I bought a gallon of the 2042 since that is what 70 (Eric) recomended and it was $160 by itself. It says it is a Low VOC speed clear which makes me wonder if 2055 non speed Low VOC is a better buy. I really don't care about low VOC since I have a new fresh air breathing resperator hood. If anybody knows how much the 2055 is let me know, they said they would have to order it and that they don't stock it. The DBC for my wifes 02 Camery was $70 a quart! Thanks Zach

Zach the difference between the 2042 and 2055 is the cure time. 2042 will flash off a tad sooner and can be buffed sooner after cool down if forced dried. Both are in the same range of VOC the 2042 is 4.2 and the 2055 is 4.2 or 4.5.

Either clear will do just fine, Ive found NO diff between the two other then the 2042 is a bit faster and some other small things, but the MAIN thing is the cure time.

160 sounds about right for the clear, in fact BOTH are in the SAME price code, PPG has 4 codes. Last time I bought a gallon of 2055 was last spring, I seem to recall retail price was around 150-160 but I got it for much less smile.gif

The hardner to use for either one since you will be in a booth and have a good temp of around 70 degrees would be DCX61.

If you do indeed get the 2055 but Id KEEP the 2042, a few things to KNOW about 2055 cus its a wierd clear. 2055 is a tricky bastard to spray, 2042 is ALOT easier to spray.

RIGHT IN THE TECH SHEET IT SAYS FOR THE FIRST COAT ADJUST THE FLUID VOLUME DOWN If you spray that clear(2055) like any other clear and spray the first coat like its the last, I can PROMISE you that it will be on floor.

So you want to adjust your clear gun first on a spray out panel, remember the settings then just turn in the fluid control. When turning it in try a full turn first, if it seems dry then slowly turn it out. Do this on a practice piece first, once you have the setting right then spray your car. Once you got the first coat on, then adjust the gun to your first settings.


Also add a cap full of DX87 to every RTS(Ready To Spray) qt of 2055. Dx87 is an accelerator

Hey Eric, "You've got mail" smile.gif No, not email, I mean MAIL. I finally got that door handle recess out in the mail today.

Ok, resume PPG clear talk. smile.gif

If it means anything, I have a three year old price sheet in front of me and it says 2042 was $140.40 with the increase of about 6% (most every paint company goes up about 5-6% per year) a year that would put it right at about $166.00 now. smile.gif

You know the point on the fact that ALL paint companies have a similar price increase brings a story to mind. smile.gif Right as I quit my paint rep job with S-W there was a federal trade commission investigation coming down the road on this very subject. They figured that the companies were price fixing. I even received a letter from the feds not to discard of any paper work from S-W concering pricing. Cool huh. :D

Will do Eric. I will keep the 2042. Sorry to be so pareniod, I am a newbee at doing this the right way. I have single staged replacement pannels with Omni MTK Single stage, right over the factory EDP primmer (and it is still holding on my daily driver!) but this is a different ball game all together! Zach

Since we are on the subject of clear , i am using global 893 clear on my latest project . My question is , i seem to always get runs in my first coat of clear ( not always 893 ) trying to get it to " look like the last coat of clear " . Is it better to dust it so it has something to stick to or will it look all orange peeled even after polishing it ?

chevelleshack, I DONT believe in tack coats when doing clear. On 2055 its FAR from a tack coat, all you want to do is slightly lower the fluid amount. When I spray 2055 I dont readjust the settings I just MOVE faster on the first coat.

If you put on a tack coat you are not appling suffient amount of paint. I mean by the time you are done clearing you MIGHT NOT have enough clear on the panel to provide the proper UV protection.
And yes on some clears you WILL fight orange peel, PPG 2082 is a real PIA for that. You better get that first coat smooth otherwise you'll find yourself buffing

I would try to increase your travel speed first. Plus something to think about, try to remember where you are overlapping your passes from panel to panel. Are the runs in the area of your overlap?

Also could be too close, should be around the 8in range.

Theres a few things to adjust first before I would EVER think of doing a tack coat