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Anyone tried this for waterborne finishes? Along with sawdust, I hate large compressors.

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Hutch

Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!

Fuji 3 Gold here, XPC gun, 1 mm tip (3 stages is a minimum really)
Turbine's outside the sprayshop, better for noise and the filters.
Enduro Var, gloss, flat, satin - don't like the look of the semi-gloss.
Here's a gloss over EIR.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

I'm sure I would love one of those but I'm thinking of the sub $100 all in one units. I'm sure I'd have to do a little more sanding and buffing but I do that anyway.

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Hutch

Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!

I use a Fuji Mini Mite 4 with a 1mm needle for spraying Crystalac products. I don't have a ventilated booth and fire-safe equipment so all the dangerous stuff is off the table for me. The gun works well though. If I bought it again, I might consider the gravity gun instead of the pot on the bottom one.

I think he's talking about something like this, but it's $150

OR this is <$100, but it's not HVLP

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

I use one of these with a 1.0mm tip.

https://www.prpshop.it/en/ani-spray-gun ... zles_mm-05

It is an HPS gun as apposed to an HVLP but really lays down Endurovar nicely. There are also HVLP guns on this same page at a similar price point so look around. Yes, they are in Italy. I had my R150-T within a week and the price is very right for the quality!

M

I have the HF version of what Colin is showing above - a simple single stage turbine. It puts out a lot of material and is fine for light bodied paints and lacquers It sounds like a vacuum cleaner when it is running. The small turbine runs constantly, a small compressor runs intermittently.
For something the size of a guitar you don't need a large compressor. I've used a small PC pancake compressor and a high pressure touchup gun and it has worked fine. The small size of the touchup gun puts out enough material with less overspray than a full size gun.
The small portable compressor can be used for other tasks around the home and shop so has many more uses than just spraying the occasional guitar. If you are just getting into spray finishing these are what I would recommend and have never found the need to upgrade:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Porter-Cabl ... /203162815
https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-CUMMINS-AI ... SwaxJf7TEZ

When I looked on the HF site for the turbine unit I have, I saw that it was replaced with the unit Colin posted. The one I have is a little simpler (no wheels or carry handle) but probably works about the same. Back then it was $60, and I caught a half price sale ($30) so it wasn't a bad deal. If you need something to spray stain on decks or wooden outdoor furniture it works pretty well.

I sprayed water-based KTM-9 once out of the little sprayer Rockler had for $99 about 10 years ago. It worked okay, probably not as nice and smooth as a fancy one, but worked. Probably more level sanding needed.

Pat

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Pat

I have some nice spray equipment--a Fuji turbine system and Sata HVLP guns (though I mostly French Polish any more), but in all honesty, those cheap Harbor Freight door jam guns and a small compressor work pretty darned well and on the cheap. I got one of the California Air Tools quiet compressors, and it's not at all offensive to use. I use the Sata gun with it since I have one, but the Harbor Freight guns are not at all bad. Especially for the price. I have a banjo making buddy who buys them in quantity when they're on sale, and when they get too gunked up to easily clean, he tosses them and grabs another. Not eco friendly, but...

Dave