Well I finally recovered from my daughters wedding, my son just finished college, I talked my wife out of the tax return, so It’s time to paint my 70 Chevelle.

After visiting several paint shops I am undecided as to the type of paint and process. One shop suggedted using a two step paint process, paint then followed by a clear coat. Another shop recommended single step paint, color sanded, polished, and no clear coat.

I checked out the work done by both shops and the paint jobs looked great. I was especially impressed by the shop that used the single stage paint, color sanding, buffing, and no clear coat. They had just finished painting a 67 Mustang which was painted black which resulted in a mirror finish. I think the paint manufacturer was Sherman Williams.

Any pros or cons to the two methods you guys can share with me before I spend the kind inheritance?

Thanks

PS: I am a member just a little renewing so I guess my flag won't show up until the payment hits the bank.

Is cypress southern, CA? Just curious what they quoted you for everything? Im about to paint mine , I am using PPG BC/CC. I heard good things about sherwin williams, dont know much at all about it though.

Well it depends on what color you choose. If the color will be a solid then a SS will work.
But if a metallic color is more your pleasure then baseclear is the only way to fly.

A SS metallic is VERY hard to spray, getting the metallics and the gloss to be right.
If you get bugs, dirt whatever in SS metallic you CANT buff it because it will ruin the metallics.

In all reality I do believe that SS has a deeper look or shine to it, especially in black. If I was doing a black paint job it would be done in SS.

Both types cut and buff just as easy and look equally nice.

SS is harder to repair if you were ever to get into a fender bender.

SS is cheaper then baseclear.

As for which paint brand is the BEST...no such thing! The best brand of paint is the best that works for you and you know how to use it.
Brand X could be the best darn stuff in the world but if the painter doesnt know brand X it can very qucikly turn into the worest brand.
So basically am saying is dont go into a shop demanding that they use PPG paint instead of the shop's stand by Sherwin Williams. Let the shop use what brand of paint they feel comfortable with

If you are planning on putting on the SS stripes I highly recommend a BC/CC. It's easier and cheaper in the long run. You will not be able to feel any of the lines on the stripes, if done properly. If you are going with one color a single stage paint is probably the wiser way to go. However, the most important thing that you need to do is block that car to within an inch of it's life. It sucks, demands a lot of your time, and your arms are sore. But worth every single aching minute. I personally recommend PPG. IMO Russ' 71 Chevelle (http://imrussman.tripod.com)

Have shot both and really think the opinion on base -clear is the ticket.It is pretty exciting,isn't it? A new paint job is as close to a new car as you can get and still have the old iron.what ever your choice,hope it exceeds your expectations. graemlins/beers.gif

Hey Guys:
Thanks for taking your time to reply. I am going with the same paint scheme as the car is now, red with the black SS stripes.

I think that is great advice about letting the shop shoot the paint they are most familiar with. However I am still undecided about single stage or two stage base/clear.

Does anyone else want to weigh in on the advantages and disadvantages between the two?

Thanks
Brad Howard

A single stage may chip easier than a bc/cc. I was recently caught in a tornado/hail storm and the bc/cc paint on my 70 suffered one major dent and a few very minor marks in the clear which appear to be able to be buffed out. Considering the size of the hail I encountered, that is pretty impressive.

Base/Clear is really the way to go. Previous posts mention some pro's & con's but here is some points to consider as well.

Have the car "value shaded" with primer before paint. Value shading means to have the primer tinted into the colour spectrum that you will be painting. This helps to get a deeper colour, it's easier to cover with the base coat and is an extra layer of pigment in case of scratches or small nicks.

The clear coats today have the advantage that they our formulated to handle our weather and environment better. There are a number of additives for UV protection, chip resistance. Clear coats can be wetsanded down to 2000 and buffed to mirror shine without affecting the base. If you are painting stripes onto the car then the clear goes over it all and eliminates the transition between colour's.

The single stage paint has no topcoat to protect it from the world. RED is a nasty colour because it hates the sun and fades. Just go look in a parking lot, older ones are faded away while the newer BC/CC reds still have their colour. Single stage can be wetsanded down as well BUT you are actually removing paint thereby potentially comprimising the paint itself. You'll have thick spots and thin spots. Can you guess what will happen over time with the thin spots... Pearl's Metalic's etc... DO dictate what kind of finishing can be done to the paint. BTW: I have seen people "Wax/Polish" their way through the paint where you could start to see the primer underneath, looks really sad when the ride is otherwise perfect.

I have worked in shops that use Dupont, PPG, Akzo Nobel (Sikkens) and Sherwin Williams. My prefered is Sikkens but they are all EXCELLENT products and you shouldn't be worried.

One last thought... What warranties do these shops offer for the paint work? Do you know anyone who has used the shops that you can talk to and go and see the results of the work. Fresh paint almost always looks great, it's the paint job that's been out there for 2+ years that really starts to tell the story. The older the paint, the more it has to say........& show.....

Hope it Helps.