What do you guys like to use for clearcoat? There are a ton to choose from, but would like some opinions from people here with experience. I am talking about ease of application, sanding and buffing, quality of material, and durability over time. Do you guys have a favorite?
My current go-to is Tamco's Euro clear. Much more reasonably priced than the name brands. And so far, very happy with spray quality, and how it lays down. Time will tell if it is good in the long run, but seems to be quality material.
Ya gonna get a bunch of answers. Probably all correct ones. I don’t like a clear that’s very EZ to buff. They usually scratch easier and take more effort to detail. But just about any clear will buff good. They are designed for collision work not resto work. Ive used PPG, BASF, SW, DuPont, store brand, crap with ratio marked with a sharpie. All of em worked but the sharpie one. Buffed like crap and didn’t hold up well. So I’d avoid products with homemade labels. A friend of mine loves Surhern Polyurethane products. There’s a zillion clears. You could spend anywhere between $60 to over a grand to use a gallon. What’s the difference? I’m not a chemist. But I’d use a clear in that $175-400 range. The $60 stuff is great to trim parts and practice with. The $1000+ stuff is great if you can afford it. But most of the stuff you see at shows will fit the $175 -400 range
The stuff I've been looking at is Matrix clears. The medium solids MS-52 has some good reviews, and the higher solids, and pricier, MS-42 and Euro clear AG40 also have good reviews. I have used SPI's Euro clear in the past and had good luck on small jobs, but never an overall job. I have sprayed a few different clears over the years, but have not done any painting for about 10 - 12 years now, so I'm not sure what is out there these days that is new and improved!
I’ve git 2 OT drivers. One shot with cheap no name clear the other with PPGs best the PPG made it close to 10 years. Sits outside, seldom washed, never waxed. The cheap stuff lasted almost 5 years.
I'm a huge fan of Summit's clear urethanes. Mixes 4:1 with the hardener and cost is $130 for a gallon of paint and pint of hardener. Price is amazing and sprays as easy as any of the other premium paints. Cures rock hard, polishes beautifully. Their gloss is great and their satin is as dead flat as I have ever seen.
Like Anthony said it's like asking what's your favorite anything. Everyone will have a different answer.
A gallon of House of Kolor USC01 show klear with hardener and reducer is $440 through TCP Global. My 57 Ford held up beautifully over 15 years with HOK products, and how well it held up along with how good it looked were main points in why I insisted on using it again on my last project.
By the way, like Anthony said in his post above, I am looking in that $175- $400 a gallon range. I was hoping to hear that some of you have used the Matrix clears I mentioned. They are in that price range and have decent reviews, but wanted to hear this from my favorite source for info! I do have another question concerning clearcoat. Anyone have a clue how much it would take to do at least 3 coats on a 47 Olds 66 coupe?
Thanks, I've been going back and forth in my head trying to decide if I should get 1 gallon or 2. I know 1 gallon gets you more when mixed, and different types of clear range from mix ratios of 1-1 to 4-1. Big difference in sprayable amounts
I've used Nason clear on two of mine---its o.k. but just doesn't seem to buff or polish out as well as the higher priced spread (Aexlta, former DuPont) Used Nason base with the high $ clear and that seemed to work fine-good gloss and holds up well.
Brief history, the best clear ever made in my professional opinion was DAU82 Delglo from PPG. Alas, it is now gone never to return. Isocyanates became the villain and has been slowly removed from materials, kinda like lead in gas. I tend to seek out that which behaves like those days. I've found that Shop-line acrylic urethane clear is really close. Less viscosity so you need a bit more than 1st line products, but at a pkg price of right around 200 bucks a little extra needed isn't a deal breaker. And you have some on hand for the "Oh shit I forgot about..." Dragging one from obscurity, Evercoat used to offer a product called "Everclear" (yes like the booze) and it was cheap. When good stuff was $250 it was $95. Durable, thick (so reducing back to normal was a good move), and it cut and polished like DAU82. We put it on a race car that was no show pony. He raced the shit outta that thing. No worries, no issues, easy to clean n detail. Sure, a drag car doesn't get driven to work daily but they see a lot of abuse and that car looked good for at least 5 to 7 seasons (April thru Oct) and he was there nearly every weekend. I have issues with mail order material that I've addressed before, mainly the lack of "OH FUCK!!" support if your project goes south. Now you gotta wait for more vs running back to the local jobber. I seldom to never paint into the night or on weekends for that reason. Next day is ok but 2 or 3 days can provide an unwanted prostate exam. Expensive, but the best of the best DAU82 copy is PPG DC4000 Velocity clear. Designed to cure fast in a bake booth but still cures harder and faster than most in air dry. It cuts and buffs to lacquer clarity. A lot of hobby finishers don't care about that. I have to. I want my finishes to be as reflective from 50' as they are from 5'. Can't help it. Not cheap but worth the price for those jobs that demand the best efforts possible. Rt around $400/pkg. I'm gonna disagree that 1 gallon is enough, especially using price point clears. They require and extra coat or more, 4 or 5 vs a std 3, if you wish to sand and polish. Once they purge and cure the mil thickness is substantially reduced. 47 Olds is a big car. Get 2 gallons. Give it 5 coats. As you progress you'll want more purge time for coats 4 and 5 as it will almost re-wet and sag. If 10 min was good for the 1st 3, wait 15 for 4 and 5. That goes for any lower price clear regardless of brand. Truth is there's but 1 plasticizer, solvent, solids, acetate, etc, etc, etc. The rest is marketing and minor tweeks to the formulations. Good luck, but try to buy local. You'll thank yourself if "Oh Fuck!" shows up uninvited.
I bought 2 gallons (including hardner) earlier this year for $70.00 (a kit). I called my Sherwin Williams buddy and he verified that is Sherwin Williams maybe second from the top line clear. Of course before I could buy more it went up about $30.00, but still very reasonable for the money. It sprayed very nice and buffed very good (3M Perfect it II system). I used an old semi downdraft booth (no heat/air make-up) and I did add some extra reducer on the 2nd and 3rd coats. I did use it for painting door jams (shop temp around 64 degrees) and I used some Speedokote Warp Speedo Accelerator 2K Urethane paints, primers and clears, SS-55, 8.5 oz. also off Amazon s://www.amazon.com/acme-Ultimate-Overall-Clearcoat-Hardener/dp/B08PMQ3V82/ref=sr_1_21?crid=2HOPDE84XTK65&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.SFcwHHThxiK05yzaYrWL1oxYnH1UjAbB7u2dwa57v4gt9nS1tgteqfb8HZ1jYfkGPHeSlGuTKvg6oxBv-X26c-BwmQJcNjkyD0RyOs9-cPdbVG-dz98OBFcfxHnqDcHquuQ3UB8x_JuNvIFtL1HXYWcQwUTJiJz2Afkmf6WOney1nFCDoouKp6tUAs5YeOjhfsyMaTcVhU_3qkuTz4Fyk1w-XujkOm7BSUlqC9WzgkHQ8jCGMLaGVfSue5PbQrsHTZtXkqb88d6yzlfTRwccNGilJp5Bvk1ZpxaBjKwIeqI.tJTKOy-MQ4QC9m6sYSMIDpWatt_ol8NsT67ZRp5DE4E&dib_tag=se&keywords=acme+clearcoat&qid=1720876609&sprefix=acme+clear,aps,156&sr=8-21
Here’s the issue with one gallon. You end up getting the mind set you need to stretch it out. For a regular sized car, the last all over I used almost one gallon to clear the car. 3 coats. no jambs. This was a daily beater for a student. It really needed one more if we were going to slick the car out. Modern high solids clears are designed for 2 coats and send it. That’s collision spot work thinking. We painted a full sized truck and used almost 2 gallons. Slightly bigger ride but this one we slicked out. For a ride I planned on removing texture and trash, 4-5 coats is normal. Often slightly over reduced with increased flash time. I use a local store. With my jobber discount it’s close to the same as ordering. No wait and can pick up note if needed. Nothing sucks more about painting than material anxiety.
Anthony, You are right on. I'm doing home shop jobs now, so I plan ahead much better. I bought 2 gallons of the ACME clear and tested my material usage when I did the underside of the doors, trunk and jams (71 Camaro complete paint). I used about 1/2 quart of unreduced clear for jamming and I painted the hood and trunk separately which was another quart +. After spraying the body (3 coats) I had less than 2 quarts left of the 2 gallons I bought. For guys that don't paint often, keep track of how much primer you use on panels or a complete body. I count spray gun cups per coat which gives me a rough idea how much sealer, color and clear I will use. I do it in my head, but don't be afraid to write it down and remember, some of these products will be reduced, so remember your arithmetic when figuring unreduced volumes.
I used DAU82 back in the 90's on a 66 Chevelle I had. Sold it around 2000 and the new owner says the paint job still looks great. That was the only experience I've had with DAU82, and it was what prompted me to buy a supplied air system! I had a feeling this thread was going to go like my paint cost thread, in other words, top quality costs. Unfortunately I can't afford top of the line materials on my budget. I do appreciate everyone's opinion here though. By the way, I did end up going with Matrix for the base coat
I have never done a full car with less than 2 gal. But then I only use a HF purple gun so that is probably the reason.
I'll most likely get 2 gallons, whether I use it all is another question, but better safe than sorry!
There's alot of clears out there and most are good but for your price range you can't beat Nasson sprays well outside of a bake booth tough as nails and last long too I sprayed my 57 F100 24 years ago with it and still looks good.
For a budget clear I like Omni 161. About $130 a gallon. Lays out nice, not too hard to buff, and holds up great. Sprays very similar to the old PPG 2020
I have used PPG DCU2021 for years. I still have 2 gallons left for the next project. I also have 2 quarts for those oh no, I need more to finish the job. I will only use quality PPG clears.
Better you than me bruh. I hate that shit. If someone said it's what I had to use on their job I'd send em elsewhere. Yes, I hate it that much.
OK, I've been doing a lot of reading and I am now leaning towards Tamco HC4100 Glamour Clear. It's a medium solids clear, has all the UV protection, supposed to be pretty durable, and is an easier clear to apply than their top line HC2021 high solids clear. It has lots of good reviews and a gallon kit sells for about $190, so 2 gallons is within my budget. So what do you guys thing of it? Any experience with it?
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