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Gunsmithing Cerakote spray gun

Robdaniels

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Minuteman
Dec 29, 2011
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I know this has been beat to death, but I have a question.
I try not to get the cheapest and I stay away from the best because of my limited budget, so I usually buy in the middle of the road somewhere that doesn't hurt my pocket so much.
Has anyone used an Ingersoll Rand 200G Edge Series .8 nozzle?
Will it be alright for spraying cerakote, duracoat, etc.? Or can you recommend something in a price range around a $100?
 
I have a Devilbiss touch up gun that works great, cant remember the model but its chrome with blue anodized dials on it with an aluminum hopper. It was right around $100 on Amazon.
 
Thank you, I am also looking at a Warwick 878.
It looks better than the Ingersoll Rand 200G.

Oh, I forgot. I have been reading the forum for quite some time but this is my first post.
I am getting into spraying gun finishes here on the Oregon coast. I have a blast cabinet, an oven and a paint booth all set up and working.
Nice to meet ya folks. Thanks
 
+1 for a SATA mini jet
Devilbiss SRI and Iwatta LPH80 are also ones to consider. Don't cheep out and regret it later. Atomization is key in any spray able coating. Especially important when dealing with lower viscosity materials. Compared to automotive paints that these guns are designed for cerakote is very thin. Which ever gun you choose get a 0.8 fluid tip and remember cleanliness is next to godliness. That goes for the spray gun, the parts being coated and the air supply. Just my $0.02

Donald
 
I have a Sata Minijet 1.2 tip and a Iwata LPH80 .8 tip, the Iwata is easier with the .8 tip to lay it down thinner (for me anyways). I like the sata when Im spraying gun stocks and bigger parts, Just my .02

Kc
 
Thanks for all the input folks. Looks like I save up a bit and bite the bullet.
 
I started doing gun finishing quite a few years ago....used Norrells moly resin, gun cote, ten rings stuff, all the brownells coatings, and some specialized stuff from Dupont.......I have used several spray guns but never put much thought into using a professional gun, I have in the past year starting using only cerakote H ( just finished a nice oven build ) and have been using a harbor freight $14 touch up gun with very good results...Im not cheap, just never thought about a better spray gun....can someone tell me what kind of improvements they noticed from going from a cheap to a pro gun..??


Also would this be a good mid priced gun..
New DeVilbiss Startingline Mini Detail Touch Up HVLP Spray Gun Auto Car Paint | eBay
 
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Something I have learned with paint guns:

Take a minimalist approach. Tearing them down only accelerates the expiration date.

Finish your job. Get a squirt bottle and fill with thinner. I know c-coat says to use acetone. I switched to good ol wash thinner for un cleaning and it works fine.

Flush the cup with clean thinner. Let it run through the gun wide open till its colorless. Back flush using the squirt bottle needle to push solvent througj the needle/tip orifice.

Pull the horn and submerge scrub with a soft bristle to clear out the air ports on the horns.

Fill the cup half way with clean thinner and toss the horn into it to soak As the gun sits on the shelf.

Hang up the gun and go on with your life.

Everytime you tearing one apart you damage the packings and seals. NEVER submerge the whole gun in solvent. All youll do is dry stuff out and shrink seals/packings.

You need to oil the back side of the needle occassionally. The air seal needs to seal w/o letting the needle stick.


Just what Ive learned over the years doing this and through painting the occassional car.

Get the best gun you can afford and make dern sure you have sterile air going to the gun. Water is poison. So is oil..

Hope this helps.

C.
 
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Chad,

Yes, the threads are what seemed to wear mostly and those parts didn't come with a 'rebuild' kit. ;-(

I tried your general approach initially but with the C-Series that I was using then. But I could never get the darn thing really clean inside. This was with the cheap guns that NIC sends with their kits so that perhaps had some part in the situation. That stuff is terrible at drying enough that even MEK hardly touches it without some sort of wiping forces.
Of course then I just threw the thing away and moved on to the next one (I still have a whole drawer full of the things).

When I bought the FINEX I started being much more careful with cleaning and disassembling it each time.

I find that the H-Series is much easier to clean up so maybe I should go back and give the other method another try.
 
I find that the H-Series is much easier to clean up so maybe I should go back and give the other method another try.[/QUOTE]

Never used the cerakote C- series, but seems the H series is no problem to clear out of my spray gun, no disassembly, just spray thinner until clear.....
 
By the time you get a proper blast cabinet, fill it with 120 grit aluminum oxide, get a compressor with proper filtration big enough to run it, get an oven big enough for rifles and a soak tank the $350 Sata or even the $750 certification class is a drop in the Cerakote bucket. If you are not going to get an ffl, city licenses and go pro, it's far cheaper to just farm it out. Keep in mind working on other peoples guns come with risks far exceeding $350 every time you touch a gun.
 
Ive been using Sata spray guns for a long time. I used to paint cars with them. The other day I went on Amazon and bought a mini HVLP for $25. It works just fine. Sure its not a Sata but you don't need a $400 gun to spray those finishes.
 
By the time you get a proper blast cabinet, fill it with 120 grit aluminum oxide, get a compressor with proper filtration big enough to run it, get an oven big enough for rifles and a soak tank the $350 Sata or even the $750 certification class is a drop in the Cerakote bucket. If you are not going to get an ffl, city licenses and go pro, it's far cheaper to just farm it out. Keep in mind working on other peoples guns come with risks far exceeding $350 every time you touch a gun.


I've got well over 50K soaked into our paint/finishing dept between booths, ovens, blast cabinets, etc.

Never a truer statement has been made here on the hide.

Well said sir!
 
I've been at it for 6 years now and cheap guns suck if your in it to make money. I have 3 sata's and 2 SRI pro's now, 3 big sand blasters, commercial exahust system, a monster compressor, custom oven and a very elaborate air system with coolers. All housed in it's own building with heat, air and kick ass sound system. 1/2" air lines to blasters....volume gets stuff done handily.

Lots of $$$ invested and the next step is automation for blasting and maybe some painting if the contract on the horizon goes through.
 
I know you guys are recommending some high end guns, but honestly I got a no name mini HVLP spray gun from Harbor Freight and it has worked great for me.
 
I know you guys are recommending some high end guns, but honestly I got a no name mini HVLP spray gun from Harbor Freight and it has worked great for me.

The principle difference here guys is what can work vs what works reliably. A hobbiest at home can get away with a hot air gun blowing through some hvac ducting for an oven. Anyone in production will quickly realize how bad this ends up for the long haul. Theres reasons why expensive tools exist. Its not just to tout how much your invested in the trade on a gun forum. I choose stuff because I need a drama free life. A ceracoat job pays a fixed amount. If I want to keep some of that money for myself I gotta know that my paint gun isnt going to fritz out when I need it. I was stubborn and went through 4x cheapo imports before I realized this. My Sata has run like a champ. Its money well spent if you have any delusions of doing this routinely.

I think this is really all anyone is saying when pushing towards better equipment.

Best of luck on your venture op.
 
I know you guys are recommending some high end guns, but honestly I got a no name mini HVLP spray gun from Harbor Freight and it has worked great for me.
Like a Hi Point vs Glock. One is disposable and the other an investment. If you take really good care of it, the elchepo will give you a service life of around 50 cycles The Sata will go in the thousands and is almost infinitely rebuildable. It also will run a much finer better controlled pattern. Ask my opinion on the service life in a few more years. Stay away from the air dry stuff. H Series is a lot easier to clean up and is easier on the fumes.