goin green go - it's green

[71chmark]

wow paint is expensive

[Bullitt-]

wow paint is expensive

Who's spraying it....the prep is where most of the work & cost comes in.
 There are low cost products for the DIYers like me. 

[71chmark]

750 bucks for one gallon of green one gallon of clear one quart of black and three gallons of thinner.  PPG lacquer.

[hotrod98]

I didn't realize that PPG still made lacquer paint.
Just remember that the acrylic lacquers aren't very durable.
I used to sell the stuff to some of the local guys with the old cars and the finishes didn't look very good a couple of years later. And, they didn't buff as nice as the old style lacquers.
For my customers that want a single stage, I use PPG Concept. Buffs nice and has great durability.

[tommyg29]

whats the diff between single and two stage? Does the single have a clear coat built in to it? Heard of spies hecker paints? I think they sell a quality urethane which is single stage, or what they call a clear system. Not sure what that means. Anyone know about them or about the durability of the urethanes in general?
Thanks

[FY1Cuda]

I did a single stage on the Cuda, and I think it looks better than most paint jobs.  The color really pops out, and if I didn't know it was single stage, I'd most likely think clear coat was used.

[hotrod98]

The red cuda in my sig is single stage urethane. While it looks good, the basecoat/clearcoat on my wife's limelight cuda looks a lot deeper. The other thing is the single stage tends to dull up a little over the years. It can be rebuffed and it definitely helps. A good basecoat/clearcoat system will last a long time. You just can't get the depth with a single stage system...period. The other issue is almost no one makes a single stage for any of the metallic colors. Even if they did, it would be difficult to buff since buffing anything with metallics can burn the edge of the metallics and make dark or cloudy looking areas.
I've been both painting cars and selling paint products for over twenty years. I owned two PaintMaster Automotive paint stores in this area.
Most of the old stuff that was good (lead based) is gone.
Bottom line...spend the extra cash and go base/clear. It's easier to shoot and the base is easier to repair before putting the clear over it when you get a little trash, etc. Then the clear is easy to repair as well.

[RusTy/SE]

I've been quoted $475 per for two gallons of PPG Plum Crazy, $250 for one gallon of clear; part of the eventual bc\cc finish.

[Matt]

We have been water sanding cars for over twenty years..I have worked with many different types of paint and the fella that said go base coat clear is right. ..you can fix alot of things with the paint if things do not go right with the intial paint job..heck I have water sanded fly wings out of a hood and if there is enough clear it it will never be noticed...but be careful the things called fish eyes and solvent popping  that comes from the bottom and no mater how hard you sand and polish you will never get them out totally.....I have had much experience with this so if anyone needs to chat  just let me know...regards...Matt

[bb71challenger]

Wow, lacquer, now that is old school for sure. I know you can get an incredibly deep paint job with buffed lacquer but its very labor intensive. The last paint I actually bought myself was a gallon of Limelight in acrylic enamel for my old 'Cuda. My current car and everything I ever do from here on out will be base/clear but its not cheap by any means either.

[71chmark]

My friend loves the paint.  He has painted over 300 cars.  Here are couple of pics (from my phone).  He was just testing out the paint and says it lays on awesome.  No texture or fish eye.  Shines pretty good and the clear isn't even on yet.

[Matt]

so the newly painted pieces ...are they base coat?...if so you might not want those to sit around and to long before you clear them...that is when the fish eyes come.. fumes from a car to close can cause them ..anything..a bit of you bodies own natural oils if you touch them..be careful..>>.when you base them they should be cleared right away....base coat always looks nice...never any fish eyes..it is always in the final stage..be that time it is too late... ....Matt

[quapman]

No offense, but Lacquer? Wow, who turned the time machine back 50 years? You might need a new paint supplier. That price is wayyyyyyy out there too.

I just got a quote for a quart of GB5 blue and a gallon of clear with all the neccessary reducers & hardeners. Around $130. I'm just doing the engine bay for now. This is for base/clear. A quart of single stage blue was around $30, plus reducer. I was told hardener is not needed, but recommended.

This was at my local NAPA. I forget the brand of paint.

My paint guy mentioned lacquer only when speaking of his days as a painter MANY years ago.

[71chmark]

He said he wanted to paint lacquer so that's what I got.  He's been painting for over thirty years so I have to trust him more than someone who just sells paint.  He said he knows it will take a lot of work and he could have put out a quickie but wanted to do a good job on mine.  Cheap paint from NAPA?  You're kidding right.  If my friend is willing to put in a lot of work I'm not going to give him budget paint to work with. I've shown you the pictures of the paint color basically but not the complete paint job.  I could of never had my car painted and could care less if it could have been better with a professional paint job using the latest technology and a paint booth.  My friend wanted to paint it and I wanted to help him out as he is out of work.  I didn't ask for anyones opinion on what type of paint to use or how to do the work.  I'm certainly not going to advise him on how to do his work.  I appreciate the comments from people who are trying to share info with me but there is no reason to criticize my decisions as they have already been made.  I just wanted to share what is going on with my paint job. For some reason I'm not feeling like it anymore though. 

[bb71challenger]

Before my painter got a new RM paint machine he wanted to do something similar, paint acrylic enamel and clear over that. I hope you dont think I am looking down on your project because I am not. I think its going to look very deep once it is cleared. Its not always easy to tell the intent of people over the internet but I think that most if not all the people that responded in this thread have nothing but good intentions towards your project. Please keep us posted, I for one am looking forward to seeing more pics