Two stage against single stage

[Nacho-RT74]

what it was the factory setup?

what is more resistant to the enviroments conditions ?

I know two stage can be done with the best finish ever made ( a mirror glaze ), but maybe thinking now on a better resistant for the daily use to still keep the car with show look... maybe even like a survivor.

It looks "affordable" two stage finish needs lot of care to keep a great looking car

How do you get the single stage look ? clear on paint ?

I was thinking on this after detail with attention the chargerjy9's Charger ( 73 gold SE survivor )... I like the idea on get that finish

I have been drooling on this car since I have memories but never though seriouslly on this. Allways thinking on Dupont Chroma Finish and similars ( 2YK, Glasurit, PPG etc.. ), but going in another direction maybe is a better option ( and affordable with less care about )

[twodko]

Hello Nacho!

This is only my opinion but 2 stage paint jobs are more resistant to the elements than single stage for the simple reason that the clear coat is sprayed over the color coat. If you get some light scratches in 2 stage you can rub them out easily and not touch the color coat. Not true with single stage...color coat/clear coat are applied as one finish. If you get a scratch in single stage its in the color coat.
I believe factory finish was single stage. Good luck Oso.

Tomas

[MichaelRW]

Base clears are the most durable but urethane single stage paints have excellent durability too. I emphasize urethane as there are less durable SS products on the market. Maintenance (polishing, waxing, minor repairs for scratches, water spots, bird shit) on the BC/CC and solid SS paints is very similar. But making minor repairs in metallic SS paints is much more difficult.

I don't know when Chrysler went to mostly BC/CC for their vehicles but most manufacturers had moved to that technology by the late 1980's but the cars of the 60's and 70's were all SS paints I believe.

[SFRT]

my car is: 3 coats of semigloss catalyzed black and 3 coats of clear.....

[twodko]

SFRT,

What does catalyzed mean in relation to auto paint?

Tom

[maxwellwedge]

Factory paint on muscle-era Mopars was single stage acrylic enamel.

[hemi-hampton]

SFRT,

What does catalyzed mean in relation to auto paint?

Tom

Catalyzed means Hardener. Or the paint is dried Chemically instead of air dry. The Chemicals in the paint & hardener(catalyst) combine to a rock hard finish also known as crosslinking. You have a short window to spray with crosslinked paints. Air Dried paints do not dry with a high gloss & are hard to rub or recoat with out lifting. Not Recommended. LEON.

[hemi-hampton]

SFRT,

What does catalyzed mean in relation to auto paint?

Tom

Catalyzed means Hardener. Or the paint is dried Chemically instead of air dry. The Chemicals in the paint & hardener(catalyst) combine to a rock hard finish also known as crosslinking. You have a short window to spray with crosslinked paints. Air Dried paints (like Centari) do not dry with a high gloss & are hard to rub or recoat with out lifting. Not Recommended. LEON.

[elitecustombody]

I agree with MichaelRW,but will add, single stage urethane is the second most durable finish you can get,at least on my daily driver  it's amazing how well it held up against bug guts,chips,scuffs form kids getting in and out.

But the most durable paint system would be NANO technology clearcoat,it can be special ordered on your new Mercedes Benz, it repells dirt,grease and alot of chemicals,has amazing scratch resistance, every major paint line has their version of this clearcoat ,the downside using this clear is it will be very hard to wetsand and polish ,it gives 20-24 hour window, after that,you can forget it.

For solid color I'd recommend single stage urethane,if it's metallic color, go with base/clear

BTW, there is no double stage, it's called basecoat/clearcoat,base/clear,b/c or two stage paint system.

[Nacho-RT74]

you are right... edited the double stage deal!

but metallic colors were available on those days too... right ? and they were single stage too, right ?

[RD]

how long can you wait to wetsand single stage enamel?

[superbirdtom]

you are right... edited the double stage deal!

but metallic colors were available on those days too... right ? and they were single stage too, right ? YEAH THE METTALLICS IN THE OLD DAYS WERE SINGLE STAGE  ,i PAINTED MY FIRST CAR IN 73 AND MANY OTHERS WITH SINGLE STAGE METTALICS  THEY WERE A BITCH TO GET THE METTALLICS  RIGHT WITHOUT TIGER STRIPING THEM. , BUT YOU COULDN'T WETSAND AND POLISH THEM ,  i JUST DID A CAR IN CONCEPT SINGLE STAGE AND IT TURNED OUT GREAT  . i PAINTED AIRCRAFT FOR MANY YEARS ALL TRUE POLYURETHANE LIKE  AWL GRIP ETC.  IT SETS UP SO HARD YOU CAN'T POLISH IT.  bUT  YOU CAN THROW  LACQUER THINNER ON IT AND IT DOSEN'T FAZE IT.  NOW THATS TOO HARD  BUT GOOD FOR AIRCRAFT AND BOATS.  THE METTALLICS i USED WERE FROM IMRON FOR TRIM STRIPING AS THEY  HAD THE BEST COLOR VARIETY. i DID THE HELICOPTER FROM TRAPPER JOHN TV SHOW  ALL IN METALLICS AND USED SOME CLEAR FROM i BELIEVE U.S. PAINTS  AND MAN IT WAS HARD AS HELL

i ALSO DID A METALFLAKE JOB IN 75 WITH THE HUGE FLAKES AND DID IT WITH LACQUER,   WHAT A BITCH.  lATER I DID ANOTHER REAL METALFLAKE JOB USING URETHANE MUCH EASIER.  BUT NOW  ANY KINDA METTALICS PEARLS  ETC  TWO STAGE IS THE ONLY WAY TO GO.

[elitecustombody]

you are right... edited the double stage deal!

but metallic colors were available on those days too... right ? and they were single stage too, right ?

yes, and yes, some had integrated clearcoat, which were a little more resistant to oxidation, but they can never be compared to depth ,vibrance and clarity of base/clear system

[elitecustombody]

how long can you wait to wetsand single stage enamel?

the longer you wait ,the better results you'll end up with, some enamels are impossible to buff when fresh, compound will smear ,pad will be getting stuck and paint surface will haze,one way to check is do the fingernail test, if it leaves no mark, it's ready to buff

[200MPH]

sorry to hijack but what is Imron paint?

[oldcarnut]

sorry to hijack but what is Imron paint?

Here's a little info on it.
http://www.mikeandjerrys.com/dImron.asp

[elitecustombody]

if you end up using Imron, make sure you have a dust-free environment,or you'll be buffing for weeks, this stuff is tough as a rock

[200MPH]

hey guys Thanks for the info sorry about the hijack!

[71green go]

Another problem between the two types of paints that I have found is color match...

Base clear VS Acrylic and Urethane the colors for allot of factory colors vary in tint..

I know my Green Go color I painted my car with...I used Urethane under the car for Durability and ease of the single stage application ....
And the paint for the rest of the car with PPG Base Clear..
There was a huge difference in the two colors...which I wasn't to concerned about under the car...

So choosing a paint type when it comes to correctness of the color, is important to match the factory color ......Unless it doesn't matter to you

I am not sure what type of paint is more correct?.........maybe Acrylic as that what they were from the factory

[Mike DC]

   


I just wanna point something out in this discussion - 

The factories originally switched to base/clear to comply with govt regulations.  Less basecoat = less harmful environmental solvents.  (As long as you forget that the clearcoat will produce all those extra solvents anyway, the theory works fine.)



Nowadays they wouldn't go back to the single stage versions even if they could, just because they've discovered that paintjobs are cheaper when they use much less of the basecoats and then make up the lost depth with the cheaper clear layer.  The price of the paint is a big deal when you're talking about the yearly volumes they run.

[Darkman]

When doing a base/clear paint job, do you colour sand the clear only (to get the mirror finish)? Or do you sand the colour before the clear goes on? Sorry for the highjack

[twodko]

If you're refering to a color coat/clear coat paint job, you color sand the color coat then apply another color coat or spray your clear coat. Its the clear coat you cut and polish for that deep mirror like finish.

Tom

[Darkman]

Thanks 

[RD]

how long can you wait to wetsand single stage enamel?

the longer you wait ,the better results you'll end up with, some enamels are impossible to buff when fresh, compound will smear ,pad will be getting stuck and paint surface will haze,one way to check is do the fingernail test, if it leaves no mark, it's ready to buff

thank you!!!   

[hemi-hampton]

If you're refering to a color coat/clear coat paint job, you color sand the color coat then apply another color coat or spray your clear coat. Its the clear coat you cut and polish for that deep mirror like finish.

Tom

No need to sand the basecoat unless it's dirty or pass it's window drying time, not necessary to apply more color if sanded unless it's a mettalic or too course of paper used. No need to sand the clear unless dirty or orange peely or runs & sags or you may just want a show car shine. LEON.