Apollo Sprayers has introduced its new Power Series of HVLP turbine systems that include three-, four-, and five-stage models.

"We took the standard turbine system, which for the last 40-something years has been a fixed pressure machine, where you turn it on and the motor runs at full power, and incorporated some electronics to control the speed of the motor, which ultimately relates to a pressure variance," says John Darroch, the company's president and CEO.

The five-stage 1050 VR is the company's flagship model.

"We've built a motor control board into the 1050 VR that not only controls the speed, but it relates that speed to a digital pressure readout, which is accurate to 1/10 of a psi," says Darroch. "It's extremely precise and that's necessary when you're using turbine air because you can definitively define exactly how much air pressure that you'll need for any given material. And with the five-stage power, you have the ability to spray things as heavy as latex paint virtually straight from the can."

Stages refer to the number of fans that are mounted underneath the motor. The more fan stages, the more air pressure the motor is capable of giving.

"Most of these motors operate at around 20,000 to 24,000 rpm. You don't vary the speed of the motor by much, but by adding the additional fan stages you can increase the pressure from 5 psi to almost 10 psi," says Darroch.

"These motors have been specifically developed for HVLP spraying. They're designed to give you a slightly higher air pressure, but more importantly with special bearings and seals which are capable of handling the back pressure that the turbine spray gun puts on the motor. It's that back pressure generally that burns up the motors much quicker than normal, and with the advent and popularity of non-bleed spray guns that back-pressure issue with the turbine motors becomes a big problem. So unless you've built in proper pressure relief and have proper motor bearings and seals, you're never going to get the life expectancy that can be achieved with what we've designed.

"We can achieve a longer life expectancy, which means obviously the machine runs longer and performs better for the customer, it runs cooler and all of these things add to, at the end of the day, a finer atomization."

Model 1050 VR has a street price of $1,599. Apollo offers a number of compatible spray guns, including its award-winning 7500 QT and 24' of air hose with the 1050 VR for $1,985.

"It's a very versatile gun," says Darroch. "A customer can purchase a basic system with a cup gun, typically what's used in the woodworking industry, and if they need it for other uses they can remove the bottom cup, cap the bottom port and add a top cup."

The 1050 VR also features a filter warning system that flashes green when the filter is good to go and red when it needs to be replaced. If the warning is ignored, the motor will eventually shut down to prevent burnout until the filter is replaced.

Other models in the series include the four-stage 1035 and three-stage 835. Apollo products will soon be available at Woodcraft Supply stores nationwide.

Contact: Apollo Sprayers International Inc. Tel: 888-900-4857. www.hvlp.com

This article originally appeared in the April 2011 issue.