Who has used the new water based car paint and what can you tell me about it. Ive seen it and its being pushed pretty hard now, but would like to know more than the paint store shares. Im doing multi color and would also like to know if you have to "mid it" to do layout or will it peel.
its not anything new. auto air has been around for almost 10 years. has gotten popular automotive wise for about 5 years. anyway. there best colors midcoat style. there Iridescent Colors and pearlized colors with a midcoat of there hot rod sparkle have a cool effect. alterdpilot on here has the most experience shooting bikes with it. its alot different to shoot then uros. u absolutely must have a spray gun with a 1.2 tip size. a 1.4 will spray a droplet pattern too big. and its all about light coats too.
we had a demo in here a few months back. as sik says you gota dust the stuff on(candys) or it mottles up. personally i didint like it, and still use dbc for airbrush work. the candy pearl orange they shot didnt look near as good as a hok tangerine for instance. some of the pics they had of other peoples work looked pretty good though, so it must be able to be worked with, but im not convinced as yet. i do like water for overall and spot use, but dont see it in the stripping and airbrush world soon skull
Like he said, I've probably shot more of it than most of the guys on the board. I can tell you that most people gripe about it because they don't know how to shoot it. you pretty much have to throw out everything you know about spraying and do it EXACTLY the way they tell you to. personally i love the stuff. I've found that its probably the easiest, most fool proof stuff on the market IF you can follow directions. like anything else, there is a learning curve but if you follow directions its a pretty shallow curve. the new formulation has a heavier solvent base so it shoots a little smoother, but they haven't moved the whole line over. I'm a big fan of everything but the 'candy pigments' which work well for certain things, but not for a true candy finish.
I use it alot on R/C car bodies, as well as airbrush work on full size cars. It does tend to get what look like "fisheyes" but they aren't. More like water droplets separating the color...if that makes sense. Happens more with the Sparklesence colors I've noticed, and only when sprayed to heavily. Auto-Air needs light coats. Like Altered said, forget about shooting like a solvent-based paint. I actually like the stuff, however I haven't painted and entire car with it. I have sprayed complete CAT dozers with water-based Forrest paint. Water-based paint is very "heavy".
Larger jobs need warm moving air. A standard downdraft booth isn't enough. I'm sure we'll get a couple of "...it worked for me"s from that statement but it's needed if you want to proceed at a pace that you're acustomed to. Otherwise extended flash times are required which can be a hard thing to get your head around. I'm also with the few up top that said better for opaque colors.
BITCHIN COLORS, Easy to spray, real forgiving, just time consuming flash in between coats. I didnt have the patience so it did not flow real well. After ALOT of colorsanding the final product was amazing. just allow extra time and use patience in between coats.
My friends at a local rod shop have been using it and say that it is actually not bad - much better than they expected. They've been using it on stuff that is not 'mission critical' as a test to see how it holds up long-term.
Thanks for the comments. Ive had it demonstrated 5 years ago and was not impressed with the candies, which is mostley what we as hot rodders seem to use. GM tried this stuff in the 80's and had problems. So extended time between coats, change the tip size,dust the work, booth warmer. What about air pressure and taping off on the material. Do you have to shoot mid coats. What clear are you guys using. What are you sealing with before you shoot and are you seeing shrinkage or dye back. 1 more thing. Hows the matching to solvent base, good,close ,notso close.
depending on the product you're using, if its properly cured, you shouldn't have to mid coat. always a good idea if you're spraying a 'candy' pearlescent, sparklescent, or flake. i use PPG concept 2021 clear. i use their sealer. air pressure is going to depend on your set up. I have an 80 gallon 5 hp rig with 3/8 line and fittings. i run at between 30-50 psi WOT depending on which product i'm using.
I'll lay an intercoat down only if I'm taping on a metallic/pearl/etc, not a solid. But be absolutely certain that the AA base is dry...as the tape will pull it off if not careful. I've used Dynatone clear and HOK UC35 over it with great results....PPG sealers and even Krylon primer under it....no lifting issues that I've encountered.
Im being told I cant get localy 2021 anymore. It seems like the worlds against me.Hahaha kiding. Thanks guys. Ill give it a try.
you can (used to be able to) get 2021 at those places where all those guys get together once a month on a sunday morning to sell all of their old car junk.... long beach... pomona... san diego... I like 2021, and uc35 is the stuff, but if you like, give virtus a try. they sell it at coast airbrush. you have to ask them how to mix it because the directions on the can are a little off, but its a nice high solids clear that sands and rubs out nucely.
i have too have painted about 5 bikes in it. its a good product and i use uc35 and also sems real clear. i just finished a bike that will be in some up comming mags . billy
I haven't personally used it, but I have that sprays it everday and loves it. I was a little leary at first, but after seeing some of the results, I am sold.
Just for fun, put up some pics of what youve done with it. I do like the idea of pot life and clean up. I could make money in the long run if it holds up.
DONT! DONT! use Autoair Colors! Their shit fades after a couple years in the sun. When I wrote them and sent them photographic examples they never responded! It's great for shooting model cars and other small objects. I will never use their stuff on a car again.
Thank you Buick59. I know you get exposed to alot of products, whos doesnt fade? Same problem GM had, fading. I have a low priority paint job to do and didnt want to use the rest of the good stuff for cost.
just make sure u do 2 light "acclimation" coats prior to heavy coats, as that helps with the non chemical adhesion from the waterbased paint to the clear. and always use a temp slower on the clear. never use a speed clear as it wont help with acclimating and wont adhere properly. but thast all in the tech sheets.
i use hok uc35 i have been using sems real clear its like hok buffs real nice hers a pick of one i just did its not auto air all sem with murano pearl in their mid coat binder. i just color sanded it and rubbed it out. its all lettered striped and gold leafed these two bikes are sem solvent products. billy
I'm a little confused... What is the advantage of a water based, base coat? Is there a water based clear? It seems most people are using 2021 or uc35 over the enviromentally friendly water based paints?? Aren't the iso's in the clear a concern?
cost effectiveness, shelf life, ease of use. product compatibility. stir and serve (no mixing or reducing), no time windows, ease of clean up (water), very forgiving, etc. yes isos are a concern in the clear, but thats neither here nor there in this discussion. I don't think anyone here who is spraying AAC is doing so for "green" reasons.
The coupe is Hotrodflatz with Auto Air flames topcoated with UC35. The golf cart is also top coated with HOK. It was done 3+ years ago and still looks great. The R/C bodies are top coated with Alsa Dynatone.
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