???? on spraying primer

[firefighter3516]

okay everyone I have not realy ever painted before. I have been working on the hood of my charger and went to spray primer on it last night and it went on like snow not wet really dry. I bought a cheaper hvlp gun just for priming and followed the instructions on the primer. Can anyone tell me what I might have been doing wrong. Not home right now to give any info on what kinda primer it was. But I need help so I can prime the area I was working on.

Thanks
Joey

[700jfm]

I like to help with your Question but I don't know the answer  maybe air pressure to high.

[hemi-hampton]

Could be lots of different things,   I like to use a bigger 2.0 fluid nozzle when spraying thick primer. your average gun is around 1.2 Could be to thick not thinned enough, or gun just not turned up enough, or distance from panel to far, fan to wide, not enough air pressure, to much air pressure, cheap 2hp air compressor only good for pumping up bicycle tires & footballs, ect, ect. Put a peice of paper on wall for a test spray after making some adjustments. LEON.

[firefighter3516]

Thanks Leon. I will try them things out. I was using 45 psi like the can said to use and I did try turning the gun up as I went but that didnt help much. I will work on it.

[Silver R/T]

could be lots of different things but do not worry, its just a primer and you'll be sanding it anyways to make it smooth. Now it really depends on how good do you want your charger to look like. Don't get me wrong but pretty much every guy grabs a gun and wants their ride to look like it came out of pro body shop. There's too much to learn about paint before you can spray a nice paint job. Lots of patience and practice, practice...is the key.

[firefighter3516]

Thanks Silever I tried spaying my hood again today and it come out a whole lot better. I use more thinner this time more the that instuctions called for and it came out slick this time. Thanks for the support. I think I have figured it out this now. And I am not looking for a perfect job when I ever do get around to paint I just want it to look pretty good it is going to be a driver.

Joey

[Silver R/T]

you can spray primer pretty thick, remember youll be sanding it off, most of it anyways. If you get a run or two its ok. It's actually pretty good idea to practice with primer, your pattern, distance, speed can improve if you do primering and play with it as you go.

[hemi-hampton]

I worked at one body shop where the bodyman didn't know how to mix primer even though they been bodyman for years. The can said 1 to 1 to 1 1/2. Which translates to 1 part primer to 1 or1 1/2  part thinner (reducer, ect, ect) or for example 10 ounces primer to 10 ounces thinner for thick side up to 15 ounces thinner for thinner side. This was Kondar Laquer primer if I remember right. Every time I picked up the Primer gun it was so thick it sprayed like spider webs. Cup ran empty & I refilled mixing with the proper ratio. Sprayed nice. Body man picks it up & say's who mixed this water up. I say whata mean water. I mixed it on the thick side 1to 1 instead of 1 1/2. He said I did it wrong. When I explained to him how the ratio system worked it was obvious he had no clue what I was talking about.  What he thought was it was 1 part Primer, say 10 ounces (1 part) to 5 ounces (1/2) instead of 15 onces 1 1/2.  So, now it was very clear why this primer was spider webbing being to thick.So I was amazed to see I was working with old time professional Bodyman that had no clue how to mix primer all these years. Unfortunately I see this type of problems at many of the Body Shops I have worked at. Incompetancy runs rampant. LEON.

[firefighter3516]

I mixed it 1 to 1 1/4 like the can said but it didn't work so I mixed it 1 to 1 3/4 and it worked good then so I guess I just will have to use it thinner than the can says to.     
Thanks Leon

I see what you mean by practicing with primer to help you learn to paint because you can just sand it even if you have a run. So I plan on practicing alot lol.
Thanks Silver

Oh yeah I am using evercoat durabuild primer surfacer

Joey

[Silver R/T]

you have to adjust reducer. I like to put extra in clear coats and you have to really to flow it out better. It wouldn't hurt if you put extra reducer to make it flow better, but like Ive said before you dont really have to make your primer perfect. Clears do require little bit more reducer to make them flow out better but primers and bases you can just mix according to the instructions. You have to adjust your flash time(dry time between coats) accordingly since you add extra reducer it'll dry slower. Also there's different kinds of reducer and you should use one according to the temperature. You want to use fast reducer for winter time and slow reducer for summer.

[hemi-hampton]

I haven't used that evercoat durabuild but if it's anything like there featherfill then it's pretty thick stuff. The real thick primer will spray better with a bigger fluid nozzle/cap.  I had to special order my 2.0 tip. It just wont come out a 1.2 tip that easy in my opinion.  LEON

[firefighter3516]

Thanks everyone for your help. I am about finished with the hood and it is coming out nice especially with all the help.

Joey

[john108]

I believe the epoxy primer I used said to spray at about 10 psi at the gun.
John