Paint Spray Gun Cleaning and Storage

As hard as it is to believe nowadays, there was a time when all cars were painted by brush with several coats of Japanese and Nitrocellulose Lacquer. Spray painting cars began in the 1930s and over the years has become the standard for applying the cars’ finish. Professionals and hobbyists alike have perfected this process, although many have fallen victim to the ravages of a poorly cleaned spray gun.

The modern paint spray gun is an engineering marvel, with numerous small passages designed to atomize the paint into extremely fine droplets in an effort to lay down a glass-like finish. Unfortunately, it’s these same micro-fine air passages that can be easily clogged and render even the best spray gun useless.

The key to achieving consistently great results when painting cars is to keep the equipment clean and in like-new working condition. Understanding the right way to clean a spray gun after each use will ensure that it will perform at its best next time you use it. However, we are always surprised at how often we hear tales of malfunctioning spray guns. To help us out, paint & body professional Terry Wright demonstrates the proper methods to disassemble, clean, and store our spray painting equipment. Wright also shares some great cleaning tips and dispels some common cleaning and storage mistakes.