The Spray Painting Thread

[takai]

Ive seen it done with a hard plastic roller. Doesnt deform much so it wont paint below the raised portion.

[pac]

best way and not to expensive is go to printers they will cut out the letters and then just transfer like eg. stickers. or ask ed (shellgrake) he could make a set for you

[viccelicara23]

I might try the plastic roller idea before I spray it and if that works i'll use it and if not a I might get the stickers made up.

Cheers

[TRD184]

my painter has painted my car in solid 2pak Orange and it has not been clear coated (contains clear or something?)
its quite shiny as it is, but im curious as to if buffing will bring it up any better or with 2pak is it a waste of time as its shiniest off the gun?

[o_man_ra23]

2k is normally shiny enough off the gun. I am finding it hard to get a good gloss with the iso-free clear though, as it is quite smooth after a day, then goes rough after half a week (any ideas fellas??). Buffing should give a better shine than what you get off the gun, so it all depends how good a shine you want.

[beerhead]

For the writing get proper edging tape or the lines will blot - $20 - 30 a roll from the paint shop depending on the width, make sure you press it on properly or you'll get crappy edges. then cover the rest of the writing surface with normal masking tape. I've done a 3m mural with the technique using a projector to transfer the image and it came out really well.

["Z" UTE]

TRD184 and Owen, get hold of some 2000 wet and dry, and some 3000 wet and dry. Wet sand with 2000. This process is known as colour sanding. You use warm soapy water in a trigger bottle to wet the surface. Have a bucket of warm soapy water and a nice soft cloth (old T shirt) to wipe the slurry away. Do an area of about 1 square foot at a time, before moving on to the next. When finished with the 2000, go over the job with 3000 using the same technique. What you are aiming to do here is to remove all the orange peel, and end up with a totally flat surface. A flat mirror will reflect better than a pock marked mirror.

When done with the sanding, use a variable speed buffing machine with the pink or white foam pad and a good quality buffing compound (G4 or JUICE). I normally run at a speed of 3-4, no higher as the buff will burn through the paint with the higher speeds and heat that is generated. When finished with the buffing compound, switch pads to the lighter grade black pad, and use swirl remover.

Through this entire process of buffing always ensure that the rotating pad sweeps from the panel to the edges, never from the edge to the panel, as the latter is a guaranteed way of tearing the paint off the edges.

Thoroughly clean the entire car including the boot and bonnet recesses. Apply a Sealer and Glaze (Mothers) buff off with microfibre cloths. Apply a really good wax (Autoglym) and then buff off with microfibre cloths. After this stage you can use one of the 2 handled random orbit buffing machines with a microfibre cloth between the machine pad and the paint.

2pak can look good off the gun, but to get a showroom shine you will have to use the above procedure. The difference in gloss level is huge.

cheers Chuck.

[o_man_ra23]

The problem I am getting isn't orange peel. It is an entirely different imperfection, and I am yet to understand what is causing it. I will have a closer look tonight and see if I can describe it properly. Might have to use something of a magnifying device to get a close look at it.

["Z" UTE]

Owen with Iso Free, you may get a slight "bloom" on the paint, sorta looks cloudy. However what you are describing, sounds like the finish is ok, then as time progresses the paint is pulling ie. drying at different rates.

Is the new ISO free paint new, or old stock.?

How accurate was your mix ratio?

Did you allow the mix to stand for 20 minutes prior to painting?

What was the temperature and humidity like when you sprayed?

cheers Chuck.

[TRD184]

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to "Z" UTE again.

thanks for the help ^.^

[o_man_ra23]

I bought the paint last year, but it did it on the first piece I did which was about a month after I bought the paint. Paint was ordered in specially for me, but I don't have batch info on hand (may be able to grab it from the tin)

Mix ratio was reasonable, measured with a paint mixing cup (not relying on a metal ruler). Added about 25% thinners. Temperature was mid to high 20's, humidity was somewhere around 70% (was at the end of the only week of dry weather we have had for a while). Paint was mixed in one go, though I don't think the first coat would have got a 20 minute sit time (restricted time schedule). No the paint isn't cloudy, just not smooth.

["Z" UTE]

The only things that I can garner from your post, is that the mix did not have time to activate properly, very important when using 2pak, Too much thinners, the correct amount for 2pak is 10% thinners or less. How long ago was the base prepared? If the primer has sat for more than a day, it has to be scuffed back just before applying the colour coat. Was the primer sanded smooth with 800, or thhe red "scotchbrite" before you painted? Did you use a normal, fast, or slow hardener?

As with you, I would like to find out what would cause this roughness you speak of, as I have never encountered it. Also I have never used Iso free paint.

cheers Chuck.

[o_man_ra23]

Primer had sat for greater than 24hrs, and was very lightly sanded with 320 white paper (about the same roughness as 800 wet). Colour went on about half an hour before the clear (flash time of 20-25min on the can). From memory hardner is normal, but would have to review.

["Z" UTE]

Owen, was the colour a basecoat colour from the same manufacturer of the clear? I have experienced some problems in the past simply with mixing brands of paint, particularly with Motorspray under something else. Was the thinner for the iso free, also used in the basecoat colour, or was that different? Thinners can have different properties.ie. some are more volatile than others, and some stay wetter longer.


cheers Chuck.

[o_man_ra23]

The basecoat is Metalux2 with Metacryl thinner. Clear is Hi-Chem with its own reducer.

The paint supplier was adamant that the two were compatible.