SPI Red Shade Difference

B

BradNes1

Promoted Users
Hi All,
I just sprayed SPI red base on the under side of my trunk. I'm extremely happy with how this base covers, far better than the red PPG Omni that I sprayed years ago. I noticed that when sprayed and still wet the base matched the red color chip I received pretty well (very bright). After drying over night the base seems quite a bit darker than the chip. I think I like as-sprayed color better for this application as it's closer to the OEM color anyway so no complaints but just wanted to make sure I didn't screw something up here. I sprayed 2 coats over SPI gray epoxy mixed as a sealer. The shade looked pretty much the same on the second coat as it did on the first so I was pretty sure I had full coverage. I sprayed the coats pretty wet (probably wetter than I should have for base).
 

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look on the back of the color chip, unless otherwise stated the chip is sprayed over white sealer.
 
I have sprayout cards printed with shades of gray. When doing a reference sprayout, coats must be applied until full hiding. On red (even good ones) this is sometimes more coats than you'd like. Then you can take the reference sample and figure out which shade of gray (or white) as an undercoat produces a convincing match to the reference sample, but with fewer coats. The undercoat color should not be allowed to influence the final finish color! To do so invites problems in a future repair scenario.

Personally, I would be shocked if even SPI Red could fully cover in two coats, there isn't a red like that out there from any manufacturer that can do so, in my experience.
 
crashtech said:
Personally, I would be shocked if even SPI Red could fully cover in two coats, there isn't a red like that out there from any manufacturer that can do so, in my experience.
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all of our sprayouts are two coats, that's why i mentioned that. we have samples over red, black, gray and white sealer. there is a notable color difference at two coats between them, but as you mentioned, the more coats the less of a difference there is.
 
BrianK said:
all of our sprayouts are two coats, that's why i mentioned that. we have samples over red, black, gray and white sealer. there is a notable color difference at two coats between them, but as you mentioned, the more coats the less of a difference there is.
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I don't want to be critical, but for my own purposes, sprayouts made with full coverage are the most useful, though having all the various samples would be pretty helpful, too, if a guy wanted to try to get as close to that full coverage look as possible while keeping the base layer to a minimum.
 
Get some spray out cards and figure out how many coats for full coverage. Then spray that number of coats….
 
Thanks everyone, you are correct that the back side says sprayed over white sealer. When I called in to order and asked how much base I should get they figured a gallon would be enough as I was told their base typically achieves coverage in 2 coats (I ordered a gallon and a quart figuring I'd be safe). Maybe I'll spray a 3rd coat and see if it makes any difference. I'll find some spray out cards going forward. I do really like the color where it currently sits, my only concern is I'm panel painting this car for various reasons and I can see that causing potential color match issues if I just spray 2 coats everywhere but it isn't actually achieving full coverage.
 
It will lighten up some with a third coat but keep in mind this, the sprayout sample card will darken up some if it had a 3rd coat sprayed over it. With certain colors your sealer coat affects the color. Red is one of those colors that are most affected.
Bottom line if you want the color/shade that you see with the sample sprayout card, then white sealer followed by two coats. Anything different will result in a different shade of the color.
 
The first two cars I painted were with SPI red and had a lot of frustration with color mismatch. The basic problem was a lack of coverage. I found after 4 coats, the color stops changing (ie you have full coverage). This was always over white base.
The last car was red over red epoxy as a sealer and it started off dark red, but after 4 coats, the red lightened up to what I expected.
 
Spraying less than the number of coats needed for full coverage is a recipe for disaster especially if you are panel painting or a novice painter who will struggle getting consistent coverage.
 
I appreciate all the input. I think achieving full coverage and testing with spray out cards will be my best path forward, especially in the case of future repairs etc. Time to take a step back and do some testing.
 
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