"Graco" Good Engineering

Ken if you hate them so much WHY DO YOU STILL BUY THEM? Jim

sprayhead wrote on Jul 31, 2006:Go to #17

I have and would use acrylic paint for marking fields. It has a shine to it that the regular striping paint doesn't have and I mixed it 1:1 ratio.

Sprayhead - what kind of acrylic paint do you use? Anyone - I know that the conventional wisdom is to dulite the paint for field striping, but has anyone tried painting undiluted paint? I have found that more of the paint sticks to the grass leaves and less runs off into the ground. I think it gives a better look and doesn't use any more paint. Of course, you have to use a pavement marking type striper, the old field marking machines won't spray paint unless you water it down.

See that dog tiptoeing away from this fight? That's my dog. He's learned not to bark at large, unmoveable boulders. He's a smart dog*. *His name is thuttyninehunnert.

I am painting fields without diluting the paint. I have found that the youth soccer and football associations really like this service. I have been using Sherwin Williams field paint. It has been very smooth and of good quality. I can paint a soccer field with about 2 gallons, a 70 yard practice football field with lines every 5 yards and hashes with about 4 gallons and a full football field with about 7 gallons of paint. If I paint the numbers it takes almost 10 gallons. I just open the five, prime the sprayer and off I go. I use a 219 tip in the graco 3900 painting off the back wheel. Boy the 3900 can get real tiring to push if the ground is rough. If I get more of this work I will either get a linedriver or a fieldlazer, most likely the linedriver. The associations that have a trussco or compariable use far more paint about 7 gallons for a soccer field, and about 25 for a full football field. Consider this when bidding the job and you have a better idea of what they may be willing to pay to have you do the stripping.

Patriot - do you have turf tires on your 3900? The're wider than the standard tires and wheels. They are an option from Graco and someone on the forum said you can get tires and wheels like them at Tractor Supply.

You're a riot Ken. Wish ya lived closer I think I'd like to hang with yo guys down in that backward state of Texas! Tiny

I do a couple soccer fields (1:1) right next to several lax fields that are done with unmixed paint. There isn't much difference in the outcome of the fields, except the town guy doing the LAX field uses 2x as much paint. He said he thought the same, but his supplier told him not to mix the paint any more. We agreed the supplier just wanted to sell more paint.

C'mon down. You won't be the first to come visit. Jim..... Like I said.... I'll keep buying used Titans.... I don't hate Gracos.... Matter of fact I love Gracos (when they pump) much better than Speeflos. However, I'd jump on a used HS200 like a rooster on a june bug.

I'm glad I started this thread - - I just knew it would get interesting

You were just waiting for me to say I loved Gracos.

I guess it worked!

I do Alot of striping for a big paving co. and they keep telling me to get my DOT certification and start doing long line road striping. Right now I do alot of their parking lot striping but very little road lines.These guys pave many miles of roads most of which requires temp lines then permanent lines. Do any of you guys do long line striping? Whats the best way to get started?

\\\STRIPES/// wrote on Aug 1, 2006:Go to #30

You were just waiting for me to say

that Gracos were the finest piece of striping engineering ever created, but I am too stubborn to change. There. I said it. And I still love my AMC Pacer and my brick phone. Well alrighty then!

Very carefully. It's very dangerous on the highway. Study SAFETY, take courses in SAFETY, invest in SAFETY and work SAFE.

I would really check the pricing in your area for roadway work. Around here they work for volume rather than quality. They are installing 4 inch thermo for $.31 per foot. I would really look at all your expenses to your profit margin before jumping into roads. JIm

The equipment is very expensive,long hours, away from home ,and there is alot of down time during the day waiting for paver to finish because they will want stripes down asap after they are done to remove traffic control. I do alittle and the guys I work behind control me and my time more than I like,and after they have called you off a couple times and then you do not show up for them one time they get all over you.

sub it out

First see what those DOT requirements are. That may scare you off right away. Then there is equipment cost. Long lines equipment is EXPENSIVE to buy, to maintain, and to operate. As said above it's a very competitive market so unless your "paver" has enough work to support your overhead you may not have a lot of additional work. Then there is the safety BTS talked about. If the paver doesn't provide it you may need as many as 2 or 3 crash barrier and arrow board trucks (plus all the "work ahead" signs & such) depending on what your state requires. Also be wary if pricing used equipment even if it's in great shape. Sometimes one of those refurbished or "like new" units is being replaced because the state recently changed some requirement that particular rig wasn't capable of meeting. And if you paver works across state lines the "rules" could change completely for another state.