Midi Spray Gun

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As promised I finally got around to doing a review on this Italian made R150 Midi gun from ANI.
Here it is with everything included in the box (the regulator is not included but more on that later). This is a high end feature gun at a almost entry level price (about $100).



The packaging is good, they keep the gun separate in the box, this is important as I have had more than one with a damaged finish due to being hit by the included wrench bouncing around in the box during shipping.




The air cap is good quality brass and properly machined, the nozzle and needle are stainless steel, they are very well finished.
This is the 1.0 needle and nozzle and is a good all rounder. Other sizes are available at a reasonable cost in fact they are downright cheap when compared to Iwata or Sata.





The finish is durable and solvent resistant, all operating controls are metal and well made, fit and finish are very good, no it doesn't rival Iwata or Sata but there is not much to find fault with either. A few pics of the gun and controls.




Air control and fluid control knobs usually these are the only two controls but this gun also has a fan control knob.


Fan control, Sata guns favor this setup, it adds a lot of versatility to the gun.


With this nozzle the gun can paint a full panel, fender, quarter, bumper cover etc but I wouldn't do a full hood or trunk, trunk or roof on a large vehicle.
For very fine touch up work you can get smaller needles but a real mini gun like the Iwata LPG80 would be better suited. Keep in mind the LPH 80 is close to $300.

Gun body size compared to the LPH 80.



The LPH 80 air cap and the ANI both are 1.0, the LPH 80 cannot do full panels or larger areas very well but for what it is designed for it is truly magnificent, other than price it has no faults I have found.



Compared to a full size gun the ANI is easy to handle even with the large optional cup.



The Full size air cap (1.3) and the ANI. As you can see it fits clearly in the middle.


Accessories is where this gun really gets interesting, different nozzles are less than $50, cups in every size are only $5 ea, seals (they even throw in the brass installation tool) and rebuild kits are under $10! A single needle and nozzle alone for the Supernova are over $170.
I bought a spare cup with an additional large and small cup for $15 along with the nozzsle seal and full rebuild kit for another $15 or so. You cant beat that.




A $170 Iwata needle and nozzle only. The whole ANI gun with cups and kits cost less.


You may be thinking okay but whats wrong with this thing, nothing really. The only semi complaint I have is the cups, yes they are cheap, work fine and don't leak but there is no stop on the cup threads so you have to be careful not to over tighten it.
Its a small thing I know but if we are nitpicking lets go all the way.

The Iwata cup, expensive but a super high quality part.



The ANI cup mounting.



As can be seen in the above picture there is no marking on the fan control knob, min to max is probably 1/4 turn but you have no idea. This will be easily remedied with an engraver tomorrow.
Finding out the min/max is easy so you can mark it, turn the fan control all the way in lightly, never bottom them out hard you can damage the needle similar to a carb adjusting screw.
Check the pressure gauge, now open the fan control slowly til the pressure just begins to drop on the gauge, that's max.

The difference in this gun and say the LPH 80 other than the 3x price difference is the LPH 80 has stainless internal passages making it ideal for corrosive paints. The ANI is anodized aluminum, while you could spray water base it would need an immaculate cleaning to prevent corrosion.
The fit and finish of the LPH 80 is jewel like and sprays a uniform and consistent pattern but not $200 better.

Now for the best part, unlike the full size gun that requires 15+ CFM and a large 2 stage compressor the ANI needs only 3.6 CFM making it ideal for guys with smaller home units.
Spray pattern and atomization is excellent, the build quality is very good and the availability of parts and inexpensive accessories make this a great long term purchase. I have only spayed a full bumper cover but it did as good a job as the full size and used almost 50% less paint.

The paint saving alone will pay for this gun in no time, I will order a second one for clear only also in the 1.0 nozzle.
The regulator in the pictures is also from ANI, it is the best one yet that I have used and I have plenty inc SATA, Devillbiss non come close to these.
It doesn't have the regulating knob hanging off the side where it can get moved by accident but rather requires it be turned to regulate the pressure, it is firm and wont move unless you want it to. At less than $25 its a deal.



The gauge glass feels like glass but it may be a hard plastic, in any case it is solvent resistant.




For those that are interested these are the full size guns I use most, they are not the only ones but these are my favorites.
They will not make anyone a better painter but they will give a good painter better results.



This is where I buy all my guns and parts. They have the best prices and service and they ship fast and dont charge a fortune for it.
You will see the prices in English Pounds inc VAT click on US and on the order it will not have the VAT. A not on shipping.
Their system must go by items not only weight so when you add to the car the shipping might got from 12 to 27 with one small additional item.
Either make a second order or call them, they are great to deal with and will take care of it. This is the gun, the parts and accessories are below it.

https://www.spraygunsdirect.co.uk/ani-r150-mini-gravity-spraygun.html#sthash.KzEEPaM2.dpbs

For any one wanting to try a little touch up work or painting this gun will do a fine job and last a long time without breaking the bank, I highly recommend it.

Sorry for the long post you guys with slow internet speeds.
 
Nice review Trav!

This is definitely on my to buy list now. Would you go with a different tip for say single stage paints? Sometimes those can get tricky to lay down nice.
 
I would go with the 1.2 for single stage. At that price having both tips is cheap enough also so you don't limit yourself in the future, no need to buy all at once buy the other when you need it.
 
Hmmmm....... it looks exactly like the ones I buy at Harbor Freight for $9.99


Fancy-Harbor-Freight-Spray-Gun-54-On-Cover-Letter-Online-with-Harbor-Freight-Spray-Gun.jpg
 
Seriously, in today's world, I wonder if anything new out of any European country could be cheap.

By that I mean it is likely a good product. After WWII we had an expression, "If it says MADE IN GERMANY on it, buy it".

Today, competition is clear. The world's largest aluminum factory is in Italy..their "5 towns" region is KING of adaptive solutions.

They'd be foolish to go the garbage route.
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex
Hmmmm....... it looks exactly like the ones I buy at Harbor Freight for $9.99


Fancy-Harbor-Freight-Spray-Gun-54-On-Cover-Letter-Online-with-Harbor-Freight-Spray-Gun.jpg



It even has a knob on the side and everything, now I know where to go for the next one.
lol.gif
 
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