Black Sheep said:
If it's your high build, color doesn't matter. Your sealer should be close to the final color.
this is true. Most systems out there use a primer/ sealer /basecoat / clear coat system. Typically as black sheep said , the sealer color is close to the tint of the final paint, this allows fewer layers of base coat and helps even out the color. Sealers are for the most part monochromatic, ranging from white to black and the grey's in between. Sealers are kind of considered to be a primer, somewhat true, but it does not have filling/ high build characteristics.
Longroof79 said:
Thanks guys! I appreciate your input.
Also, how do you rate Nason products? And is urethane primer neutral as far as using a different brand top coat? I noticed that some brands like Mar-Hyde, claim that you can use any companies top coat.
I have not had experience with Nason, glasseret (idk the spelling it has a tropical parrot on the label), Tru-star ( a low end val-spar product), Dupont (single and bc/cc systems), a German based paint named bear or debear (idk its been 5 or 6 years since i used it). All are pretty decent quality, you don't HAVE to use a high end paint, it will show in the final product undoubtedly. However you can use a lower grade paint and you will be fine as long as the prep work is spot on. My cutty is painted with a tri stage dupont system ( sealer / base coat/ pearl coat / clear coat. I painted it back in 2003 and still today the paint is holding up very well and is not peeling or cracking. I've used Marhye products, mainly the rust converter that they produce. It is a decent product and does the job well if your patient. As many other members will say, use POR-15. The stuff is really expensive but works, just don't get it on your skin as you will have a spot there for weeks.
Check with your local paint supplier for the compatibility of primers and paint systems. Most claim they are universal, say a urethane system should stay all urethane, don't mix a lacquer type with it. Even so some paints will not be compatible within a urethane system, they can cause all sorts of chemical side reactions that will cause lift off , fish-eyes and other imperfections. Trust me the easiest thing is to go with one paint system, you wont run into all sorts of headaches. But again check with the paint guy.
I do have to mention this about re-spraying our old cars. The paint they used was typically lacquer based paint, you ended up with a lot of checkering or crow's feet with these paints. Make sure you use a nice high build primer to minimize this showing through. one of two routes you can go is completely stripping down the paint to the metal and working from there, this is the best and "proper way" to re-finish the car. The other route is just prepping the current paint surface ( a lot of sanding and scuffing) and applying good even coats of primer, sand it down and see if you have any imperfections, then repeat with 2 coats of primer. The rule of thumb with newer cars is to paint over the OEM finish, the newer cars go through paint /baking processes that make the paint stick very well to the body, so this is a good base to start off painting over as long as the prep work is good.
good luck!
