Fuji Mini Mite3 HVLP spray pattern settings for Timeless on Lyve canvas

[Sunshine7]

Ok, just received my Fuji Mini Mite 3, thanks to the Amazon warehouse this turned out to be a great deal.

Am going through some learning curves here - I need some help how to determine the ideal settings on the Fuji to get a light Timeless Matte or Satin coat on Lyve canvas. Have never used a spraygun, and since the Timeless coating is pretty transparent I have a hard time seeing what it actually sprays and what the ideal settings can be.

I understand I can adjust 3 things (see attached image):

1 - the metal colored 'pattern control knob' that has the lowest setting when turned towards me, and which can be turned up by turning it away from me.
2 - the blue colored knob just above the spray handle. When this is turned clockwise it is closed, and I can open it more by turning it anti clockwise.
3 - the black colored open/close valve on the hose itself

I know how to turn the aircap (1.3) to get a horizontal or vertical spray pattern, but I can not adequately see the spray pattern or output using the Timeless coating. I've used cardboard and some prints and got an even spray, but honestly do not know what I am doing and how much coating is being put on the canvas. When doing the 'fold test' it still seemed to slightly beak the canvas, so the coats may have been too light. I can either do more coats or adjust the spray patters/amount that comes through.

Would someone be able to help me out with some basic starting settings, using the above adjustments, so in the form of:

#1 metal colored 'pattern control knob' - staring at the closed setting, turn this 1/8 of inch, 1/4 inch. etc away from you
#2 blue colored adjustment knob - from the closed position, do 1, 2, 3 quarter turns (however many it is)
#3 black valve - open/close the black valve completely, open/close it 1/8 of inch, 1/4 of inch.

I would feel really helped if someone can give me some of the above possible settings that work (know there are probably several different combinations of setting) I'm starting to sell the canvas prints now and I would like to give people the best possible prints.

I like for the prints to not have too much of a sheen, for them too look as much as possible as the original painting.

Trying this out using water right now so that i don't use up all my Timeless coating to figure this out. There is probably not a clear answer to this, as i had hoped, and will just be trial and error, however some pointers will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks all!!

[Sunshine7]

On a previous thread SG suggested to hang newspaper or tissue paper to better see the spray pattern. Will try this, thought this was a great idea. The cardboard was just too think to see what was happening.

[bill t.]

I have the T70 gun, which I think is the same as the MiniMite 3.  I have a underslung cup.

Load the gun with water to check for checks before painting.  Turn the blue needle knob out 1.75 turns, which gives a 200 ml per minute spray rate into an empty bottle and which is the setting I use for spraying.  Adjust the pattern for 8 inches wide at 10 inches distance, which is a good spraying distance.  Pay close attention to that distance when you spray.  If the pattern is not perfectly symmetrical then twist the knob back and forth slightly until you find a spot with a perfect pattern.  When everything is correct dump the water and load the paint.

If you can't see the wet spray being applied, it's best to hold a light reflecting on the surface of the print.  Old fashioned caged worklights are traditional.  What I do is I make numbered marks 4 inches apart on the backing both left and right horizontally and top and bottom vertically, then spray from mark to mark at a rate of 1 foot per second.  On alternate marks I first spray from mark to mark, then between the marks the next time, etc.  I use a metronome to pace myself, high recommended.  I almost always get about 5 ml per square foot deposition of slightly diluted coating in that situation, per coat.  I usually apply 3 coats for a total of 15 ml deposition per square foot.  Truth be known, I've gotten good enough at this that I only spray vertically which removes the risk of an untested distorted spray patter after rotating the cap.  It's a judgement call.  Alternate direction coats might be a good idea for a beginner.

Each coat should leave a slightly wet looking surface for at least several seconds after spraying.  If your coat looks immediately matte, open the needle some more the next time, or slow down the speed of you gun movement.  Watch out for dripping, which means you've put down too much coating.  Be careful of drips coming off clips, pieces of tape, or whatever you're using to hold up the print.  I often carry a 2" paint brush in my back pocket to fix drips when I want especially wet coats.  It's best not to try to remove dust until after each coat has dried.

When I'm finished spraying I thoroughly clean the gun with hot water, then leave it filled with water for the next time.  Hold the pickup tube upside down under the faucet to feel the gun chambers, then holding the insert the tube into the water filled cup.

[Mike Guilbault]

I had trouble as well setting the controls.  I found that the two gun controls were for fine tuning the spray, and I finally set the hose control (the black valve) to almost 1/2 from open. then I used the gun controls to fine tune the spray.

I use a sheet of kraft paper to spray on to test my pattern.  Lighting is the key to seeing your work.  I use two LED work lights that I got from Home Depot. Placed them at 45 degrees from the print surface on each side and have them mounted to two light stands so I can move them up and down depending on the print being sprayed.  I would like another one or two coming down from overhead, but just haven't got around to purchasing them yet.

Other than that... I'm using pretty much the same technique as Bill.

[Sunshine7]

Thanks Bill and Mike - Bill, this was just in time, and turned out to be a 'print saver'.

I used what you said just after you wrote it, and it turns out that the 1 3/4 turn on the blue needle knob did the trick. I did not know how to set this and was using it with just a 3/4 turn open and, as it turns out,  I was spraying a too thin a coating and therefore the canvas still cracked when doing the 'folding' test. (even after 3 or 4 coatings)

I re-sprayed all the canvas prints before stretching, and they now came out perfectly when stretching, no cracks at all. Was way too conservative in how to apply the coating, and after reading both of your posts I have a better understanding of how to adjust the spray gun and which knob/valve does what. Also read that Breathing Color advises that right after the coating it should look slightly 'milky' and this now works perfectly, when I did it before I could almost not see the coating I sprayed on.

Will try out the lighting as well - Mike, thanks for the advise, will try adjusting the valve and see how this effects things. Thanks also for the video in the other thread, very helpful to see. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/forum/index.php?topic=97291.0