Admittedly I have an “apprentice” level of experience with paint sprayers. I am not a professional painter, nor do I play one on YouTube or other platform. That said, I have painted my fair share of houses, cabinets and things in between. In completing these projects I have used a mix of brushes, rollers, “DIY” sprayers (Wagner and the like), “mid-level” Graco and Earlex (5500 spray station) airless sprayers and now the Graco Ultra Quickshot.
Over the past 3 months I have been using my newly purchased in a variety of painting/spraying applications, interiors, trim and cabinets. Note: I have not sprayed any lacquers or stains in this time. My Earlex 5500 spray station had/has served me pretty well over the years, but most of the time it’s convenience in size, portability and ease of use has been tempered, and continues to be, by the need to often back-roll due “spitting” and some runs- while the ergonomics are non existent. At times this has admittedly been user error and recalling I am not a professional painter, is to be expected for a lot of GC’s who often times have an mix of projects/builds but not enough to sub out/labor shortages making subbing impractical. So while looking for better options for myself, and having had my eye on the Graco Ultra Quickshot for about 9 months, I took chance at the end of last year and bought it. Yes the $1,400 price tag was painful. However, I knew that with holiday season, purchasing through Amazon afforded me a bit of a buffer in terms of the extended return window as opposed to a standard 30 day return period. So I took advantage and knowing I would have through the end of January if I didn’t like the unit- I splurged. Call it a Christmas present to myself.
What were my expectations for $1,400? A portable unit which is easy to fill, operate and clean are pretty obvious, as is the ability to spray different types of finishes and viscosities and attain a quality finish.
These givens aside, what attracted me to the Graco Ultra Quickshot was 1. Getting the weight of the paint pot out of the handle, 2. The compactness and portability of the unit (easily fits in a M3337 systainer), 3. Most importantly deliver a great finish and user experience. When I tell you the user experience has been great, I’m understating it. I don’t have the vocabulary to describe the simplicity of the use and design. The electronic trigger is a one of a kind experience. It’s smooth and starts and cuts off quickly without any mechanical lag (which happens as parts age). That said I don’t yet know the durability of the unit and electronics and circuit board may present a risk. I’m also risking that the gun gets paint or water inside - presenting a risk that’s less concerning with a non-electronic gun (all airless sprayers have electronics of some kind- but usually not on the gun itself).
Additionally, small things like the tiny feed hose makes clean up nearly instant. I don’t spend a lot of time flushing the line and I’m not wasting much finish. The ability to use the sprayer with the included battery’s (on rotation) for consecutive hours and if necessary pair with a larger 9 or even 12ah Flexvolt battery means you’re unlikely to ever have a runtime concern.
Graco shows and I’ve seen demo’s with people using the unit clipped to their belt. For me thats been impractical. I’m 6’5” tall and when I paint lower parts of trims, doors, cabinets… the angle in which I have to lean over to be at 90 degrees to the surfaces was always awkward and 1-2 times I tried it I felt like the unit would fall off and then I’d be dealign with a damaged unit and paint absolutely everywhere.
Conversely enjoy being able place the unit on the floor or worktable and take advantage of the 6’ hose while enjoying the lightweight of the gun without a paint pot attached. I also find it less tiring to hold the unit in one hand, at a natural arm length, and the gun in the other hand. Yes, the weight has been shifted from the gun to the unit, however the physics of holding the unit in a natural position is less tiring than out front in raised arm position.
Speaking of ergonomics- having the paint pot off the gun allows for interior spraying of cabinet and the like. The smaller foot print just fits better in untold scenarios.
A major improvement I have for Graco is to add swivel points for the hose. From the factory the hose has ‘memory’ and despite every attempt to remove it including recoiling using over under technique and lightly heating with a heat gun (for fear of destroying something internally (the hose and electrical connections run through it) there is still an annoying amount of memory that occasionally is an annoyance.
Shutout to all manufacturers- stop sending corded items with the cords wrapped introducing ‘memory’. Over-under coiling!!!
I haven’t discussed the spray pattern / overspray because there isn’t much to discuss. Using the right tip with the right pressure for the finish and the spray pattern is excellent and overspray is minimal. This isn’t a Temu, Alibaba or Amazon brand. It’s Graco who has been producing sprayers for longer than I’ve been alive.
Of course spray tips play a significant role in outcome. The Graco Ultra using the Rac X tips- I didn’t have any of those so I picked up a LP 515 and LP 517 in addition to the FFLP 212 and FFLP 512 that ships with the unit. One thing many may know- but for those who may not - spray tips are consumable items. They wear out. I only have a combined 25 gallons or so through the mix of tips I have so I’m not there yet and haven’t noticed performance degradation. As for the tip’s performance- they are fantastic- best in the industry.
Last note on hardware- I have not used the Graco Ultra Quickshot with an extension. I am however keen and curious as to how that may interact with the electronic gun. Videos I’ve seen lead me to believe this won’t be a problem. Also as Graco makes a separate cutoff valve for use with extensions and is designed for to eliminate spitting, that might be an option, if necessary.
Before summing this up and anyone runs off and busy this into with no spraying experience - technique still counts (you have to keep the sprayer in motion when you depress the trigger, you have to remain close to 90 degrees to the painting surface, etc…) but the unit is forgiving for some poor technique compared to my previous experiences with sprayers.
So, is this sprayer worth $1,400? The internet will tell you, no. The internet will say there are cheaper alternatives and complaining about runtime, question the durability of an electronic trigger and that the use case is too small (can’t paint the thickest latex paints, whole houses, etc). I don’t think it’s that simple. Firstly, all sprayer have electronics and while mechanical parts are tried and true- they do wear out. Secondly, as this audience knows, complaints about using tools outside their design parameters falls on deaf ears with me. Yes this wasn’t designed to spray entire houses- but let me tell you it could! (You’d wear the pump out sooner- but pumps are consumable parts of all sprayers). Thirdly, the portability is very appealing and of you are just painting a garage door, interior trim, cabinets- you can’t beat the productivity gains versus larger units- the Earlex included. Fourth, the ergonomics are better and I am not as tired as when using a gun with the paint affixed to it. And fifth and finally, the quality of the entire package from the tips, the unit itself, the electronic gun has improved my outcome and for me the ROI will be measured in months and not years.
For what is worth- writing this recalled my previous commentary about buying the best tool and while expensive and often time alternates exist… I felt the pain once and the tool compensated for my deficiencies/inexperience and my results have improved.
As always, I have paid for the Graco Ultra Quickshot myself and have no social media or other platform for which a sponsor of any kind would be interested in sponsoring or sending me free tools…. a.k.a. I’m like everyone else here… financially undersupplied and my opinions are my own 
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