Steve Nearman writes:

I have been squirting lacquer on furniture for over 37 years. I first
learned to work a spray gun in high school. That gun was a DeVilbiss.
 From school I went to a furniture factory, where it was normal for me
to spray 8-10 gallons a day. The guns used there were all DeVilbiss.
 From there I went to a company that made overhead conveyors (that is
where I learned to weld and do metal work), I painted miles of track
and switches all with DeVilbiss guns. I even used one of those funny
looking ones with a long rubber nozzle that sprayed a circle pattern,
It was hooked up to a 55 gal. drum and a thing that look like a
battery charger (electrostatic system). From there I bounced around a
few retail furniture stores and again the DeVilbiss guns were there.
When I went to work for a real furniture restoration shop, once
again, DeVilbiss guns. So, what spray gun do you think I bough when I
started my journey of self employment? I still have it, and it works
just as good today as the day I bought it, 35 years ago!

All along the way I saw and/or used several other guns. Most were
covered with gunk and dust. Obviously they had not been used for a
long time. They were either some body's first gun that was replaced
with a DeVilbiss or some "new and better" gun that never made the grade.

Do any of you Groop folks have a big pile of useless or discarded
tools that you never use any more but just can't pitch out because
you spent a lot of money acquiring that junk pile. I find it very
hard to trash stuff I don't use, thinking in the back of my mind
that, "some day I might use that for something".

Anyway, a few weeks ago I bought a CAT C14 system. It cost more than
ten times what I paid for a new DeVilbess gun six months ago.
Although I have not used it long, I can say that it is a very quality
system that does not produce as good a finish nor as easily as any of
the DeVilbess guns I have used over the years. Now it might sound
strange, but I plan on keeping the CAT system and using it for all of
my build coats and most of my top-coatings.

Negatives of the AAA systems:
1. Expensive!
2. Danger of injecting yourself with paint.
3. Fluid nozzle must be removed and cleaned after each use. The small
drop of paint that is left between the fluid tip and fluid nozzle
must be removed or it will harden and cause a bad spray pattern. You
just can't hang up your gun and walk away at the end of the day or
weekend, then pick it up the next work day and spray. With a
conventional gun like the DeVilbiss, I would clean it maybe once or
twice a year (other than the air caps).
4. You can not "back-blow" the paint out of the fluid hose back into
the pressure pot or paint bucked. You need to pump it out, under high
pressure or readjust the pump to a lower pressure and then back again
to run thinner through the system, then readjust it the next time you use it.
5. Fluid nozzle and packing materials ware out relatively fast as
compared to siphon or pressure feed guns.
6. Gun adjustments take longer as most of the controls are on the
pump and not the gun. This takes a little getting use to when you
have been doing all the adjustments at the gun for the last 37 years.
Some thing about teaching old dogs new tricks comes to mind. One hand
on the gun pulling the trigger the other stretched out to the
regulators on the pump feels a little strange. But I think I will get
the routine down soon and it won't feel so awkward. Another drawback
caused by the controls being on the pump, is that when you are
adjusting the gun, you can get over spray on the furniture in the
spray room. I have the pump mounted on the  back wall of the spray
room and any furniture in the room is between me and the exhaust fan.
I would do any adjusting, with the conventional gun. standing with my
back to the furniture and pointing the gun towards the exhaust fan.
7. I miss the 40-60 psi air blast from the first stage trigger pull
of a conventional gun. Its nice to have a high pressure air gun to
blow off any dust just before you spray. (8 psi don't move much dust)

Positives of the AAA systems:
1. Efficient transfer of paint. I'm using about half as much lacquer
for the same high build look. This saves money!
2. Reduced over spray (fog). Better for your health. Takes longer to
fill booth filters with paint. That saves money and time!
3. Light weight gun with more flexible hoses. This reduces operator
fatigue and allows you to get a better coating on hard to reach areas.
4. Much less compressed air needed to operate. This extends the life
of your compressor. That saves money!
5. Looks "Cool" on posted Groop pictures and impressive to customers
(very high tech looking).

One difference between the Krimlin gun and the CAT Cougar gun;
The fluid adjusting knob on the Cougar is not an adjustment knob. Its
a safety knob. It functions just like a fluid adjusting knob on any
pressure or siphon gun, in that it controls how far back the fluid
needle is aloud to be pulled back with the trigger. However it does
not change how much paint that is delivered through the fluid nozzle.
How much paint you get is determined by the pressure the pump is set
for. This is the same for the Krimlin gun also. To make the gun
"safe" you screw the knob down tight so that the trigger can not be
pulled back. On the Krimlin there is a small lever that flips down
and locks the trigger forward. I think the Krimlin has a better
design for locking the trigger. Its faster and easier to flip a lever
then to make several turns on a knob to lock and unlock the trigger.

I'm sure there is more I could say, but its late, and my rememberer
aint working so good.

Steve Nearman
The Master's Touch