HVLP Spraying for Beginners: Setting Up and Using the TCP Global HVLP Kit

If you've been painting furniture or cabinets with a brush or a foam roller, you can get a nice finish. But once you spray paint on with an HVLP gun and watch it level out, you'll probably kick yourself for not starting sooner. I did.

I spray my cabinets and furniture with the TCP Global HVLP spray gun kit. My first set sprayed around 500 pieces before its internal parts finally wore out, so I bought the same kit again. Here's how I set it up and use it.

What's in the TCP Global HVLP Kit

The TCP Global set (model TCP G7000) is a gravity-fed kit with three guns: a 1.8mm primer gun, a 1.4mm topcoat gun, and a 1.0mm mini touch-up gun. It also includes two 1-liter aluminum cups, a 150cc cup for the mini gun, one locking air pressure regulator, an inline moisture filter, wrenches, and a cleaning brush.

• Tip size decides what you spray. I use the 1.8mm for primer and Sherwin-Williams Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel. The 1.4mm handles polyurethane well. The 1.0mm works for thin finishes like Polycrylic.
• Keep one gun for water-based and one for oil-based. Oil-based poly is harder to clean out, so my blue gun is water-based only and my red gun is oil-based only.
• There's one regulator for three guns, so plan on moving it between guns.
• The cups are interchangeable with most gravity-feed guns, so they're cheap to replace.

Two Kinds of HVLP Guns

Not every HVLP gun works the same way. There are two types. A conversion gun takes higher-pressure air from a compressor and lowers the pressure inside the gun, so what comes out the nozzle is high volume, low pressure. A standard HVLP setup gets its low pressure straight from the air supply, so the pressure is set at the source. The TCP Global kit is a conversion gun, which is why you can run it off a regular shop compressor.

Two Myths

You don't need a paint booth. For furniture or a few cabinets, a clean area without much dust is enough. Sprayed waterborne paint dries fast. My Emerald is usually dry to the touch in about 10 minutes.

You don't need a huge compressor. I used a small pancake compressor for five months, and in the video I spray a whole base with it. You just let it catch up between pieces. HVLP means high volume, low pressure, and that describes the air, not the paint. Because it's a conversion gun, I set the regulator at the gun to about 40 to 45 PSI and the gun brings it down from there.

Thinning: My Drip Test

Read your paint's data sheet first. Sherwin-Williams calls for spraying Emerald unreduced through a bigger tip than mine. With the 1.8mm, I thin it about 5% with plain water, and never more than 10%.

1. Stir well, from the bottom up.
2. Pour some into a cup where a shop light reflects off the surface.
3. Drip paint off your stir stick across the reflection and count.
4. Straight from the can, the lines can last 10 to 15 seconds. I want them gone in two to three. Add water a little at a time and stir well between tests.

For oil-based products, use the thinner the manufacturer recommends. Then strain everything through a paper paint strainer. If it takes much more than a couple of minutes to run through, it's still too thick.

Setting Up the Gun

• Fluid knob: turn it all the way in, then back it out about an eighth of an inch and test.
• Fan knob: close it, then open it a quarter to a third of a turn. You want about a 6-inch fan from 6 inches away.
• Air valve on the bottom: I leave it open and set the pressure at the regulator.
• The nut behind the trigger: if you feel puffs of air on your fingers, it has backed out. Snug it, but not all the way.

Technique

• Spray the hard-to-reach inside areas first.
• Stay about 6 inches away, overlap each pass by 50%, and keep a wet edge.
• Spray wet enough to see a light orange peel. That's what self-levels. Wetter means runs. Drier means the paint dries before it flattens. Get it on, get it even, and get away from it.
• The first coat doesn't need full coverage. I lightly sand at about 300 grit between coats and usually finish with a third coat.

To stop guessing at film thickness, use a wet film thickness gauge. Right after a pass, press the comb straight into the wet paint. The highest tooth with paint on it is your wet film thickness in mils. Compare it to your paint's data sheet.

Prep and Protection

Spraying shows everything underneath, so sand well and prime. I used to use KILZ 2, and it's great for a lot of things, but for cabinetry Zinsser B-I-N is my easy go-to. Good primer costs a lot less than extra coats of topcoat. For sanding, I like these durable, inexpensive 220-grit hook-and-loop discs.

Disposable nose filters are handy for sanding dust. When you're spraying, wear a respirator rated for paint spray, wear eye protection, and keep the area ventilated.

Cleanup Is Everything

Nearly every problem I've had, like sputtering or spitting, came from not cleaning the gun well enough the last time. Every time you spray:

• Pull the needle and clean it.
• Scrub the cup and nozzle with a brass brush or something softer, never stainless steel.
• Use a brush set with several diameters. The included brush isn't enough.
• Keep each needle, nozzle, and cup together as a set. Mixing them causes drips.
• Don't drop the nozzle. A bent tip drips.

Here's everything above on one page. Save it or pin it for your next spray day:

Who It's For

The TCP Global HVLP kit is a great fit for DIYers, furniture makers, and anyone painting their own cabinets who wants a smoother finish than a brush gives. It's affordable and covers primer, topcoat, and touch-up. The trade-off is that you have to keep it clean.

Give it a try. It's a lot easier than it looks, and the finish will blow your mind.

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