I would like to know what techniques are used to color blend a repair area. I have sanded with 400 grit and repaired an area on a side panel of my 40 ford below the rear quarter window about the 1/4 the size of the panel I primered the repair area and shot the base coat with paint mixed from the original paint number and photoed off the fender as well but each time the paint seems darker then the rest of the panel. I've done this twice now and even had the paint mixed a second time. I followed the ppg mix and air pressure settings am I missing something here?
Is the original paint faded at all? Are you letting it harden fully before comparing? Are you looking at it in full daylight? Lotsa variables... Flatman
Yeah, it is totally hardened but it is my pole barn with work lights shining on it. The ppg store used my orginal paint number along with a fender I took up there and used the photo computer to mix the paint I'm assuming this should allow for any paint fade using this process.
There are a lot of variables, some can be compensated for through color matching but others require a more refined approach at the time of spraying. If you are satisfied that the color blend is good and that you are getting good coverage with your base coat, you may have to lighten your paint just a bit at the time you spray. Have the paint shop give you a small quantity of the tint that they used in your mix that lightens the color. If it's a metallic then it will be a silver or gold. Experiment a little with adding the lighter tint to you spray mix until you get the shade that matches the existing paint. I have gotten lighter shades just by dusting the final base coat on and allowing more of the metallic to sit on top. Good luck...they don't call it an art for nothing!
N-e-e-d m-o-r-e i-m-p-u-t. Is it metallic? If so you can lighten it by increasing your air pressure & dusting the paint on. Is it just a *little* off? If so you can blend further out to hide it. Have you cleared it? If not then sometimes that changes the appearence/color of the paint. ~ Paul aka "Tha Driver" You just shot an unarmed man! "Well, he should have armed himself."
any chance we could get a pic? how far are you "feathering" your paint? it may be neccecary to pull the color onto the adjoining panels with a light "dusting" to get it right.
To me it is about a shade darker and I do have the clear on it I will try the air pressure adjustment and feather it out more. I will shoot some test panels playing with the air pressure and compare the results. It is a maroon color non-metallic I added a picture of the color. I don't have a pic of the area i will get one tomorrow and post.
Heres what has worked in the past for me. Get some paint cards or I use old sandblast hood lenses. Spray out the color......let dry to the touch. Hold it up to a panel on the car.......door opening works best. Wet the card.....spit, squirt bottle or whatever to make it shine and compare. This way you can get the color close before using up your blend area. Its not uncommon with some colors to paint a whole side for a small repair in one panel. Paint supply stores use to have small cheap paint books that told a fella what to do to darken or lighten his color. Over reduce, higher air pressure, dry spray, more flash time are just a few ways to lighten your color. As said earlier it takes many years of practice and it still is not easy. Steve
I've done quite a bit of touch up and blending including with PPG. I will be in my home shop tomorrow and I am just off Tipsico Lake Rd so we can't be too far from one another. PM me and I will be a second set of eyes and give you my two cents if you want-Jim
Sorry the air pressure thingy dosen't work for solid colors. You'll need to tint it; best to use one (or more) of the lighter colors in the mix as someone else suggested. ~ Paul aka "Tha Driver" You talkin' dirty or hep?
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