Alongside the growth of dustless sanding and the increasing popularity of water-based paints for woodwork, the rise of spray painting has been one of the biggest changes in our industry over the last 10-15 years.
As a professional decorator, I’ve been spraying for some time now, having used several different machines over the years. I thought I’d sit down and write a quick Wagner FC4000 XVLP Sprayer review.
Wagner FC4000 – Specifications and Definitions
- FC stands for “Finish Control”
- Technology – this is not an airless system, it is XVLP (which basically works in a similar way to HVLP). HVLP stands for High Volume (of air, at) Low Pressure.
- 18v cordless – uses the “AMPShare” 18v battery system also used by Bosch. Two batteries and a charger are included in the price, but you can also use 18v batteries from your Bosch power tools.
- Suitable for a variety of paints, depending on the choice of spray attachment and filter. The Fine Spray Head comes as standard (suitable for most low viscosity paints), but other attachments can be bought separately for use with thicker emulsions and latex paints, and also “standard enamels and lacquers”.
- Easy to use dials to adjust material (paint) volume, air flow and fan width all from the unit itself
- Battery life indicator and filter warning light
Wagner FC4000 Review – In Use
As I say, I’ve used this unit quite a few times now. It’s ideal for small jobs, but don’t be expecting it to cope with painting whole ceilings, that’s not what it’s designed for. It’s lightweight, and extremely well-designed (German engineering!); having all the controls at your fingertips, and the battery and filter warning lights, make it very easy to use, even for a relative spray novice.
Being cordless is both a huge plus and a small drawback at the same time; it’s extremely compact and there are no hoses or cables to trip over, which is fantastic if you have limited working space or are up a ladder, for example.
On the other hand, if you’re working for anything more than 20-30 minutes, you’re going to be changing the batteries fairly regularly. Just be aware of it and have two or three lined up on charge on larger jobs.
With a little practice, you can very quickly master the basics and get a really good finish with it, but it is designed for smaller jobs; fantastic for upcycling furniture or spraying cornice, nowhere near powerful enough for bashing out whole flats.
Wagner FC 4000 Review
Wagner FC4000 XVLP Sprayer Review - Decorator's forum UK
The Wagner FC4000 XVLP is a cordless sprayer, mostly used to paint detailed cornice or woodwork inside or out.
Product Brand: Wagner
4.8
Pros
- Easy to use, even for a novice
- Lightweight
- Cordless
- All the controls are at your fingertips
- Battery life and filter warning lights are really helpful
- Everything you need comes in one robust systainer box; the turbine unit, the fine spray head, paint container, two batteries, battery charger, instruction manual and cleaning tools
- Once you’ve done it a couple of times, both set-up and cleaning are pretty simple and straightforward
Cons
- Only suitable for smaller jobs
- Battery life is limited (but you can plan around this on larger jobs)
Final Thoughts
If you’re new to spraying, and/or you only want a machine for smaller jobs (furniture upcycling, spraying cornice, the occasional door or some spindles), then this is a really well-thought-out entry-level sprayer. Being cordless has huge advantages (like not tripping over hoses and cables when spraying cornice at the top of a ladder in a stair well!), but it does eat batteries.
If you want a machine for bigger jobs, airless is the way to go, but for smaller jobs this is a very well designed, compact piece of kit which even a novice can use to get a great finish with.
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