Painting a car can be an intimidating task, especially for first-time painters or DIY enthusiasts. Choosing the right paint sprayer is crucial to achieving a smooth, professional-looking finish. Many people wonder if an airless paint sprayer can be used to paint automotive surfaces or if an HVLP spray gun specifically designed for cars is necessary. There are pros and cons to both methods.
How Airless Paint Sprayers Work
Airless paint sprayers operate by pushing paint through a small nozzle at extremely high hydraulic pressure, typically between 1500-3000 PSI. This high pressure atomizes the paint into a fine mist that can be sprayed evenly onto surfaces. Airless sprayers do not require an air compressor since they rely solely on hydraulic force to push out the paint.
The main advantage of airless sprayers is their ability to spray high volumes of thick, unthinned paint quickly. The high pressure allows paint to be sprayed through longer hoses and reach greater distances compared to HVLP spray guns. This makes airless sprayers ideal for painting houses, fences, barns, and other large surfaces.
However, the high pressure and unthinned paint of airless sprayers also create some drawbacks, especially for automotive painting. Let’s look at why many experts don’t recommend using airless sprayers for painting cars.
Drawbacks of Using Airless Sprayers on Cars
There are a few key reasons why airless paint sprayers are not usually the best choice for applying paint to cars:
- Overspray – The high pressure causes excess paint mist to bounce off the car surface, resulting in a significant amount of overspray. This wastes paint and requires extra prep to cover surrounding areas.
- Uneven coats – It’s easy to apply too much paint in some spots and not enough in others with an airless sprayer. The full force of the paint comes out, making it hard to control the uniformity of the coat.
- Paint defects – The high pressure can cause more dirt and debris to bounce back onto the wet paint. Runs and sags are also more common due to too much paint being applied.
- Lack of finesse – HVLP spray guns allow for very fine finish work due to their lower pressure and adjustable fan spray patterns. This level of fine detailing is very difficult with airless sprayers.
- Noise – Airless sprayers tend to be very noisy when operating, which isn’t ideal in an automotive painting environment. HVLP guns are much quieter.
For these reasons, most professional painters and experienced DIYers do not recommend using airless sprayers when painting cars. The finish achieved is not as high quality as with an HVLP spray gun designed for automotive use.
HVLP Spray Guns for Automotive Painting
High Volume Low Pressure (HVLP) spray guns are considered the best tool for applying paint to cars. HVLP spray guns work by flowing a high volume of paint through the gun using 10 PSI or less of atomizing air pressure.
The key benefits of HVLP spray guns for car painting include:
- Less overspray – The lower pressure results in less paint bounce back and overspray. This provides better paint transfer efficiency onto the car’s surface.
- Thin coats – The lower pressure allows for applying light coats of paint evenly across the entire car. This results in a perfectly smooth finish without runs.
- Better control – With adjustable airflow caps and fan pattern controls, HVLP spray guns allow precise fine-tuning of the paint flow for meticulous results.
- High-quality finish – The optimized atomization of paint from an HVLP gun provides a showroom quality finish that is hard to achieve with airless sprayers.
- Quieter operation – HVLP spray guns produce a soft hissing sound rather than the roar of airless sprayers.
Professional automotive painters rely exclusively on HVLP spray guns for applying high gloss clear coats, metallic base coats, primers, and other automotive paints. For those wanting to replicate professional results, an HVLP spray gun is highly recommended over an airless sprayer.
Using Airless Sprayers for Automotive Painting
While airless sprayers are not ideal for painting cars, some DIY enthusiasts have made them work with careful preparation and technique adjustments. Here are some tips for using an airless sprayer on automotive paint jobs:
- Thin the paint – Paint designed for airless sprayers needs to be thinned significantly, around 50%, to be able to flow through the lower pressure hoses and nozzle of a car spray gun.
- Remove filters/strainers – The filters in the spray gun and siphon tube should be removed so thinned paint can flow easily. Start with a clean bucket strainer.
- Use lowest pressure setting – Keep the airless sprayer’s pressure setting as low as possible to reduce overspray. Around 1000 PSI or less is recommended.
- Overlap spray passes – Use overlapping horizontal and vertical spray passes to build up the paint coats gradually and evenly.
- Apply light coats – Keep each spray pass very brief to ensure only a fine mist of paint is going on the car. Allow proper flash time between coats.
- Use smaller spray tips – Smaller tips like 310 or 210 help reduce the amount of paint flow compared to tips used for painting houses.
- Maintain constant distance – Hold the spray gun at an ideal constant distance from the car surface as you make passes to ensure even paint build.
- Allow extra dry time – Give the paint ample time to dry between coats to prevent runs, sags, and other defects from too much paint build up.
Even with these adjustments, an airless sprayer is still not going to produce the same flawless results as a true HVLP automotive spray gun. However, with enough practice and preparation, airless sprayers can be suitable for painting cars in certain situations.
Recommended Airless Sprayer Models for Automotive Use
If you do decide to use an airless sprayer on your car paint project, these models offer the best results:
- Graco Magnum X5 – A compact and lightweight airless sprayer that can output up to 0.24 gallons per minute at 3000 PSI max pressure. It has fully adjustable pressure and fan controls suitable for auto painting.
- Wagner Flexio 590 – A good entry-level airless sprayer with adjustable flow control and multiple spray tips. Has enough power at 1500 PSI to atomize thinned automotive paint.
- Titan Impact 410 – A high-end airless sprayer with a 515 reversible spray tip, digital display, and slow drive for extra control when spraying paint.
- Campbell Hausfeld DH650001AV – This budget-friendly airless sprayer can output 0.34 GPM at 2000 PSI. Includes multiple spray tips.
No matter which airless sprayer you use, be prepared to thin the paint substantially, do multiple light coats, and allow extra drying time between coats to achieve decent results. Proper surface prep and spray technique is also crucial.
Recommended HVLP Spray Gun Kits for DIY Automotive Painting
For those wanting professional quality paint results on their car or restoration project, investing in an HVLP spray gun system designed for automotive use is highly recommended over relying on an airless sprayer. Here are some top HVLP spray gun kits for DIYers:
- Fuji Semi-PRO 2 HVLP Spray System – Comes with a 900 watt turbine and lightweight non-bleeder spray gun. Great for applying primers, sealers, base coats, and clear coats flawlessly.
- Astro Pneumatic 4008 Spray Gun Kit – Features an adjustable EV-65 spray gun and 8 CFM/90 PSI air compressor to deliver flawless car paint jobs.
- TCP Global HVLP Spray Gun Set – Includes a high-powered turbine and TE-10 gun with 1.3mm tip ideal for automotive painting applications.
- DeVilbiss Finishline HVLP Spray Gun Kit – Comes with the versatile FLG-670 spray gun and 8023 air compressor for uniform coats.
- Neiko 31216A HVLP Gravity Feed Air Spray Gun – For those on a budget, this gun with 1.8mm tip and air cap gets good results for under $40. Just add any air compressor.
While more of an investment upfront, a purpose-built HVLP spray gun system will provide much better results and make painting your car far easier compared to trying to use a general purpose airless sprayer. The flawless high-gloss finish will be worth it!
Key Takeaways on Airless Sprayers and Cars
Painting a car with high quality results requires the right sprayer tool for the job. Here are the key points to remember:
- Airless sprayers are not usually recommended for painting automotive surfaces due to overspray, uneven coats, and lack of fine-tuning capability.
- HVLP spray guns designed for cars provide lower air pressure, fine atomization, adjustable spray patterns, and overall better control for high quality paintjobs.
- It is possible to use airless sprayers on cars, but the finish will not be as flawless as with an HVLP spray gun unless extensive preparation is done.
- When using airless sprayers, the paint must be thinned properly, low pressure tips used, and light coats applied to have any chance of decent results.
- Models like the Graco Magnum X5 or Wagner Flexio 590 can be suitable airless sprayer options for automotive use if proper technique is used.
- For DIYers wanting a professional-like finish, investing in an HVLP spray gun kit made for cars, such as models from Fuji or DeVilbiss, is highly recommended.
- HVLP spray guns atomize paint optimally at under 10 PSI for minimal overspray and the ability to apply uniform coats for a perfect factory finish.
- Prepping the surface properly, maintaining ideal spray distance, and allowing adequate drying time between coats are also essential when painting a car regardless of sprayer type.
- Trying to paint a car with a cheap household HVLP sprayer or one not designed for automotive use will also produce disappointing results.
- For maximum control and the highest quality finish, always opt for an HVLP spray gun specifically engineered for applying automotive paints.
- Airless sprayers simply cannot match the fine atomization, mist control, and adjustable settings of a true HVLP car paint spray gun.
- While it may be tempting to rely on an airless sprayer you already own, you’ll achieve better looking, longer lasting results by using the proper HVLP spray gun designed for the job.
Final thought
It is possible but challenging to get decent results when painting a car with an airless sprayer. For anyone wanting to replicate professional quality paint jobs at home, a purpose-built high volume low pressure HVLP spray gun is without question the sprayer of choice.
