SAM YANCY on wed 4 jul 01
Mel/Moderator - your chioce to use this of course,but if you decide to
not publish this, please let me know why ( I think it would helo a lot
of potters trying to spray glaze). Perhaps I can do better next time.
P.S. I was right near you in Little Falls MN on Tuesday to a mother-in
-law funeral. Time precluded a call or visit to your studio. Thank you.
SLY (Sam Lucien Yancy). P,S, edit as you wish but I believe that the
HPLV Really works for glaze spraying at very low cost.
I sent the following message (After this Preface) in response to a
request for a spray gun suggestion for pottery glazing. I got a couple
of messages back recommending Devilbis and/or Pasche spray guns and
downplaying my suggestions. That's ok, everybody has a opinion, but
personally, as a custom automotive and motorcycle painter for 25 plus
years, and a potter for five years, I have used them all. I have in my
possession about 20 Devilbus spray guns of all sizes, at least 15 Binks
spray guns of all sizes and many -many Pasche and Thayer and Chadler air
brushes. All of these were to be used with only thin, to the consistency
of milk. solvent based paint, not water based. The somewhat new powder
coat spray guns spray a crayon type powder that is magnetically
attracted to a object by electrostatic bonding. The powder goes on easy,
with a strong coating but must be "no-touch" rolled into a oven at about
400 degrees to "bond to the substrate. Mostly used in production runs or
places where you want strong protective finish and no concern for orange
peel. Great for use on automotive frames. I have used these guns too. In
my opinion, NONE of the guns mentioned above are of very much use for
pottery glazing. You can use stains in some if very thin, but clogging
and overspray usually is what you get. If you care to experiment, go
ahead. Most of these guns large enough to pass a glaze are over $200
each. I tried using a couple of mine, and ruined a couple of very
expensive spray guns with very poor results. FYI - I had to quit custom
painting several years ago due to osha and health reasons so since my
wife was into pottery - i joined in and LOVE it. Very few pieces that I
make are dipped or brushed; I try to spray whenever I can. I also made a
spray booth for this use for less than $30. and it works great - and is
portable. Final note - the HVLP Gravity feed spray gun recommended is
for several reasons, one - it is inexpensive and has a good
nozzle/orfice size for thinned glazes; two, it is very easy to clean
between glaze changes, three - it has very little or any overspray so it
can be used indoors with a home made spray booth if careful Four - it
is designed for a water based media (like thinned glazes) Five - it give
a great glaze finish when fired, no blotches of missed spots or
bubbling/pin holes, ect. Finally / What do you have to loose? $50.00.
Any other spray gun that I have used is inferior to this spray gun
system in price and performance. As a compulsive buyer and to have
spares I bought SIX of these guns for spares from my pottery sales
(believe due to my great glazes). See following for original
message.
HI - suggest you check out Harborfreight.com and order their HVLP
Gravity FeedSpray gun for $45.95. Item number 43430-75CA. It's great for
glazing
with very little overspray or dust - and most important LOW pressure.. I
brought
it to theattention of the Pottery teacher at Skyline College last year.
He bought
on on myrecommendation. In a class room setting, it is used daily by
many
students with noproblems. I have six myself, two for glazing, two for
painting and two
spares. I was a long time (25+ years) Custom auto/motorcycle painter
before getting to my current LOVE- POTTERY and CLAY so I have the
experience with many many spray guns from pasche to whatever. You can
adjust this recommended gun from a 1/2 inchcircle to a fan width of
about 6-9 inches. Trick is to put on WET coats (two) with aboutone
minute wait between coats. Also you can shade glazes with this gun.
Very easy to do. This spray gun is easy to clean in plain running water.
The glaze should
be strained and about the thickness of cream for best results - it is
important to not clog the gun. Compressor of 1/2 horse (plus
recommended) can be used
as long as you have an a storage tank of at least 10 gallons - this is a
MUST.
Do not buy oiless or a combination compressor. You want one with a
motor and
compressor with a drive belt between. You do not need a turbine high
flow - low pressure
compressor. Harbor freight usually has what you need for about $200 or
so. Don't
skimp on the compressor. Once you have one, you will always find a new
need for overspray and a very clean shop - also at least 80% of the
glaze gets to your
creation so very little glaze loss. Sorry about the rambling -hope this
helps
you-all out there. Sam (and Mary Jean) in FOGGY Daily City California,
near the
Beach. Peace!!!
P.S. If you want more info on how to use this gun or special techniques
like shading or pattern glazing , send me a question.
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