Airless Paint Sprayers

[brnhornt]

Hi gang...quick question. I have quite a lot of trim/moulding and interior doors that I need to paint. I have been considering a Graco TrueCoat sprayer HomeDepot to make life easier but noticed that Harbor Freight has their larger unit coming up on sale HF for pretty much the same price as the Graco and it gets pretty decent reviews...

Curious what the thoughts are...I hate buying tools that have basically one function. So either go with the Graco unit which would be dedicated to trim/smaller jobs....or get the HF sprayer and a smaller tip which would let me use it for my trim job, but also be used down the road for larger projects.

Any thoughts?

[K. L. McReynolds]

I bought this one and am not impressed with it. It has lots of adjustability built in, but the spray quality is lacking so far.

Not really a huge problem with exterior jobs(have used it on several), but not good for interior finishes(had to back roll with a roller) and it uses WAY more paint than pro grade airless units.

And it only holds about a quart of paint. The Grayco unit has similar drawbacks, IMHO.

[Wild Turkey]

Check your local pawn shops. I often see a Graco airless for less than that unit.

I bought a Graco "5"series and have been very pleased with it. It's designed to draw out of a 1-gallon can but I changed the intake pipe and it will sit on and draw from a 5-gallon quite well.

Takes a little practice to control how heavy a coat you put on but when you get it figured out things go fast!

They have very few moving parts and are easy to work on.

[fixtureman]

You have to be careful of used ones as the pump could be scored and to replace it costs as much as a new unit. I had one that I loaned to my brother and I don't know how he scored the pump but I to replace it

[Big Bill]

For smaller jobs like what you've described I've got a Wagner power painter I rescued from a garage sale for $1. Previous owner used it 1x & didn't clean it well. I fixed it up & have been using it ever since. I've also got the Graco XR5 & XR7 models- they're great for doing big projects (whole rooms or apts.), but can be a pain on smaller stuff. You'll spend lotsa time setting up & then cleaning, Just my 2¢ worth...

[Kansas City Fireslayer]

I was a pro painter for many years and I have used many different airless sprayers. I've used a few HVLP's as well. I still own 2 airless Graco sprayers. That said, I would go with the Graco over the HF any day of the week. I know this will make some people mad but HF really doesn't make anything high quality with the exception of a few "gems".

Graco on the other hand is the most recognized sprayer manufacturer possibly in the world. I haven't used any of the smaller hand held airless cup sprayers they make but I have thought of buying one like you for smaller projects. If it were me, I'd buy the model that's rebuildable, corded, and can use different tips, like the fine finish tips. I would be very surprised if you weren't happy with the durability and spray quality if you used it for it's intentions. I wouldn't attempt to spray a whole exterior with it day in and day out but I'm sure you could use it all day long without a hiccup. Graco will also give you better support if you need help with anything. You will also have greater resale value with he Graco. I don't believe I've ever heard anyone talk about any of their sprayers like they do their tool chest, pneumatic nailers, and possibly a few other things folks feel are a good tool at a good price.

Those little Graco sprayers should have no problem spraying any paint without thinning it down. The only issue I can see bothering someone is having to refill the cup more often than they would with a pick up tube style unit.

[BillN]

I think there's a backpack reservoir available for the Graco handheld sprayers.