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Diagnose the airflow before changing the gun
Airflow disturbance can push the spray plume sideways, shorten the wet-edge window, or return dry overspray to a freshly coated panel. Common causes include loaded filters, open booth doors, strong crossdrafts, poorly placed extraction, blocked floor grates, and compressed-air turbulence around complex body shapes.
Begin with the booth operating at normal production settings. Use approved airflow indicators or lightweight masking strips outside the spray path to identify direction and instability. Check whether the disturbance is continuous, pulsing, or limited to one area of the vehicle. A gun adjustment can compensate for a small, predictable influence, but it must not be used to hide unsafe or severely unbalanced ventilation.
Establish the normal pattern first
Set the lvlp spray gun on masking paper away from the disturbed zone. Measure dynamic pressure with the trigger fully pulled and confirm that the fan is symmetrical. Record fan width, fluid-control position, distance, output, and coating viscosity before making any correction.
Move the test card into the affected area and repeat the pattern. If one edge becomes dry or the fan shifts laterally, position your body so the gun remains square while the airflow crosses the plume at the smallest possible angle. Do not lean the gun into the draft because this changes film build across the fan.
Correct minor plume deflection
Shorten gun distance by approximately 10 to 20 mm when the airflow is drying droplets before they reach the panel. Keep the air cap parallel and verify that the closer position does not create a wet center. If atomization remains coarse, increase pressure only 0.1 bar at a time. Excess pressure increases overspray and gives the booth more material to recirculate.
If the outer edge of the fan repeatedly dries, narrow the fan slightly and increase the number of controlled passes rather than flooding the panel with more fluid. Maintain consistent overlap and use a steady travel speed. Avoid abrupt partial-trigger corrections in the middle of a broad panel.
Match fluid output to solvent loss
When airflow accelerates solvent release, increase fluid only after distance and pressure have been verified. Open the fluid control by no more than one-eighth turn, then test on a vertical card. The goal is a continuous wet film, not a heavy surface that may run after the air movement decreases.
An air spray gun may react differently because of its higher air consumption and plume energy, but excessive airflow at the cap can intensify turbulence around mirrors, wheel openings, and panel returns. Always judge the deposited film rather than assuming higher air volume will overpower the booth.
Adjust the spray sequence
Use the lvlp spray gun to coat upwind edges first when the approved booth procedure allows it, then work toward areas where overspray is carried away from the finished wet film. On vertical sides, keep each new pass connected to the wet edge. Around recesses, reduce fan width and fluid output before entering the shape, then restore the documented settings for the broad panel.
Inspect metallic basecoat from several angles. Side draft can orient flakes differently across one pass. If clouding appears, allow full flash and apply one broad orientation pass under the corrected conditions rather than spot-fogging the affected patch.
Verify the booth and document the limit
Record the disturbance location, filter condition, airflow direction, pressure, distance, fan position, fluid setting, travel path, and observed flash time. If compensation requires major pressure, distance, or fluid changes, stop production and service the booth. Gun adjustment should manage minor variation only; ventilation performance remains the primary control.
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