use a 1.8 for DP90, although some people use 1.4-1.5. What kinda air setup have you got?