I want to practice painting before I start on my car. is there a cheap base coat brand I can get on the internet? want to practice base coat/clear coat, doing stripes etc.....

 

I will 'say' this. It would be WISE to practice with the paint you plan on using. Because...if you master the crap paint...and then expect the paint you are going to use to react the same way...then do not be surprised when things 'F' up. I can not put it any more direct and blunt as that.

Learning and practicing is what it is....it is an investment..and trying to practice with cheaper stuff WILL get you when you switch to the better stuff and NOT practice with it a lot. UNLESS you plan on using the cheap stuff. NOT ALL basecoats lay down and flow out the same...I KNOW this for a fact.

If you are shooting metallic or highly concentrated color with pearl in it...practice with that instead of practicing with a solid color.

Think of it like shooting gun. If you get really good with a 22.....then go to another gun...you can not expect that right off the bat you are going to hit the bulls-eye with the new gun...with the first shot your take....it will take you time to get it dialed in.

AND..if you do this and can not figure things out if you are having an issue...post your concerns. But make sure that when you start the thread. You give ALL information possible...because if you do not write it all down in your post...I will ask questions that I need answers to....that can make all the difference. It would ALSO be very wise to obtain the 'product information bulletin' on whatever you are shooting.

DUB

 

I agree with all that but I want to practice. I have painted a few things with a conventional gun 16 years ago. I just want to experiment and learn techniques with the new guns. probably going to buy the Tekna prolite with 3 tips. I am going to spray a small metal trash can, surf board (metallic blue) and the rocker molding on my wife's car, nothing special. need to learn to adjust the pattern and flow. experiment with pressures and distance. see how much paint to lay down without excessive orange peel and how much before a run. I don't want to learn the basics with expensive paint. agree I will have to perfect my techniques with the final choice of paint. so any suggestions on an inexpensive paint brand I can practice with?

 

I can not suggest anything.... because what I wrote in my last post still applies. Practicing with crap paint and then switching...changes things..and what you learned on the crap stuff...may or may not apply with the good stuff...so you are possibly and LITERALLY starting all over again. Which is big waste of time and money....in my opinion.

DUB

 

It really depends on what you mean by road hazards.

If you just want to keep the cars paint just looking good and not worried about rock chips etc. I highly recommend you put a ceramic coating on the paint before you leave. You can perform this duty yourself by going online and buying your preferred consumer products for around $100 and coat the car. Obviously there is some prep work to be done before adding the product....depending on what condition your paint is in. This will protect the paint from bugs, chemicals, etc while on your trip and make it easier to clean once all that crap gets on the car. Obviously this does not protect from rock chips.

If you want rock chip protection. PPF is one of the best ways to go. If you dont way to pay, you can try the bra or just drive the car and deal with whatever happens on the open road.

Enjoy your ride either way and dont make it complicated.

 

It seems to rarely get mentioned, so I'll offer this. I just finished REMOVING PPF from my pickup truck. It was a decent quality product and not terribly expensive. It was time consuming to apply and took a LOT of patience and it mostly served its purpose. But it wore out --the sun and weather and even polishing it to clean the apearance took its toll after just a few years. AND THEN, IT LOOKED LIKE H-LL -- worse than if I had never put it on and taken a few rock chips. It took over TEN hours to remove. Do NOT believe those youtube videos where the guy warms it up with a hair dryer or hot towel and the whole thing lifts up like magic. BS.That may work for ppf that was put on last month. I had hot towels, a steam gun and a heat gun, and it was still a BEAR. The film comes apart--lots of spots were 'thinner' than others and shredded during removal. LOTS of adhesive remained on the paint and took a ton of 3M adhesive remover to clean off. And then it still needed a clay bar and buff job.

PPF may be ok if you wnat to spend the money up front and dont plan to keep the car too many years....but if you keep it to the point of replacement --could be 3 years, could be 5--maybe 7?, its going to cost you nearly as much to get it take off as to have it applied (assuming you take it to a shop).

To each his own, ---I am looking at the Novistretch and may even try it, but I will NEVER put ppf on again.

M1

 

FYI This is an 8 year old thread.