"MitchA" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I'm a hobbyist woodworker and also dabble in the occassional DIY project
and am looking to spedn less than $200 on an HVLP unit. I see that my
options are limited to the Wagner XTRA Paint Crew ($178) or the Campbell
Hausfeld HV1001 ($179.95). I have seen plenty of bad reviews for Wagner
products but can't find any on CH. Can anyone here chime in with
experiences with either unit?

Thanks.

You are well positioned to buy yourself a pretty good gun, with that budget.
I'm assuming that you're budgeting $200 for a gun, from what you post above.
Within that budget, there is no need to look at low end consumer guns like
you will find at HF, when you can go to Keystone Automotive or a like
supplier of body shops, and buy a good quality aftermarket gun. For
somewhere around $150 you can buy a gun that will serve you forever, that
will spray almost any type of paint (except latex which is not a paint -
it's a..... ummmm.... something else), and that you will be able to get
parts for as your needs change, etc. CH makes good compressors, but I'm not
really impressed with the air equipment they sell - I'd stay away from the
CH guns. With a decent quality gun you'll be able to get the spray patterns
you need for different applications (a decent fan), the right adjustments to
accomodate different materials, (those two statements are inter-related), a
reliable HVLP design inside the gun - not all guns sold as HVLP really give
you HVLP. On cheaper guns, in order to atomize the paint you end up
cranking up the pressure and the gun does not somehow magically reduce it to
under 25psi. What you end up with is nothing more than a standard gun and
none of the benefits of HVLP.

--

-Mike-