Raimondi Napoleone Swivel Seat

The Raimondi® Napoleone Swivel Seat features a 5-wheel design to allow free and smooth movement in any direction. Designed with the tile setters in mind - the seat adjusts in height from 10-5/8" to 13-3/4" and easily facilitates well with jobs such as skirting and wall tiling up to 40" high while sitting in comfort.

The height of the seat can allow an approximate reach of 3/4 the way up a door jamb. How I use them is for filling nail holes on baseboard and up casings. I caulk baseboard too from the seat. On new construction jobs this seat can increase your production quite drastically especially on slabs or basement floors. To give you and idea how fast, I fill holes on baseboard with the seat in constant movement.Sit down and increase production at the same time. Why not sit down and tape off baseboard and cut-in your latex off a seat! Lots of uses to keep you off your feet.

3M TA20 Hand-Masker DEMO Videos

There are now 2 short video clips of the 3M TA20 Hand-Masker Masking Tape Applicator.

4234 WOOSTER ALPHA 3” Flat Brush

I reviewed the 4231 Wooster Alpha back in February. I felt the Wooster Alpha 4234 deserves its own little review because its characteristics and capacity is far superior to the 4231. Basically the 4234 has all the advantages of the 4231 on a bigger scale. If you are serious like I am about maximizing every aspect of your skill then take time to read the 4231 Alpha review.

The 4234 has a HUGE footprint that I try to show in this photo. It stays sharp and effectively provides a wet edge for long distances as seen in the video clip below. Also the hold capacity is by far the best I’ve seen in a 3” flat brush. This brush has weight to it when loaded but the trade-off is enormous in how much time this brush can save you on the job. You can make super fast, super solid and super long runs with it. This brush is highly recommended.

New HANDy Plastic Paint Tray & Liners

Hey! Look what came my way along with a bunch of other cool products from HANDy I hope to get posted soon but this one got immediate attention. Just what I’ve been looking for. The NEW HANDy Paint Tray is made of durable plastic and accommodates drop-in and snap-in tray liners but it features much more than that. It even has a magnetic brush holder.

PROS Deeper Capacity Very Stable Plastic Design Effective Ramp Design Easy Pour Design  Disposable Liners Heavier Duty Liners Super Easy Cleanup

Nice wide stance and sexy curves.

CONS I don’t really care for the Easy Grip Handles but not bothered by it too much. Yes, these handles are nice BUT I feel a flat paddle-like design would be better suited for carrying from room to room to provide better stability of carrying something with paint in it.

One of the other CONS turned out to be a PROS in a way. As is, the bottom of the pan has these square areas that prevent the pan from gliding easy when you pull the pan with the end of your roller.

I found some skid pads for furniture to fit in these 2 areas. Now its smooth to pull and glide.

More to come on this pan. I do a side-by-side comparison of how much ramp space you have with 3/4 gallon poured in the HANDy Pan vs. a Metal Deep Well Pan.

And the best reason to use plastic trays… no scratching, no rusting in  customers home.

50% off is no deal

Being efficient on the job requires attention to detail in many areas easily overlooked. Take for example this $39.99 drill found on a Thanksgiving Day Specials ad for 50% off regular price. Is it a bargain or bust? Its no deal at all. Lets say you have a guy pulling hinges off 20 doors, that's 180 screws and it takes him 1 hour with this drill. Lets assume that same guy pulls screws off with a drill twice as fast. That would mean he can remove hardware in 30 mins. Take for example a $10 per hour guy pulling hardware off 10 homes each month with this drill. That would take 10 hours right? Now give the same guy a drill twice as fast and instantly he can do the same job in half the time. 5 hours saved @ $10 is $50 and fifty bucks is more than this drill costs on sale. Now that 30 minutes saved can be used to roll 3 bedrooms or paint a front door or tape off a house in 30 mins etc.

There are drills that have a no load RPM speed of 1200 and higher vs this drill at 650.

For example, this 2.5lb Milwaukee M12 has a No Load Speed of 0-400/0-1,500 RPM I wouldn't hesitate to spend $110 more for this cordless drill. The money saved in labor will pay for this drill very quickly. The savings example I mentioned above is for taking the door hardware off. Don't forget, that hardware goes back on too.

3M 2020 Scotch Masking Tape for Production Painting

Are you doing production work at super low pricing and finding it hard to make a buck? Then don't use this masking tape which is “designed” for production painting. Yeah I know. Consider something else from 3M. I’ve been preaching quality product online for over 10 years now and how important it is to use TOP QUALITY product to achieve maximum production rates. Number one, this is high adhesion tape. What that means is that it will not pull off the roll fast in comparison to say #2090 or most blue tapes in the medium-tack category. Number two, this tape is thin and tears and shreds very easily. So, you waste time dickin around just pulling tape off the roll not to mention how much time you’ll waste pulling tape when you are done painting. Number three, this tape is typically sold wrapped in super thin plastic which sticks very well to the sidewall of the HIGH ADHESION tape. So, you spend and waste time simply getting this tape out of the packaging.

I can go on and on about why not to use 3M 2020 in production with the exception of a few applications like taping masking paper on certain things but guys use it because its cheap but where it really costs you is in your bottom line. Consider top of the line products if you are doing production work and finding it hard to make money. Product that typically costs you twice the price of cheap product can save you a ton of money in the long run. I paint new homes and this tape has no place in my work environment. Its like having a broadband internet connection for years then having to use a dial-up modem.

3M TA20 Hand-Masker Tape Applicator

3M TA 20 Hand-Masker. If you are looking for a way to reduce the time it takes to apply masking tape on baseboard then the 3M TA20 will do just that. I was able to lay down 3 rolls of 60 Yd. (180 Ft) in 30 minutes masking off baseboard in a house. That’s a total 540’ of tape! Features quick-cam style levers for inserting tape but there is nothing quick about changing a roll due to poor design for production use. I like the idea but it needs improvement to truly be effective.

The 3M TA20 is designed for right or left-hand application. Both end wheels are beveled with a flat wheel in the middle. The super sharp cutter makes break-offs a snap and can be used for cutting off short pieces. You may experience some binding or drag applying high adhesion masking tape because that tape does not pull off the roll easy or quick.

TIP:  In the photo on the left below the lever you see grooves for your fingers above the wheel. The opposite end most blurred in the right of photo is the guide to glide on the top of baseboard. Keep some pressure there but don't be heavy on it. Apply your pressure to the area above the wheel & cutter and not the other end.

Graco RAC 5 SwitchTip 311

The Graco 311 RAC 5 is an excellent tip for shooting wide trim and especially doors. The [3] of 311 determines the fan pattern width. You take the [3] x 2 = 6 and this tip will produce a 6" fan pattern.

The [11] of 311 determines the orifice size. In this case .011. It's small enough to provide good control of your mill thickness at a moderate pace. Consider a Graco FFT310 too for more control but less speed.

RAC 5 is used with the Orange Guard.

Also see: Graco RAC X FFT210 for spraying standard size trim.

Brush Cleaning Tip

Brush maintenance is key to keep production rates and quality of the finish. A stainless steel wire brush is common for cleaning paint brushes but can damage the filaments. Use one layer of a paint strainer around your thumb and rub dried paint from the heel horizontally or with the length of the filaments. The strainer mesh easily glides over nylon and polyester and will not bind the filaments up. Amazing how well it works and reduces cleaning time too.

Masking with Pro Masker 2000 HD Demo Video

Demo Video 1 is a 14’ tape run. Demo 2 is the end of that run.

One thing worth mentioning in the second video is that you can see how the original taping by hand left white trim paint on the wall. After remasking with the Pro Masker 2000, the line is cleaned up, straight and sharp. You can see the white paint on the wall just before the video ends. I press the tape and it reveals white paint on the wall.

Read the details on the Pro Masker 2000

There is a moment during the run where the masker slips off the edge. As you can see in the second video the top edge of the baseboard is very skinny. Perhaps moving a bit slower might prevent that. Its important to get used to equal pressure against the wall and down on the base at the same time. Takes a couple rolls to get the hang of it but its worth it.

DRIPLESS SI300 vs. SI200 Caulk Gun

I recently reviewed the DRIPLESS SI200 caulk gun sold exclusively at Sherwin Williams and I highly recommend it. The DRIPLESS SI300 caulk gun offers a few features the SI200 doesn't have. For example, the SI300 drive dawg assembly is enclosed and revamped a bit to accommodate a sharp cutter and a drip/no drip feature seen below. Both the SI200 and SI300 are heavy guns in comparison to composite guns but I like the extra weight because I feel it provides more control and balance while running a bead on a door jamb when the gun is moved in many different positions. I also like the extra weight as the gun sits on the top edge of baseboard, it doesn't feel like a toy, its solid and built tough. The DRIPLESS ETS2000,3000 and 5000 are much lighter guns in comparison with composite skeleton barrels which make the EST2000 lightweight.

The rotating skeleton barrel is the same on both SI200 and SI300 in addition to the pusher rod and plate, blue silicone disc, seal punch. The drive dawg is pretty much the same with a very slight difference in design. The trigger is also slightly different.

The SI200 features a 14:1 compression ratio vs an 18:1 on the SI300. This allows you to make longer continuous runs per compression. After using the 14:1 for years, the 18:1 is definitely a nice improvement and feels right. The tip cutter is also shown in the pic on the left.

Shown on the left is the drip/no drip feature. I'm not sure exactly why there is a drip option but there it is.

The SI200 does not have the ability to swap out a replacement spring easily but the SI300 does. You can replace the spring on the SI200 but requires a bit of a conversion.

Trimming Roller Covers for Performance

It seems like no matter what the product is that comes my way I end up tweaking it in some way to make it better to get more out of the product. These white woven covers are not top of the line quality but the price is right but they need trimmed before use. I do not have a before photo at the moment but here is the after photo. I use scissors to snip a nice bevel around the cover. I snip way back. One of the guys on the job grabbed my loaded roller to roll something and when he brought it back he said “that's a nice cover, what kind is it”? Funny, my answer was, “the same covers you guys have been using for years, I cut a new bevel on it”.

Pro Masker 2000 by Geo Mask

The Pro Masker 2000 came to me years ago and it was briefly used and tossed aside in the big box of useless gimmicks until I decided to take another look at it recently. Now before you go and think you’re too professional to use one, consider this… You can lay tape down clean, sharp and accurately as fast as you can push this masker across the baseboards BUT it needs to be used in a different way than intended. Actually, I found that the adhesive on the tape somewhat keeps me from going as fast as I want due to drag from pulling it off the roll. Obviously low-tac tape releases from the roll faster than high-adhesion tape.

Simply start by pressing a roll of masking tape on the hub and press it onto a hard surface so the tape core is flush with the outer rim of the hub. The design is suppose to use the toothbrush looking part to press the tape down as you go and it does almost too well but it also interferes with keeping the tape in alignment tight to the wall. Its a brush, it moves.

Here is how to start. Pull a small piece and tack it with your finger then pivot the unit down so the brush rests on the baseboard as seen below and RUN! Well, not really but close. Ive found that rather than dropping the unit down like below, just use it as seen in THIS photo. The roller seen by my pinky finger is more than enough to press the tape or you can go back and score it with a 5-in-1 tool. You can lay down 3 rolls of tape in about 30 mins masking off a house making all the cuts into casings etc and short runs.

Its not too bad but give it a bit of practice before you toss it. It does work effectively otherwise I wouldn't post it here. Click the photo. You cant get sharp lines like that doing freehand. That line is super sharp and even.

Here is how to cut off in a corner. Run the masker into a corner then simply place a finger on the tape where you stop while pressing down and lift the masker upward off the baseboard to allow your 5-in-1 to guide the tape sharp into the corner and tear outward. Watch the video.

Here are two HD videos of the Pro Masker 2000 in use.

Smart Prime Advanced Water-Base Technology Primer For All Projects

Generic Type: White pigmented, modified acrylic water-base primer-sealer stain killer & bond coat. PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS • Bonds to glossy surfaces without scuff sanding • Formulated with proprietary stain-blocking resins • Rust inhibitive – may be used to prime ferrous metal • Dried film is mold and mildew resistant • Binds moderately chalky surfaces • Dries in minutes, can be recoated in 1 hour RECOMMENDED USES Apply to interior and exterior walls, ceilings, doors, trim, fascia, soffits, foundations, railings, and related paintable surfaces. Smart Prime bonds to wood, plaster, concrete, gloss enamels, hardboard, glass and tile. Provides a rust inhibitive coating on iron railings, steel frames, piping, etc. Resists the growth of mold and mildew on primer film in damp, humid environments. Seals porous surfaces and traps most stains in the primer film – water, graffiti, grease, rust, cedar & redwood tannin, creosote, and asphalt stains. Allow two hours dry time when using as a stain blocker. Some stains may require a second coat. Dry Time: In most cases Smart Prime will dry to the touch in 30 minutes and can be recoated after 1 hour. The dry primer film develops full adhesion after it cures in 7 days. Lower temperatures, higher humidity and the addition of tint will prolong dry and cure time. Coverage: Approx. 400 sq. ft. (37 m2) per gallon on smooth, painted, non-porous surfaces; 350 sq. ft. (33 m2) per gallon on rough, unpainted, porous surfaces. Application losses may vary according to the porosity of the substrate and the method of application and should be taken into account when estimating the quantity of product needed. Typical Physical Properties Percent Solids, Weight: 50.9% Percent Solids, Volume: 35.2% Density: 10.8 lbs./gal Viscosity Range: 95 to 100 KU Theoretical Spread Rate @ 1 mill DFT: 540 sq. ft (50 m2)/gal Dry Time @ 75o F/50% RH: Touch: 30 min Recoat: 1 hour Stain Sealing @ 75o F/50% RH: 2 hours 24 hrs over cedar Adhesion Cure @ 75o F/50% RH: 7 days Cured Gloss @ 85o: 5.0 Cured Enamel Holdout: 1.5% Cured Wet Adhesion: Pass 2000 cycle scrub Cured Flexibility (1/4”Mandrel): Pass /5A Flame Spread (ASTM-84-97A): Class A Smoke Contrib. (ASTM-84-97A): Class A Flash Point (ASTM D3278): >200o F (93o C) VOC: <50 g/L Freeze/Thaw Stable: Yes Shelf Life: 60 mo @ 75o F (24o C) Storage/Handling: Store indoors 40o – 90o F (4o – 32o C)

Graco RAC X FFT210 SwitchTip

The Graco Fine Finish FFT210 Rac X is an excellent tip for shooting trim and doors. The [2] of 210 determines the fan pattern width. You take the [2] x 2 = 4 and this tip will produce a 4" fan pattern.

The [10] of 210 determines the orifice size. In this case .010. It's tiny allowing full control of your mill thickness at a slower pace. Consider a FFT310 too.


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Zinsser Bull Eye 1•2•3 plus Advanced Technology

Zinsser Bulls Eye 123 plus Advanced Technology Primer

First Water-Base Primer to Truly Block Water Stains. Sticks to all surfaces, Dries in 1 hour. Use with any topcoat. Mold & Mildew Resistant Film. Rust inhibitor.

Also See: Zinsser Smart Prime Advanced Water-Base

-- Posted via iPhone

Sherwin Williams Interior/Exterior Adhesion Primer

Sherwin Williams Interior Exterior Adhesion Primer We asked for a primer to go over stained woodwork on an older home. The varnished trim was glossy in areas and in other areas worn, faded and bare. The adhesion primer was tinted to Dover White and will be used under Sherwin Williams Super Paint Semi-gloss. A few things worth mentioning. 1) the primer should be applied in a systematical way so not to rework an area 2) the only way to get decent coverage is to lay it on heavy. It will run and sag. 3) you must move fast or you will have one huge mess of brush marks and heavy pulled areas. 4) its fairly transparent. Its not thick or heavy. 5) I’ve seen finish paint adhere to a paint brush better than this adhesion primer did 6) stains will bleed through the primer so after you apply this primer you might want to head back to Sherwin Williams and buy a stain blocking primer and recoat everything. Yeah right.

Here is an area I primed heavy working from top of window down and within seconds I went back into the primer and it pulled. I’m talking no more than 8 or 9 seconds. UPDATE I have more to add to this post about how this project turned out and other things I experienced with this primer. Check back or be sure to SUBSCRIBE on the right of page.

Dripless Industrial Grade SI200 Caulk Gun

A Sherwin Williams Exclusive and one of my Top 10 Prep Products I Cant Live Without that I mentioned in the 2009 January/February issue of PWC. A dripless caulk gun is a must for those of us who gun cases of caulk weekly. The caulk stops flowing when you release the trigger. No buttons to press, no thumb release, no special way to click the handle to make it stop. The SI200 is balanced and feels solid.

Features: 14:1 ratio 10 oz Rotating Barrel Seal Punch Ladder Hook

All Dripless Brand guns come with a 1 year warranty. Unfortunately once the spring goes in the handle there is no simple way to replace it. I am working to post a MOD on how to convert the SI200 to have one of the benefits of the SI300 and that is the simple changing of a spent spring. Be sure to SUBSCRIBE on the right side of the blog to be notified of new posts. Coming soon: A full Review of the SI300 DRIPLESS with an 18:1 ratio. Mo power! Mo Features!

Here’s a TIP Use masking tape, a rubber band or a Velcro strap around the top of the tube and barrel as seen in the photo. What this does is it will keep the caulk tube in place in the barrel so your cut tip is always where you want it, simply rotate the barrel. Now you wont have the tube rotating in the barrel which also rotates. Might seem trivial but makes a huge difference.

When caulking door casings and baseboard, the tip is cut no bigger than the seal punch and its cut on an angle.

Wooster R295 50/50 Polyester/Lambswool

Wooster R295 50/50 is a top choice among professionals with a unique blend of polyester and lambswool for rolling flat paints for a superior finish. The 50/50 roller cover leaves a unique fine finish on smooth drywall and looks great with product like ICI Dulux Velvet Sheen, Sherwin Williams Cashmere Low-Lustre, Glidden, 6011 Low-Lustre. The 50/50 is also available in 9” and 6” open end for the Jumbo Koters. Not recommended for Sherwin Williams Duration of any sheen.

Here is a side-by-side of the Sherwin Williams SherFab (top) 1/2” cover next to a Wooster 50/50 (bottom). The 50/50 loads nice and releases paint solid, smooth and fast.