Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners Quick Chart

Picture	Name
	IWATA LPH400 Best for Clear Coats 1.4mm Requires 9.5 CFM
	DeVilbiss FinishLine FLG670 Comes w/1.3, 1.5, 1.8mm Requires 13 CFM @ 23 PSI Good for multiple applications
	DeVilbiss Painting/Priming Kit 2 Gun System Includes 1.3 and 1.8mm 30 PSI delivers 10 PSI to the cap@ 13 CFM
	TCP Global Gun Kit Operating pressure 29-50 PSI Air Consumption 3.5-7.1 CFM Fully Adjustable
	SprayIT LVLP S-33000 Good for Clearcoats Budget Friendly 3.5 - 3.9 CFM@ 30 PSI

Editors Choice Best Beginner Automotive Spray Guns

#1. Iwata LPH400: Premium Model: Best Gun

#2. DeVilbiss FinishLine 4 FLG 670 Runner Up Best Gun

#3. DeVilbiss Auto Paint/Priming Kit: 1st Place Kit For Beginners

#4. TCP Global Kit: Great Multi Gun Kit for Budgets

#5. SprayIt LVLP: Great Gun for Budgets

Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

Premium Pro Model

#1. Iwata LPH400

Beginners get a real leg up when they invest in a quality LVLP spray gun from IWATA.

This spray gun checks off many boxes to be considered one of the top automotive paint guns for beginners. It features easy-to-use fan and fluid control knobs located conveniently on the back of the gun, is lightweight, and has an ergonomic design for comfortable handling.

As for price, this is a premium-level gun, so expect to invest a bit more. However, the quality and results you get are impressive and well worth it. The LPH400 includes a 1.4mm tip and is specifically engineered to excel when applying clear coats, outperforming many competitors.

If you’re planning to own multiple guns for different types of materials, the LPH400 makes an excellent clear coat specialist. For an LVLP gun, it operates at a relatively high atomizing pressure of 16 PSI, whereas most LVLP models spray at around 10 PSI.

The LV4 aircap consumes a fair amount of air, so a compressor with sufficient capacity is necessary to get the best performance. Trust us—the finish you’ll achieve is worth the effort.

This model is incredibly quiet, producing a whisper-like sound while spraying clear coats, which truly impressed us. Thanks to the ergonomic handle design, wrist fatigue becomes a thing of the past as it fits naturally and comfortably in your hand.

Weighing just 0.86 pounds, the IWATA LPH400 is among the lightest spray guns available, built with top-notch quality. Many owners report using theirs for over a decade, a testament to its durability and craftsmanship.

Not included is the 1 quart cup.  For you newbs out there, this is pretty standard for a pro level gun.

You can customize it with whatever cup suits your projects: smaller cups for detailing or painting motorcycles, larger cups for painting vehicles, RVs, panels etc.

We love everything about this IWATA LVLP.

Runner Up: Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

#2. DeVilbiss FinishLine 4 FLG670

Even though you’re a beginner, you don’t have to settle for less than stellar results.  The FinishLine will provide you with a professional finish.

This spray gun is known as a gravity feed model because the paint cup is positioned on top, allowing paint to flow into the gun naturally by gravity instead of being pulled in or pushed.

HVLP stands for High Volume, Low Pressure, which means the paint is atomized using a large volume of air but sprayed at lower pressure. This results in a smoother, softer finish on your surface.

Included with the gun are three different nozzle sizes, giving you the flexibility to handle a variety of painting tasks without needing to purchase multiple spray guns. This helps you stay within your budget without sacrificing quality.

Priced at roughly half of what premium models cost, the FinishLine delivers smooth, professional results. It’s a reliable choice for hobbyists who want quality performance without breaking the bank.

Keep in mind that the FLG670 requires a fair amount of air—about 13 CFM at 23 PSI—which means your air compressor needs to be up to the task. Make sure to check your compressor’s capacity before making a purchase.

The spray gun includes a generously sized 900cc (almost one quart) paint cup, allowing you to paint longer stretches without frequent refills.

The FinishLine atomizes paint well, resulting in minimal overspray.  The minimum recommended hose is 5/16 inches, but we found that we got better results by stepping up to at least a 3/8 inch hose.

The DeVilbiss FinishLine, along with other DeVilbiss products, ranks among the best automotive paint guns for beginners. One minor drawback we encountered during testing was how tightly the original tip was secured. Although DeVilbiss provides a tool to remove it, we found it wasn’t quite sufficient.

To remove the tip, we had to carefully use a wrench, applying steady, gentle pressure. After that, the supplied wrench tool worked flawlessly every time.

In terms of performance, the FinishLine delivers consistent, high-quality results on the job. Additionally, the FLG670 is versatile enough to spray thinned latex paint, so you might even consider using it for painting cabinets or walls during your next home renovation project.

If you need the FinishLine manual, click this link up for a copy. In case you need spare and replacement parts for your spray gun, check out this link.

#3. DeVilbiss Paint and Primer Gun Kit

These HVLP gravity feed guns lay down a coat of primer pretty well.  If you’re new to painting or automotive car spraying, this set will get the job done.

The DeVilbiss Auto Paint/Priming Set comes with nozzle size 1.3mm, 1.5mm and 1.8mm.  We like this spray gun kit for cars because it comes with multiple guns, three different tips, and it’s DeVilbiss quality.  

The price point is quite reasonable as well.

Similar to the FinishLine, these paint guns demand a high volume of air to perform efficiently. Expect your air compressor to deliver at least 12 to 13 CFM to keep up.

One downside is the small cup size—only 20 ounces. We would have preferred larger 32-ounce cups to minimize frequent stops for refilling during painting sessions.

The included regulator isn’t top-notch, so it’s a good idea to attach a higher-quality regulator before you start spraying. Make sure to thoroughly clean your guns before use to remove any manufacturing residues that could block airflow, especially around the vent hole at the top. These areas can sometimes be partially clogged from the factory.

Also, the thread machining quality leaves something to be desired, so handle assembly with care after cleaning to avoid cross-threading or damage.

Try upgrading to the DeVilbiss DeKups system for this gun set and wow yourself with the performance you get for such a good price.

Budget Friendly Beginner Spray Gun Kit for Cars

#4. TCP Global HVLP Spray Guns Kit w/3 guns

This gravity feed spray gun kit comes with multiple automotive paint guns, allowing you to do detail work and regular old touch ups.

Sometimes just one spray gun isn’t enough to meet your needs. This is particularly true if you’re doing some automotive work, top coats, or touch-ups. It’s small price tag for an HVLP Paint Gun Set that is unmatched in the paint spraying world.

You can spray a wide variety of materials with this set because it comes with 3 different spray guns equipped with multiple tips. Each gun has 3 possible adjustments: air pressure, fluid delivery, and spray pattern. You can dial in your spray for the types of projects and materials you are using.

TCP Global also has extra tips for purchase from 0.8 to 2.5mm to spray everything from latex paint to rubberized coatings to clear coats.

Save time cleaning up your gun after each step of the job, and consider an investment into this TCP Global HVLP Spray Gun Set.

The stainless steel nozzles and needles resist rust and corrosion, allowing for precise control over spray patterns, air pressure, and fluid flow to achieve consistent finishes. This spray gun kit includes:

• extra fluid cup filters
• a hex wrench
• a cleaning brush
• two spanner wrenches

Most air compressors can support all three guns, as their operating pressures fall between 29 and 50 PSI. The required airflow ranges from 3.5 to 7.1 CFM, which is manageable for most compressor setups. This means you can keep working without frequent interruptions waiting for the compressor to catch up, leading to smoother painting sessions.

The kit comes with nozzle sizes from 1.0mm up to 1.8mm, making it versatile enough for a wide range of painting projects.

We observed a paint-to-air ratio of about 70/30, compared to some HVLP systems that reach 90/10. This means you might use slightly more paint than expected. You can still achieve professional-quality results, but it’s important to monitor the fan control closely, as it’s not as finely tuned as we’d like.

While the fan control isn’t perfect, this level of performance is reasonable given the price. The adjustment knobs are positioned for right-handed users, so left-handed painters will need to reach across to make changes.

Be sure to check your settings occasionally during use, since vibrations can cause the knobs to shift and alter your spray pattern unexpectedly.

Depending on the compressor being used, it might be better to wait if your compressor is running before starting to paint once again.

Overall the experience was pretty good. Most of the accessories you can buy for this gun are at a price point we love. This includes a paint mixing kit and the Benchtop Holder Stand. You can also buy paint strainers separately.

Clean up was a bit tedious with this 3 gun set. Make the cleaning process a bit easier too with TCP’s 20 piece cleaning kit. These guns work best for the DIYer and handy person than commercial or professional applications.

Ultra Budget: Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

#5. SprayIt SP-33000 LVLP

We recommend this gun if you’re a beginner because it’s a) cheap and b) works pretty well. It also gives you adjustable fluid, fan pattern and air controls.

This LVLP from SprayIt is perfect for automotive painting if you’re on a slim budget. You get a pretty good gun to get started on your DIY. 

You can either grab just the gun itself, or buy the kit which come with three tips: 1.3, 1.5, and 1.7mm

The quality of the gun and the finish of the paint really surprised us during testing considering its price point. It’s not show room quality, but it’s not crap either. At least the fluid nozzle and needle are stainless steel, but only corrosion “resistant”. Make sure you clean this gun up properly and dry it each time you use it to avoid corrosion.

LVLP sprays paint at a lower pressure, which reduces overspray. This can save you money on paint.

The 20-ounce cup holds about 600cc, making it more suitable for smaller-scale tasks or detailed painting jobs. Be aware that the pressure regulator’s glass face sometimes arrives cracked due to unusual packaging inside the case.

The fan spray pattern ranges between 7 and 11 inches, which is somewhat narrower compared to other spray guns in this price range that typically offer a 4 to 12-inch spread. Keep this in mind when choosing the right tool for your project.

As expected with more affordable spray guns, the adjustment knobs and some parts are made from aluminum or plastic, which can be prone to breaking or cross-threading if handled roughly.

Take care when assembling, disassembling, or cleaning your gun.

Remember, this is a budget-friendly option, so the materials and build quality won’t match higher-end steel-constructed models. This also means the gun is lighter than those made with steel.

The kit includes two cleaning brushes, which are essential for thoroughly removing all paint residue from the sprayer. Cleaning is straightforward and usually takes between 5 and 10 minutes.

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Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners: Buyer’s Guide 

Painting your vehicle yourself is more achievable than you might think. With some practice and patience, you can apply base coats, paint, and clear coats with results that come close to professional quality.

As the saying goes, “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail,” and this couldn’t be more true when it comes to automotive painting. If you’re new to this, there are important factors to understand before selecting the right paint gun for your car project.

Start by identifying the needs of your specific project. Once you know what you’re working with, it becomes easier to pick the best beginner-friendly spray gun that will help you finish your job successfully.

What are Automotive Paint Guns?

Automotive paint guns are specialized sprayers designed for the unique requirements of car paints like base coats and clear coats.

They deliver a smooth, even layer of paint, creating a flawless finish on metal surfaces. Professional auto painters typically own several guns tailored to different paint types, such as clear coats, base coats, metallic paints, and more.

Using a spray gun made specifically for automotive paint ensures you get a professional-looking result on your vehicle.

But First Things First: Painting Masks

It’s absolutely essential to wear a quality paint respirator mask whenever you use a paint sprayer.

Paint sprayers work by atomizing the paint—breaking it down into tiny particles mixed with air—which then settle onto your car’s surface. Without a proper mask, these fine paint particles can be inhaled, potentially harming your lungs and overall health.

We tested and reviewed a ton of paint respirator masks to help you get started. 

What are the Different Types of Spray Guns for Cars? 

Different Types of Automotive Paint Guns

Our Recommended Type of Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

Gravity Feed Spray Guns are called that because the cup in on the top of the spray gun feeding the paint into the gun.

They require less air pressure meaning they have less overspray so you save money on paint.    They come as HVLP gravity feed or LVLP.

The low pressure also allows you to have more control over the spray and delivers a soft finish.  We love the results delivered on clear coat. Make sure your gun can spray at weird angles and upside down before purchasing.

Our Recommended Type of Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners for Clear Coat and Single Stage Enamels

Low Volume Low Pressure

LVLP means low volume, low pressure. They work at a lower pressure than even HVLP, at around 10 PSI or less.

Because of the low pressure they lay down a soft finish, perfect for clear coats.  It also minimizes overspray (paint waste), saving you cashola on paint.

 LVLP’s don’t require much experience to use them.

Not Recommended for Painting Cars

Airless Sprayers

This is not the best automotive paint gun for beginners. An airless sprayer requires more technical skill to use.  They use higher pressure than other types of sprayers to atomize paint.  The finish isn’t as smooth as it should be when painting your car.

 This means you’ll have more paint pollution in your area, increasing your paint cost by up to 1.5x over using a gravity feed or HVLP sprayer. The trade off is, airless sprayers get large jobs done much faster than our recommended gravity feed style guns.

Siphon Feed

Siphon feed sprayers suck the paint up from a canister instead of having it fed directly to the nozzle through a cup. 

 For this reason, it’s not the recommended option for an automotive paint gun.   Siphon feed increases the chances of air getting into the lines and resulting in splatter – not something you want to see when applying a top coat. 

HVLP Spray Guns

HVLP stands for “High Volume Low Pressure.” This spray paint gun uses a high volume of air to break up the paint for spraying.  

The end result is a “paint mist” which reduces your overspray, but makes it difficult to cover large surfaces rapidly.  An HVLP paint spray gun is good at keeping overspray to a minimum. You will need an air compressor with an HVLP unless you buy a turbine system. HVLP doesn’t provide the best finish.  Also, they might not be able to spray everything from base to clear and undercoats. 

What is Your Project?  What is your Project Size? 

What are you painting?  A whole car?  A panel?  Just touching up some spots?  Or maybe you’re painting your motorcycle or RV?  What sorts of projects do you normally take on?  Answering these questions will help you pick the right spray gun for your jobs. 

Features to Look for in the Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

Tips

If there are lots of tips available or your airless sprayer, you will be able to conquer a lot more painting projects with the same gun. Brand name tips usually are better quality and last longer too.

Hoses

A long and flexible hose allows you to move around your project easily. If your hose is too short, you will run into problems like having to reposition yourself and your sprayer. You don’t want anything to interrupt your paint stroke.

CFMs Required

Make sure that your compressor puts out enough CFMs to adequately power your automotive paint sprayer.

Ergonomically Designed

A paint sprayer should fit nicely in your hand with feeling awkward, rubbing, or causing any issues.

Fully Adjustable

You should be able to adjust air pressure, spray fans, etc on your paint sprayer for ultimate performance and results.

Tip/Nozzle Size and Your Project Planning 

The type of automotive paint gun you need will largely depend on your project specifics. If you plan to work with various coatings like base, clear, and primer, consider a paint gun with interchangeable tips or a complete kit that includes multiple guns designed for different applications.

Cup size is another important factor to keep in mind. Smaller paint cups are suitable for precision work such as motorcycle detailing, but larger projects will require guns with bigger cups to hold more paint and reduce the need for frequent refills.rs. 

What do you need to Spray? 

Different paint materials require different nozzle sizes to achieve the best finish. For thicker coatings like primer, a larger tip ranging from 1.8mm to 2.5mm is recommended to ensure smooth and even coverage. In contrast, clear coats are thinner and need smaller tips, usually between 1.3mm and 1.4mm, to apply a flawless, fine layer.

If your project involves multiple paint types, a spray gun with interchangeable tips or a comprehensive spray gun kit is ideal. Many professionals prefer using “dedicated guns,” meaning separate spray guns are designated exclusively for clear coats, primers, or base coats.

While this approach can be more costly upfront, it often results in superior finish quality and easier maintenance.

That means they buy separate guns that only spray clear coat or primer and base.  This does put more strain on your budget as a beginner, but there are many benefits to using separate guns for clear coat. 

Hose Length and Your Project Size 

Your sprayer, unless cordless and airless (which we don’t recommend as the best automotive spray gun for beginners),  will be attached to your compressor by a hose.   

That hose will need to be long enough to reach all of the areas of your project.  Then, you don’t have to stop in the middle of your painting to move your sprayer and compressor set up. 

Gallons per Minute and Annual Recommended Use 

Gallons per minute or GPM isn’t a standard thing across sprayer brands.  It does give you a good idea if the sprayer you’re looking at can keep up if you’re mainly spraying large projects like RV’s or buses. 

Annual recommended use isn’t going to be a big problem is you’re a hobbyist and not spraying everyday. 

Painters that plan on kicking it up a notch and spraying regularly need to make sure the sprayer they choose offers high enough annual gallon use. 

You don’t want to push so much paint through your sprayer that it needs to be rebuilt or replaced super soon.  Contact the manufacturer for 100% confirmation of the recommended amount. 

Do You Have an Adequate Air Compressor? 

If your compressor doesn’t push out enough air pressure or PSI, it won’t supply the SCFMs needed for your sprayer.  You will have to take breaks as the air compressor catches up and fills up with air again.  Starting and stopping your painting will affect the results in a negative way.  

It’s not something you should deal with as a beginner when you’re perfecting your technique and style. 

CFMs Demystified (Cubic Feet/Minute) 

CFM stands for cubic feet per minute.  It’s a measure of the flow rate of air pushed out by a compressor. All spray guns, unless airless or turbine systems, will need a compressor to paint.

Each gun has a minimum required operating CFM that they need so the paint is pushed to the nozzle and then atomized properly.  This is super important. 

You have to match up the CFMs required on your sprayer with the operating CFMs generated by your compressor.  If the CFM’s are too weak, your paint won’t be atomized properly, if it sprays at all.  

Make sure to check that your compressor is heavy duty enough for your sprayer.  When in doubt, contact the manufacturer. 

Ease of Use 

The best automotive paint gun for beginners should help you get great results.  Of course, it’s not going to do the painting for you!   

What we mean is the sprayer should be lightweight.  It should be designed ergonomically so that it fits into your hand nicely. 

All of these things reduce wrist and arm fatigue so you can get more done and increase the quality of your results. 

Fully Adjustable 

All of the spray guns for beginners that we recommend above come with high levels of adjustability.  You can really dial in your results by changing your spray pattern and fan width instead of buying multiple sprayers. 

What is a Good Automotive Spray Gun for a Beginner?

I recommend the DeVilbiss Paint and Primer Kit or the TCP Global Kit for absolute beginners. They are multiple guns and tips, spray a fine smooth finish, and can be used for many different paint mediums such as clear coat, base, and primers. When first starting out, this reduces the investment required for your painting.

Automotive Paint Gun Tips

Here is a quick chart of the gun tips you should use for different car paint mediums. Check with the spray gun instructions to see the exact tips required.

Job	Tip Size
Primers	1.8mm
Top Coat	1.4mm
Detail Work	1mm

What to Budget for the Best Automotive Paint Gun for Beginners

You can grab paint guns for beginners in each price range.  Ultra budget models that still deliver results like the SprayIT LVLP gun above start at around 30-50$.  

Internal parts on these cheaper models are not as high quality or long lasting as the more expensive Iwata guns.   

Also, the atomization is lacking meaning you may end up spending more on paint, with globs of paint on your project and more sanding after your done spraying. 

The mid range items like the DeVilbiss FinishLine and the Auto Paint/Priming Kit include better parts, engineered results and customer service. 

Head into the higher end price range and you’ll be getting highly engineered guns geared towards Pros, which maximize atomization and create perfect results with the right technique. 

Conclusion

The best automotive paint gun for beginners  can help build your confidence while you develop your technique.  

Finding a spray gun that delivers awesome results is possible within any price range.   Get spraying today!

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