Awl --

Got a few Q's, hoping someone can post a quick "faq" on using an air paint
spray gun -- for outside woodwork, like T1-11 fencing, gates, and
pressure-treated stockade fencing, etc.

We had an electric/airless Wagner ditty hanging around for quite some time,
never used, and yesterday just could not get it to work, not with paint,
water, nada. And what a racket it makes!
And I could see, from the pita clean up, that even if it did work, it would
proly never work again, from clogs, etc. The guys at my lumberyard were no
fan of this airless-wagner stuff.

So it turns out I had Husky siphon-feed air spray gun stored away, never
used (like http://tinyurl.com/93p396e , closer to the #6500, actual sku #
515-507)
so I hooked up one of them bitty pressure regulators (like
http://tinyurl.com/clzjlcu
, except with a separator), and WaLa, I'm spraying paint!!! Water based.

This husky gun seems to be "high pressure", as opposed to HVLP, but I put a
regulator on it anyway, as the box mentioned cfm at 40 psi, so I figgered
the operating pressure would be in the area of 40 psi, and my compressor is
80-110 psi.
That 40 drops to 20 psi upon spraying, but this range seems to feel right
for the gun -- with all 5 mins of my paint spraying experience.

So there seems to be basically 3 adjustments: 1. inlet pressure 2. knob
controlling trigger "depth" or spray amount and 3. a knob above that for
the "fan" or spread of the spray. As well as the "wings" of the nozzle for
hor'zl or vert direction to the spray.
And viscosity of the paint, which seems to need to be on the thin side.
Oh, and of course distance from the gun to the work!!!

Does HVLP have any advantages over non-hvlp?
Can a high pressure gun be "converted" to a HVLP gun by simply dialing in
lower pressure and perhaps adjusting the above knobs somehow?
Would another nozzle be required? I haven't seen replacement nozzles for
this spray gun. Are these generic/available?

Seems to lay down nice fine layers, which iiuc is much better for adhesion,
as opposed to thick brush layers. Will have to lay down several of these,
tho.

Does a gravity fed gun have any advantages over the siphon?
Do the more expensive "airless" sprayers have advantages over air, besides
not needing a sep. compressor/air tank?
I see they use high psi like a power washer, but I don't know if this is
necessarily an advantage -- seems like just another thing to break. The air
guns seem inherently simple, reliable.

I think this gun is going to work well, just that filling up the quart
container is going to be a bit of a pain.
Relatively easy to clean.
If I added a hose to this gun, could I siphon right from a paint can on the
ground or perhaps on a cart?

I hear people knock Husky as a crap HD brand, but I have one of their
compressors (26 gal), very quiet (for a compressor), heads and shoulders
above Sears compressors. The pressure regulator is a little crude, but
other than that, it's been bery bery good to me. Similarly, this husky
spray gun does not seem chintzy at all, almost heavy duty.

Appreciate any heads up, as I'm going to be doing some real painting
tomorrow, on T1-11, which is difficult to brush or roller.
--
EA