HF 66222 HVLP Spray Gun

[MechanicNamedJohn]

This gun is awesome, no seriously, it's great.

http://www.harborfreight.com/high-volume-low-pressure-gravity-feed-spray-gun-66222.html

Now first off, I have never painted anything on car nor have I every used a sprayer, but this thing is great.

I bought a 97 Trans Am the other day for $1500.00; guy said ****** "4L60E" was going out and needed to be replaced because it would not up-shift out of 1st, yeah it was just the VSS "$30.00." Runs and drives great, but the paint is ******.

The main paint color is factory chameleon, and the guy painted the B-pillar roof and side mirrors flat black "looks like **** and looks stupid." I was afraid to try and remove the black for fear of damaging the paint underneath. So I decided to add more black in hopes to make it look better, the idea is to repaint his flat black to a gloss black as well as the wheels and added stripes to the hood and fascia.

I'm not keeping the car, I purchased for a quick sale and profit. I am an F-body freak "4th gens," but I prefer a T-56, and a Formula. Anyway here is the hood "rest will be started tomorrow."



Like I said never painted before, there is no orange peel, It looks almost like glass "I will wet sand it tomorrow and buff it." Not sure if it's the gun or the paint, I used Dupli-Color primer, paint, and clear coat. Also the hood had tons of rock chips; the white dots you see are the chips. The black looks good, too good, against the factory paint. I didn't want to run the stripes all the way down the hood, but there were so many chips. The black covered most of them. A full body wet sand and buff will be the last step.

 

[moose knuckle]

Ive used it too, but only as a disposable gun. For the money, you cant beat it!!

 

[MrMark]

If there's no orange peel and it looks like glass I have no idea what you are going to accomplish by wetsanding. Congratulations you've just outpainted the robots at GM, FORD, HONDA, and every painter I've ever seen. Because none of them are able to paint without orange peel, hence the color sanding, which you obviously don't need.

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

If there's no orange peel and it looks like glass I have no idea what you are going to accomplish by wetsanding. Congratulations you've just outpainted the robots at GM, FORD, HONDA, and every painter I've ever seen. Because none of them are able to paint without orange peel, hence the color sanding, which you obviously don't need.

Seriously, no orange peel. I was wondering why I should wet sand. Remember, I never did this. I searched google and youtube, everyone says to wet sand after clear coating, so I will wet sand. I guess I got lucky, hope that luck carries over today.

 

[MrMark]

You have nothing to sand. Why would you sand if you have no orange peel? They say to wet sand because of orange peel and dirt nibs. If you don't have this all you are doing is ruining your finish because you will never be able to bring it back up all the way without serious equipment and polish and skill and it doesn't sound like you have all that stuff.

You realize that the factory doesn't wet sand, right? They put it on with robots and a completely clean environment and the finish that is sprayed, orange peel and all, is the finish you get. Body shops wet sand to remove dirt nibs, other minor defects and to match orange peel. You are only screwing yourself if the finish is as you say and you touch sandpaper to it.

 

[Bull]

Looks pretty darn smooth.

John, remind me what general part of the country you are in...?

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

You have nothing to sand. Why would you sand if you have no orange peel? They say to wet sand because of orange peel and dirt nibs. If you don't have this all you are doing is ruining your finish because you will never be able to bring it back up all the way without serious equipment and polish and skill and it doesn't sound like you have all that stuff.

You realize that the factory doesn't wet sand, right? They put it on with robots and a completely clean environment and the finish that is sprayed, orange peel and all, is the finish you get. Body shops wet sand to remove dirt nibs, other minor defects and to match orange peel. You are only screwing yourself if the finish is as you say and you touch sandpaper to it.

There its no orange peel, ofcourse I lack the skill, this is the first time I painted. I spent quite a bit of time setting and testing the spray pattern of the gun.

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Looks pretty darn smooth.

John, remind me what general part of the country you are in...?

New Jersey

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

I don't normally have to do this, but... So let me first remove my foot from my mouth... There is some orange peel, it's not really that bad, I was going to wet sand it today, but a full 24hrs has yet to happen "few hours to go." So I'm going to wait til day light. The pic was taken about 30mins after the last coat of clear was put on. The paint looked like glass, but it was at night in a low light garage. Not sure it was the light or the paint yet to dry??? Under an LED light it looks flawless, weird??? Anyway, it's very minimal, and IMO it still looks pretty good, it's my first paint job, cut me some slack, LOL. Nonetheless I still think the gun is great. I will upload pics of the car when it is done. Hopefully by the end of the week "suppose to get rain."

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Oh, and any paint guys out there to answer this. What if the orange peel is the paint vs the clear coat, wet sanding would be pointless, yes/no? I followed the instructions "on the can LOL" And, when I sprayed my clear the black looked fine. I guess my dumb *** should have waited for better lighting.

 

[MrMark]

John, you can't paint without Orange peel unless you are laying down something old school like GM lacquer. No one can so don't feel bad. The GM and FORD robots are as good as it gets, right? Even the Germans have orange peel, although not near as bad as I suspect they have different paint laws. The US and Japanese lay down tons of orange peel. It's the paint.

 

[MrMark]

What were you going to color sand with?

I would start with 2000 3M with a backing pad with a bucket and a few drops of soap. You better go easy.

Then buff. You are going to need to compound with a rotary and a fairly aggressive compound and then taper off to a fine polish and then a glaze to fill in all those swirls you are going to install in that flat paint.

You also need to think about "matching orange peel" Your GM car is full of it so it will look stupid to have a flat repainted section next to an orange peeled original section. So don't sand the orange peel all the way out or you will be sorry.

 

[Joe B.]

What compressor are you running?

 

[kc-steve]

Grats John! I also tried the HF gun kit for my first time a few weeks ago. Not quite the same as yours though.

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/paint/professional-automotive-hvlp-spray-gun-kit-94572.html

It has a couple more adjustments than yours and my first time using a 2-stage urethane PPG I ended up with a little orange peel, not bad though. I need to make some adjustments to get it perfect. BUT for the money it sure does a good job. Beats paying $400 for a Sata or DeVilbiss gun.

It would even make a good secondary gun dedicated to primer.

Steve

 

[Shadowdog500]

I used that same gun to paint the tank on my motorcycle and love the gun. Supposedly that is a chinese copy of a really expensive SATA Gun.

The paint job looks great.

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Will do, thanks for the advice. You nailed it with what every link or video on the net said. So, I will do that.

What were you going to color sand with?

I would start with 2000 3M with a backing pad with a bucket and a few drops of soap. You better go easy.

Then buff. You are going to need to compound with a rotary and a fairly aggressive compound and then taper off to a fine polish and then a glaze to fill in all those swirls you are going to install in that flat paint.

You also need to think about "matching orange peel" Your GM car is full of it so it will look stupid to have a flat repainted section next to an orange peeled original section. So don't sand the orange peel all the way out or you will be sorry.

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Using a borrowed 3HP 21 gal HF

What compressor are you running?

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Thanks man... I was looking at that kit, but I decided with getting the 66222 and the 46719 "little one." I read the reviews on HF's site and everyone was complaining about the cup stripping out due to the plastic threads. The 46719 has metal threads so I went with it. Have not used it yet, so I can't say it's good or bad, but the reviews are good???

Grats John! I also tried the HF gun kit for my first time a few weeks ago. Not quite the same as yours though.

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/paint/professional-automotive-hvlp-spray-gun-kit-94572.html

It has a couple more adjustments than yours and my first time using a 2-stage urethane PPG I ended up with a little orange peel, not bad though. I need to make some adjustments to get it perfect. BUT for the money it sure does a good job. Beats paying $400 for a Sata or DeVilbiss gun.

It would even make a good secondary gun dedicated to primer.

Steve

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

I read that too... Thanks man.

I used that same gun to paint the tank on my motorcycle and love the gun. Supposedly that is a chinese copy of a really expensive SATA Gun.

The paint job looks great.

 

[MrMark]

John, that's a good looking gun. I wonder how it compares to the Taiwan series of guns made by Sharpe? Did you research that?

How did you condition your air supply?

Man, you are addicted to Harbor Freight!@

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

John, that's a good looking gun. I wonder how it compares to the Taiwan series of guns made by Sharpe? Did you research that?

How did you condition your air supply?

Man, you are addicted to Harbor Freight!@

Only research I did was at the HF website, just reading the reviews.

Did not do anything to condition the air; just hooked it up and sprayed.

And, yes, I am addicted to HF. LOL

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Finished!!!

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

Oh, I used the little detail gun on the wheels and front bumper, works great.

 

[MechanicNamedJohn]

I think I'm going to paint my box now, I really like these guns. I will start with my cart first. I hope to have pics up in a week or so.

 

[rayzor32]

im painting my 3rd gen, my first try at body work, im going to have my friend spray the base clear though. Custom PPG red with pearl in it. Im still sanding all by hand using 320 and 400 on a block, only have to scuff most of it except for the front clip, bumper, spoiler and roof where the clear oxidized. I was thinking about getting this gun to spray the primer.

 

[tonycastec]

Anyone know if I can buy SATA 1.8mm or 2.0mm needle/nozzle to spray heavier materials with this gun? It comes with a 1.4mm set and no alternatives from HF.
I searched and found some speculation that it is a copt of "NR65"or 95.NR is the German abreviation for # ,so I guess it may be a number 65(obsolete). I tried TCP Global-they are SATA dealers but got the brush off.
Any suggestions?

 

[wreckerman5357]

I really doubt a SATA needle or nozzle will fit in the HF gun.

 

[tonycastec]

I have found a possible source of upgraded 'SATA' parts for the Harbor Freight 66222 hvlp spray gun:
http://www.finishsystems.com/sataacnnkit.html
Anyone tried this? They have every size you could possibly want.

 

[tyndall]

Anyone know if I can buy SATA 1.8mm or 2.0mm needle/nozzle to spray heavier materials with this gun? It comes with a 1.4mm set and no alternatives from HF.
I searched and found some speculation that it is a copt of "NR65"or 95.NR is the German abreviation for # ,so I guess it may be a number 65(obsolete). I tried TCP Global-they are SATA dealers but got the brush off.
Any suggestions?

SATA parts are stupidly expensive. More than the HF gun costs. Check out the Astro Pneumatic guns. They're better than the HF, come in more sizes and not much more money.

 

[oilslick]

I have a astro pneumatic 1.8mm for heavy primer and no thin water base poly, harbour freight prof gun for base clear works great, body shop guy at work is a friend of mine and made fun of it cause it was 25 bucks, then I asked him to use it for a day on some **** jobs, he said it sprays as well as his high dollar binks though he thinks it to be heavier!! I sprayed a whole kitchen worth of maple cabinets with catalysed laquer and it worked great too.

 

[tonycastec]

the 5 part SATA 'upgrade part in 1.9mm ,in the link above is $107. Is that so high a price for a SATA upgrade?

 

[wreckerman5357]

the 5 part SATA 'upgrade part in 1.9mm ,in the link above is $107. Is that so high a price for a SATA upgrade?

That's right in line with SATA prices. IF those parts would work in the HF gun why would you want to put that much money in a $15 gun.

I would recomend Finex guns to someone on a budget. I have used Iwatas, SATAs, Devilbliss, and Sharper / Finex guns. I am partial to shooting primer with a SATA primer gun, sealer with an Iwata Supernova, solvent color with Iwata LPH400, water with SATA WSB, clear with the Supernova, and detail work with LPH100. That aside there is a Finex kit out there I am listing below that will do everything the guns above will do for less money than any of the guns I listed above. This is the best bargain out there that wants to do some painting and not be frustrated by a ****** gun that rodent work.

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/sharpe-finex-plus-hvlp-spray-gun-kit-24a434-p-16210.aspx

 

[tonycastec]

The 66222 is a $50 gun. See link provided above and here:
http://www.harborfreight.com/high-volume-low-pressure-gravity-feed-spray-gun-66222.html
This gun and the $10 one: 47016 have had good reviews on this Forum
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-high-volume-low-pressure-gravity-feed-spray-gun-47016.html
The recently discontinued SATA NR95 was a $300+ gun and highly acclaimed.
The objective of my research is to find a source of inexpensive needle+nozzle sets. So far the best I have found is an "upgraded" part for $107. Can you do any better?
I am trying to help myself and share with fellow Forum members SATA guns and parts at low prices. Can you contribute prices/sources? Kindly spare us the gratuitous opinions on how I should spend my money.I post those questions on a different Forum.

 

[tyndall]

The 66222 is a $50 gun. See link provided above and here:
http://www.harborfreight.com/high-volume-low-pressure-gravity-feed-spray-gun-66222.html
This gun and the $10 one: 47016 have had good reviews on this Forum
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-high-volume-low-pressure-gravity-feed-spray-gun-47016.html
The recently discontinued SATA NR95 was a $300+ gun and highly acclaimed.
The objective of my research is to find a source of inexpensive needle+nozzle sets. So far the best I have found is an "upgraded" part for $107. Can you do any better?
I am trying to help myself and share with fellow Forum members SATA guns and parts at low prices. Can you contribute prices/sources? Kindly spare us the gratuitous opinions on how I should spend my money.I post those questions on a different Forum.

The NR95 was a fine gun. There are dozens of cheap knock-offs out there. None of them are exactly like the original. None of them sprays as good as the original. I have three that look identical but none of the parts interchange with each other, much less a real NR95.

How you spend your money is your business. But don't come on a public forum and beam about how you found a source of generic, knock off nozzles, that may or may not fit and cost twice the price of the gun, and not expect people to offer smarter alternatives. Your gun is NOT an NR95. It never will be, even with a few SATA parts. Get over it. As a generic, cheap air hog, it sprays ok. The Sharpe Finex mentioned is much better and only $20 more than your nozzle set. An Astro EVO is much better and is less than your nozzle set.

I don't know what you're using your gun for, and with your attitude I don't care. But you do realize that changing nozzles is hard on the gun? That switching from a thick primer or filmy epoxy to a base requires a very detailed cleaning? That's why most people, even amateurs, have different guns. Nothing like f'ing up a paint job because a little piece of dried primer broke off and screwed up your pattern.

But as you don't seem to give a rat's *** about using the right tool for the job, here's a tip. Get a replacement nozzle from HF and drill it out using a micro drill bit.

 

[tonycastec]

I asked for help finding needles for a R95 copy,not your rant.How does prattling about other guns in your collection help us find replacement needles for a HF gun?
Please contribute to the issue or at least make a civil ,technical comment.

 

[neutral]

That guns looks almost identical to the one i just bought although a different brand perhaps from the same factory. I bought the IR 270g. I paid 38 bucks for it so i took a chance. It is my first gun and so i didn't want to over spend depending on if i liked it and if i was any good at painting. I just painted the strut towers on my wifes old car that i have to sell. I had to do major repair to them do to rust issues. ;( any way I walked out of the autobody supply store with a sore feeling in my pants due to the 350 bucks i had to shell out for supplies. What i'm wondering is what pressure did you run at the gun. I had it tuned to 20 at the gun but i think i did it wrong. Are you supposed to regulate it as your pulling the trigger? i watched a video on youtube and that seemed to be what they were saying to do.


This may explain why i felt that it wasn't atomizing as i thought it should. Mine happens to have a 1.5 nozle. I suppose that that would then require higher pressure than a 1.4?

Any way it turned out not too bad. The color match is disapointing considering i used the color code on the car from the factory.

could you perhaps run us through the steps you took and what specs you used?

 

[Adam McLaughlin]

I have tried that gun that you refer too....

and I went right back to my Supernovas and LVX 400s....

Adam

 

[Pro-Painter]

That guns looks almost identical to the one i just bought although a different brand perhaps from the same factory. I bought the IR 270g. I paid 38 bucks for it so i took a chance. It is my first gun and so i didn't want to over spend depending on if i liked it and if i was any good at painting. I just painted the strut towers on my wifes old car that i have to sell. I had to do major repair to them do to rust issues. ;( any way I walked out of the autobody supply store with a sore feeling in my pants due to the 350 bucks i had to shell out for supplies. What i'm wondering is what pressure did you run at the gun. I had it tuned to 20 at the gun but i think i did it wrong. Are you supposed to regulate it as your pulling the trigger? i watched a video on youtube and that seemed to be what they were saying to do.


This may explain why i felt that it wasn't atomizing as i thought it should. Mine happens to have a 1.5 nozle. I suppose that that would then require higher pressure than a 1.4?

Any way it turned out not too bad. The color match is disapointing considering i used the color code on the car from the factory.

could you perhaps run us through the steps you took and what specs you used?

You want to set your pressure while spraying. If you set your pressure to 20psi and then spray, your pressure will drop to almost nothing. Spray guns have a two stage trigger. You should be able to pull the trigger half way to allow only air, and the other half for material. You will feel the difference in the resistant of the trigger. If you can't do this then something is wrong with the gun.
To set your air pressure, pull the trigger half way to allow only air and adjust your pressure to 20-45psi (depending on type of gun: HVLP, LVLP, conventional, tras-tech etc). (HVLP guns use less air pressure then conventional guns.)
You want to adjust your air pressure to your gun & material. The goal is too achieve the lowest air pressure possible to reduce overspray. Start at a low pressure (20psi) and adjust up until your spray pattern is nice and uniform. Your fan pattern should be approx 7-10", at 8-10" away, and should remain straight & even with a slight curve at the bottom for the overlap. Too much air pressure will cause the spray pattern to curve, lean or spray heavy on top and bottom.


The HF gun is sold by many generic tool company's. It is a very basic gun. The only thing it has in common with sata is looks. Nozzles will not interchange. Spray guns are very precision tools. The difference between a 1.3 tip and a 1.8 tip is only 0.5mm That is less then the thickness of mechanical pencil led. But to a spray gun, that .5mm could be the difference between a quality finish and a disaster. Anyone who has ever put a new fluid nozzle on with an old needle will tell you, It is NEVER a good idea to go swapping parts on a spray gun.

BTW: The $49.99 HF gun and the $15.99 gun are the same gun. The only difference is the size of the nozzles and the color. You can interchange all the parts from them. Ive owned both and could not tell any difference in quality, or performance and all the parts where the same. HF took their $15 gun, changed the color, added a 0.1mm smaller nozzle and a cheap regulator and put a $50 price tag on it.

It is the exact same gun.

 

[tonycastec]

PRO Painter,
Thanks for such a helpful and informative reply. I particularly appreciate the way you supported your opinions with facts and experience.
I had been dithering about buying a good used Binks Mach 1 for HVLP. Your contribution above gets me off the fence.

 

[Pro-Painter]

PRO Painter,
Thanks for such a helpful and informative reply. I particularly appreciate the way you supported your opinions with facts and experience.
I had been dithering about buying a good used Binks Mach 1 for HVLP. Your contribution above gets me off the fence.

The M1G is one of the BEST guns ever made. It is very good for smaller compressors because of it's low CFM requirement. IMO, It is the most under rated gun on the market. It is a tried and true design.