opinions please and comments.

i was thinking arcyllic orginally cos it will come up flatter, and look more like an old vw colour.
but i have since been told that 2k can be sanded down flat enough to look like acryllic.

i dont want 'orange peel'
i dont want it to look 'plasticy'
i will take care of my paint, so correct me if im wrong, but longevity shouldnt be a problem.

bring on the advice/anecdotes/comments please

i wanted this to be a poll.

i guess it kinda will be anyway:o

Yeah, you can make acrylic look like old paint - but why would you want to?

Acrylics are great in three situations: 1. You want to paint your car on the cheap in your backyard, 2. You want to do a cheap job (and have plenty of time for the colour sanding,) so you can make it look good for shows (you'll never be driving it on public roads, anyway.) 3. You're a car manufacturer and the best-looking paint for the lowest cost is all that matters (once it's left the showroom, who cares?)

If you find a good painter, you could have a non-gloss clearcoat applied if you really want the "old-car" look...

Hi

My car is painted in acrylic, it was painted by the same guy that did Daves orange smoothie & sea blue. I think it still looks good after 5 years. I burnt the paint on the rear apron on the dyno and I was able to fix it myself at home.

1302Steve

i painted mine in acrylic, but only because i dont have a shed or an oven tto do 2 pac justice. also easier to fix up rust spots later, hmmmmm cheers, fish

If you want it smooth

What is flow coat? Excuse the ignorance.

Clear coat, that is really thin, with heaps of coats, then buff, you get a nice SMOOTH finish! I think thats it!!!!

N!

just put heaps of coats of acrylic, like 8-9 coats and then cut the last coats back with 1200 grit paper then buff with cutting compound and the shine, oh man it's a killer. fish.

flow coat?
whats that dave?

is that a process?
some way of applying 2pak or acryllic?

btw dave are your cars that steve referred to 2 pak or acryllic?

do you guys drive yours every day?

[Edited on 5-5-2003 by Golde60]

flow coating is, after initial colour coats are fully dry rub with 1200 then apply 2-3 wet coats thinned to 80-90 %. Results smooth surface with high gloss

I painted the EH show car in acrylic, has done 33,000 km in six years. I have touched up chips and bits no problem.

HELBUS is painted in two pack for ease of job. I repaired and prepped (2 weeks of holidays used) applied the colour basecoat and flames, (took me 2 days) and had a painter friend spend the 3 hours applying the clearcoat. Haven't buffed it since it was done 3 1/2 years ago. Driven about 50,000 kms since then.
The chips are harder to touch up and are more noticable because it is C.O.B. But it was easier to paint and forget it at the start, no colour sanding or buffing.

Flow Coat

am leaning towards 2pak, but i am quite happy to spend the extra time/effort in order to make it the best i can.

any more advice out there.
maybe a graphic description of how to go about the process.

thanks for all the help guys.

Hey Gold,

Go the 2K. Its gives a better, stronger finish than acrylic, especially in areas like the fiddly inner door edges and hard to get at areas.

I've done a couple of cars(no, im not a painter) in 2K. So this is only my personal opinion/knowledge
First sand back the car(either to bare metal or factory primer/filler. Then etch primer>hi-fill primer(2-1)>sand with 400 dry till flat(using a guide coat and lots of patience(you can put a 4-1 primer in-between here if you want to) then 600 wet- 800 wet then(put a couple of drops of dish washing liquid in the bucket)...Don't forget to wax & grease the whole car at every stage and wear gloves if working with bare metal. And use a tack rag too.
Find a panel shop/spray painter that will put the color on for you on the w'end for cash(in a booth/oven.) Paint the color 2-3 coats(depending on if its base color or pearl etc) then wack on the clear.
This will eliminate the dodgy dust particle most of the time and baking it will make the paint very resilient to most things(except brake fluid etc!!)
After a couple of weeks> wet rub with 1500/2000 soapy water to get rid of the orange peel and compound it with a buffer to get that deep wet look....ahhhhhhhhhhh!
W- 2c worth

2-pak the only way to go... paints much harder and lasts a lot longer.. the finish is a 100 times better that anything else on the market.... as for not wanting the orange peel.. simple get a good painter to apply the chosen colour... there should be very little to none when applyed correctly.....it doesn't need a oven to put it on but the drying time is far greater.(oven dryed 25 mins till touch.. 4/6 days till total cure... air dry 2/3 hours till touch and up to 14 total cure...) what i mean by toaly cure is when the paint stops its chemical reactions... touch dry means u can handle the panels.. but they would be soft..so would scratch easy ..the only problem you can really have with 2 pak is what paint you are going over.. so its best to

A....strip all the paint off(the best way )

B....use a good 2 pak high fill primer with a low tc content (low in sovents)
both ways work well but the bare metal wins for over all effect..

hi there,2 pak is full cure after 7 hours,ready for the buff,,,,and if you dont use a oven or at least dust free room,you will have to cut with 2000 then buff.as you will have fall out all over it,bugs,dust,over spray..etc.and my self i dont think acylic is so bad,done right can look better then 2k,,,but yes you need to polish and wash it more often,,,
and money comes into the factor aswell.
a good painter in a good oven is going to cost big $$$$$$$$$..
cheers

I feel I must Mention that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so the toughest most expensive paint appied by the best spraypainter money can buy will shear off in a big chunk if the preparation isnt A grade as well.
The MGB in My driveway is 2 pack and when done,{by a previous owner} was g such a nice job that it took out best original MGB at the national meeting that year, but now 5 years later has had the undercoat let go in a few spots an it now a total respray job to fix it as its a bit here and a bit there.
So accrylic would have lasted plenty long enough to do the job.
So whichever you choose make sure the body will stay healthy for long enough to make it worth the effort.
Herbie is accrylic painted in the back yard but I think I will do the kombie in two pak
as its got a pretty stable body with no geat issues.
Cheers Tony