Coming Soon: New proportioner packages

New Reactor proportioner packages with Graco^® Fusion^® CS, Fusion^® AP or Probler^® P2 guns will be available in the near future. Distributors: watch for an official Graco product bulletin in early July giving exact availability and pricing information.

The part numbers for the new packages are included in the table below:

Dosing piston upgraded on Fusion® CS Gun

Graco® recently made a material change to the dosing piston, part 257424. The Fusion CS gun dosing piston is now made from stainless steel rather than aluminum. This change will result in improved service life of the part.

Graco® Fusion® CS Gun video and additional media links

Graco has launched a new video demonstrating capabilities of the Fusion CS gun. In the video, spray foam is sprayed on flat precast concrete wall panels. View video

Project:

Health care facility
5 crewmen, spraying 50,000 square feet of spray polyurethane foam

Equipment:

Graco Fusion CS gun
Reactor® E-30
Reactor H-20/35

Material:

Volitile-Free® (VFI) 714 2 pound /540 roof coating, used vertically

Other articles have appeared in the June issue of SprayFoam Magazine highlighting Graco equipment. Click on the links below.

Football Stadium SPF Crew Uses Home Field Advantage

TOP SHELF: A Picture Perfect Finish on a Residential Roof

New training videos available

The Graco® training department has released new training videos for the Graco Reactor® and Fusion® CS gun.

Video segments include:

Graco Fusion CS Daily Start Up
Graco Fusion CS Daily Shut Down
Replacing Graco Fusion CS Gun Head
Greasing the Graco Fusion CS Gun
Replacing Graco CS Fluid Cartridge
Graco Fusion CS Gun Pattern Size Adjustment

There are three easy ways to locate these videos:

1. Click on the link in this article: Graco Fusion CS Gun Video
   
2. Logon to Graco.com, go to the Coatings and Foam section, select Fusion CS from the drop-down product list and click go. Select the related link: “View Fusion CS Videos.”
   
3. Go to Youtube.com and search “videosbygraco” (all one word). The Fusion CS gun video and all additional Graco videos will be listed.
   

Graco® Fusion® CS Gun Try Before You Buy promotion ends July 15th

Graco is excited to announce the Fusion CS gun Try Before You Buy (TBYB) promotion.

From April 12 through July 15, 2010, Graco is offering a 60-day free trial on the Fusion CS gun. Don’t miss the success and benefits of this breakthrough technology! Learn more.

Fusion CS Gun Video

Graco is launching a new video demonstrating capabilities of the Fusion CS gun. In the video, spray foam is sprayed on flat precast concrete wall panels. The Fusion CS gun is able to achieve the certain flatness tolerance that is required for the project. View video

Previous articles have appeared in the media about the Fusion CS gun. Click on the links below to see what the contractors have to say about the features and benefits of the Fusion CS gun and share these with your customers.

Energy Bandits Article

Spray Foam Magazine - "SPF vs. Fiberglass: A Real Barnburner"

Engineering Spotlight

by Mark Weinberger, Engineering Manager

At Graco, we feel that the Graco Fusion® CS Gun has unprecedented features, which will change the way your customers spray. In addition to the improved quality, the Fusion CS gun provides economic benefits by maximizing daily spraying uptime as well as reducing time and money on material.

Contractors confirm the Clear Shot™ Liquid maintains a clean pattern throughout the day, maximizing foam yield and productivity with minimal training.

The variable flow device is another feature appreciated by contractors. Graco recommends setting up with a 02 mix chamber, adjusting the variable flow to about half-flow, giving you the performance of an 01 mix chamber. It’s like getting a 01 mix chamber for free! Other sprayers have found reducing the flow to near minimum setting creates a streaming pattern, perfect for spraying hard to reach areas.

Other elements like the short trigger pull reducing operator fatigue, hose manifold with ball valves for tool-less operation, ChromeX coated mix chambers and sides seals for maximum life, less purge-air reducing foam blowback and light weight make the Fusion CS gun the best gun available.

Increased accessibility to Fusion CS gun spare parts

You asked, Graco listened

Based on customer requests, the following parts are now available:

256923 Bulk spring side seal kit, 10-pack
256977 Studwall retainer kit, TP100
256978 Studwall housing kit, TP100
257419 Spring accessory kit, 10-pack
257420 Check ball accessory kit, 10-pack
257421 Retainer accessory kit, 10-pack
257422 ISO check valve kit
257423 Resin check valve kit
257424 Dosing piston kit, with o-rings
257426 O-ring kit, 6-pack
257427 ISO check valve housing kit, 10-pack
257428 Resin check valve housing kit, 10-pack
257429 ISO side seal kit
257430 Resin side seal kit

Graco Fusion® CS Gun Dosing Piston Upgrade

Graco recently made a material change to the dosing piston, part 257424. The Fusion CS gun dosing piston is now made from stainless steel rather than aluminum. This change will result in improved service life of the part.

Fusion CS Gun Tips for Improved Performance

Less Drilling. More Spraying.

The Graco® Fusion CS gun is different from any gun you’ve sprayed before. Since it uses ClearShot™ Liquid to keep the mix chamber clean, you may need to modify some of your spraying and maintenance techniques to achieve the best results.

While working with our many end-users, Graco developed some tips for best practice spraying. We quickly realized that the Fusion CS gun was not being maintained properly. The Fusion CS gun is not designed the same as the Fusion AP gun. In order for the Fusion CS gun to operate as intended, different spraying and maintenance techniques are required.

For a better understanding of your new Fusion CS gun, take a moment to download and review the following spraying tips by clicking on this link. The guide, entitled “Getting the Best Results from your Fusion CS Spray Gun,” details how to resolve the most commonly encountered issues.

Graco also created a product page for the Fusion CS gun as well as provided other information like helpful hints and FAQ’s online at the Product Knowledge Exchange (PKE). To use Graco’s PKE, visit http://www.graco.com/, choose Tech Support and click on “Go to PKE.” Search with keywords “Fusion CS.”

Distributors: adaptor block available for Fusion® CS Gun

Demos are an effective way to highlight the Fusion CS gun features and benefits. In the past, it was difficult to trial the Fusion CS gun because it was difficult to disconnect the chemical hoses. With the new adapter block, a Fusion® AP hose manifold can be used with the Fusion CS gun.

This adapter block has proven to be an excellent demo tool. Contractors enjoy the benefits of the adapter block as it allows them to easily switch back and forth between guns without disconnecting chemical hoses.

The new adapter block includes the necessary filter screens normally included in the Fusion CS gun hose manifold. The Fusion CS gun hose manifold will not be used when the Fusion CS gun adapter block is attached to the Fusion CS gun.

The new adapter block is now available for immediate purchase. Take advantage of this adaptor block and highlight the Try Before You Buy Promotion!

258996 Adapter Block
US List Price: $176.00
CAN List Price: $202.40

Adapter block shown assembled to Fusion CS gun with Fusion AP hose manifold

Adapter block shown with filter screens

Fusion CS Try Before You Buy Promotion – ends July 15th

Graco is excited to announce the addition of the Fusion CS gun in the Try Before You Buy (TBYB) promotion.

This gives your customers a chance to experience the most revolutionary spray gun in the insulation/coatings industry! April 12th through July 15th, 2010, Graco is offering a 60-day trial on the Fusion CS gun. Don’t let your customers miss the success and benefits of this breakthrough technology!

Graco has created a promotional flyer for your counter &/or to be email to prospects, and banner ads in a variety of sizes for you to easily add the promotion to your website. Detailed instructions regarding how to use the banners are available online.

In addition, the Fusion CS brochure is available. For more information, log on to GEDI, or contact your Graco Area Manager.

Graco Fusion® CS Product Information

Click on the following Fusion CS gun links for your easy reference.

• Fusion CS gun product brochure
  
• Fusion CS gun product page
  Fusion CS gun parts manuals
  

Biomax Spray Foam featured in SprayFoam Magazine

Biomax Spray Foam, Tyler, TX, will be featured in an upcoming article in SprayFoam Magazine’s online website. Matt Taylor of BioMax, has four Graco Fusion® CS guns and is seeing great results in improved parts life on chambers and side seals, better yield from the chemical, and 25-30% less waste by being able to better control the amount of 1/2 lb foam being applied. Read more about Biomax’s custom home project at www.sprayfoam-mag.com.

Energy Bandits use Graco Fusion® CS Gun for foam and coatings jobs

Whether it’s foam insulation, roofing, or coatings projects such as water tanks, water containment and swimming pools, Alvin Harbour, owner of Energy Bandits Spray Foam Insulation Inc. says his crew now uses the Fusion CS Gun for all of their projects.

“Overall, we’re very happy with it,” he says. “The Fusion CS gun has helped productivity substantially. If you don’t have to worry about drilling the tip every 15 minutes, it really helps us get the job done faster.”

He started using the Fusion CS gun when it was introduced with a free 90-day trial through his distributor. At the time, he was doing a lot of 2-pound work and had great luck with the Fusion CS, but when he switched over to 1/2 pound foam, it got gummed up.

“After some experimentation, I found out that basically that the gun was over-greased,” Harbour said. “Less grease and lower air pressure helped solve the problem. I like the CS gun a lot,” he says, “and I make sure to flush it every day so that it stays clean.”

Harbour says the Fusion CS helps generate a better yield from materials because “it’s spraying better and the foam lays down with a nice even texture. We don’t have to worry about trimming off the excess foam, which means less labor expenses. There’s no re-shooting the foam either.”

Harbour also likes the ergonomic and lightweight attributes of the Fusion CS gun. “When you’re spraying attics with tight spaces, you’re crawling all the time. You need to be able to maneuver the gun and shoot at angles where the joist meets the rafters. If you can’t get the gun at the correct angle, you don’t get decent coverage.”

With his business based in Amarillo Texas, consumers are interested in foam for reasons beyond the insulation factor. “With the straight line winds that we get here, and no trees, the foam adds structural integrity to the building,” Harbour said. “Also with the dust storms, improved air quality is a big selling point.”

Graco Fusion® CS Gun reference guide available in Spanish

A Fusion CS reference guide has been developed and is now available in a pdf format in Spanish. The guide provides guidelines on how to best use and maintain Fusion CS guns. Download the Spanish pdf entitled, " Obteniendo los Mejores Resultados con su Pistola de Rociado Fusion CS."

Fusion CS Gun Update

Designed with an innovative liquid purge design, the new Fusion CS Gun is different than traditional air-purge or mechanical purge guns. "End-users are realizing that the new gun is radically different than anything they've every used before," says Graco's Nick Pagano, "and they're learning to modify their spraying and maintenance techniques in order to get the best results from their Fusion CS gun," he says.

A new reference guide called "Getting the Best Results from your Fusion CS Spray Gun" has been developed and will be included with all Fusion CS guns. The guide gives detailed recommendation on how to best use and maintain Fusion CS guns, and includes details on how to resolve most common issues. A Spanish version of the guide is also available in pdf format.

Graco has also provided information, helpful hints and FAQ's online at the Product Knowledge Exchange (PKE). To use Graco's PKE, visit www.graco.com, choose Tech Support, and search by keywords "Fusion CS."

Try Before You Buy
With the Try Before You Buy program, contractors can try the Graco Fusion CS gun free with a risk-free, 60-day trial. If it doesn't live up to expectations, Graco will take it back, no questions asked. Distributors receive 90-day dating and an extra five percent discount. Promotional period: March 1 to May 31, 2009.

New Fusion CS Parts and Accessories
In addition, Graco is pleased to announce that several new repair kits are now available based on customer requests. These parts were previously only available as part of larger assembled kits.

257424 Dosing piston with O-rings
257426 Variable flow O-ring Kit, pack of 6
257428 Check valve housing (resin), pack of 10
257427 Check valve housing (ISO), pack of 10
257420 Check ball, pack of 10
257419 Check valve spring, pack of 10
257421 Check valve retainer, pack of 10
256923 Side seal springs, pack of 10

Graco adds Reactor H-50 Foam Proportioner to line-up

Gets the job done faster on high-volume applications
Graco recently introduced a new high-output proportioner for applying spray polyurethane foam. Designed especially for high-volume applications such as large commercial projects or roofing applications, the new hydraulic Graco Reactor H-50 Foam Proportioner delivers up to 50 pounds (22.6 kg) of foam per minute – allowing contractors to spray more product in less time.

“Larger pumps on the machine drive higher flow rates,” says Nick Pagano, product marketing manager for foam and polyurea equipment at Graco. “The new Graco H-50 will have 140 size pumps installed for high-output users who need to work faster and accomplish more in a day.”

The Graco H-50 foam proportioner is available separately or as a package. The package units include a Fusion® gun, spray hose and whip hose. Download the H-50 flyer.

Manual Updates
Please note the changes to the Reactor H-50 manual:

• A table of specifications has been added to page 3
• Pages 20 and 21 now have electrical requirements

For more information, visit www.graco.com.

Center for Polyurethanes Industry Award: 2008 Innovative Product

Graco's Fusion CS™, a plural-component spray gun designed with ClearShot™ Technology, won the 2008 Polyurethane Innovation Award - Processing Equipment at the Center for Polyurethanes Industry (CPI) annual conference in San Antonio, Texas.

Voting by more than 1,200 conference attendees took place during two days of the conference. Scientists, engineers, manufacturers and business leaders from around the world voted for the product best representing the role that innovation plays in advancing the polyurethanes industry.

For additional information about the Fusion CS, please visit www.graco.com/ClearShot or an authorized Graco distributor.

ClearShot - Polyurea Test

Recently, Spray Pump, Inc., of Baytown, Texas, needed to spray polyurea on the walls (wood) of temporary buildings at a correctional facility. The challenge was to create a fail-safe barrier or seal that would prevent screws from being removed from the walls. Why? So inmates could not remove the screws and either create holes for escape or use the screws as weapons.

Willie Herrington, at Spray Pump, Inc., was asked to conduct field tests to find an application that would speed up the process. The material Herrington used was the Bearcat Industries SL-400 Polyurea. Before the field test, Herrington was using the Graco^® Reactor^® E-10 with a 2K Ultralite Gun. The application was good but extremely slow.

In Test #1, Herrington used the Graco Fusion Air Purge gun and the E-10 heated proportioner.

Herrington used the E-10 proportioner with heat and tried several different configurations of the Fusion Air Purge gun. Application productivity was greatly increased in this test.

Results: Herrington found that the Fusion AP had too much flow for the given application. Using the GX-8 gun would be too cost prohibitive; i.e., selling it with an an E-10 package. A suggestion was made to try Graco's new Fusion CS.

For Test #2, Herrington picked up the Graco Fusion CS with a round mix chamber and used a E-10 heated proportioner. Fluid temperatures were set at 125F for the A and 130F for the B. Spraying pressure was 1700-1800 psi.

Results: Herrington tested the gun using the variable flow setting, reducing the flow to the desired rate. This was a great improvement over the Fusion AP, but there was a problem: one side of the pattern had a much higher millimeter build than the other - a condition unacceptable to the end user. The test results were better than those of the Fusion AP, but not quite to what was needed.

Test #3 was similar to Test#2, but Herrington used a Graco Fusion CS with a flat mix chamber and a flat tip (FT0424 tip). Again, he used an E-10 heated proportioner and A and B temperatures of 125F and 130F, respectively. His spraying pressure was 1850 psi.

Results: Using a flat mix chamber solved the inconsistent pattern problem that the round chamber produced. Bearcat Industries found the production and quality of finish to be acceptable. Herrington commented, "The spray test was performed and the results were beyond my expectations. We were able to maintain 1850 psi and the product sprayed like an automotive finish. If I had not seen it with my own eyes, it would have been hard to believe.”

As a result of this test, the Fusion CS earned its credibility in the coatings market. It may present a lower-cost alternative to the GX-8 gun for low-output polyurea applications.