I called one of the local paint suppliers yesterday and they quoted me $1000 for the material (primer, base, clear a gallon of each plus a qt activator for the primer and clear)....

I'm going to paint the car at home in my garage, no paint booth and no experience - I can't justify $1000 for paint. With my lack of experience I might screw it up and I expect there will be some dust .... therefore I'm looking at less expensive products.

On PPG's website I found that for example "Le Mans Blue" is $400/gallon if I choose "premium base". It's $350/gallon for "standart base" and only $150 for "economy base".

I'm likely going to buy the 'eco' paint, it's a PPG product and is compatible with their primer and clear. I don't expect any problems with this paint but wanted to see if forum members have used this 'eco' paint.

I hope I can get the material for $500 - is this reasonable ???

 

What state are you in? I need to buy some stuff this week, and PPG is my choice as well. Lets shop around and see if we can get a package deal going. Anyone else with an idea or supplier?

PS

Can anyone answer the questions about the various "Levels" of base?

JOE

 

In any case of whatever base you use... use the highest quality high solids clear that PPG offers.... I used PPG "Global" high solids clear.

Your gloss and duarability comes from the clear, so use as high a quality clear as you can. IMO

My paint was done in my driveway using PPG products...you can get a really good quality finish if you work at it...also remember.. its ALL about the prep.

 

I like dcu2002 clear. It is ppg's top of the line clear. As far as the grades of base go, I would say dbc is the premium and the economy is omni mbc. The standard may be dbu, but that line is getting phased out. Dbc is my favorite base of any brand. It covers very well and you don't get a lot of dry overspray. I just painted my 78 chevy 4x4 with dbc hugger orange. I put 3 coats on the whole truck and I have about 1 1/2 pints left from a gallon. The 2002 clear is high solids so you get a good build with less coats. You can buy the cheaper stuff, but it will take more material to cover the same area. Also, sometimes cheap clears don't buff very well.

 

It's hard to save money on paint these days and you want to use quality products, but you can save some money on primer by using Transtar products. Their epoxy primer is half the price of PPG DPLF for example. Transtar products are compatible with all manufacturers paints, but I always ask the tech guys first. I've used several of their products on other peoples cars with no problems. I prefer all PPG, but it depends on peoples budgets and sometimes there are good alternatives. Transtar has several specialty products that nobody else makes as well. I have had very good results using PPG Deltron DBU base and Concept DCU clear over Transtar epoxy and high build sanding primer. Another cost saving with Transtar is there are no recoat time limits so there is less wasted product for the part time home painter that can't always work on a schedule. Another way to save money would be to use PPG Kondar primer for the block sanding. Some will disagree because Kondar is an acrylic and K36 is an acrylic urethane but Kondar will give you very good life and the big advantage for cost is, it doesn't use hardener so there is no waste. Whatever you mix and don't spray is reusable. Dries fast and sands easily. The base/clear above and Transtar epoxy are fully compatible with Kondar.
http://www.tat-co.com/version2/index.asp

 

Used the same here

 

I agree if you are doing work for someone and they want to cut the cost you can use less expensive stuff. If someone is working on their own car, why cut corners? Your paint is only going to hold up as well as what it's on top of, so why use an outdated acrylic primer? Acrylic is basically lacquer. I also wouldn't cheap out on the epoxy if you're using it as a sealer. I have used a few different brands of cheap epoxy and they all bit me. They seem to have some "grit" in them, almost like sand. I would use the dbc base, myself. If you mix up too much, just pour it into a separate can and put a lid on it. With dbu, it takes a reactive reducer which basically will set up the paint. Whatever you mix up, you have to use. Dbu is getting phased out anyway.

 

Spend the money on the good stuff. Leave the cheap stuff for the Ford people. They gotta have something to cover up the rust!!!!

 

 

Just stay with one brand for compatibility and you shouldn't have any problems.

 

If you are on a budget, you can save plenty of money on supplies. First of all, you should take a look at your budget and your project -- what you want to get out of it. Have an open mind, do some research and find out what's available in your area. I've found that paint brands are like car brands to people. You have the PPG guys that think it's the best thing in the world, Dupont guys swear their's is the best. Sikkens users think the US paints are crap, and so on.

Understand that as far as primers go, urethane primer technology was "cutting edge" 12-15 years ago, but it's "out of the box" now and every second tier supplier has had a line of urethane primers for years. Most are very good. Ask around and you will find, many shops use Transtar, Rubber-Seal, Morton and others for daily work. I've personally used Morton and to me, it has the consistancy, look, and smell of Sikkens 2K. It sprays out well and I have jobs on the road about 5 years old as well as some of my own vehicles that still look great. If you cruise the autobody forums, many guys that spray this stuff every day will tell you Rubber-Seal primers, for example are as good if not better than some name brand high-dollar primers ...and have better tinting options.

When it comes to pigments and color coats, the premium brands typically offer a little better coverage, but in my own experience having switched a few years ago, PPG Omni and Dupont Nason are pretty darn close. So what, spray a third coat instead of two. One weak area is their selections of colors is less, but in most cases it's a non-issue unless you're looking for an unusual color.

Urethane clears are in the same category as primers -- everybody's got a line. After years of using premium brands (mostly Dupont and Sherwin Williams/Martin-Senour but also some PPG and Sikkens), I can tell you the second tier companies like those listed above (at least those I've used) have very good products. I have painted a good number of vehicles on the side as a hobby (having done it professionally at body shops when I was in college) and I think these are great products to use and hold up as well, in my experience. The reason shops stick with the Duponts and PPG's has to do with supplier marketing, warranties, local support, training and all that. These companies will set them up with mixing stations, all the books with paint chips and send a guy out regularly to check on the base tint levels and make sure everyting is up to snuff ...and try to sell some new products as well. If there's a problem, they get taken care of. In my opinion, for a home hobbiest all the paint lines will work as well as any other.

I haven't found compatibility issues a problem. The "Universal" clear brands typically list the brands of color coats that are and aren't compatible on the label. But if you stick with one brand, say, Nason, you won't have a compatibility issue.

How much can you save? Probably 40-50%. Since you are going to spray in your garage/driveway, you might as well plan to wetsand and buff your car anyway to get rid of the boogers and dust. I've got my 81 torn apart now. I'm going to use universal urethane primers and clears on it. I'll probably go with Nason base. Based on other jobs I've done, I'm confident it'll come out looking great and will last many years. In the end it's up to you. If it makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside that you bought what you preceive as the "best" paint, it's your call. A lot of guys like that feeling, and I understand it. I used to be the same way.

 

I used exactly what you were quoted. PPG LeMans Blue...sealer..activator..clear coat
We shot it in a dusty garage and it turned out really good.
The problem with a C3 is that 1/2 gallon isn't quite enough, but you will have a lot left over from a gallon.
By the way, mine was $890.00 for materials

 

the guys at the smithsonian museum gave me a couple hints at painting airplanes, and i guess a c3 is as close as you can get to that!
always ground your sprayer and the car to avoid static build up which will draw dust to the car.
use positive pressure air filtering. by this i mean don't use a suction fan with a filter pulling air outside, it will only draw dust in every tiny crack and hole in your spray booth (garage). by setting the fan up to pull air into the room, thru a filter of course, any dust get pushed out thru all these little openings.

 

Do whatever you can to go with quality...it may sometimes hurt up front $$-wise, but the savings (and pleasure) you get in the long run are worth it.

Below is a shot of my 72 LT-1 that was restored in 1988 and repainted with PPG products. Unfortunately, I don't have a current pic handy to show how it looks after I Zaino'ed it and cleaned her up (this one is from the day after I picked her up in early 2005). Not too bad for an 18 year old paint job...and she's not a trailer queen either.

 

Very Inspiring...

 

Look at http://www.southernpolyurethanes.com

Their stuff is inexpensive and top-notch quality.

See this thread:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1515347

Also, many, many members of the hotrodders.com bb rave about their products.

 

Thanks for the replies everybody

The local paint supplier (Ben's paint) confirmed that they have different levels ($$) of PPG paint. I talked to them on Friday, the less expensive version of their paint is about $400 for primer, base and clear (a gallon of each). Not sure if activator is included, with tax and small stuff it's probably around $500. I didn't ask but assume it's Omni.

I looked at Southern Poly's website, very interessting and not expensive at all..... I guess after I got some experience this will be one of my favourite shops....

Corvette427, that IS a nice blue

 

I looked at Sperkin's thread..... he did a great job and I'd be happy if mine looks half as good when i'm done painting...

The paint that I just stripped and scraped off the Vette was single stage, the cheapest you can possibly find. The PO had this paintjob done somewhere west of Orlando for $500. The paint was very dull when I bought the car in 2004, the paint was about 4 years old at the time. I had overspray everywhere but the paint quality except the lack of shine was not that bad.... it didn't flake off (yet)...LOL

I guess no matter what I do, it's going to look better than the old paint