shrinking issues.

[Chad.S]

80 Grit scares me, I tell my guys that I don't want to see those scratches.. Just in case it ever did shrink. It would look much worse if it's 80Grit.

 

[Chad.S]

all of the above could be accurate.i rush b/c most of my collision work is on a tight schedule.in the winter i can see what your saying to be even more true.i have thought about these things as well.
for the past 3 months its been pretty warm to down right hot in western Arkansas.my panel temps for the past month during work hours stay above 80-90.i do my bodywork then prime.generally wait 6-8 hours before first block(that can be same day to next day times.)block my primer with 180 wet and lay 2-3 coats of primer after that.i finish block with 400 wet.if i have to paint the same day i wait at least 2 hours with panel temps well above 70 degress.i do my paint work.next morning i un wrap car and look for areas that need buffed or my repair areas.9-10 times my repair areas already have what i call mapping...

Flash times may cause some issues i guess? i use no reducer in my primer if that matters,thanks Travis

Do you have a Pro-Spray mixing bank as well?

 

[Hotbo]

all of the above could be accurate.i rush b/c most of my collision work is on a tight schedule.in the winter i can see what your saying to be even more true.i have thought about these things as well.
for the past 3 months its been pretty warm to down right hot in western Arkansas.my panel temps for the past month during work hours stay above 80-90.i do my bodywork then prime.generally wait 6-8 hours before first block(that can be same day to next day times.)block my primer with 180 wet and lay 2-3 coats of primer after that.i finish block with 400 wet.if i have to paint the same day i wait at least 2 hours with panel temps well above 70 degress.i do my paint work.next morning i un wrap car and look for areas that need buffed or my repair areas.9-10 times my repair areas already have what i call mapping...

Flash times may cause some issues i guess? i use no reducer in my primer if that matters,thanks Travis

no.i want one but have not bought it yet. where i buy my SPI products they have pro-spray and mix about 3-4 colors a week for me.Its great actually,b/c ive learned which colors S-W has problems with and which ones Pro-spray and alternate to speed up my color matching times.

 

[crashtech]

Learning how to put bodywork into a finer grit is probably the single best thing anyone can do to minimize the the chance of serious shrinkage. Mostly it's a matter of learning to stop sanding sooner with the 80, I actually use 150 after 80 and with patience it will straighten filler very well. It's actually better for finishing critical contours.

 

[AAE]

I'm liking UPOL fillers.

 

[MikeS]

Learning how to put bodywork into a finer grit is probably the single best thing anyone can do to minimize the the chance of serious shrinkage. Mostly it's a matter of learning to stop sanding sooner with the 80, I actually use 150 after 80 and with patience it will straighten filler very well. It's actually better for finishing critical contours.

BINGO....That is exactly how I was taught many years ago. My mentor, at that time, told me to stop when you just 'notice the cloud' then switch to 180 to finish sanding and 'bring out the cloud'. The cloud in this case being the fine, thin feathered area between the filler and metal or epoxy (when over it). When done right it actually resembles an almost transparent cloud. I've always used this technique and have great results. Heck, I even use the 'cloud' technique when I block sand interior drywall compound to get a level 5 surface finish.
I've recently switched to UPOL products and so far I like it, especially their Dolphin Glaze line.

Mike

 

[curt b]

Been using u-pol flyweight gold for atleast 2 years and no probems yet. Very easy to sand 180 cuts it great. Seems to be a little softer compared to rage gold to me. Price is a heck of alot better than the rage too.

 

[Chad.S]

all of the above could be accurate.i rush b/c most of my collision work is on a tight schedule.in the winter i can see what your saying to be even more true.i have thought about these things as well.
for the past 3 months its been pretty warm to down right hot in western Arkansas.my panel temps for the past month during work hours stay above 80-90.i do my bodywork then prime.generally wait 6-8 hours before first block(that can be same day to next day times.)block my primer with 180 wet and lay 2-3 coats of primer after that.i finish block with 400 wet.if i have to paint the same day i wait at least 2 hours with panel temps well above 70 degress.i do my paint work.next morning i un wrap car and look for areas that need buffed or my repair areas.9-10 times my repair areas already have what i call mapping...

Flash times may cause some issues i guess? i use no reducer in my primer if that matters,thanks Travis

If you want a Pro-Spray system and a lot of toners to go with it I could get you one heck of a deal. As long as you have a gear top mix machine to put it on.

 

[Chad.S]

9 times out of 10, when this happens, it can be stopped with two little changes.
(not counting as a change but epoxy over the cheap filler will also stop this)
First coat of primer spray a wet coat and flash it good, as trapping solvent in first coat will swell scratches and very common when 2nd coat apllied to fast.
The solvents can make a 320 grit look like 80 if bad enough.
Being old school, I always finish filler with 80 grit but than again, I'm using epoxy over the filler before primer.
In rare cases where i did not use epoxy, I let first coat of primer set for 10-15 minutes before second coat, third coat does not need that kind of flash but first coat just like a basecoat causes the most issues as far as solvent trapping.
Cheap filler needs to go and best buys are in the $26-32 range such as Marson gold, platinum or Z-grip.

I myself have been using 3m platinum or select, and Automotive art platinum.. They all seem to work pretty good.

 

[Chad.S]

Learning how to put bodywork into a finer grit is probably the single best thing anyone can do to minimize the the chance of serious shrinkage. Mostly it's a matter of learning to stop sanding sooner with the 80, I actually use 150 after 80 and with patience it will straighten filler very well. It's actually better for finishing critical contours.

I ditched the 80 grit all together, and have been using 100 grit, then going to 150.. I prefer that over the 80 grit.

 

[Hotbo]

all of the above could be accurate.i rush b/c most of my collision work is on a tight schedule.in the winter i can see what your saying to be even more true.i have thought about these things as well.
for the past 3 months its been pretty warm to down right hot in western Arkansas.my panel temps for the past month during work hours stay above 80-90.i do my bodywork then prime.generally wait 6-8 hours before first block(that can be same day to next day times.)block my primer with 180 wet and lay 2-3 coats of primer after that.i finish block with 400 wet.if i have to paint the same day i wait at least 2 hours with panel temps well above 70 degress.i do my paint work.next morning i un wrap car and look for areas that need buffed or my repair areas.9-10 times my repair areas already have what i call mapping...

Flash times may cause some issues i guess? i use no reducer in my primer if that matters,thanks Travis

chad have you quit Pro-spray??