Painting: Tools of the Trade

基本派nter's Hand Tools

无论我是画内或外表面，我觉得基本的工具应用。最基本的工具是画家的裤子。可佩带式工具箱，他们设计用于携带所有的基本知识的口袋。后口袋里握着我的掸子和砂纸。侧腿的口袋里握住我的刀，五功能于一身，并具有可互换位螺丝刀。我到成袋比我更可以量化;到达其他地方，这些工具将花费我的时间。在相对的腿上的环持有抹布，可以暂时保持一个锤子。（你甚至可能会被误认为是承包商，要对你的价格折扣。）

The five-in-one is a very important basic hand tool. As the name implies, it is a multipurpose tool. While it does not replace regular tools, I have used it as a scraper, chisel, screwdriver, nail set, and even a hammer. It will open and seal paint cans. The circular part can function as a squeegee for removing excess paint from roller covers. It truly is a vital tool, without which I am lost. As for a duster, an old paintbrush with the handle cut off makes a nice pocket-sized tool. A good painter will always have sandpaper at hand. I like to keep in my pocket at least one piece of each grit for the job at hand. Moreover, I have learned never to go up a ladder with only one piece of sandpaper. Having each of these tools at the ready is a real time-saver.

Another useful tool is a pothook. They hook your cut pot to your ladder as you work. You can also hook it through two belt loops and attach your cut pot to your waist, which frees up both hands. I have also used it to secure a chandelier that I had to lower to finish a ceiling, among other things. With a little imagination, a pothook can serve many purposes.

基本派nt Application Tools

The methods of applying paint are brush, roll, and spray, which we will skip for this discussion. Choosing good tools is important here -- after painting knowledge and ability, the quality of your brushes and rollers determines the quality of your paint job and the time it takes to finish.

Paint Brushes

Although brushes are a somewhat complex subject, selection breaks down along three basic categories: the paint type, the surface type, and the size of the job. The first of these involves the type of bristle, natural or synthetic. Natural bristles, or animal hair, are exclusively for oil-based products. Using these in latex products will make the brush a good duster. (The cost of the time involved in restoration will exceed the cost of the brush). Synthetic bristles are for latex products, but they work effectively with oil products as well. The basic synthetic brush is nylon or a nylon/polyester blend. The polyester reinforces the nylon and prevents the softening that occurs when straight nylon encounters hot and humid environs, like exteriors. However, straight nylon is more abrasion-resistant and better suited to exterior surfaces, like stucco. This is one of many toss-ups you will encounter when choosing a brush.

The chosen brush should fit the painting surface. Brushes come in varying degrees of firmness, from soft to extra firm, which you can feel by running them across your open hand. When I am choosing a brush, I do that test with the surface and paint material in mind. The firmer brushes are better for painting coarse surfaces, like stucco and rough-hewn siding, and for cutting in walls and ceiling on interiors with flat paints. They are also good for priming raw wood because, as we discussed in a previous article, primers require brushing into the wood.

较软的毛刷更适合用搪瓷（光泽油漆）工作和绘画装饰。他们做的切割线和绘画装饰时所需的精密工作时留下刷痕少，符合更容易。因为我忘了我的判断刷的坚定性开始工作后不久，我已经转刷。错误的选择可以让您的工作更努力或影响您的品质。

画笔也应适应工作的范围。尺寸范围从铅笔刷到6" ，并且每个都有其特定的应用。刷子也进来直切和角切，或窗扇刷子。选择刷的正确的大小主要是常识，但是，也有少数例外，2-“或3”刷子是用于内墙最常见和修剪，具有1" 或1-1 / 2" 刷窗框，较大尺寸的更适合于外部的工作，其中，壁板和较大的装饰物是常见的。许多倍，刷的组合要求对特定的装饰件，如窗户，踢脚板等，如果你发现自己太在意打周围的表面，你刷过大。

滚筒盖

Choosing a roller cover is a little more straightforward and involves less personal taste than choosing a brush. A cover consists of a synthetic core wrapped with a variety of fabrics (the nap). Nap materials range from foam to synthetic blends to wool, even to metal spikes for some industrial applications. Naps come in lengths that range from 1/4" to 1-3/4", with cover lengths ranging from 2" to 18". A 9" cover with a 3/8" nap is a 9" x 3/8" cover. My suggested lengths are approximations, and each depends on the manufacturer.

拇指的基本规则是，较高的涂料的光泽度，被涂在平滑的表面上，并利用油产品时，应使用较短的滚筒盖打盹。更长的滚筒盖小睡更适合于扁平油漆和粗糙的表面。使用更短的午睡盖是粘性较低，如木材处理产品的任何产品。一般来说，我使用的上清水墙单位和蛋壳一个9" ×1/2" 尼龙盖。然而，在石膏我会切换到9" ×3/8" 。从9" ×1/2" 盖的高油漆积聚可能会导致我的光洁度‘帘’，或下垂水平。最少1/2" 午睡罩的质地丝毫的电话，无论光泽。

使用基于项目的范围覆盖长度。18" 封面作品地板，两层楼高的大房间，以及跨越多个房间的天花板，而7" 封面作品卷帘门，货架，或房间较小，分段壁部分。对于一切，一个9" 的封面是内部工作的标准。羊毛盖持有大量的油漆（少重装），并很好地工作时，很多表面面积的需求的覆盖范围，但18" 的封面是不必要的。如同刷子，有时尺寸的组合是适当的。例如，9" 盖通常伴随一个18" 盖。请记住，如果壁的部分仅8" 宽，转动辊和水平轧辊。

Roller covers not only apply material to large areas, they serve other purposes as well. Using a mohair cover to apply enamels to cabinets or other trim pieces can produce a uniform appearance similar to a factory finish. Specialty covers create decorative textures. Additionally, rollers can apply material that you lay off with a brush. However, do not get too far ahead of yourself -- the paint will begin to tack up and you will get drag marks.

Work smarter. Having this knowledge of the available tools and how to use them is invaluable in achieving better finishes in a shorter time.