Don't buy this flake!

When I ordered the flake for my dash (posted it yesterday), I also ordered the flake for my roof. It was Crystal Clear flake, from kustomshop.com. The kamen blue of theirs went done really nice, so I think the problem is only with this clear flake.

I got my roof ready to spray this morning and went about things as I normally would have. Once I was ready for the flake I mixed up my clear and stirred it in, 4oz per quart just like normal. After getting the first coat on the car, the shit just didn't look "flakey", looked like clear with salt thrown in it. Then my gun started acting up. Checked the gun and found the clear was weird looking and there was a gummy mess all in the bottom of the cup and in the gun...
I check the mixing cup and it's the same way, the clear has a milky yellowish tint, and all the flake is gummed up in the bottom and looks like oatmeal.....shit is melting in the clear.
I give em a call and they seem genuinly suprised and the guy tell em to call him back in a couple of hours. I snap some pics and e-mail them to them so they can see exactly what it did. The called me back and told me they were running some tests on the stuff and they'd call me back. (shoudln't it be tested before it's sold?) They never called me back, so I'll be calling them tomorrow to see what the hell is going on.
Now I'm going to have to strip the roof again, and lose 2 weeks worth of labor, the material used, I can't drive my car for at least 2 weeks longer than expected (it's my daily), and I'm gonna have to come up with another scheme for the roof of the car. I've been so pissed all day!




This picture is what the flake looked like in the bottom of the tub after I poured the clear out.

In hindsight, I should've done a test panel (and I would have if it had been work for someone else), but the kamen blueflake I used of theirs came out good so I expected the same result from the crystal clear as well......



Just wanted to give you guys a heads up on something NOT to use.

 

Dude, are you spraying that stuff in a spray booth or a sperm bank?

Sorry to hear the clear ain't working out on the roof. And the shitty part is that all the "testing" in the world isn't gonna help you recover the lost time.

But, DAMN, if that blue is any indication of how it the rest is turning out, the wagoon's gonna look killer.

-murph

 

I would send them a BILL...

that sucks dude...

 

I'm tired of being mad about it at this point. I'm just waiting to see if they're gonna do anything about thier shitty product and try to keep others from running into this.

I wore myself out today being pissed. Freaked everyone a the shop out cussing and throwing shit, then walking home. I'm gonna spend the weekend figuring out what else I can do to the roof now. I had a blue and white color scheme planned the whole time, but I don't want to use abalone since the roof on my last car was done that way. I could use Ice pearl, but I plan to use it on the body, and wanted the roof flaked. I've got a bunch of white base with nothing to do with it now though......damnit. Guess I'll go to the shop monday and and start sanding all the crud off. I'm going to bed before I get worked up about it again!

 

Yeap, no sense continuing to cry over spilled milky paint-jizz. Take a day or so to cool off and see what the supplier has to say. Then look at that kickass blue flake you've already sprayed to get psyched, and start sanding. I'll buy you a coupla beers when you're in town in a few weeks.

-murph

 

I've known ppl that have tried shooting different shitty arts/crafts glitter before. Does pretty much the same thing, the urethane clear starts to break it down and turn into melted goo. Tell them fuckers that you could have bought cheap kids shit for $5.oo a gallon.

 

Yeah, I'm gonna be on their ass to at least get me my $$ for materials. If they wanna be hard asses I'll just get my sister in law at the law firm to call em' up and then see what they say. Getting some $$ for lost labor would be nice too.

I'll be in Raleigh next weekend. Pm me your number and stuff again so we can get together one night. I'll need some away time from the in-laws. Ok, I'm really going to bed this time.

 

Seriously... if they are selling that shit as automotive flake I would ask them to REIMBURSE YOU... I wouldn't roll over and take that I'm sick of "repeat" labor and dude I know what its like... TRUST ME.

I would get worked up... I would call them and call BULLSHIT... they never tested that stuff or they would know- they probably sold you Kraft Flake.

Contact the better business bureau if they dont hook you up...

Tuck

 

@50 bucks an hour that = ??? plus what you paid for your flake...

That pisses me off and it aint even my wagon... Whats the web-link for that company?

 

www.kustomshop.com

 

I highly doubt you'll get paid for your repeat labor, but if they're somewhat customer-oriented, you'll prolly get your money back on the shit they sold you.

 

ok...
take out the labor...
then you ad the material cost...

Surfacer/base/clear/paper/tape... dude...

it costs money to bite your nails in the booth...

I would push it.

Flake that "melts" in clear????? I swear to god thats the most retarded thing I've read on the hamb all year...

OBVIOUSLY nobody tested it for real... they probably got a shipment from china...

Do they sell CHINA RED FLAKE????

 

I think the reducer does it. Not positive though. Wasn't worth trying again.

 

yeah... it is the reducer that does it... thats my point.

Its Plastic flake fresh off the boat from China.

If a custom painter wanted to screw around with cheap craft flake he could take the chance and 'maybe' expect metalflake oatmeal...

but for the dude whos spending hard earned cash in the booth on so-called automotive flake he should get RESULTS...

Fuck those guys and there Tuperware-flake™... I'll never buy any from them.

It just sucks that they missrepresented the flake and they would expect switch to pay time and materials for there mistake.

Hope it works out man... Dont bend over I'll kick your ass.

 

Yeah, that shits junk. I never buy anything other than MetalFlake™/Glowble brand. Metalflake is too pricey to be experimenting with.

 

i saw your post the other day.you said how cheap it was compared to HOK..Never heard of these guys..CHEAPER ISNT ALWAYS BETTER and HOK stands behind there product.I hope it works out for you.They will probally tell you you fucked up though...dash looks good

 

I used their coblat flake on the roof of my wagon....hopefully it's just a freak accident in the manufacturing process. Those guys were real cool when I ordered it.

 

What they're doing is repackaging cheap crap, yeah they figured out that one of the cheap flakes worked fine so they thought that all the same brand flake would work. You proved them wrong. Bummer.

 

Hey Switch, sorry to hear about your problems. When a paint job fucks up, especially one with flake, the re-do time can be overwhelming. I tried a "cheaper" brand of 'flake a few years back and had nothing but problems. It didn't melt like yours, but the shit wouldn't lay down. Sanding, clearing, sanding, clearing 3 times didn't help a bit. We ended up re-doing the whole job. It took about 4 days to sand 'er down and get ready to start shooting all over again, not to mention the cost of new materials. It was a tough lesson, that's for sure. I learned to buy the good shit we all know is quality and is proven to work job after job. The only 'flake that anyone should use is Metalflake brand or House of Kolor.

I know it's discouraging, but as you're sanding keep thinking about how sweet your wagon is going to look after you get it re-shot! Good luck! E

 

I e-maile d them a few minutes ago. There on the west coast so the time difference kept me from doing anything until now. I'll give them a couple of hours to call me again, then I'll call them back. They put me off again and I'll get one of my lawyer relatives on em'.....

 

you got a link to there site?

 

LMAO...

Well if Switchblade ain't mad, Tuck will be mad for him.

 

If you didn't already, send them a link to this post and the one where Moon pissed off the guy over fuel injection. Maybe they'll realize that alot of the world's hot rodders read this forum.

 

Switch blade if they dont help you out we all could boy cot them!!! Do you think that this would happen to Old Skool Flake?? because i was going to buy there crystal flake next week.

 

They called me and told me that they had no reactions in the tests that they ran, and rattled off all the different things they put it in. Then went on about how there were always variables in custom work and they didn't do warranties, but this time they would send me replacement clear, base, and another jar of the flake that I will not ever use again. He was very nice about everything, and they're gong to send me some extra stuff to try that he says might work out better for me over a white base than the crystal clear flake. I get irritated when people who obviously aren't painters try to get all "school teachery" on me, but other than that I guess I'm satisfied. I probaly won't use the stuff they send me on my wagon since it's all ppg stuff (everything I have is SW), but I'll use it on something......
Looks like I might just do the roof silver with silver flake, then come back later and lay some candy lace patterns over it....

 

IMO, not good enough. I would have your lawyer call them & make them pay for your time to strip & re-do the roof right. THEY fucked up - YOU should not have to pay. I just don't get it that people don't take responsibility for THEIR fuckups!!! I can't tell you how much of my life has been spent paying for other peoples' fuckups!!!
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

There is no problem that cannot be solved with the *right application* of high explosives.

 

Chillll Winston!!! Relax, no need to talk attorneys yet. Keep up the communication, work with them, they will probably respond better.

Politeness works wonders.

Some of you fucking dick heads are way to god damn lawyer happy. If half of you shit bags that keep threating to resort to litigation actually did, i would be suprised. So put your dicks away and deal with the situation.

If there is really a catastrophic issue with the product, they should help you out.

 

hey dickhead before you start calling everyone in the forum a @#$#@%dick head why dont YOU chill the #$%@ out... hahaha

I have first hand experience with PRODUCT FAILURE... when mr. furbisk himself invests 500 bucks in clear/surfacer/base and paint "just for the roof" and has to "eat it" because some cheap company is trying to make a quick buck... I think mr. furbisk would feel the same way.

you ad in labor... hmmmm..... lets say 10 hours and THEN were talking about a THOUSAND BUCKS hes lost... thats NO BIG Deal?????

plus replacement cost of materials? another 500 if they dont at least replace that...

ok a 30 dollar jar of flake... yeah...

but a thousand bucks???? DIFFERENT STORY.

I think the guy should be reinbursed for his materials at the very LEAST... but I think he should PUSH IT. Why should he eat it?

and whats your problem anyway???
who are YOU mad at? haha and WHY?
Whatever...

its not your money or time so why would you actually care... other than to start some shit in a thread...

wana BOX?
ding ding

hahaha

Its Jerry SPRINGER LIVE

 

Calm down fellers......theirs not gonna be any lawsuit slinging going on. If they had been a local operation there MAY have been a fight though. If it had came to it, I would've gotten my lawyer cousin to give em a call just to ruffle their feathers, but i never would've actually taken it any farther than just phone calls. I have enough bullshit around without having to deal with the judicial system......

The materials he was going to send me are supposed to be shipping out today, so i should have them monday or tuesday. He was putting me ahead of the orders they had waiting so it wouldn't add any more time. The stuff they're sending me honestly probaly costs more than what I normally use since I can't afford to use the expensive stuff when i do flake.
It would be nice to get something for the wasted time, and if it was a customers car I would be all over their ass about it with both my relative lawyers calling. But it's not, and I just want to get my damn car back to where I can drive it again. Walking two miles to the shop while it's been 20-30 degrees outside kinda sucks, plus I'm going to ack to my old job for a couple of days a week for some extra $$, and I can't start until I can drive my car again....