I'm not worried as much about how well they sand, etc... but I'm more interested in how well these fillers hold up over time. Some of you guys do it for a living, but never see the results 2 years later. What I want to know is after doing a flawless gloss black job, what does it look like a year or two later?
I mentioned this on another thread but not here so I will. Evercoat has a new filler and putty coming out called Quantum. It is based on brand new technology. It mixes in a 10:1 ratio filler to hardner unlike every other product on the market which are all 50:1. It is available with two different catalysts one for High Temp above 80 degrees F and a low temp Catalyst for below 80 degrees. The filler has been tested to sand 50% better than anything it has been tested against and the putty 30% better. Haven't had a chance to try it yet hopefully this week or next but it looks like it will be a neat product.
Believe me, if there's an issue two years later, we'll see it back. The filler isn't the product that needs to hold up as much as the products used over and under it as well as the technique used to apply said products. If you use 1/2" of plastic of course you have issues. When a product is used incorrectly, it is prone to failure. Basically what you should be (or at least I) looking for is spreadability and sandability. If you spread filler with a million pinholes, it makes the job harder. If it takes twice as long to sand one filler than the other, it takes longer. The filler shouldn't be the product that needs to weather the storm.
Snarl does bring up a good point for discussion. For longevity, ***uming the application is within spec, does one product last longer than others? I'm talking 20 or 30 years down the road. I have heard people say it's better to use lead because it won't crack out in the future like plastic filler...not sure if it's that big of a deal though.
All the dealerships , I have worked at, are on some sorta DRP program. As per the agreement with the insurance companies, ALL REPAIRS CARRY A LIFETIME WARRANTY FOR ALL BODYWORK AND PAINT. You cannot use anything that will not last. New cars don't even carry the paint warranty that we have give our customers. On top of that, if you have a good customer base, you see your work through the years. I can say that the evercoat brand of products stand the test of time better than any other brand i have seen. I also have a very good customer of mine, that his e-type jag i stripped and reworked and painted for him looks very good today, it's been painted 8yrs, and it sits in his driveway, without a car cover. Evercoat is a good product.
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