How to choose an airless sprayer
Short answer: buy the sprayer for the heaviest coating you quote on, then size it to how many days a week it runs. A sprayer can't push a tip bigger than its rated max tip, and a pump that runs flat out every day wears faster than one with headroom. Acrylic walls and ceilings need a .015 to .019 tip. Roof membrane and heavy acrylic need .021 to .025. Block filler and texture need .025 and up.
Step 1: what's the heaviest job you take on?
| Coating and typical job | Tip orifice | Smallest Graco sprayer that runs the full range |
|---|---|---|
| Stains, oils, lacquers and clear coats: joinery, cladding, decks | .009 to .013 | Any sprayer in the range |
| Enamels: doors, trim and cabinetry on repaints and fit-outs | .013 to .015 | Ultra 390 (.021 max), or an Ultra handheld for touch-ups |
| Acrylic walls, ceilings, exteriors and primers: repaints, new builds, strata | .015 to .019 | Ultra 390 (.021 max) |
| Heavy acrylic, smooth elastomeric and roof membrane | .021 to .025 | Ultra 490 XT (.025 max). The Ultra 395 and 450 run up to .023. |
| Block filler, heavy elastomeric and texture: commercial and high-build specs | .025 to .035 | Ultra 1095 XT or Mark V XT (.035 max). The 695 XT runs up to .031 and the 795 XT up to .033. |
Tip ranges are Graco's. The paint maker's data sheet wins if it says otherwise. Full chart: airless spray tip chart.
Step 2: how hard will it work?
These bands are our judgement from what painters tell us, not Graco ratings. Size up a step if you run long hose, heavy paint or more than one handpiece.
Starting out or spraying a few days a week: Ultra 390, 395 and 450
The first sprayer for most painters going out on their own. Brushless motor, Graco's 19D873 Endurance Vortex pump with ProConnect, 15 m BlueMax II hose and a 517 tip in the box. Graco pitches the 390 at professionals just starting out. The 395 and 450 add the SmartControl display (pressure, litres, hours and diagnostics), WatchDog pump protection and the Contractor PC handpiece with a rebuildable cartridge. Compare them: Ultra 390 vs 395 vs 490 XT.
Spraying most days: Ultra 490, 495 and 650 XT
Owner-operators and small crews on repaints and small new builds. Xtreme Torque motor and more flow, with low mode (50 to 2000 psi) for doors and trim and high mode (500 to 3300 psi) for walls. The 490 XT and 495 XT use the same 19D873 pump as the 390, 395 and 450, so one set of pump spares covers a mixed fleet. The 650 XT has its own pump (2002382).
Daily production, big sites and heavy coatings: Ultra 695, 795 and 1095 XT, Mark V XT
Crews on new housing, apartments, strata repaints, commercial work, roof membranes and texture. More flow, bigger tips and room for long hose runs. The ProContractor versions add the MaxLife pump, QuikReel hose management (up to 90 m), SmartDisplay XT and BlueLink. The Mark V XT runs up to three handpieces. Compare them: Ultra 695 vs 795 vs 1095 XT.
No power on site: GMAX II petrol
The GMAX II 3900 and 5900 run on a Honda petrol engine. Graco lists the 5900 for up to four handpieces at .019. For new estates, exteriors and remote sites where you can't count on power.
Touch-ups and punch lists: Ultra handhelds
The Ultra QuickShot and Ultra cordless handheld spray straight from a cup on the handpiece. They're for touch-ups at handover, a run of doors or a patched ceiling, without setting up and flushing the main sprayer. Not a replacement for a stand sprayer on whole rooms.
The Graco range side by side
| Sprayer | Part no | Max tip (one handpiece) | Max flow | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ultra QuickShot | 20B479 | .016 | Not listed | 2.9 kg |
| Ultra 390 stand | 25F517 | .021 | 1.8 L/min | 12.25 kg |
| Ultra 395 stand | 25F522 | .023 | 2.0 L/min | 12.7 kg |
| Ultra 450 stand | 25F523 | .023 | 2.0 L/min | 12.7 kg |
| Ultra 490 XT stand | 19D531 | .025 | 2.6 L/min | 14.1 kg |
| Ultra 495 XT stand | 19D532 | .027 | 3.0 L/min | 14.1 kg |
| Ultra 650 XT Lo-Boy | 20B327 | .029 | 3.4 L/min | 30.8 kg |
| Ultra 695 XT Standard | 19F712 | .031 | 4.0 L/min | 42 kg |
| Ultra 695 XT ProContractor | 19F714 | .031 | 4.0 L/min | 51 kg |
| Ultra 795 XT Standard | 19F715 | .033 | 4.5 L/min | 42 kg |
| Ultra 1095 XT Standard | 19F720 | .035 | 4.9 L/min | 51 kg |
| Mark V XT HD Standard | 19F723 | .035 | 4.6 L/min | 55 kg |
| GMAX II 3900 (petrol) | 16W867 | .036 | 4.73 L/min | 60 kg |
| GMAX II 5900 (petrol) | 16W871 | .043 | 6.06 L/min | 73 kg |
230V figures from Graco's Australian pages, manuals and brochures. Max flow is the pump's ceiling, not what you'll lay on the wall in a day. Max tip drops when you run a second handpiece. Check the product page.
Step 3: what keeps it earning
- Pump spares on hand. Downtime costs more than parts. Know your pump and keep its repair kit in the van. The 390, 395, 450, 490 XT and 495 XT share the 19D873 pump. The 695, 795 and 1095 XT each have their own repair kit for the Standard and ProContractor pump. Find yours on the parts finder or in pump repair kits.
- Tips are a running cost. A worn tip puts out more paint and more overspray for the same coverage. Price spare tips into the job, not just the sprayer.
- Hose length. Long runs on strata and multi-storey work need more pump. The ProContractor XT models have QuikReel for up to 90 m. GMAX II ProContractor has QuikReel too.
- Generator. If you run off a generator, check the minimum. Graco lists 3000 W for the Ultra 390, 395 and 450, 3500 W for the 490, 495 and 650 XT and 5000 W for the 695, 795 and 1095 XT and Mark V XT.
- A second handpiece. If two painters will spray off one sprayer, buy for the two-handpiece max tip, not the single figure. Graco publish no 230V two-handpiece figure for the Ultra 1095 XT, so on that one start both guns on a smaller tip than its single gun max and ask us before you step up.
Which sprayer pays back on which workload?
Our starting points, not rules:
- New business, residential repaints, mostly acrylic: Ultra 390 or 395. The 395 leaves room for roof membrane at the top of its range.
- Owner-operator spraying most days, doors and walls on the same job: Ultra 490 XT or 495 XT for the low and high pressure modes.
- Small crew, new builds and exteriors, longer hose: Ultra 650 XT or 695 XT.
- Crew on commercial, strata or roof membrane, two handpieces: Ultra 795 XT, 1095 XT or Mark V XT.
- No power on site: GMAX II 3900 or 5900.
- Already own a production sprayer: add an Ultra handheld for touch-ups so the big pump stays on the main job.
Buy or hire?
If the sprayer will be on a job most weeks, owning it usually wins. Hire fits a one-off texture or membrane job outside your normal work, or cover while your own sprayer is in for service. See buy or hire.
Still not sure?
Email us the job type, the coating, how many days a week you spray and how many painters will use it, and we'll suggest a sprayer and a starting tip: spray@airlessspray.com.au.