Thread: Paint air supply setup

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I've just recently read the last two issues of Street rodder, where the had a two part series on painting your own car. I decided to give it a try on the truck, and was reading up on drying out you airsupply. I came across several different inline or what I believe are in line water and debrie filters. Am I correct in assuming these can be screwed into the air hose prior to the paint gun and pressure valve, downline far enough from the compressor that the condensed water will form and be filtered out. I don't have a plumbed compressor line with any water trap, and was wondering if one of these would work?

Also one of the frustrating things with this article series is it tells you how to assemble the tools and briefly touches on spraying techniques, but completely ignores what comes next, like sanding with what paper and grits between coats, the clear coating process, etc. I am not nieve enough to believe this is as easy as the article states, and they just sort of leave you hanging. Any good DVD's on home auto painting, or web sources? I figure I'll start with a fender. If it comes out to my satisfaction level then I'll give the whle truck a shot!

bump...
i would like some info on this as well...i'm going to hard pipe my compressed air through out the shop...and will try painting for the first time too...

For infrequent use the small screw on desiccant filters are okay, watch the crystals for changing color as they become saturated. Depending on conditions your compressor could push a lot of water, or a modest amount.

For cnile, if you're going to hardline mount a "permanent" unit, try to set it at least 20 feet away from the compressor to give the air/moisture a chance to cool and condense, it will work better. Here's a picture of what I have right now. I went the extra step of putting in a mechanical separator ahead of the desiccant unit to try to trap some of the water particles and prolong the life of the desiccant sack in the bigger unit..........they aren't cheap, but I am.

thanks bob...

sorry stovens...was trying to hyjack your thread...just in the same boat as you..

peace

john

http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23867


Try this link from BrianRupnow

Hey Steve, I got a lot of help for my paint from these guys here:

http://autobodystore.com/forum/index.php

http://www.roadsters.com/filler/

here's another:

http://www.autobody101.com/forums/

I found more I just can't find them, I'll do a quick search and get back to you. That first link I found the best.

I can tell you what I was told if you're going to bare metal.....

1. I spread the filler and let it dry to a cheese like consistancy, used a rasp like tool to form down the high spots, let it dry about 20-30 minutes then hit it with 36-40 grit to shape it, add more coats if necessary and repeat. Finish it off with 80 grit.
2. For the glaze I spread it over everything to fill in grooves and pinholes and blend the edges, sand with 80 to get the shape and 120 for finish.
3. Sprayed primer sealer and two coats of high fill, I could still see some imperfections at this point but after lightly wet sanding with 400 it came out really nice.

I used a single stage with no sanding or buffing so I'll try to find you that link.

Sean

Originally Posted by rc57

http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23867


Try this link from BrianRupnow

RC57 and Brian thank you, clever idea for getting those 22 feet condensed into a smaller area. Has anyone ever used PVC pipe for a water trap? I was wondering if it can withstand the pressure? I would be max using 125 psi in the system. Also has anyone used the Harbor Freight water traps? They just look like they will leak air! Northern tools has some more stout looking units.

Cnile64- no problem I'm interested too!
Sean(SGO)- thank you as well, I'll start reading up on the sites you provided. I took Daves advice and got a DA sander and some various length blocks for automotive sanding. I still Have a couple of holes in the window channel that I want to patch with steel plates the then fill. I figure it will be alot easier to do with the hood off, and engine out, than later, so that and getting the compressor sorted out re my priorities roght now. On a possitive note Summit has a 20% sale on all tools right now, which includes the startline paint gun combo by Devil Bliss dropping the two gun set, with cleaning tools etc. to about 100 bucks, so that's my next big purchase along with the compressor stuff.

DO NOT USE PVC FOR AIR SUPPLY! If it cracks or gets hit you can have plastic splinters grenading around. Safety first.

Well, I've used 1/2 I.D. PCV pipe on my compressor and 2 of my buddies garages... now keep in mind, these are not a professional shop... they're just home garage setups... The line goes up from the compressor, along the ceiling, drops down a post to the water trap and back up the the hose reel. It's been years without incident... the pipe is rated for 600 PSI.

Having said that, yes copper lines would be better without a doubt or the new nylon tubing designed for compressor lines which is what I plan to update with soon... (See attachment)


Below is link for US Dept of Labor document on the use of PCV pipe on compressed air or gas lines...

http://www.osha.gov/dts/hib/hib_data/hib19880520.html

Originally Posted by 25T_Bucket

Well, I've used 1/2 I.D. PCV pipe on my compressor and 2 of my buddies garages... now keep in mind, these are not a professional shop... they're just home garage setups... The line goes up from the compressor, along the ceiling, drops down a post to the water trap and back up the the hose reel. It's been years without incident... the pipe is rated for 600 PSI.

Having said that, yes copper lines would be better without a doubt or the new nylon tubing designed for compressor lines which is what I plan to update with soon... (See attachment)


Below is link for US Dept of Labor document on the use of PCV pipe on compressed air or gas lines...

http://www.osha.gov/dts/hib/hib_data/hib19880520.html

Interesting. It seems ABS plastic is ok for this according to OSHA.
I just figured plastic pipe of some sort would be easier to assemble, cheaper, probably be easier to get air tight seals, and be much lighter to mount to the wall. So I will modify my question, Has anyone ever used any type of plastic piping including ABS or the nylon tubing mentioned above?
I'd love to use copper but it is getting prohibitively expensive, and I'm ok at sweat welding but not the best! Galvy is cheap, but I was more worried about weight and rust forming inside of the pipes. I definately want it to be safe, as I'm not into being hit by any kind of exploding pipe!

You might want to check this out....

MASTER KIT (1 MANIFOLD KIT, 2 OUTLET KITS, 100 FT TUBING) for $139.99

http://www.rapidairproducts.com/rapidair.asp

You know for the price, and ease of use this is exactly what I need! Thank you. I love things like this that work for my home use setup, and are packaged to take the guess work out of what I need! Plus we have ten days of rain scheduled, so this will be a functional use of my time while I wait for sunnier days! Thanks again!

25T
Just got off the phone with Rapid Air. Really nice folks, helped me custom make a kit for my shop. They also sell their stuff thru northern tools. I got a single line setup, but a dual manifold(saves about 20 bucks which I put towards a regulated water trap), but gives you the option to unplug a second port on the manifold to have a second line plumbed in at another point in time. Thanks again for this info!