I have a cheapy Harbor Freight HVLP gun that I want to use to shoot the engine bay. There is a regulator mounted on the gun, a regulator on the dryer/filter and a regulator on the compressor itself. On the tip of the gun it says 10psi max and in the manual it say 15 to 50psi range. On the sheet for the paint I am using which is PPG OMNI AE (MAE) Acrylic Enamel found here: http://www.ppg.com/refinishftpsite/docs/ob16.pdf it needs 8-10 psi at the air cap. Here is the manual for the gun Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices Now what do I set all these regulators at?

Can anyone help?

 

IM new to this myself...But my gun likes 20 to 30 at the gun with the trigger pulled. I have it set at 25 at the gun with the trigger pulled. This seems to work well. I have the pressure set around 45 at the compressor and gun without the trigger pulled. You loose pressure depending on the length of the hose.

Take some time to tune it before you start spraying your work. To get the best finish.

 

yeah mine liked low 20's with a 20' hose.

At the compressor it does not matter what the pressure is.
AT the gun (which you should ALWAYS have another regulator and drier) is what matters.
Start at 10, and hit the wall or some junk cardboard see how the pattern is. Increase to 15, repeat, 20, repeat... until you find what works best for the gun and paint.

 

ok so its basically a trial and error thing? What does it mean on the nozzle where it says 10psi max....how it that possible if I have 10-25psi at the gun?