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AKZO spraying tips

As has been said before, the 50/50 or 1:1 (same thing) ratio makes it as or thinner than water in consistency. No need to strain it or filter it. Mix it, pour into the gun and shoot.

First time shooting paint today. Used prekote and a scrotchbrite pad and worked over each part. Rinsed with clean water and set on the paint station to dry. While that was happening I mixed 1:1 ratio of AKZO base and cure... let that sit for 30 mins or so stirring every 5-10 mins. Should be noted that the base had settled quite a bit and spent a solid 5 mins stirring that before pouring into my mix cup.

For my first spray I went smooth about 6 inches away, some parts getting two passes to over lap. It went down what I would consider thick... but maybe that's what its supposed to be like... not sure some pictures I've seen look very green like mine, others look just tinted. Anyhow after 10 mins or so flipped the parts and ran out of primer....

So this time I mixed 1:1 but added an equal part of TR-19 thinner. Repeated the same thing and really couldn't tell a difference at all.. sprayed the same, looked the same... not sure what the thinner is for.

Anyhow the hardest part of the process was cleaning the gun.. guess if it breaks next time or two then I'll buy another for $15.
 
I used the same process only with a primer pistol

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Very easy to apply, and easy to clean.
 
Just QA'd my work... 1 piece I didn't cover a flange area enough, another piece got some paper stuck to it... will try to wet sand to get the paper off... then reshoot both real fast... or maybe do a small mix and brush it..
 
I never could get the primer pistol to work satisfactorily for me. The primer wouldn't want to get picked up into the spray and at other times great gobs of paint would come out - gave up after a few failures.

I was using the big 3M cups (600ml?) with a decent $75 gun but with the big cups a small volume of paint has a hard time getting used.... So I bought the small 3M cups (3oz?) and because a little MEK cleans up the gun easy and the cup gets thrown out I'm just as happy. Great for small little jobs. But on the little jobs I change the spray pattern to the smallest size... like the primer pistol delivers.

The 3M cups have filters built in - very satisfied with that even if it does add $1-2 per session. Best thing I bought for painting the primer.
 

I deleted my post after I looked and read the instructions. I had read a DOD report on corrosion field testing of PreKote and it had said it could be washed off and it's benefits were greatly diminished with a delay until painted. Days /weeks delay. I knew it was water carrier but did not know it could be rinsed. Sorry for the uninformed post and thanks for the link.I still have not figured out how it prevents corrosion progression as it is an adhesion promoter. I guess a good bond prevents filiform progression, and the strontium chromate in AKZO is the sacrificial element in the scratch test.
 
First time shooting paint today. Used prekote and a scrotchbrite pad and worked over each part. Rinsed with clean water and set on the paint station to dry. While that was happening I mixed 1:1 ratio of AKZO base and cure... let that sit for 30 mins or so stirring every 5-10 mins. Should be noted that the base had settled quite a bit and spent a solid 5 mins stirring that before pouring into my mix cup.

For my first spray I went smooth about 6 inches away, some parts getting two passes to over lap. It went down what I would consider thick... but maybe that's what its supposed to be like... not sure some pictures I've seen look very green like mine, others look just tinted. Anyhow after 10 mins or so flipped the parts and ran out of primer....

So this time I mixed 1:1 but added an equal part of TR-19 thinner. Repeated the same thing and really couldn't tell a difference at all.. sprayed the same, looked the same... not sure what the thinner is for.

Anyhow the hardest part of the process was cleaning the gun.. guess if it breaks next time or two then I'll buy another for $15.

For me 6" is too close and yes it'll go on thick that way. Icky thick. I'm somewhere around 10" from my parts, and I move quick with the pistol, way quicker than I've ever sprayed, even with a rattle can - like maybe 2ft a sec. In anycase, I still use and stand by the primer pistol. I've detailed how to tweak it to make it work proper in this thread or some other, and I use it at between 10 and 15psi. No more. I also do find that you can't leave any AKZO standing in the pistol pickup parts for more than 10mins - it'll dry and affect the fan pattern. So I keep a dixie cup of acetone handy and during long stops or waiting for parts to dry before shooting the other side, I shoot some thru the pick up and drop the whole pick up in the acetone to soak. I do the same thing at the end of painting - that's the extent of my "gun" clean up.
 
I was reading your post and I was just wondering if you or any builders out there have used the HF black widow gun with Azko primer? My question is do I have to buy the extra gallon on Azko thinner or can i just use the epoxy with current viscosity?? Any help will be greatly appreciated.
 
Black Widow

I was reading your post and I was just wondering if you or any builders out there have used the HF black widow gun with Azko primer? My question is do I have to buy the extra gallon on Azko thinner or can i just use the epoxy with current viscosity?? Any help will be greatly appreciated.

I can't help with Akzo but I do use a Black Widow HTE. There is a tester used to set viscosity of spray paint. Viscosity Paint Consistency Measuring https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HCT4FJD/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_QR3GY5E12TEW4NRY850A
The goal is to find the sweet spot for the gun and use the device to get consistent mix. Most paints publish a viscosity table.
I prefer paint thin and tend to reduce to the maximum manufacture recommendation. Often a little more. It's usually about the consistency of water.
On the Black Widow, pressure is at 35psi per Harbor Freight. Paint flow usually about 1 turn out but it depends on the paint. Fan is personal preference. I prefer it less than full wide. I shoot about 8-10" from the surface.
Most paints perform best with one fog coat followed by one or more medium coats. Each applied 90 degrees from the previous. Again depends on paint and how opaque you want. With internal primer, I would only apply enough to get a uniform coat. The goal is light protection.
 
Sorry in advance for a brief off topic adv.
I have a gallon of each AKZO primer and curing sol, unopened and bought from ACS. Cant ship these, so if anyone building close by they can pick it up at a reasonable price. PM me.
 
I was reading your post and I was just wondering if you or any builders out there have used the HF black widow gun with Azko primer? My question is do I have to buy the extra gallon on Azko thinner or can i just use the epoxy with current viscosity?? Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Akzo is a two part epoxy primer, and like all epoxies, you need both parts - one part resin, one is curing agent..

As far as the HF, I cant say. As mentioned in previous posts, I only spray Akzo with a pistol gun, and the results are good enough for me.
 
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