Lance and Becky's Sagwagon

[CliffinGA]

Becky not giving up yet in fact hink I will rebuild hatch number four tongiht and tomorrow and do iton the tear and see if I can get the hatch spars to match the sides more. Then if it doen't work going to do a lil rednecking and buy some vinyl and snaps .

Cliff

[Oldragbaggers]

Up to this point I have not been pleased with the paint on the tear and just couldn't seem to let it rest. We used the same boat paint that has always given us a flawless finish on all our boats and used the same painting method (more or less, except a little more rolling and a little less tipping) but the gloss just wasn't there. I know the surface was well prepared, 2 full coats and 1 transition coat of primer, and sanded slicker than snake snot on a doorknob. But it just wasn't right enough and Becky's wasn't happy. And when Becky ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.


So last Sunday I had decided to walk out on a limb and try something new (to me). I went to Harbor Freight, 20% off coupon clutched tightly in my nervous little fist, and bought an HVLP paint sprayer and all the accessories. I came home, watched a couple of Youtube videos on how-to, and by the time I finally had my shine-ola together it had started to rain.


Yesterday I was checking the weather and saw that it was supposed to be 82 degrees, sunny, low humidity (for us) and almost no wind. That sounded like perfect painting conditions to me. So I decided to take the day to see if I could get it sprayed out.

First I got the tear sanded down again and I took my time and did a very thorough job. I figured if I was going to go to all this trouble I should make it count. I only had about a 1/2 quart of Matterhorn White left and I didn't think that was going to be enough but before heading up to West Marine I decided to dig through my stash of boat paint and see what I had on hand. I found an unopened can of the Interlux Brightsides in Grand Banks Beige (my favorite color for boat decks). I was already out on the limb, and the view looked fine and I didn't feel anything cracking beneath my feet, so I decided to go with it and change the color while I was at it. I had been frustrated with my lack of any kind of creative ideas for what to do to dress up the boring white anyway.

I had posted my intentions on the Tearjerker's site this morning and when I came in to eat lunch and check in I had a nice post from Jon Weinberg detailing his experience with the HF sprayer. Jon's helpful suggestions proved invaluable and after following his advice and making the needed adjustments I really got into it. I can't recommend the Harbor Freight HVLP sprayer enough. I bought the $29 one ($24 with my coupon) that has the pressure regulator with it. The only thing I needed that didn't come with it was a coupler to attach it to my compressor hose. It was worth every dime even if I only get this one use out of it. (I think I cleaned it good, but we'll see the next time I try to use it.) If you have a compressor, ditch the rollers and paint brushes and get one of these.

Painting is done and it turned out very well. Not perfect, but it was worth re-doing for sure. It's very smooth and even. The only problem spots were in a couple of areas where I didn't get the wet coat good and it's not quite as glossy as the rest. But honestly you have to be looking at it from a certain angle, with your right eye closed and while rubbing your stomach in a counter clockwise direction. I'm not losing any sleep over that. I like it, and I am especially happy I decided to go with the beige color.



I also picked up my diamond plate for the front rock guard, made a batch of goetta and baked a very nice loaf of bread. I will sleep like a baby tonight. This has turned out to be an awesome productive vacation day.

[Forrest747]

Looks great. I have one of those sprayers and love it

[M C Toyer]

What tank size, horse-power and psi compressor do you need with the HF spray gun? Is there any problem with the gravity feed if you need to do overhead work or extended horizontal surfaces?

M C

[aggie79]

Becky,

The new paint color looks fantastic. The sheen really turned out nice!

What tank size, horse-power and psi compressor do you need with the HF spray gun? Is there any problem with the gravity feed if you need to do overhead work or extended horizontal surfaces?

M C

I don't want to disrupt your build thread , but I'm with MC. (Perhaps this should be in another thread.) We'd love to have some more details please. I have that gun - bought it about a year ago - but have never used it. Could you repeat the set-up recommendations you received?

Take care,
Tom

[Oldragbaggers]

What tank size, horse-power and psi compressor do you need with the HF spray gun? Is there any problem with the gravity feed if you need to do overhead work or extended horizontal surfaces?

M C

The gun uses 40 psi but it comes with a regulator that attaches to the gun. My compressor is 120 psi but since it was regulated at the gun it worked great. I am not all that knowledgeable about pneumatic tools but if you want more specific info you can probably google the gun and find a lot of information. I did that and found several youtube videos that I watched before I tried it.

[Oldragbaggers]

I don't want to disrupt your build thread , but I'm with MC. (Perhaps this should be in another thread.) We'd love to have some more details please. I have that gun - bought it about a year ago - but have never used it. Could you repeat the set-up recommendations you received?

Take care,
Tom

Here is a link to the thread that has Jon's recommendations. Combined with the Youtube videos I found I had no problem using the tool. I did, however have to buy a female quick coupler attachment.

http://www.tearjerkers.net/new_forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=5877

[aggie79]

Becky,

Thank you for the reference. (BTW, I registered at the Tearjerkers site so I can access the link - don't why I never registered before.)

Now back to your fantastic build!

Take care,
Tom

[CliffinGA]

Becky looks great and came out looking so good!! Did you get the doors and hatch sprayed also?

Cliff

[LDK]

Becky

I really like that beige color and like Tom said that sheen looks nice. That is one fine lookin camper and I can't wait to see it finished.

[KCStudly]

Looks great Becky. Love your enthusiasm and writing style.

[kinto]

Looks fantastic Becky!

(BTW, I registered at the Tearjerkers site so I can access the link - don't why I never registered before.)

Ha! Same here Tom... i just did a few nites ago...

kent

[Oldragbaggers]

Becky looks great and came out looking so good!! Did you get the doors and hatch sprayed also?

Cliff

I bought glass commercial doors. Hatch not finished being built yet. We were going to Annapolis tomorrow to get the 1/8" ply for skinning, but we have an open trailer and all day rain is predicted. They're often wrong though so we'll see.

[Oldragbaggers]

Becky

I really like that beige color and like Tom said that sheen looks nice. That is one fine lookin camper and I can't wait to see it finished.

Neither can I Larry!!!!! I'm not much of a drinker but I might just have to splurge and get a bottle of champagne when that day arrives.

[Oldragbaggers]

Looks great Becky. Love your enthusiasm and writing style.

Thanks KC!!