Thread: Disappointing paint

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figured I had to try www.paintforcars.com "Trinity" brand urethane @ ~$79 gallon including hardener and reducer. The ad did say it was comparable to Imron but had an 85 gloss.
I didn't understand at the time because when I had used Imron it had at least 94-100+ gloss.

Unfortunately it really has an 85 gloss as advertised, even with hardener supplied. Maybe I could topcoat with some old leftover clear Imron and hopefully it will adhere.

I painted my son's truck with it, the Daytona Blue Metallic. For bargain priced paint, it came out looking pretty good.

It is too bad it is an Imron type of product, or you could save it by sanding and buffing. Imron does NOT buff well. I've tried it!

I won't even consider trying to save money by using cheap paint any more. After 40 years painting, I have never bought cheap paint and been satisfied with it. There is always some sort of compromise. Whenever you choose price over quality, expect there to be a loss of either appearance, ease of application, or life expectancy.

What a drag - now you've got to spend more time AND money on a project you probably thought you were done with!

i agree, sure, you can get the paint much cheaper when buying something other than ppg, dupont, basf, etc..but at the same time, you will waste so much more time fixing it after it is sprayed. it may be a better choice if you're just working out of your garage, but i still havent figured out why some shops use the cheap shit, they pay more in labor in fixing the garabage clear than if they would have bought the good stuff. just my 2cents!

at this point ,tryin not to spend to much more money i would wet sand then reclear with a better clear,instead of repainting.

Hotrodpaint; help me out here please....isn't Trinity a dupont side paint like Nason? I don't know that why I ask.

Originally Posted by nitrowarrior

Hotrodpaint; help me out here please....isn't Trinity a dupont side paint like Nason? I don't know that why I ask.

Nitro. I don't think Trinity is a side line for DuPont. Nason is DuPonts sideline as you mentioned... I started using DuPont because in my area HOK is too hard to get. Alot of local guys are using Matrix, but I know what I can mix and what will work in MY system, so I haven't stepped out to try it. Typically, I have any mixture of DuPont, HOK and PPG on a custom job with graphics. Even have some SW in the storage cabinet from a customer that wanted to supply his own materials. Like has been said over and over, you get what you pay for. It might be cheaper and look absolutely FANTASTIC now, but 3-4 years down the road, you'll be wondering why it needs to be painted again...Cuz it cost less 3-4 years ago. Good Luck and let us know what you decide to do and how it comes out.

I can't help with that question. You would have to call the dealer. I haven't used Dupont since they went to lead-free paint about '87.

I use R&M, which is one of the oldest companies in the paint biz. I bought some Sherwin-Williams automotive single-stage paint from my dealer, which is R&M's second line. It faded and started losing gloss in about 3 years. MY R&M does not do that in ten years or longer! There is a reason it is cheaper!

I have a customer of a customer who works for one of the big three automotive paint companies. I asked him specifically about the cheaper paints in connection with the "paint it all for $300" outfits. He said that they all made paints for other labels....but they were NOT made to their premium formulas and were not necssarily to their quality standards....in other words, the off brand label is made to order and cannot be considered an "equivalent" to the name brand stuff. So, just because it may be made in a Dupont plant, dont ever think that it is "similar" to Dupont! Funny, just like in everything else, you get what you pay for.

just tired of paying $145 for 3/4 QUART of paint, then add
hardner/catalyst costs
even though it performed brilliantly

I usually pay $1200 to $2500 for materials to do a car with graphics. The good news is I just saw a Corvette I painted in '87, and it still looks fresh!

He could have used cheap paint and done it 4-5 times to keep it looking good, but the labor would have canceled out the savings a dozen times over.

I have first hand exsperiance here ,....cheap paint is hard to work with and very labor intensive,plus you get to do it all over alot sooner!!!!
Its a loose loose thing.
I did the top of my cab in 9.99 a quart paint 9 dollars in paint ,900 hrs in labor or $900 in paint and 9 hrs labor........

Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT

I usually pay $1200 to $2500 for materials to do a car with graphics. The good news is I just saw a Corvette I painted in '87, and it still looks fresh!

He could have used cheap paint and done it 4-5 times to keep it looking good, but the labor would have canceled out the savings a dozen times over.

Yep----what he said a dozen times over. My own car was done in 2000 and I STILL get people asking me why I 'just' repainted the thing...LOL

I've used that Trinity Clear also known as Xtreme Clear by 4 Star. It has always worked well for me.

Here's one example:
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j2...w/P1170011.jpg

and here's another:
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j2...tFenderNew.jpg

I have found that you need to reduce it about 15% and use a slow (High Temperature) activator.
But other than that, I like the way it looks.

Frank