Harbor Fright hvlp guns?

[fordtrucks4ever]

I have four HVLP guns from Harbor Freight. My first purchase about 10 years ago yielded my best gun to date. Has passed just about every type of paint thru it. Urethanes, lacquers, enamels, acrylics, epoxys and even silver roofing paint have been sprayed. I replaced it with 2 newer guns. One slightly leaks at the tip and will drip if I dont watch it closely. I will lap the needle and seat to rectify this issue. The other gun has a crunchy feeling trigger, and the reason I have not used it yet. My fourth gun is the smaller touch up that works fine if you thin the paint slightly. The only problem I ever had with shooting a HF gun was getting used to how HVLP sprays compared to older conventional siphon guns. Once I set the pressure correctly and adjusted the spray pattern, all was good. After I educated myself on how to properly shoot with an HVLP gun, the rest was in the operator. Paint shoots and lays down completely differently using HVLP. If you dont have much experience shooting paint, dont blame the gun if the results are not what you were hoping. My brother owns a body shop and only uses name brand guns. He helped me shoot some industrial catalized urethane on bottom of my Chris Craft a few years back using one of my HF HVLP guns. He complaned the whole time about crappy paint because of the slight orange peel it had. Later I read directions and found out the office was too small for thickness of that industrial paint. By upping the pressure slightly and going to an orfice that was two sizes larger, that paint layed down great next time. But he was not used to shooting anything but automotive urethanes. He never complained about the HF gun tho. Not even sure he ever realized what brand it was. Until you get professional results from an HF gun, spending $300 for a name brand is just a waste of money, imho.

 

[Hap Waldrop]

Hap, as an engine builder would you use calipers and mics from harbor freight?
I mean... I could use some new measuring equipment is the stuff they sell good enough accuracy and precision wise?

Dial caliper yes, micrometers no. Try someone like Enco Tools, or Travers Tools for mics, I tend to stay away from LED, or digamatic units, I just get the best normal mic I can afford. If you get a 0-3" mic set, 3 mics, you'll be able to measure everyhting in these engines, I have a 3-4" mic too to measure MGB bores and pistons. Get your self a bore gauge and mic stand as well, so you can measure cylinder bores. A dept mic is noce for measuring piston to deck height, and last but not least, a ball mic is nice if you are blueprinting and need the correct tool to measure bearing shell thickness.