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Robotically Controlled Spray Booths
Jan 26th
If you want your manufactured products to look great with excellent surface finish and enhanced durability, you have to buy the right spray booth. Today’s spray booths are tough, easily erected on site; they can be expanded when required, they look good, are economical to run, reasonably priced, environmentally friendly and there is the right one available for you, ready for shipment. The panels are all of thick, galvanized steel for long life. Modern technology makes it possible for you to buy the latest production tunnel type of industrial spray booth. These spray booths are automated and specialized paint shops ideally suited and designed for your products and your kind of environment. The industrial production tunnels have a robotically controlled system for refinishing mounted on a conveyor. There is a provision for preparing the surface of the articles, for washing and rinsing and thereafter drying them. The conveyor mounted robotically controlled system next moves to the spray booth. The painted articles are next automatically loaded on the conveyor oven for the curing operation. The curing is carried out in the conveyor oven at 425 F that is the baking temperature. These ovens can be designed depending upon your specifications. This will include the environment for product curing. The environment could be anything from powder to paint and from composite to concrete. The conveyor oven is invariably a direct-fired burner system for heat economy. It has a high temperature variable exhaust and a high temperature plug blower for safety. The send and return damper is adjustable as is the full-length heated air send and return duct. 4” thick panels are used though 6” thick panels could be used as well. Quality Rock Wool Insulation has been used for improved thermal efficiency. The conveyor oven control panel has all the necessary information pertaining to the internal environment of the oven that includes both the transient digital temperature and high temperature limit and the total running hours of operation. There is an intelligent control system display that assesses the gas train and blower operation at a rapid rate of 60 cycles per second.
Tips to Help You Buy the Best Spray Booth
Jan 25th
Paint booths are complex and expensive equipments designed to perform specific roles. For many, they can be an investment for a lifetime. When you buy a good spray booth you want to make sure that: It is rugged It is economical to run It has all the modern features to make painting an easy and perfect task It has a high degree of maintainability You can not only rig it up easily but you could expand the spray booth should the need arise It should be environmentally friendly and meet all the local and state laws regarding reuse and effluent treatment Above all it must be good value for money. When you analyze the above requisites these will all be met if you go in for a manufacturer of paint booths who first of all has you and your requirements in mind. For the spray booth to be tough and long lasting the manufacturer will select thick gauge steel duly galvanized to fight corrosion. To cater for your requirements the manufacturer will market different types of products like the automotive spray booths, the truck spray booths and the industrial spray booths. Thereafter each of these spray booths comes in different sub categories. You could have the inlet air from the front and exhaust from the rear end of the booth or the reverse. You could have the full down draft or the semi-down or side-down draft variety of spray booth depending upon the location of the exhaust. You should be able to paint an automobile, a truck, a jumbo jet aircraft or small parts loaded on a conveyor belt. There should be a surface finishing area, a washing and drying area and then the spray booth section. Sometimes the booth itself could be multi-tasked. The curing would be done in an oven which could be conveyor fed robotically. There would be mixing room and air make-up room that could be top mounted and the booth strong enough to take its load. With electronically monitored filters, strategically designed lighting fixtures and modern dust collection systems you would be assured of buying the perfect spray booth.
The Secrets of Car Spray Paint Restoration and Bodywork Repair
Jan 22nd
Auto body Repairs Using Sand Blasting Equipment A restoration requires you to make a choice as to which method you are going to use. In order to do this you really need to categorize the levels of restoration. Category One – Light to Medium fix ups Mechanical repairs and repainting The basic mechanical work is done first to ensure safety of the vehicle components. This followed by minor body works and refinishing touch ups. Mechanical repairs with replacements and refinishing Some mechanical parts are replaced as needed. Little more detail is required in the bodywork. Category Two – In Depth Restoration Similar to the mechanical repairs with replacements with the refinishing more in depth. Some taking apart of the vehicle is required to attend to rust and corrosion of key parts. Items have to cleaned, refurbished or replaced such as drive train parts, suspension and underbody parts. Close color match of body is required and trim may need replacing. Cars restored under this category are often pampered and not used on a daily basis. Category Three – Just off the Assembly Line Restoration here entails making the car look like it’s just been manufactured. Showroom quality. No body fill can be used in these restorations as well as fiberglass body panels except for some Corvettes. Category Four – Show Piece This is the museum category and is really not applicable because they are those that are only found in the Museums. Getting Down to Sandblasting Sandblasters work off of compressed air and are either pressure feed or suction feed which are the cheaper of the two. The only drawback is that part of their energy goes into drawing up the material however; they don’t require an expensive pressure tank. Pressure feeds do require a pressurized tank, but they work extremely well. Sandblasting is effective cost saving and messy. Should only be done outdoors. With the right grade of sand the results taking it right down to the metal and removing the rust pits. It works effectively on other parts as well. Make sure you apply a flash rust treatment to prevent rust till you get the primer on. The one thing to remember about sandblasting is do not over do it. As soon as you hit the bare metal stop. You can use silica sand for various other grades just be sure to be careful with what you use. For light touches, you can use the ground or English walnut shells. The siphon blasters are a lot less expensive than the pressure blasters. Remember to remove the hardware and trim before blasting and make sure you wear the proper body protection as well ensuring you have a proper hood and gloves. Preferably, a supplied air hood would be ideal. Sandblasting can be extremely effective provided the right techniques, tools and materials are used in a safe environment. Many individuals are against sand blasting because of the damage it can cause. They are right it can work against you but only if you go beyond what is required. The whole key to success is stopping when you hit the bare metal.
Qualities to Look for in Spray Booths
Jan 21st
Buyers should seek efficiency and economy in air filtration, fuel management, spraying and curing operations Industrial spray booths refer to airplane booths, production tunnels and carbon exhaust cubes. Prep stations are meant for neat and properly lit preparation and priming environments. Open faced booths are available in all sizes and configurations for custom applications. Airplane booths can harbor aircrafts as large as Boeing 747s to small two-seat airplanes. Spray booths are essentially metal boxes where refinishing goes on. There are different kinds of spray booths available in the market. They include automotive, truck and industrial spray booths. The automotive paint booth variety encompasses premier, thermaire insulated, full down draft, semi-down draft, side down draft, reverse flow and front flow. Truck spray booths comprise the full down draft, semi-down draft, side down draft, reverse flow and front flow varieties. Industrial production tunnels cater to customers who want their products to be painted in continuous batches. These tunnels have provisions for surface preparation of the products, the painting operation and the curing cycle—all in a robotically controlled conveyor system. Powder coating of customer products is washed first and then dried. Surface prepared products are then powder coated electrostatically prior to being baked in automatic ovens at 425 F. Production tunnels can be manufactured to suit individual customer specifications. These have a conveyor-like robotic refinishing system, which has palettes or platforms for carrying articles for painting. They come with an oven for the purpose of baking. A spray booth must be rugged, scalable and easily erectable. Buyers should seek efficiency and economy in air filtration, fuel management, spraying and curing operations. The lighting should be adequate, without being unduly heavy. The entire system of preparation, painting and curing should be environment friendly. A modern production manufacturing industrial spray booth will give you sturdier and more durable panels, a modern fuel efficient curing system, lighting without shadows, electronically monitored filters for reliability and an automatic shut down facility at the close of the cooling down cycle. WHAT ARE SPRAY BOOTHS? Spray booths are essentially metal boxes where refinishing goes on. WHAT ARE INDUSTRIAL SPRAY BOOTHS? Industrial spray booths refer to airplane booths, production tunnels and carbon exhaust cubes.
Car Spray Painting Tips – How to Polish and Buff Paintwork Easily
Jan 6th
There are terms like convex, concave and waffle. These are terms used in the business of polishing and buffing in the auto repair shop. To most people, polishing and buffing the car is something that they do on the weekend, but in the professional world, this function takes on a much different meaning because there are so many factors to consider in creating “the perfect finish”, and they require a great deal of training, more than you’d think. The polishing shop technician has a very important job. For instance, in order to get a good finish that really shines, it is necessary to deceive the eye. This is why a good technician will never use a concentric polisher, because they move in perfect circles. An eccentric polisher is one that moves off center. It has two functions, one is to distribute the compound evenly, by pushing it into the center – this allows the compound even distribution, and it also prevents splattering of the compound and two, it confuses the eye so that the eye doesn’t see any light reflected in the lines left by a conventional concentric polisher. As far as the tools used to get that perfect finish, there is some disagreement among technicians as to what to use, the standard wool or the newer foam buffing pads. Most quality paint manufacturers have good tips on the right way to buff and polish, and you can find them on the net. The technicians who prefer wool say that it gives the best finish, whereas the technicians who prefer the foam pads claim that they like them because they don’t leave bits behind after they go. Although foam pads are new, they are evolving like anything that is new. A recent test was done with technicians who preferred wool, and several of those technicians said they preferred the newer foam to their old wool pads. Sometimes, a technician can be attached to their way of doing things and they will say that they like their way but they have never tried anything new in years. They will say things like the pads they tried won’t remove wet or dry sand scratches from the panel, and they had to go back to wool to finish the job, but, as I mentioned earlier, old ways die-hard. So they don’t like to try new products, like the newer pads that are specially designed to be more like the wool pads, but without the drawbacks. The three main types of newer foam polish pads are convex, concave and waffle and these types of pads are designed to create a compound pocket that guides the compound toward the center of the pad and not to the outside so it won’t splatter. Each of the convex, concave, or waffle pads have their own highly specialized function, but the main goal in all of this is the brilliant finish achieved by the illusion that the eye sees
Learn to Restore Car Paint and Bodywork – Spray Painting Tips
Jan 5th
If you are performing, auto body finishing your work area has to be almost sterile unless of course you enjoy having to strip, sand, repaint and buff repeatedly on the same car because something got into the paint or finish or you left some residue and went onto the next step. If there is anything present that could ruin your finishing work then it probably will. One of the most valuable assets you can have is a quality wax and grease remover. Most often the to the job at home guy ends up with an inferior finish if all due to not removing the residue of anything from the car like old wax and dirt build up or airborne debris. There are solvents that can be used but you are taking a chance when you use these. Many novice auto body finishers are devastated when the mistakes made before the primer application start to appear. The key to being successful is to know the right materials for the job. Then it’s knowing how to use them. Finally when and where should they used. What You will Need - There are lots of products that will remove grease and wax but you need to remove silicone. - You will need about 3 gallons - Solvent and lint free rags actually cheesecloth or tough quality paper towels are the best - detail scrubbing brush to get at hard to get spots where there may be silicone Do Not Use - regular lacquer thinner (can create havoc with paint systems) - enamel reduced (same reason) - cheap rags (Note: if you really have to use lacquer thinner work quick and don’t let it soak into the prime coat too much or too long) Degreasing Times: It certainly is not a one-time operation. At least not when you consider that if you were to even leave one print smudge on the car it will likely show up as discoloration in the finish. It is imperative that you remove any and all of grease, wax and silicone. . . - prior to touchups - prior to the bare metal conversion coating - prior to filling and glazing - prior to primers - prior to basecoat - prior to finishing coats The Right Spots to Degrease: The areas that you are going to be working on such as the body and panel. Do not miss around all these areas. . . Trim, weather stripping, cowel louver, panel joints and air intakes Inside the head and taillight apertures, only necessary if you have removed the trim or bezels. Also around the door areas, inside of hood and the lid of the trunk and the wheels Be absolutely sure that you remove all the cleaner and then wipe with a clean rag. If in doubt do it again. Reasons for Degreasing - To know you are going to get the best results – its yours and the business reputation at stake - the cost of the materials such as primer surfacer, primer, metallic, clear coats - labor of yours and what you pay in wages
Car Bodywork Paint Repair Restoration Techniques – Spray Painting
Jan 4th
When buying a car one of the biggest choices you have is the color! Though there are many choices to make it’s the main factor that you can decide on which suits you best and appeals to your sense of style. Black is a big seller yet silver can sometimes have more style. Red is hot and white can be conservative, it’s all up to you. The elements though can play havoc on keeping that original shine and luster to this important investment. Once a car loses its color, the value is reduced and it never looks the same. These are some tips and tricks on how to maintain that color and keep the environment from doing damage to your paint job as well as restoring any damage already done! HOW TO RESIST ENVIROMENTAL DAMAGES There are many different types of finishes on vehicles like enamel, matt coating, acrylic etc. . . unfortunately, no matter what the finish is, your car’s paint is still susceptible to the environment. To help protect it always use a preventive maintenance program. The sun puts out ultra violet rays that can damage the gloss of the finish and because metal holds heat it can cause permanent stains. The only way to deal with this is by using protective sealants and coatings. Air pollutants are your next problem because they transform into nitric and sulfuric acids that eventually deposit onto your vehicle and eat up the paint. To combat this, keep your vehicle clean by washing it on a regular basis. This is very important because even in the winter with salt and dirt, pitting and rusting can occur. The undercarriage should be treated with a protective coating to help eliminate this problem. When your car is clean moisture can’t build up in the dirty areas and cause corrosion. I advise a car wash at least once to twice a month and sometimes have a gentle power wash to dislodge dirt that is embedded in hard to reach places like under the bumpers, the wheel wells and behind the moldings to name a few. By pressure washing after or during winter you can dislodge the excess salt and dirt from the body of your vehicle and at the same time give it a shiny and clean appearance and reduce the chances of rust problems. Another big tip is to keep you car or truck waxed on a regular basis. This will aid in a big way to keep the color from fading and minimize the harm that chemicals can do to your paint job and also give a great shine to your vehicle. Its should only take about 30 minutes to wax even a large vehicle and should last for 3-4 months. ALWAYS REPAIR THE CHIPS AND SCRATCHES Most times you can order matching spray paint from the manufacturer and buy using a toothpick as an aid you can fix most prominent scratches and chips. For some of the smaller ones a polishing compound will work. By investing, the time and utilizing these tips your vehicles paint job has a much better chance of remaining in new like condition!
Learn to Strip Paint Off Your Car Bodywork Fast – Spray Paint Removal
Jan 2nd
If you are going to do a job then the motto is “do it right” and this most certainly applies when it comes to stripping paint. Most professionals when stripping the paint from panels for example will depend on a chemical process to assist them. The chemical is specifically designed for stripping paint for the most part, though these are not cheap so learning to work with them properly can save you time and money. It’s still a time consuming project. You have to apply the stripper, leave it while it does its job, then come back and scrape of the stripper, then start the process all over again. Here are some steps to help you get the job done fast and efficiently. Step One: Get the surface ready. You do this by masking off the areas you don’t want stripped. Make sure you use a good quality masking tape, as you don’t want the stripper to seep under the tape. Also, be sure to mask well any openings or crevices that the stripper could get into. If this were to happen and go unnoticed then you could run into a problem later on. Stripper could easily surface up into the new paint you just recently applied. Step Two: There are many good chemical strippers on the market today. Make sure you read and follow all of the manufacturer’s directions exactly. Don’t just assume that the one you are using now is going to be the same as the one you used last time. Some strippers are in liquid form while others are in a paste form. One common brand that is quite good is Aircraft Remover that is specifically made for auto body use. You need to pour some of the stripper from its original contain into a disposable container. Make sure you use a chemical resistant paintbrush to apply it with otherwise you could end up with a melted brush. Step three: When you are applying the chemical, apply it in one direction only and don’t work too much with it. Working it too much only reduces its activity. Step Four: This is an important step. Once you have your stripper on then cover it with polyethylene about 2-4ml thickness. Then secure this all around the edges. The reason for doing this is that the chemical components in the stripper that are responsible for softening up the paint evaporate quickly. Whereas if you cover it then it will work for a much longer period of time. You can leave it up to two hours for tough jobs. This little technique makes that expensive stripper go a little bit further. Another hint as well is with a 40-60 grade sandpaper just rough up the surface of the paint just enough to break through the paint film then apply the stripper. Step Five: Remove the polyethylene, scrape, and then use steel wool to get into the crevices. Make sure all of the stripper residue is removed before proceeding. Some strippers you can rinse with water, but read the manufacturers directions according to the product you are using.
Beginners Guide to DIY Car Spray Painting – Spray Paint a Car
Jan 1st
There are two passageways or channels within the gun. One is for airflow the other for material flow. The fluid needle takes the required paint from the reservoir. As you use the trigger to control the tapered needle, it will pull it from the tip allowing more material through. Simultaneously the trigger regulates the air to allow siphoning of the material from the cup, and atomizes the paint. It is through the fast moving area that a low-pressure area materializes and uses the ambient air pressure as its catalyst to push the material from the cup. Now you can see what it is so important to keep the vent tubes clear and clean. Some interesting and very important questions are such as these. . . Qns 1: There are holes on both side of the air cap – what are they for? These are like an air anvil and are called air horns. This is what allows you paint to flatten out so it makes a pattern. When the air meets the material it is in the impingement zone. As the air comes out of the horn the air hits directly in front of the air cap. Qns 2: It is now becoming a regulation in many places to clean you gun in an enclosed gun washer. What’s the best way to use these? If you have never used one before make sure you read and follow all instructions. They are designed to work in cycles of 60 seconds, so don’t leave you gun in there beyond that time period. The cleaning action is like putting your gun fully immersed into lacquer thinner. Can you imagine the shape of your gun if you leave it in too long or too often? Condensation will form in your gun if you do not change the solvent on a regular basis. This means acids start to form and this is certainly not good for your gun. If you are cleaning, a gravity gun is sure to plug up the air inlet before putting it into the washer. You don’t want the solvent getting in here. Once done remove the gun and dry immediately with a cloth. If the packing starts to leak, you can change it. Qns 3: My Spray gun produces a bad pattern: Most likely, a rebuild kit won’t correct the problem. Balance the air with the material. Some other things to remember is you have to use more that one gun for refinish materials if you are in a compliant area. Temperature ranges are important for HVLP guns if it’s the larger ones; it’s not for the smaller ones. Lubricate you gun with a 4 oz. Mineral oil. Remember to match the fluid nozzles with the type of material you using. Using multiple guns means you don’t have to keep changing tips. Keep your gun in top-notch shape by not dropping it or immersing it in thinned. Avoid harsh chemicals. You must be in control of your spray gun at all times in the following areas. . . a) Judging the correct distance from the gun to the object b) Proper trigger action c) Control of the speed at which you are working d) The angle at which you hold the gun. This requires techniques such as heeling toeing and fanning. e) Constantly watch what you are doing so you apply evenly. Do a perpendicular pass at a constant even speed. If you go slowly, you will apply more paint whereas if you go fast you will decrease the amount. f) Make sure you are wetting the surface g) Each pass must overlap the previous application by about 50% h) Make sure you don’t double pass the same area If you observe a problem let the paint flash and fix the problem on the second pass. There will be some flow after application but this will depend on the amount of reducer and hardener you have used. Once the paint catalyzes though whatever is showing is what will remain until you correct it. Remember to take your time follow all the steps and you will master any weaknesses you have with your spray painting in no time with practice.
Advanced Car Spray Paint Techniques, Methods and Bodywork Repair
Jan 1st
Anyone who owns a collision shop can tell you that the most costly item to the shop is the comeback repair. Re-do’s can be the difference between being successful and losing, and they reflect poorly on the quality standards, not to mention the inconvenience to the customer. All it takes is one dissatisfied customer and that can translate into bad word of mouth, which means bad reputation. Collision shop managers have to be very alert when it comes to quality assurance so that they have happy customers and as few negative comebacks as possible. Negative comebacks happen when there are such things as. . . shoddy repair work, poor paint finish, (dull topcoat), grind marks showing, paint cracks or runs or paint over spray on any part of the car, but the worst problem of all is the mismatching of color. Technicians and management usually share the responsibility, and, in some shops, the liability, so that it’s a combination of the actual repair work and maintaining proper quality assurance levels. When a mistake happens, it is also a proper analysis of what went wrong, rather than who went wrong, and taking the appropriate steps to keep the problem from re-occurring. The Characteristics of A Painter Paint technicians can be a tricky type of personality, if they aren’t treated right, the works suffers, and that is why some shops are now making them share the responsibilities for their work. Technicians, on the other hand, are the wind beneath the wings, so that it’s a partnership between technicians and paint technicians, so that there is no one more important than the other. It is also true that while the painter is worth their weight in gold, they can’t work their magic if there isn’t a good quality of prep work. Improper paint preparation is a disaster if it isn’t done properly, and if the paint technician isn’t as good as required, they won’t spot the problem until it’s too late. The proper quality standards must be put in place and properly adhered to, or those costly mistakes and comebacks will look like money disappearing out the door. Anyone who owns a collision shop that has a good reputation knows that while the paint preparation and the topcoat are the end result, it is also the surface preparation that has equal importance. Like when you paint a house, the prep work, sanding, filling, and proper masking all have to be done properly; in fact, many paint companies suggest collision shops must stress proper training with attention to strict guidelines. The time and attention to quality work that is invested in the beginning will result in less money driving out the door in costly comebacks later. If a shop is to be competitive, it must stress quality. “It is a poor worker who blames his tools”, is the old adage, so if collision shop owners keep hearing those types of excuses, then they should really need to do some proper damage control before it’s too late