684 Section 5 Refinishing Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Basic Painting Skills The paint technician should possess several basic qualities including eye/hand coordination, flexibility, and rhythm. The technician should also have the ability to observe the paint as it is being applied and correct any problems. With good spray technique, a uniform coat of paint will be applied to a surface. While spraying, the paint technician must watch the paint as it is applied and keep an eye on the path ahead. Looking at the applied paint tells the technician if any changes are needed in technique. Looking at the path ahead allows the technician to anticipate changes in the surface. A change in the surface could be a body line or an area where the body flares out. The techni- cian’s eyes and hands must work together. When the technician’s eye sees that a modification in technique is needed, the hand must be able to do it. A paint technician must be able to stretch and squat when spraying. See Figure 28-13. This requires flex- ibility. Most of the muscles in the body will be used when spraying. An individual who can stretch to reach a panel will have a much easier time learning how to spray. A tall, long-armed painter will find spraying panels to be much easier than a shorter painter. There are ways for a short individual to compensate for insufficient reach. When spraying a vehicle roof, for example, a painter can stand on a bench. Flexibility can be improved with exercise. The successful painter will move the gun along the surface at a constant distance and speed. In short, painting has a rhythm. Once the first stroke (one pass of the spray gun at a specific distance and speed) is made, all subsequent strokes should match the initial stroke. By doing this, a uniform amount of paint will be applied. Few painters come by this ability naturally most develop this rhythm only through practice. The technician must be observant when spraying and be prepared to act when a problem arises. This ability will be gained with experience. Figure 28-14 lists some problems that may be encountered while spraying. Spray Gun Handling Spray gun handling can be broken down into six areas: body position, fan orientation, distance, speed, overlap, and triggering. Each of these areas will be discussed in detail in the following sections. Body Position One aspect of spray technique that is often over- looked is body position. Proper spray technique is much easier if the painter is positioned near one end of the panel. This allows the painter to stretch for the entire stroke. The stroke length will be the length of Goodheart-Willcox Publisher Figure 28-13. Stretching is an essential part of spray technique.