Rattle Can Lacquer Trigger

[Dave Fritz]

I recently purchased the Rust-oleum trigger and found it wouldn't work on the Deft spray can. It does work well with Rust-oleum however. There are lots of them for sale but I'm not finding any that is specific to Deft. Does anyone use one on Deft spray can lacquer and if so, can you tell me what it is? Thank you.

 

[Michael Brown]

Before you lose too much hope, have you tried super gluing a penny on the top of the tab? I have used deft in the past and I think I had to do something like that to get the pistol grip attachment to open the valve.

 

[Richard Coers]

I don't understand the appeal to using a rattle can. The nozzles on those cans are horrible and you are almost guaranteed to get orange peel. A touch up gun is so much better.

 

[Doug Freeman]

For solvent lacquer (not wb) About any type of sprayer will work much better than a rattle can. A huge benefit is being able to thin the media or add retarder as necessary.

An airbrush can easily spray lacquer for smaller items.

 

[Brian Gustin]

I don't understand the appeal to using a rattle can. The nozzles on those cans are horrible and you are almost guaranteed to get orange peel. A touch up gun is so much better.

Hmmpf.. funny, I have never experienced any of those "problems" you describe and I used a lot of Deft.. Trick to the nozzle problem is flip can upside down and spray til only propellent comes out (you cant see spray pattern) before putting it away. Orange peel happens when applying too heavily (15 or so once-over passes is far better than a heavier coat - since it dries so fast in a light coat, it is actually faster to use light coats than wait for a thick heavy coat to dry) as far as I know.... and for small projects (spin tops, small boxes, etc) that are one-off, it is far less hassle and time consuming to use rattle can than set up a sprayer, mix lacquer, spray, then go through cleanup, for the sake of 5-10 seconds spray time per coat. I could see the point if you did a production batch and had a whole lot of items to spray lacquer on, but not if you only want to coat a little 3 inch box.

@Dave Fritz : I have one of those trigger handles for rattle cans, but I NEVER think to try and use it when I go for my Deft (or Triple Thick) cans , I'll have to see if I can dig it out and see if it works, although it is so old (Had it since mid-1980's) I don't know if the identical design is still out there.

 

[William Rogers]

I agree with Brian, except I changed from Deft to Mohawk pre-cat lacquer. Way too much trouble to drag out even an airbrush for small things. Orange peel effect is from poor technique.

 

[Doug Agee]

Take a look at this video from Steve Ramsey who is using a trigger handle. There is a link in the video information to the trigger handle he uses for the Deft spray can.

 

[Richard Coers]

If orange peel is only my fault, why do spray guns come with different size nozzles? Rattle cans come with one size orifice. Also curious how every production automobile made has orange peel to some extent. I would assume the manufactuers would have known how to paint by now. But, what do I know, only been finishing wood for 53 years now.

Causes of orange peel appearance in car paint​

The reasons why this defect may appear have to do with several factors:

1. Incorrect adjustment of the application equipment.​

Correctly regulate the application equipment’s pressure, product flow and fan pattern based on the specifications in the technical sheet, in order to obtain a regular and even spray. Too low application pressure will cause a deficient spraying of the product.

 

[Dean Center]

I agree with Brian, except I changed from Deft to Mohawk pre-cat lacquer. Way too much trouble to drag out even an airbrush for small things. Orange peel effect is from poor technique.

Bill would you elaborate on what causes orange peel and how to prevent it? It continues to be a problem for me with lacquer in spite of my efforts to learn and improve.

 

[William Rogers]

@Dean Center I’m no expert but heavy spray is the main cause of orange peel and I believe humidity adds to the problem. When I spray lacquer I just do one light pass for each coat, usually 4 or 5 one pass coats and always start the spray away from the piece. I use to use Deft lacquer, but switched to Mohawk pre-cat lacquer and IMO the results are much better.

 

[Larry Crouch]

I don't understand the appeal to using a rattle can. The nozzles on those cans are horrible and you are almost guaranteed to get orange peel. A touch up gun is so much better.

Which touch up gun is the best or which one do you prefer.
Thanks
Larry

 

[Larry Crouch]

Take a look at this video from Steve Ramsey who is using a trigger handle.

aididan 2 Pack Instant Aerosol Trigger Handle from Amazon... Check this out. Looks like the same handle.​

 

[Doug Agee]

Adam Savage is fun to follow. He has some great tips on using spray paint. Worth a watch.

 

[Doug Freeman]

Which touch up gun is the best or which one do you prefer.

Just about any spray gun can be made to work with solvent lacquer. With the ability to thin, etc a mix can be found that works with almost anything. I do highly recommend a gun that will accept 3m pps cups - kinda expensive on the front end, but much easier to use, and just leave the lacquer in the cup for a week or 2 between jobs.

Yeah, using rattle cans make sense for individual small stuff - the op was looking the a trigger cap, which indicates lots of spraying, not 4 or 5 squeezes.

I see a tremendous amount of variability in what different people consider “good” or “acceptable” spray jobs, so opinions on what works vary just as much.

 

[William Rogers]

The impression I am getting is if you use a spray gun you will always get good results. I have use a spray gun for very large projects and there is a lot more knowledge needed than just pressing the spray cap on a rattle can. With a spray gun you need to get the right nozzle, viscosity, pressure, lacquer and other things for good results. You can get orange peel with a spray gun just as with a rattle can if things are not right. The other impression is that you can’t get a good finish with the rattle can and in my experience that is not the case. Properly done I don’t think a person could tell the difference between using a spray gun and rattle can on small pieces. The only large pieces I have used lacquer on is platters. For bowls I mainly use a wipe on finish. If I was doing a really large project the spray gun would be the best choice. However for the small size projects I do not want to drag out my spray gun for a 3-4” lidded box and deal with all involved when I can get good results with a rattle can.

As far as the trigger I have never used one. Seems to be more comfort than really using on large projects.

 

[Richard Coers]

One thing about a gun is you can leave lacquer in it for days. Thread the cap off and put in thinner, but the rest of the gun will be fine. With Deft rattle can at $10 for 12 ounces, you are paying around $110 per gallon vs $41 for a gallon at Ace Hardware. I can see a rattle can finish from a mile away. There must be different definitions about at what stage you can say it's dead flat or it has orange peel.