Hello everyone,
I paint for a body shop in Southern California. We paint at most 2 cars a day. We fix rent a cars that you find and enterprise, hertz, budget so that means a lot of metalics. We paint with ppg omni plus mostly. Sometimes I paint envirobase water base or dupoint nason. I am using a devilbiss finishline 3 now and it has been giving me problems the past 2 days. So I feel it time to upgrade. I will be using one gun for both base and clear. I have read a lot of good things about sata and iwata also the devilbiss tekna guns. Please point me in the right direction.

I am a beginner and feel almost didn't want to reply because it sounds like you're a pro since you do this for a living. I've been researching for a LONG time before I bought my guns (flg3 for primer and copper tekna for base and clear) but it sounds like sat a would be right up your ally or the black tekna since they are faster guns. You are in a production environment and 2 cars a day is a lot to me. The sat a is expensive but you can write it off since it's a tool for your income.

Ballerbrian wrote:Hello everyone,
I paint for a body shop in Southern California. We paint at most 2 cars a day. We fix rent a cars that you find and enterprise, hertz, budget so that means a lot of metalics. We paint with ppg omni plus mostly. Sometimes I paint envirobase water base or dupoint nason. I am using a devilbiss finishline 3 now and it has been giving me problems the past 2 days. So I feel it time to upgrade. I will be using one gun for both base and clear. I have read a lot of good things about sata and iwata also the devilbiss tekna guns. Please point me in the right direction.

My head Tech guy at Tamco Mark, uses the Tekna to spray all of his tests for me, and his own projects. What he does looks like glass out of the gun. He writes on here sometimes. I'll ask him if he will come on here and provide his opinion on it.

Tammy

The SATA 3000 or 4000 are excellent guns and found in more body shops than any other gun...so you can't go wrong there. Replacement parts are very expensive and you are sending profit $$ outside the USA (versus USA based DeVilbiss), that's my only minor issue if I had to pick on something.

Iwata is Japanese and also a very good gun, but tend to be on the slow side. Restoration guys love them, collision shop guys quickly get frustrated with how slow they are (based on my perception, anyway).

This tekna prolite is my #1 selling gun right now, and I have sold them into local collision shops with great feedback.

I can get SATA (4000) or Iwata, if you end up wanting to go that route PM me with the exact model number and I can get you a price.

How about a Taurus Raging Bull .454? Will they let you use one of these in Cali? This is my favorite! It will spray like something you have never seen!

Ha-Ha-Ha,,,Just kidding.

I got myself a devilbiss tekna prolite about 2 months ago and I have nothing but good things to say about it. For the price you cannot go wrong. It can pretty much spray anything and is very user friendly. Probably the best investment I have made. I work in a production shop putting out an average of 4 cars a day and it has only made my life easier and the coaxial trigger makes blending a piece of cake. Ive sprayed with both satas 3000 and 4000. While I like how they spray I prefer my tekna. Good luck wih the purchase. You cant go wrong with either gun.

ArangoAutoWorks wrote:I got myself a devilbiss tekna prolite about 2 months ago and I have nothing but good things to say about it. For the price you cannot go wrong. It can pretty much spray anything and is very user friendly. Probably the best investment I have made. I work in a production shop putting out an average of 4 cars a day and it has only made my life easier and the coaxial trigger makes blending a piece of cake. Ive sprayed with both satas 3000 and 4000. While I like how they spray I prefer my tekna. Good luck wih the purchase. You cant go wrong with either gun.

I second the Tekna Prolite a great gun for the money.... I have used it with BC and Hi and low solids clears and it lays them like glass. most of the kits come with two air caps one HVLP and one of two RP style caps your choice one is for low solids and one that i use a TE20 for Hi solids.... the gun is vary light compared to other guns which is nice when leaning over cars.... it is also coated inside and out so is water born ready. as well. I have a friend who has used nothing but SATAS for 30 years and he tried my prolite and loved it and went and bought one. Try one out if you can.

another note is I have found it works better with less pressure than recommended...I spray about 5psi under recommended starting psi

my suggestion is to by one for base, one for clear.
i use sata 3000, like it a lot, but if you use enviro, get the wb, but i have heard a lot of good reviews for the pro lite as well.
do have any one in your area that sells guns, and can let you demo a few?

Oh i might add the Dev. Plus gun is also a great gun... http://www.autobody101.com/store/spray- ... -34oz-cup/

Thanks for all the replies guys. What is the difference between the tekna prolite and the devilbiss plus? Also out of the tekna and sata 4000 what sprays metalics better? Also does one atomize better then the other? Does one have a wider fan pattern? Also very important to me is color matching.