Paintshop clear a must???

[flaminford]

I am using the paint shop system and am wondering if I must use a clear coat?

The paint is a lacquer and normally you DON'T use clear on lacquer and it comes to a pretty good shine.

Also if I am not going to use a clear, what sanding and buffing would you suggest?

Thanks

[6t8dart]

When I sprayed some test panels using black and red, the paint was very dull, basically flat, you need the clear for the shine.

Not wet sanded side, as sprayed.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1445.jpg

Wet sanded with 1500 and hand buffed with mequires, It could look beter, I didn't spend a lot of time on it.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1444.jpg

No clear, the black had a little shine to it, the red was completely matt.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1439.jpg

Red with masking tape for the stripes.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1437.jpg

Red as sprayed.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1432.jpg

Duplicolor primer. I would highly recommend this! It works great as a sealer, I tried it over 7 different types of paint, clears, pimers, and fillers, not mapping or bleed through.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1425.jpg

Had to mix the paint.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1424.jpg

I wanted to see if there would be any probnlems with etching primer or sand scratches so I marked the back of my test panel.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1423.jpg

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q23/red98dakota/100_1422.jpg

[Dupli-Color-Specialist]

6t8dart is correct. The 'base' coat or color coat does come out similar to a matte finish and must be cleared if you want that shine. The clear coat also allows you to have that extra protection for sanding out any imperfections. You are correct about the older Lacquers not needing a clear but due to VOC regulations we had to design this system with a clear coat. It actually worked out great for us because a lot of people actually like the matte finish the color coat gives. When sanding I am going to suggest starting with 1500 and go from there. It doens't take long to sand the paint thin. Good luck with your project.

6t8dart thanks again for your input.

[chriss68]

Looks Good dart. Did you wet sand the paint before you sprayed the clear on?

[Mustangerpvg]

Looks Good dart. Did you wet sand the paint before you sprayed the clear on?

Well????? Any answers?

[chriss68]

I will answer my own question there....
You do not need to wet sand the paint before you spray the clear as long as you have minimal orange peel and that there is no dirt of flies stuck on the paint before you do apply clear. If you do have some orange peel, then spray many coats of clear to allow for snading and buffing.

[JOHNBOY]

Chris,

How many is many? In your experience, what is the practical limit of the number of coats of clear that can be applied? Thanks for the info.

Regards,
John

[chriss68]

Chris,

How many is many? In your experience, what is the practical limit of the number of coats of clear that can be applied? Thanks for the info.

Regards,
John

generally i use 3-4 coats of clear. if more is needed in areas after wet sanding, then i will apply more to that area only and wet sand to blend. then finish with buffing.

[Dupli-Color-Specialist]

generally i use 3-4 coats of clear. if more is needed in areas after wet sanding, then i will apply more to that area only and wet sand to blend. then finish with buffing.

We have used 5 coats on the vehicles we have painted. When applying the clear you are going to want to lay it down a bit heavier so it flows and levels out when drying. This will give less orange peel.

[JOHNBOY]

Thanks for the info Chris and Brian. I'm slowly but surely gathering the courage to attempt my first paint job. This forum has proved to be a great source of information as well as encouragement. I will share my experience with the paint job as it progresses. Just need some warm weather here in New Jersey to get started. I also want to see how the new PS Candys look.

John

[Dupli-Color-Specialist]

Thanks for the info Chris and Brian. I'm slowly but surely gathering the courage to attempt my first paint job. This forum has proved to be a great source of information as well as encouragement. I will share my experience with the paint job as it progresses. Just need some warm weather here in New Jersey to get started. I also want to see how the new PS Candys look.

John

Good to hear John. Paint Shop is very user friendly and at about $20 a quart is it cheap enough if you mess up the first time.

I will be creating a 'sticky' thread for the new Candy Coat system next week.

[rickohio1]

What are the recommended air temperatures for spraying in a home garage set-up?

rickohio1@yahoo.com

[Dupli-Color-Specialist]

What are the recommended air temperatures for spraying in a home garage set-up?

rickohio1@yahoo.com

anything over 65 degrees

[reddot]

Is there any risk of weather ruining a dupli-color paintshop paint job if one does not apply the clear and wants the flat look. Also if you dont mind a side note is it possible to get a semi-gloss finish?

[Dupli-Color-Specialist]

Is there any risk of weather ruining a dupli-color paintshop paint job if one does not apply the clear and wants the flat look. Also if you dont mind a side note is it possible to get a semi-gloss finish?

We didn't do extensive weather testing on just the basecoat itself since this is a base/clear system. Other than maybe you typical water spots(common on most any paint job) I don't see any major issues.