# Wagner Paint Crew or EarlEX HVLP - Opinions?



## Rcon (Nov 20, 2009)

Hi Goose, 

A HVLP is made specifically for fine finish spraying. You would find one practially useless for painting walls and ceilings. I have an HVLP, and the only time I put latex through it is when i'm spraying spindles. 

Also, you would be dissapointed with the Wagner Paint Crew. These are simply 'use once and throw away' type sprayers that home owners often get duped into buying because they're cheap. You don't need to spend thousands on a professional airless sprayer - a Titan XT sprayer you will find available at Home Depot is a far better choice for the DIY'er. They're relatively light-weight, fairly easy to use, easy cleanup (hook the garden hose up to it and clean away), and are relatively inexpensive at around $400-500 depending where you live. taken care of, this should last you several years, as opposed to the one-time use you'll get from a cheap wagner. 









If you intend on spraying anything, please don't forget the value of drop cloths, plastic sheeting, paper and masking tape. You don't want to end up with paint all over your furniture! 

Good luck.


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

I work mainly on the interiors of antique homes that tend to have people, pets, and all that go with them in place. So, I do not use spray painting equipment often. I admit I rather love working with brushes and rollers too so I do it for a living.

I RENT the absolute best on the market when I either need to or have a situation for which spraying is appropriate. Or I sub the job out to colleagues who have the equipment and do new construction stuff for which spraying is great in the hands of good people. I would never consider using the cheap toys on your list. 

I think you will find that it will take you as long to tape, completely cover and mask every inch you do not want paint on than it does to just cut an roll. With the equipment you are considering you are going to get marginal PSI flow to move the paint and they will sputter on you too. Make sure the air intakes for your HVAC system are filtered if you start spraying or you will have the scent of baked paint all over the house. 

I would ask Santa for a different toy/tool for Christmas than a paint sprayer for lived in home use. And if you insist? The price point you should be looking at, with contractor discounts is $1,200 or so last time I looked?


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## Sprayboy (Oct 21, 2009)

Well, for just stuff around the house the Titan or Spraytech 3/4hp and above units will do. Stay away from the Graco XR series. A lot of painters are going broke out there so you can find some great deals on quality used stuff. A Graco 395, 495, 595, or 695 would be something you can use the heck out of and then get your money back should you resell it. It's out of season right now so there are some unbelieveable deals out there. :thumbup:


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## GooseCA (Dec 11, 2009)

Thanks a lot guys for the responses. It seems there is no easy answer ;-). Certainly I will look for a used piece of equipment for a good price. The other reason I was looking at the HVLP is I can spray baseboards or a nice finish on a door or cabinet. Plus the cleanup of the EarlEX is much much easier than cleaning up the complete hose or a airless. Believe that the overspray of the HVLP would be much less than a entry level Titan. 

Also I am not spraying a large quantity of square footage and EarlEX claims I will be able to spray Latex with a great result. The plus side is it would allow me to spray stain on other projects also. Assuming that I would get better result and precision with stain on a HVLP. Lastly I like the look of walls smooth w/o any texture. My mind is telling me that with the Titan I would be able to spray more square footage faster but with more overspray. Since I am not really doing it professionally I might get more usage out of the HVLP.

Guess let's wait and see if I can find a good deal on a Titan or similar. If not hell the EarlEX is a much less expensive proposition. And if I have to cut in and finish with a brush / roller just maybe that + HVLP might give me a good result ;-). 

Like you said SDSester that a good piece of equipement can get pricey and I am never one to purchase entry level just to save money ;-).

Too bad nobody here has used the EarlEX and can give feedback on that piece of equipment.

Thanks everyone!


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## Sprayboy (Oct 21, 2009)

GooseCA said:


> Thanks a lot guys for the responses. It seems there is no easy answer ;-). Certainly I will look for a used piece of equipment for a good price. The other reason I was looking at the HVLP is I can spray baseboards or a nice finish on a door or cabinet. Plus the cleanup of the EarlEX is much much easier than cleaning up the complete hose or a airless. Believe that the overspray of the HVLP would be much less than a entry level Titan.
> 
> Also I am not spraying a large quantity of square footage and EarlEX claims I will be able to spray Latex with a great result. The plus side is it would allow me to spray stain on other projects also. Assuming that I would get better result and precision with stain on a HVLP. Lastly I like the look of walls smooth w/o any texture. My mind is telling me that with the Titan I would be able to spray more square footage faster but with more overspray. Since I am not really doing it professionally I might get more usage out of the HVLP.
> 
> ...



One thing to remember is the better sprayers have superior pressure control. I can pop a small tip in my 695 and set my pressure down to 1200lbs with little overspray. Latex is thick! Machines that go like crazy on oil-base paints can easily bog down with latex. Small machines do not do well with latex. :no:


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## Rcon (Nov 20, 2009)

As a guy who loves to collect tools myself I can understand why you'd want to get the HVLP. You're being told it's the tool that can produce the most diversified results. 

True, and false. 

HVLP is slow. If you've ever seen a painter spray a ceiling, imagine, if you can, that speed, divided by 10. That is your HVLP speed. Not exactly fast, is it? 

While a professional using an airless can spray (hypothetiaclly) 50 sq. ft./min with a professional airless, you will produce 5 sq. ft./min with a turbine HVLP. Conventional HVLP will produce more with a substantial amount more overspray (atomized). 

Overspray is a quantitative measure. HVLP can produce as much, if not more overspray than an airless. It depends on how you use it and with what materials. 

Conventional HVLP creates more overspray than my Graco 495 airless. Turbine HVLP creates more overspray than my 395 Finish Pro. (and at 1/15th the speed).


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## GooseCA (Dec 11, 2009)

Funny I have seen a few Graco XR series sold locally, already noted to stay away from them ;-). Will check out this weekend what is available and see what you guys say. Assuming I get a entry level Titan or similar will I be able to spray doors, base, cabs (stains / finish) as with the HVLP? Or should I really stick to latex interior with a airless? Touch choice really is ;-)

Thanks!


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## Sprayboy (Oct 21, 2009)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200414066612&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

This will blow a Paint Crew into the weeds. Spraytech, Wagner, ASM, and Titan all come out of the same factory now.


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## Rcon (Nov 20, 2009)

GooseCA said:


> Funny I have seen a few Graco XR series sold locally, already noted to stay away from them ;-). Will check out this weekend what is available and see what you guys say. Assuming I get a entry level Titan or similar will I be able to spray doors, base, cabs (stains / finish) as with the HVLP? Or should I really stick to latex interior with a airless? Touch choice really is ;-)
> 
> Thanks!


An airless will work for walls, ceilings, trim, doors etc. 

A HVLP will work for stains and clearcoating. 

I would not use an airless for spraying stains, but you might get away with using one for clearcoating as long as you use the proper sized tips and proper application techniques. 

Most professionals have a selection of sprayers for specific jobs. I have a big airless for spraying walls, ceilings and exteriors - a smaller airless for trimwork - an HVLP for smaller fine finish work and an air assisted airless for high production fine finish work. Each piece of equipment has it's strengths and weaknesses. 

Good luck.


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## Kevin M. (Nov 26, 2009)

Rcon said:


> An airless will work for walls, ceilings, trim, doors etc.
> 
> A HVLP will work for stains and clearcoating.
> 
> ...


Hey Rcon,

I mainly work on remodels and repairs. It seems like I always have three or four pieces of trim or maybe a single door or something needing sprayed to match an existing sprayed room. 

Can that HVLP spray out oil good enough to cover small pieces of trim ect.. Or paint one door? I sub almost all my spraying out to another painter. It's a pain for him to spray the small stuff considering he has to set up and clean out his airless. 

Apparently some guys thin out latex and spray it with the HVLP? I don't really know any more than what I read. Thanks in advance for any advice you may have. 

Kevin


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## Rcon (Nov 20, 2009)

Kevin M. said:


> Hey Rcon,
> 
> I mainly work on remodels and repairs. It seems like I always have three or four pieces of trim or maybe a single door or something needing sprayed to match an existing sprayed room.
> 
> ...


Yep, a good quality turbine HVLP would work well for that kind of thing. I wouldn't get anything smaller than the Graco 3800 HVLP if you're going to put latex through it - you'll also need a #5 fluid set (I think it comes standard with #3, #4, and #5) They don't come cheap, but are invaluable to have around for small projects. 

There's a bit of a learning curve with these, but once you get the hang of them, they produce some really nice finishes. 

You don't want to waste your money on a cheap HVLP sprayer. Graco and Airlessco make good cup guns that aren't overly expensive if you already have an air compressor/regulator. If you don't want to spend a ton of money on a HVLP system, a small airless sprayer would work nicely too, like a Spraytech. 

Great quality sprayers can be found looking through your local ads, and save you hundreds. If you can find one, the 3800 HVLP is hard to beat for small stuff! :thumbsup:


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

Come on kids, does the average DIYer really need to own a cheap paint sprayer that might work groaning and spitting at minimal psi? For use how many possible times? I paint for a living and don't need to own spray equipment for the projects I work on. I do own my own spray tips and rent the best equipment I can when I need it. Or better yet I call in friends that do such things for a living every day of the week. 

None of the sprayers I use would dream of painting the interiors of their own homes with wives, kids, pets, furniture, sacred beer fridge in place with spray equipment! The dog would quack like a duck when it realized it was covered in plastic for hours or days?

Wagner and all are almost as evil as all the paint companies suggesting they have primer and paint in one. The DIYer thinks they are going to save time and money with a $39-300 spray painting thing is being misled? Cost of plastic FOR EVERYTHING NEAR and tape alone? And the time.

Rent, or as was a great suggestion in this post, buy something nice used that should sell for $1200 for $300 if you really think you need spray equipment. I scour pawn shops locally and ebay online for tools now and then but feel creepy about it for the fact someone fell on hard times.


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## mark! (May 4, 2009)

For what it's worth, I bought a Paint Crew Plus to paint my garage, and it's worked great for what I need. It took a bit to get used to, but that's with any sprayer I would imagine. I just couldn't justify spending $500 for something I'm not going to use but maybe three or four times a year for projects. I also did a desk with it, no problems. I did find that if I didn't clean it very good, keep the filter clean, then it would blot instead of spray, after a good clean, filter replacement, worked great again.


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## Rcon (Nov 20, 2009)

mark! said:


> For what it's worth, I bought a Paint Crew Plus to paint my garage, and it's worked great for what I need. It took a bit to get used to, but that's with any sprayer I would imagine. I just couldn't justify spending $500 for something I'm not going to use but maybe three or four times a year for projects. I also did a desk with it, no problems. I did find that if I didn't clean it very good, keep the filter clean, then it would blot instead of spray, after a good clean, filter replacement, worked great again.


Unfortunately, your Paint Crew Plus will only work for 1 year, at the most. Then, if you want to spray something else next year, you will have to buy another. I hate to say it, but these are really cheaply made sprayers. 

The minimum I recommend for a DIY is the Titan I posted about above. It may cost more up front, but it will last you much longer, and is a higher quality piece of equipment, so you will get higher quality finishes. 

$500 is very inexpensive for a sprayer. I have 4 or them, and the cheapest one I own cost me just under $2000. But I can use it 200 times per year and not worry about it breaking down. 

When you consider it, the cost of renting a sprayer is $75/day. If you needed one 4 times in a year, for one day only, that's $300. IMO, It's worth it to spend the extra for a decent piece of equipment - the cheap ones will only leave you frustrated and $299 poorer. 

Just my $0.02. :thumbsup:


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

Rcon said:


> $500 is very inexpensive for a sprayer. I have 4 or them, and the cheapest one I own cost me just under $2000. But I can use it 200 times per year and not worry about it breaking down.
> 
> When you consider it, the cost of renting a sprayer is $75/day. If you needed one 4 times in a year, for one day only, that's $300. IMO, It's worth it to spend the extra for a decent piece of equipment - the cheap ones will only leave you frustrated and $299 poorer.
> 
> Just my $0.02. :thumbsup:


Dead on!:thumbup: $500 will buy you a cute toy. And if you really needed one 4 times per year for an average household? You really do major paint projects that often? Your are out $300 in rental fees? Clean it up and take it back to where you rented it. It will not be laying around the garage for you to trip over.


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