# looking for the "small tractor" of sprayers?



## Fraser Custom Equipment (Aug 4, 2021)

HI All,

I run a steel fabrication and welding shop, and painting our products is a part of our business. We bid on heavy industrial work and some commercial work, and we spray whatever the specs tell us to. The issue i've got is that i keep wrecking my graco 395 by spraying stuff thats too thick, with too much hose - or at least i think thats the issue.

we spray quick-dry industrial enamels, regular enamel, epoxies, polyurethanes, whatever the specs tell us to to.
We typically spray about 1x a week, usually takes 1 to 3 hours to paint our projects start to finish with like 30 minutes to 1.5 hours of actual spray time. last couple things have been an excavator bucket rebuild, a 40' long conveyor belt, and a chute for a mine. sometimes the specs tell us to sandblast the steel, sometimes not.

Also, we are not painters. none of my guys, or myself, have a super solid grasp on what size tip to use and when or anything else - so we need something pretty foolproof / abuse tolerant too. 

with no real control over what we spray, i need a sprayer that will just work reliably.

with that said we only paint a few hours a week, about 5 to 8 gallons a week i would guess.

recommend me a cost effective sprayer? i think i am looking for the cheapest sprayer i only need to buy once haha

any help is appreciated.


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

tritech T9, best pump you'll ever own. Larger pumps (T11/graco 1095+) and pumps with the foot valve (graco Mark IV/V) placed lower on the intake can run longer hose and go vertical with thicker (mud/elastomeric/fireproofing) materials without as much trouble.


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## Fraser Custom Equipment (Aug 4, 2021)

I've never seen the Tritech brand in my area, only graco and titan. It makes me a bit uneasy to go that route if there's not a local store with parts on the shelf and people on staff who can rebuild/repair the machines.

the graco 1095 and the mark 4/5 looks to be in the $7,000 range...yikes. Is this really what it takes to have a reliable sprayer for my needs? i am having trouble understanding the function difference between all these machines.

i never go vertical - projects are sitting on the shop floor when we paint. tops like 15 feet up. i've never heard of spraying a fireproofting, elastomeric or mud materials...if we paint beams and columns for a building, we spray the shop primer on the shop floor, then load it onto a truck the next morning for somebody else to install / finish paint, touchup etc

a friend of mine in a related industry tells me to use a pressure pot - i've never heard of it before - is it something that would work for me?


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## Holland (Feb 18, 2011)

Titan 440


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## finishesbykevyn (Apr 14, 2010)

No reason a graco 495 or 695 can't spray those products. Or even the titan 440. How much hose are you running? Do you clean the filters after? Read the tds for recommended tip size. This is basic knowledge and you don't have to be a "painter" to follow a few basic guidelines.


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## Fraser Custom Equipment (Aug 4, 2021)

finishesbykevyn said:


> No reason a graco 495 or 695 can't spray those products. Or even the titan 440. How much hose are you running? Do you clean the filters after? Read the tds for recommended tip size. This is basic knowledge and you don't have to be a "painter" to follow a few basic guidelines.


i've made a mistake -- we have a 390, not a 495. is this machine still approprite?

we run about 100 feet of hose. i could knock it down to 50 feet too, it would be just fine for 99% of projects. the last 1% ill just have to move the machine a little.
we clean the machine by running gun wash through the works, and then put it away with gun wash in the system. We dont clean the filters specifically though, no. i get the impression that i should be, is it something i can do by blowing it off with compressed air after i run the gun wash through the system?
I'll have to start getting the TDS sheets and following them. thank you!


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

graco 390 is bare minimum, it will push most products but will struggle to keep up with a longer hose, larger tips and more viscous materials. Graco 695. Great machine will run 100ft easy. Graco 495-595 are cheaper to rebuild than a 695. A shorter hose means you need less material through the line to start spraying and less solvents while cleaning. 495's are great pumps for 50ft hose.

Clean the filters after every use as part of the cleaning process. Run your solvents through the machine about 1/2 gallon than clean both gun and manifold filter. reinstall filters and run another half gallon or so. Repeat until solvent runs clean and also through the prime valve. Apply a few drops throat seal liquid to the piston rod while cleaning. Leave regular mineral spirits in the pump, do not leave lacquer thinner or epoxy thinner/xylene or other hot solvents in the pump as it will swell the HDPE packings.

If you clean and maintain the pump it will last a long time.

Tritech pumps are vastly easier to repair than graco or titan FYI.


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## Fraser Custom Equipment (Aug 4, 2021)

cocomonkeynuts said:


> graco 390 is bare minimum, it will push most products but will struggle to keep up with a longer hose, larger tips and more viscous materials. Graco 695. Great machine will run 100ft easy. Graco 495-595 are cheaper to rebuild than a 695. A shorter hose means you need less material through the line to start spraying and less solvents while cleaning. 495's are great pumps for 50ft hose.
> 
> Clean the filters after every use as part of the cleaning process. Run your solvents through the machine about 1/2 gallon than clean both gun and manifold filter. reinstall filters and run another half gallon or so. Repeat until solvent runs clean and also through the prime valve. Apply a few drops throat seal liquid to the piston rod while cleaning. Leave regular mineral spirits in the pump, do not leave lacquer thinner or epoxy thinner/xylene or other hot solvents in the pump as it will swell the HDPE packings.
> 
> ...



thank you for the info, this is amazing. 
i'll write this up into a little document and post it on the paint cabinet doors and go over it with the guys to start doing it this way.
is the tritech pump something i can rebuild on my own?


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## Fraser Custom Equipment (Aug 4, 2021)

i found some sprayers online, is this something you guys would consider buying?

Graco paint sprayer 695 for sale | Power Tools | Calgary | Kijiji 
(18) Marketplace - Graco Ultra max ll 695 | Facebook


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

Fraser Custom Equipment said:


> thank you for the info, this is amazing.
> i'll write this up into a little document and post it on the paint cabinet doors and go over it with the guys to start doing it this way.
> is the tritech pump something i can rebuild on my own?


Yes, same as the smaller graco 390-595 are fairly easy to rebuild and take the same repack kit.
tritech is by far easier to rebuild than graco or titan. Everything is more accessible, less o-rings, no cylinder to wear out etc.
Graco 695+ are more complicated to rebuild and not a fan of titan pumps my self though many on here like theirs. 440 in particular has a tiny o-ring that sits above the ball cage that often gets stuck and requires destroying to remove the ball cage. stupid design IMO, same as you need to fully remove the pump lower to access the transducer on the 440. 695 you need to remvoe the manifold block to access the transducer. What a nightmare! Tritech pumps very easy to replace transducer. etc etc.


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## finishesbykevyn (Apr 14, 2010)

Clean your filters after every job and use throat seal on the piston. Ive had my 495 for about 13 years and done nothing to it..


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## Mike2coat (Nov 12, 2013)

If you are spraying high viscosity materials you should invest in larger spray line diameters 3/8 or 1/2.


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## [email protected] (Mar 1, 2008)

You mite keep one hose for oils. One for epoxy. And if you spray any latex definitely a different hose. Some of the hotter thinners will break down what it in the hose from the previous finish. How many gallon do you typically spray for a project? If it is a gallon or so I would put a hopper on a 395 pump. You will waste less paint in the hose.


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## GI-Joseph84 (Oct 9, 2021)

Fraser Custom Equipment said:


> i've made a mistake -- we have a 390, not a 495. is this machine still approprite?
> 
> we run about 100 feet of hose. i could knock it down to 50 feet too, it would be just fine for 99% of projects. the last 1% ill just have to move the machine a little.
> we clean the machine by running gun wash through the works, and then put it away with gun wash in the system. We dont clean the filters specifically though, no. i get the impression that i should be, is it something i can do by blowing it off with compressed air after i run the gun wash through the system?
> I'll have to start getting the TDS sheets and following them. thank you!


Knocking it down to 25 ft would be the best. If you can run a 10 guage extension and you should be golden. Also do a good water rinse cycle after every use and a thorough water/paint thinner rinse at the end of the week


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