vfrancisco

I was wondering, is the rattle can for interior dye from zip ok or would it be better to get a spray gun and use the quarts? If the spray gun what would work best?

C3 Stroker

I have used the interior dye spray cans with great results. Just remember that if you use it on high wear areas (like seats), you have to touch up or re-spray every 6 months or so. Other areas will last a lifetime.

MrJlr

Easy Mike

I used SEM automotive interior dye in a quart can; shot it with my touch up gun.

aussiejohn

G'day,

I have been considering changing from Medium Saddle to red. I have previously sprayed some panels Saddle to "freshen" them up and want to know if it is necessary to use a solvent to clean off the old dye before re-dying. Also, should one use a primer before the red, if there is one for dye? There's plenty of VHT down here, but it's not cheap when buying by the can, so how many cans would one expect to use on just the panels? I'm planning new seat covers in red, rather than re-dying them.

Regards from Down Under.

aussiejohn

80Baby

This topic comes up often and you'll get comments from both camps. Best thing that we can do is offer up our own experiences.

I used the Corvette America Interior Dye "Kit". It includes primer, adhesive, dye and sealer. Everything is in spray cans. I followed their instructions for preparation and application to a "T" and it worked out great. My interior was Oyster White; now it's Red.

The one thing that I usually do when using paint from a spray can is I let the can sit in hot, hot water for 5-10 minutes before using. The paint comes out at a higher pressure and atomizes nicely. I trick I picked up from 40 years of building scale models.

vfrancisco

I have smoke interior and want to do the freshen up so would that require a primer first?

texasbaehr

I resprayed my camel interior with SEM rattle can same color and it worked great. Drove it for a year with no wear on seats. Then resprayed again with SEM black to change the interior color. The SEM spray is top quality.
You will need to clean everything to be sprayed real good with a cleaner like 409 or purple power using a brush. Rinse real good and wipe everything down lightly with acetone just before spraying. The acetone will soften the surface of the vinyl and allow the "dye" to bond better. I have used this method for years with great success.
Spray many light coats to cover then one final wet coat to even out the sheen and texture. Put extra coats on wear areas like seat bolsters and arm rests or you will be touching them up later.
This works on all interior materials, ABS hard pieces, vinyl upholstery, and soft molded pieces like arm rests and dash.

7T1vette

I can't speak to how the aftermarket rattle cans labeled "Interior Dye" perform. But, I can tell you that spraying [liquid] SEM ColorCoat can provide you with color-change after color-change with no problem or need to prime, if you clean the surfaces well with detergent, rinse that off with lots of clean water, and let parts dry completely.

But, using SEM ColorCoat over "something else" will only be as durable as....."something else".

vfrancisco

Who sells sem?

7T1vette

About every town will have a shop that supplies all the auto body shops with paint, etc. Look in Yellow Pages for "Automobile Paint - Suppliers". That's the kind of place you need to find. They will sell vinyl dye...most use SEM...in liquid form. You can buy 1/2 pint, 1 pint, 1quart....whatever you need. A C3 interior will probably use a pint or a bit more, if you are redoing seatcovers, too. So 1 quart would give you plenty, with some extra for later touch-ups/repairs. If you are only doing panels, 1 pint might get the job done.

They will also sell Pre-Val gas/bottle type sprayers. They are very inexpensive ($10) but really do a fabulous job of spraying the thin, vinyl dye. You really don't need expensive equipment to do a great job with interior pieces.

jesse10886

i just bought an awesome set of door panels that were red for my car i got them too cheap to pass but my interior is black. i cleaned them like crazy let dry for an entire day then hit with duplicolor vinyl/interior die which was recomendid by a friend of mine at an upholestry shop. it worked wonders several light coats then one final heavy coat of spray it looks great and no input for wear an tear yet but these other posts make me feel good. they are $7.95 a can at autozone well worth it imo
this is panel wet I taped off the chrome trim piece at the top upper lip of the door and the chre electric lock switch

Here it is dry

jesse10886

[IMG]http://i1194.photobucket.com/albums/aa366/jesse10886/9f5428f1-d1f7-4386-9c39-289a8056dd86_zpsfb28afb4.jpg[/IMG

EIGHTY

I bought a quart of dye from Willcox and sprayed it on with this Preval Sprayer from Home Depot...it's cheap and it worked perfectly. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Preval-Sp...6#.UX1dhkpGieQ

mrmagrath

Got great results using SEM Color Coat shot through an HVLP spray gun. Aussie John, your local panel beating supply centre may be able to sort you out.

jesse10886

Stupid photo bucket changed my img code

vfrancisco

Thanks Eighty
I think I'll look that up cause I didn't want to buy an expensive sprayer for a one time job.

noonie

I get a kick out of these Preval sprayers (semi spray can). If you truly never need to spray very much and will never need even a very small air compressor for anything, they will do with thin paints. Don't forget they are just aerosol cans and do run out of propellant fairly quickly.

I don't think this will break the bank. Exact copy of my Binks that I paid over $150.00 back in the early 70s. Requires a very small compressor and sprays much better, no comparison. I don't know anyone in the car hobby that doesn't already own some type of compressor.

For $15.00
http://www.harborfreight.com/touch-u...gun-66871.html

7T1vette

Well, for interior components shot with SEM ColorCoat, Noonie is just plain wrong. I've used the Pre-Val bottle sprayer many times with SEM vinyl dye and never had one problem.

If the "vinyl dye" purchased is thick like paint, I can't vouch for the behavior of the Pre-Val sprayer. But, if it is thin like SEM ColorCoat, it works VERY WELL.

noonie

The OP asked which is better.
Good luck trying to convince anyone that a spray can, even a glorified one like the Preval, can spray better than a real spray gun, that you can control the fan, volume and pressure with.

Compared to the one I linked, the Preval and it's power refills end up being more expensive. Anyone with access to any size compressor would be silly to use anything but a touch up gun.

And you ought to know that all of the vinyl interior paints including SEM are pre thinned, so that's also not an issue. Anything put thru both must be the proper viscosity.