I have a guy who sprays planes, he use to paint cars so he says, and he says spraying Imron on my 65 Chevelle would be best.

This paint vs 2 stage etc..I don't want to deal with the clear coat cracking like it did on my Jeep.
His work on the plane I saw looked pretty nice.
Anybody have any input on this?
Thanks,
Jack

Jack, I would advise against painting your Chevelle with Imron paint. It is a polyurethane and is designed primarily as a "fleet" paint for large trucks,trailers,equipt. planes, etc. This paint is not the most user friendly product out there and may be difficult to repair or spot-in if necessary. I would recommend using a single stage acrylic urethane ie.PPG Concept, if the car is to be sprayed a solid color (non-metallic) or using a urethane basecoat/clearcoat if the car is a metallic color. I hope this helps. P.S. I work as a tech-rep. for a PPG paint distributor so I am familiar with these products.

BlackRat,

I never heard much about the Imron paint and cars so now I know why. Thanks.
I don't need a car that may start cracking and if gets dinged be a pain to repair.

I like the PPG line. I want to paint the car as black as I can get it inside and out.
So I guess I should go with the single stage Concept.
Is that the kind of paint where he can get it to look that deep wet look?
He claims to be great a wet sanding..
What about primer color. I hear it makes a difference in choice of primer color in order to achieve desired color.
I'm paying for the paint so I need to collect a shopping list of what #s to get etc..

Thanks for the feedback.
Jack

Imron is used on airplanes for it's durablity, and flexablity due extreme temperature changes from hot to cold and the movement of the wings.

[This message has been edited by Cardiac (edited 04-28-2000).]

I have srayed hundreds of gallons of this stuff. We use it on all the machines we build, (trenchers, brush chippers, ect.) It is a two part paint, must be activated or it will never harden. It is tough as nails when dry. It atomizes and lays down very good, goes on with a kind of orange peel texture, then smooths out after it set on the surface. You can wet sand and buff the paint after it has cured, but it is tough! It is hard to remove all the haze from wet sanding and buffing. You need proper personal protective equipment when using this stuff! Fresh air supply respirator is a must. I would not paint my car with it. I plan on repainting my El Camino in the near future, and I'm going to use a base coat,clear coat system. Hope this helps, and good luck! Frank

A friend of mine restores the early 240Z's and he always used imron on the chassis parts but never on the body. With a lot of work it can be a very good looking paint but there are much better (environmentally and ease of care) paint systems avialable.

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Steve Strasemeier (70SS 396, Fathom Blue/White Stripes)

Thanks guys for all the input.
I will not go with the Imron paint, after hearing all the inputs.I'm glad I checked here before giving him the go ahead.

Jack

Jack, If it's the deep, wet look you are after, then I'd go with a base coat,clear coat system. I would also recommend that you use a two part epoxy primer. Check out the restoration series here at TC for more info on paint and refinishing. Good luck! Frank

Jack, If it's black you want then by all means have him spray in in PPG Concept single stage urethane. You can wet sand and buff and IMHO I think black looks darker and deeper in single stage. Primer color should not matter for gloss or depth of finish, but you should use a urethane primer surfacer with the Concept. Check out this link of my car from the 1999 Chevelle-abration.http://chevelles.com/aces/shows/peopleschoice.jpg

Black Rat, I was there and voted for you. The paint and car was awesome!

I am going to do my 69 300 Custom Deluxe in Black. My body shop guru recommends the black that is used on Dodge trucks as being the deepest black he has seen. (He too, is a car buff)
I had my black 96 Impala SS color sanded, which is simply sanding the clear coat to remove imperfections and waves, with like 2000 grit paper. It does make a significant difference, but is $500 and a real PITA. It takes skill, so don't grab some cretin and go at it.

YMMV

Charles Ruse
Florida

check with a paint supplier, most companies have 'ultra black' which is a very black black,designed to match imports such as mercedes and bmw.It is black as black gets!

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70 chevelle,400cid turbo400.blue with silver stripes.http://members.spree.com/entertainment/ochrisl/

BlackRat,
What a car! I can see why it was a winner. That's the look I'm after.
I knew you worked for PPG, but...
PPG can't beat that car to sell their product. Hopefully they comped you the material...
What kind of wheels are those? They give great contrast and depth.
And guys, thanks for all the replys.
Jack

Jack;

I used Imron on a car years ago. Keep in mind that I'm a "paint it in the garage" guy and NOT a professional. Here is my two cents;

Imron will give the most durable paint surface there is due to it's elastic qualities!!

The shine and finish if done correctly is fantastic and maintance free. No waxing.

It's not bothered if you spill a can of brake fluid on it.

The problem is that I don't feel that it can be sanded out and buffed (70elky396 says that it can, "with difficulty"). In my mind, it would be like trying to buff out a racquetball to a shine.

It all boils down to the fact that if not done correctly, you have to live with what you have! A run can't be sanded and buffed out.

Due to my limitations, I'd never do it again. There are several other options that are more "friendly" to repair.

If the professional has a long history of using Imron, it's great.

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Wes. Vann
Technical Reference section
Gold Member #5

The Imron is tough.. I had a 71 painted in '85 and it got totalled in '86 and set in a field until 1994 and alittle soap & water and it looked brand new. The elastic qualities are good & evil. The evil side being if the paint got scratched or broken the surrounding paint would start to peel. I just had this shell soda blasted and the guy thought it was going to be a easy job, and it turned out taking him twice as long because the paint was so hard to blast off.

jody
71 ss454
ACES

Seems like the risk of problems out weighs the positive. I think I'll go with the single or the 2 stage stuff.

My car has been in pieces for 6 months in one guys shop, his body men have been deported, so he can't complete the job.

So now I'm out getting input from other body men on this job. That's how I stumbled upon this Imron paint.
Enough problems with this car, so I'll stick with what you guys say.
Thanks,
Jack

I need to clarify something I said about wet sanding and buffing Imron earlier in this post. If you wet sand and buff entire panels to remove imperfections and orange peel, then forget it! I failed to mention that I would only wet sand and buff small sags and dirt on small areas (big difference). I also failed to mention that I would do this within a 24 hour period after spraying paint. Most of the time, you're better off to rework the entire panel rather than trying to save it. Sorry I didn't go into detail earlier. It's very durable, chip resistant paint that holds up for a long time, if properly applied, but there are definitely other paint systems that would be more forgiving when you have imperfections.

Jack & Chuck Nixon.
hey thanks guys for the compliments on my car. I really appreciate it. As for the wheels, Jack they are Cragar Superlites. As for the paint, I wish they comped me for it but I painted it even before I worked for the jobber, but they did put it on their calendar for 2000 and that is cool!

Blackrat,
Great! Now that they put it on a calander, and your cars a star, they can buy the next round...paint?? I'm always looking to save a buck here to spend there, you know.

I just have to get me some nice wheels like those. I thought they were Superlites.
Great wheels. I've been trying to decide on Superlites, or Drag Stars. I guess they're both made of aluminum, I just haven't seen them on cars at the same time to get a good judge on how they would look on a 65 Chevelle SS.
Later,
Jack

PPG has two products that I've used.
1) DBU - is single stage paint with a clear coat & has a short pot life but is VERY durable. Must be wet sanded within 72 hours.

2) DBC - is base coat/clear coat & is more user friendly to work with but it's not as durable as DBU. However, it does provide a much brilliant shine over the DBU when Concept 2002 clear is used.

Both DBU & DBC are good quality paints for a daily drivers. IMHO - I'd use DBU (or it's equivalent) and if it's a fair weather car go with DBC.



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Dale
Lowered '67 Elcamino
ZZ430HP / 4L60
"Canyon Carver"
www.chevelles.com/showroom/elkydriveway1.jpeg (http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/elkydriveway1.jpeg)

Cardiac,
Great looking car. It's unbelievable how nice some of the cars are at this site.

Thanks for the info on PPG.
I live in Southern California along the beach area, so I guess the DBC system would be best.

How many coats of primer/color should be put on? Is more paint (several layers) better, to get that nice deep look? I'd rather pay a little more for paint now, while the guys shooting it.

Thanks,
Jack

For black paint you will get a 'blacker' effect if you use a single-stage paint. The clear coat versions don't look as black.

Thanks Cam
Jack