I am getting ready to paint my 1956 olds 88 and I'm not sure what brand/quality of clear coat to go for. I called a local automotive paint store and they told me the highest quality clear coat they have is $300/gal. I thought this was excessive.

What clear coats have you guys used that came out to a show finish? Where can I get some, and would it be cheaper?

Also I am having trouble finding the engine paint codes for this particular year/engine. It has a 324 rocket. I figured someone probably has the paint codes here.

Thanks for any help.

 

I used Transtar on my Vette and on a 71 Monte Carlo i built some years ago. I love it! It sprays great, flows great, sands great and buffs great. The paint job on my Vette is now about 9 years old and it still looks great. I have no complaints about it. There are other good clearcoats, PPG has some very good ones, im sure Dupont does too. I have used PPG paint on everything and some of their clear coats. However PPG has gotten very expensive. I know the Dupont store here sells Transtar which is what ill use on my 442 if I go basecoat/clearcoat. There was one PPG clearcoat we used on my friends 61 Vette, I think it was 20 20, It looked great in sunlight or incandesent light, but under flouresent light you could see the 1500 grit scratches and we could not get them buffed out no matter how much we tried. So we ended up sanding the whole car AGAIN and changed to a different PPG clear which came out gorgeous. Dont ask me which one we changed to, that was too long ago I cant remember. Also check on TCP GLOBAL for paints and supplies their pretty cheap price wise.
Steve

 

X2 on transtar ! I hve also heard good things about southern polyurethanes . They are suppoused to be a high end primer and cleat coat company with no paint line so the prices aren't sky high to support the paint line. That's what I will be using on my cutlass when I re paint it this fall . @ about 150 for the clear with activator cant go wrong.

 

Thanks for the recommendation. After a brief search I found a list of transtar clear coats http://www.tat-co.com/products/clearcoats/ Which one did you use? Which one do you recommend? I want the most durable clear coat I can apply.

 

Also, what is the activator?

 

X3 transtar very glossy finish and very sleek

 

Activator helps it dry quicker I believer maybe that's the hardener or are they the same I can't remember only spent half a summer in my friends shop

 

Sounds like something I'll need then since I'm not doing this in a professional oven paint booth.

 

The activator is what makes the clear dry. Some clears you can also reduce but I dot like doing that. I use the transtar maxclear about 125 for the set up . I have use it on all my side jobs and personal projects over the last 3 years and have been very pleased with the hold out and over all quality .


Edit : any clear that is urethane will need an activatior. There is different temp activators like 60-75 degree which dries fast then you have 75-85 which dries slower and the a high temo which will dry a lot faster since the temp will be in the 90-100 degree range all designed to work with the work standards in which you are painting if its cold you want it to dry so the low temp activator can be used and if its hot you use a high temp.

there is also fast drying clears which you do not want for a complete paint job. We use Sherwin Williams and we use a 20 minute air dry clear for smaller jobs like a bumper or fender. Do not use a fast drying clear for complete paint job. use a standard clear which will set up dryish to the touch in 1 hr but not fully cured. If you try to paint a whole car with a speed clear it will look bad.

 

I remember painting my jeep with an enamel a long time ago and cutting it 1:1 with paint thinner, is the same necessary for the transtar max?

 

The clears have specific mixing ratios per their call. Most clears mix 4 to 1 speed clears myx 2 to 1 to 1 etc etc. every manufacturer calls for a specific mix. but most standard clears mix 4 to 1 . Just clear and activator.

 

Yes 4 to 1 but also when you do this make sure you go at it with a degreaser/dewaxed so that you do not get any fisheye when you go to paint

 

I've been looking at this
I live in central Florida, so we cook during the day.

 

Sorry billy but no. You wax and degrease before but you don't mix that in. Donot use a fisheye eliminator that's a crutch. Good prep work and clean spray area and dry airlines will yeild great results.

 

No I didn't mean any mixture I mean hand wipe it down with a degreaser dewaxer lol

 

I always use Matrix clearcoat. Kit is usually less than $100 and it lays down great.