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Clear coat question?

Terry Kitzman

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S.E. Iowa
I am working in limited space, So I have my hood, trunk lid and doors on saw horses. I have done base and clear coats on the underside of the hood and trunk lid, And the inside of the doors. my saw horses have carpet on the top, How long do I need to wait before I can safely turn them over to do the outsides?
 
Some will try pressing the surface with a fingernail to see if an impression is made.
Keep in mind that primer, paint and clear all take exponentionally longer to dry as more coats are applied. Example: 1 coat, 3 hours. 2 coats, 12 hours. 3 coats, 20 hours. That is not exact but just an example.
 
I Duunow? I always run a bake cycle and wait for the parts to cool off before flipping them over.
I've never let parts "air cure" before. I'm with Kern Dog!
 
I have never had a paint booth, I've only painted my cars in my garage or shop with plastic draped around. I have never painted below 58 degrees either. In colder months, I've used propane heaters, kerosene heaters too. I've wondered if the byproduct of these heaters put contaminants in the air and onto the car but I've either been lucky or the burned fuel hasn't had an effect.
 
He's in Iowa guys, when were these painted? If recently in this weather, I'd wait till at least spring, unless they're in a heated garage for a week or three. Good Luck
 
this is why I hang parts (and also to keep dust from settling on them), and paint both sides at the same time
 
Thanks for the replies, I have a heated shop, I keep it at 60 degrees. It's been about 4 days, I think it's probably OK.
 
Ideally we trim out all parts including the body and then hang them back on the car, adjust all gaps. Then the car is painted. It's a pain to hang and adjust painted pieces without scratching something. That includes scaring bolt heads etc.
 
KD is right. BTW, be careful where you press your finger to test. I’ve seen an amazing quantity of things with a fingerprint right in the middle because the person decided to test in the most visible spot.
I think there’s also a few other variables, as well. Here in the cold north our air is very dry. Things dry quickly here, even in cool rooms. Damp coastal air probably slower.
Catalyzing or air dry product? What solvent or reducers etc.
I used Matrix base clear to do some of my stuff so far. Love it. Certainly the base dries super fast. The clear slower but still fast. I sprayed the base, and it was dry by the time I cleaned my gun out. Sprayed a coat of clear, let it flash for a bit, sprayed another gloss coat and went home to bed. Next morning a 0800 everything was dry enough 5o handle.
 
If the garage is heated your prob ok, I would though use a old bed spread or blanket to lay them on instead of carpet.
Carpet I think would scratch new cured clear coat.
 
depending on the temp where they are sitting. I would say to be safe give them a week if your garage temp is between 69 & 75
 
If the garage is heated your prob ok, I would though use a old bed spread or blanket to lay them on instead of carpet.
Carpet I think would scratch new cured clear coat.
I could understand using cloth or carpet if you just need a place to rest the parts but if you are painting the other side, cloth is not a good idea. Lint, dust, dander and who knows what else lurk in the fibers and will surely come out during painting. NOT good.
 
I could understand using cloth or carpet if you just need a place to rest the parts but if you are painting the other side, cloth is not a good idea. Lint, dust, dander and who knows what else lurk in the fibers and will surely come out during painting. NOT good.

Kern I prob read to fast. I figured he was going to prep the other side 1st and get rid of the over spray ect. I did not think the parts should be on carpet but something a little more forgiving. We use foam covered stands, You need to hang the parts in a clean area, use a decent grease and wax remover and tac to paint, prep them laying down so they are not swinging around. Panels need to be painted as they will be on the car.
 
What does the manufacturer of your paint products have to say? Some paints are faster drying.

Example, this Sherwin-Williams video says you can sand and buff your clear coat after just 15 minutes. So you should be able to place it on carpet pretty quickly.

I have Sherwin-Williams on my road runner, I'm quite happy with what I've done so far.
 
I have one of those double halogen lights that gives off heat like the sun. Works great for baking paint.
 
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