Guns are the part of the rig people ask about most and think about least. We ran these every day during our washing years, on an 8 GPM machine, and the differences between them are not subtle once you have used them all.
The guns
Suttner ST-1500 — the budget one
We used one of these for a long time and caught grief for it online. It is not what we reached for later, but it never actually failed — it still works, and it is still around as a backup. If you are starting out and money is the constraint, this is not the thing that will hold your business back.
Suttner ST-2315 — the daily driver
The most versatile gun we used, and the one that got picked up almost every day. Chemical resistant, comfortable through a full shift, and it takes whatever you want to put on the end of it. If you buy one gun, buy this style.
Rebranded versions
Several suppliers sell the same gun under their own name — we picked up a Water Dragon-branded one at a convention when we needed a second, and it is the same ST-2315 underneath. Worth knowing so you are comparing on price rather than thinking you have found a different tool.
The extension that buys you distance
This is the finding worth the whole article. On the second gun we threaded the J-Rod straight into the gun with just a stainless fitting. On the first, there was a five or six inch stainless extension between the gun and the J-Rod.
The one with the extension reached noticeably further. Same machine, same tips. We tested it back to back and it was not close enough to argue about.
The fittings are standard quarter-inch stainless — nothing exotic, and you can find them in a hardware store if you are stuck. Take the gun with you and thread it in the aisle if you are unsure. But a purpose-made stainless nipple is a couple of dollars and will not corrode on you.
J-Rod or M5 twist?
| J-Rod | M5 twist | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Reach — two storey and up, and anything where distance decides whether you get on a ladder | One-storey house washing |
| Speed of changing | Slide to the next tip on the rod | Twist to switch between chemical and rinse |
| Distance | Further, consistently | Good, but short of a J-Rod |
We liked the M5 a lot and used it for single-storey work because it is quick and simple. We could not get the same distance from it as from a J-Rod setup, and we tried — including putting the M5 on the extension tube. The J-Rod still won.
Tips
On the 8 GPM machine the J-Rod carried a zero-degree tip for maximum reach, a 25-degree for general work, and a shear tip for the awkward jobs — four storeys up, or a crevice that nothing else would get into. The shear tip did not come out often, but when it did nothing else would have done it.
On the 12V soft wash side, running a 5.5 GPM pump at around 60 PSI, the set was four tips all at a 3.0 orifice: 0030, 1530, 2530 and 4030 — zero, 15, 25 and 40 degrees. Same orifice throughout, different spray angles.
That last point is the one people get wrong. The orifice size has to match the pump; the angle is what you change for the job. Do not buy tips because you like the look of them — a 40 on a 5.3 GPM pump will cost you distance, and a 3.0 on a big 8 GPM soft wash pump will blow fuses. See choosing the right nozzles for your 12V soft wash system.
On the downstream side, the soap tip and the M5 size have to match the machine too, and the injector has to match both. Our downstream calculator picks the injector, M5 size and soap tip from your GPM and hose length, and the complete downstreaming guide explains why bigger soap tips draw more, not less.
Shop the parts
Pressure wash guns, J-Rods, nozzles, shooter tips and combos, gun wands and lances and soft wash guns. Everything above is on the shelf at our Oregon City store, and orders over $149 ship free.
