Hi
I am spraying some Target Coatings raven black pigmented lacquer.
I am happy with the product but the biggest needle/nozzle i have is 1.7. I have thinned it up to 10% with water and it runs about 45 seconds thru a Ford cup. I am spraying a box coat on some cabinet doors and when i lay down the product it looks great but when it dries i can see some tiger stripping. I am thinking that the product is a little too thick for the 1.7 but the instructions say to thin up to 10% so i don't want to thin more than that.
Would adjusting my spray width, Volume and pressure be the thing i want to do? I have just been spraying with the volume wide open and the width wide open at about 25 pounds of pressure.
The gun i am using is a CAT gravity with a HVLP and a CPR air cap.
I have been using the CPR. Would it be better to use the HVLP cap?
I am out of the lacquer right now and my delivery isn't due until Wednesday day the 8th so I was trying to get some info to think about until i get the product so i can experiment.

Thanks.......nickko

my guess is you are unders atomizing the coating or your lap stroke is off. i would starting increasing your pressure at ten 10 psi at a time on a piece of cardboard white preferrable and examine your results.

good luck herb j

Thanks Herb
I’ll try when I get my finish on Wednesday. It’s definitely user error.

I have sprayed target coating before
That CAT CPR shouldn't have any problems spraying it
Is it cold where you are?
Are you mixing the material thoroughly?
Either air cap should be just fine
Sorry I don't have much to say
Hope you resolve it

I did a 10 second look at your gun. It needs 11CFM @ 29psi with the CPR cap. I had a look because 25 is really really low. Do you have 11CFM? Where are you measuring the pressure? The biggest upgrade I ever made to my gravity HVLP guns was switching to a 3/8" air hose and having the air pressure adjustment/gauge on the gun. Instantly everything sprayed better.

Adam makes a good point
CFM on a Compressor is something that many people overlook when using those type of guns
If your Compressor doesn't put out enough cfm,then psi drops and you end up with poor atomization
Just something to think about

My compressor puts out 15.1 scfm @ 40 psi and 13.5 scfm @ 90 psi
I check my pressure at the gun. I guess I need to do some test panels and play with the adjustments. I just opened things up and started spraying because that's how I spray my solvent based CV.

Just to add to my above post. I do use 3/8 hose and I have the larger high flow fittings on the hose and gun.

Sounds like your setup is good. You should use distilled water for reduction. Stir it in with a stick really well. Keep the pressure at whatever the max they rate the HVLP(40psi?). I would run everything wide open. The low pressure air caps don’t work with every product.

Target has great tech support, give them a call.

Thanks for all the help. I am waiting for my finish to arrive any time now so I will follow up later.

Thanks for all the help. I turned my air pressure up to 30 from the 22 to 25 I was spraying at. I warmed the finish up some by just letting some heat blow on it for awhile and made sure I was more precise on my overlap. I did a box coat on all the cabinet doors and I’m super happy with the results.
Now if I could just keep dust particles from settling on the finish……..
But that’s a whole nother thread.

Glad you got this figured out!
That CPR gun is pretty sweet!
I like to keep a fan at low speed blowing air across the top of the painted surfaces

glad my suggestion worked out, you even improved upon by increasing air pressure by only 5psi instead of the 10 psi i wrote about. good move!

good luck
herb j.

I use a Graco AirPro with 1.8 tip on my WB products (Milesi,Ilva, Solrac). I'm curious as to the opinions from someone who has used both guns.

I would suggest putting Target's clear urethane (EM9300) over it. I have used the raven black and the durability as a stand alone is poor. I did an entire bedroom set 2 years ago and there are many areas worn through to the primer. I plan on using the black again and top coating with the 9300. I did that on a pigmented bedroom set a few years ago and it has held up great.

I have some Sherwin Williams water white solvent conversion varnish. Would it be safe to spray that over waterborne? I would light scuff with a maroon pad and do two thin coats. Thoughts.

Thanks.

This is a no go as per Jeff at Target.

I use a 2.2 in my FLG-4 for all my WB. Mostly GF including there white undercoat which is really thick. I just cut with leftover topcoats and pinch of water on cold days. BTW, for years I had 3/8 hose but then I realized the fitting from the tank to the output on my 5hp 220 Curtis-Toledo was 1/4".....doh. Puts out 13+ @ 90lbs. So switched my hose to 1/4" and didn't notice any difference.
And I haven't tripped over it once since switching...lol
PS you may want to consider a pressure pot system for more viscous material.