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Hey, I acknowledge this won't be of interest to many of you, but maybe one or two of you will like it.
If HVLP isn't familiar to you, it stands for High Velocity Low Pressure. The technology is used primarily by cabinet makers, fine furniture finishers, or is increasingly used for painting cars. One of the positives is that HVLP doesn't create a room full of VOCs when you spray it as most of the paint makes it to the intended target.
Is an HVLP Turbine the right tool for finishing the average scroll saw project? Unless you were finishing a lot of stuff at once, this probably isn't the solution for small projects as it takes 10-12 minutes to clean the gun afterwards (I am OCD about it, I keep the gun pristine). Depending on the finish used, you may have to run it through a filter to take out gunk, so that is another 5 to 10 minutes if you have to do that.
One of my kids is remodeling their kitchen and currently finishing new Kitchen Cabinets, and asked about sprayers and what to get. During my research, I ran across this HVLP DYI video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8BtjcgxbEA&t=391sz and was intrigued, so before I knew it, I had ordered a motor.
Building one of these is very much like constructing a birdhouse around a motor and it's intakes, and exhausts. A few filters are needed to provide clean air, and two plumbing connectors to tie the turbine to a hose, and a few odds and ends. You will need your scroll saw, or at least I did to cut out the hole in the mount, other holes for vents/panels and such. There are few other things to install like switch, and things to know like putting a 3/16 bleeder hole in the manifold if you are using a "non-bleed gun."
Here is the build list:
$250.00 5-Stage Vacuum motor unit, exact same as is in the Fuji
$20.00 Two small overpriced pieces of truly horrific Plywood from HomeDepot, one 23/32, and one 15/32
$2.00 1 1/4" PVC Bushing. (Fits outlet of motor, and transitions to MIP threads
$7.00 Brass fitting Goes from MGH (Male Garden Hose Connector) to FIP Threads in PVC Bushing.
$40 Two Little automobile Air filters, the metal pieces that come with those for each end. Pretty sure I overpaid for these.
$9. Switch with 15 Amp Fuse and place to plug in cord
$10.00 15 Amp Cord (Looks like what goes into your desktop computer, but is thicker and 15 amp
So far, the main turbine cost would be $338, but we are still missing the hose and gun
$150 HVLP Gun: the AreoJet RS is proven, and functions much like the Fuji Gun, at half the cost
$75 Hose: Fuji 3/4 Heavy duty 25' hose (probably could have found cheaper)
Fuji hose comes with a quick disconnect for the gun which saved about $15
$20 HVLP Cleaning kit
If you are doing super thin or thick finishes, you may need to purchase additional Needle/Nozzle combination depending on finish. Each set is $43 (It is standard for these guns to only come with one set).
So, now, with everything included, the total cost is $563. I could have skimped and hard wired the power cord to the motor, used a regular light switch for power, used cheap hose, and a harbor freight HVLP Gun and kept the cost down to $460.
Compared to other mainstream solutions, I did pretty good. My design with filters on the ends is more like the Apollo, and their cheapest 5-stage, goes for about $1000. closest unit Fuji has to my design is the MiniMite 5, and goes for $1125, almost exactly twice the price. That extra $563 for the Fuji does get you a much prettier case. The budget brand Sprayfine has a similar complete setup for $759, or a 4-Stage version for $560. Harbor Freight just released their 5-stage for $800. Note that there are diminishing returns after so many stages, that 5th stage gives you .5 more psi than the four stage.
First pic is is the vendor pic of my motor. Second I took a pic while building, and the final pic is how it now sits. It is complete enough to bench test, and it does work, but I need to get it painted, find a handle, add the switches, and the two filters. I'll post more as I progress.
5stage.jpg
IMG_0438.jpg
IMG_0447.jpg
If HVLP isn't familiar to you, it stands for High Velocity Low Pressure. The technology is used primarily by cabinet makers, fine furniture finishers, or is increasingly used for painting cars. One of the positives is that HVLP doesn't create a room full of VOCs when you spray it as most of the paint makes it to the intended target.
Is an HVLP Turbine the right tool for finishing the average scroll saw project? Unless you were finishing a lot of stuff at once, this probably isn't the solution for small projects as it takes 10-12 minutes to clean the gun afterwards (I am OCD about it, I keep the gun pristine). Depending on the finish used, you may have to run it through a filter to take out gunk, so that is another 5 to 10 minutes if you have to do that.
One of my kids is remodeling their kitchen and currently finishing new Kitchen Cabinets, and asked about sprayers and what to get. During my research, I ran across this HVLP DYI video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8BtjcgxbEA&t=391sz and was intrigued, so before I knew it, I had ordered a motor.
Building one of these is very much like constructing a birdhouse around a motor and it's intakes, and exhausts. A few filters are needed to provide clean air, and two plumbing connectors to tie the turbine to a hose, and a few odds and ends. You will need your scroll saw, or at least I did to cut out the hole in the mount, other holes for vents/panels and such. There are few other things to install like switch, and things to know like putting a 3/16 bleeder hole in the manifold if you are using a "non-bleed gun."
Here is the build list:
$250.00 5-Stage Vacuum motor unit, exact same as is in the Fuji
$20.00 Two small overpriced pieces of truly horrific Plywood from HomeDepot, one 23/32, and one 15/32
$2.00 1 1/4" PVC Bushing. (Fits outlet of motor, and transitions to MIP threads
$7.00 Brass fitting Goes from MGH (Male Garden Hose Connector) to FIP Threads in PVC Bushing.
$40 Two Little automobile Air filters, the metal pieces that come with those for each end. Pretty sure I overpaid for these.
$9. Switch with 15 Amp Fuse and place to plug in cord
$10.00 15 Amp Cord (Looks like what goes into your desktop computer, but is thicker and 15 amp
So far, the main turbine cost would be $338, but we are still missing the hose and gun
$150 HVLP Gun: the AreoJet RS is proven, and functions much like the Fuji Gun, at half the cost
$75 Hose: Fuji 3/4 Heavy duty 25' hose (probably could have found cheaper)
Fuji hose comes with a quick disconnect for the gun which saved about $15
$20 HVLP Cleaning kit
If you are doing super thin or thick finishes, you may need to purchase additional Needle/Nozzle combination depending on finish. Each set is $43 (It is standard for these guns to only come with one set).
So, now, with everything included, the total cost is $563. I could have skimped and hard wired the power cord to the motor, used a regular light switch for power, used cheap hose, and a harbor freight HVLP Gun and kept the cost down to $460.
Compared to other mainstream solutions, I did pretty good. My design with filters on the ends is more like the Apollo, and their cheapest 5-stage, goes for about $1000. closest unit Fuji has to my design is the MiniMite 5, and goes for $1125, almost exactly twice the price. That extra $563 for the Fuji does get you a much prettier case. The budget brand Sprayfine has a similar complete setup for $759, or a 4-Stage version for $560. Harbor Freight just released their 5-stage for $800. Note that there are diminishing returns after so many stages, that 5th stage gives you .5 more psi than the four stage.
First pic is is the vendor pic of my motor. Second I took a pic while building, and the final pic is how it now sits. It is complete enough to bench test, and it does work, but I need to get it painted, find a handle, add the switches, and the two filters. I'll post more as I progress.
5stage.jpg
IMG_0438.jpg
IMG_0447.jpg
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