If my close associates are any example, this should really start a religious war. :-)

For those of you who paint railroad equipment, especially with high end paints like Dupont Imron, do you use conventional paint pots, or airless pumps and guns?

Except for special coatings, the Navy seems to have moved to just airless units in the shipyards, but I have a number of preservation type friends who simply shudder at the thought of using a airless unit. Who is using what and what works best?

Greg

We just finished prime painting a tank car using a two part high solids epoxy primer. The contractor doing the job used airless equipment and job is quite good.

I think airless has a lot of potential environmentally and otherwise, but perhaps bears the stigma of poor jobs using low cost entry level systems, which do not do well on high viscosity specialty coatings.

This system was a near top of the line unit, and the contractor was experienced in using it. So, just as in anything, there is a learning curve. While I would not expect good results if I were to try this right now, I do not have reservations about his using this technique for the remaining top coats, also a high build catalysed coating.

Bob Kutella

Being a dinosaur, I intend to stick with pressurized paint pots until it is proven to me that I can do as good a job with airless. The only airless system I have used was obnoxiously noisy and annoying and didn't move enough paint fast enough, required more slow coats than similar jobs I have done with pressure systems. Time is money, and more costly than some extra paint lost to overspray.

If I am working in an environmentally sensitive area, I use brushes and rollers. In really critical areas, PPG water based industrial enamel which is about as innuocous as you can get and still have a durable finish.

dave

I have found better atomization (less orange-peel) is possible with paint pots, but there is a noticeably higher over spray amount often necessitating a filtration system regardless of environmental regulations. Consequently, it requires about 20 percent more paint. Check out the UP 4023 and UPP 814 projects.

http://www.wasatch-rr-contractors.com/

Regards,

Matt Janssen, Foreman - WRC

Has anybody used electrostatic painting equipment? From what I understand it is popular for doing lockers and other jobs where overspray is less than desireable. A similar technique is used for pesticides in row crops to get the material where wanted.