Paint Meter/Thickness Gauges!

01bluecls · 10-24-06, 08:27

I have found these two as options. Both can read metal AND aluminum. There arent any other guages out there that I could find that could read painted carbon fiber or fiberglass within reasonable pricing. Im trying to spend under 600 bucks. With the amount of high end cars im working with lately, I figured this paint meter is gonna be a good investment!

Here is the two (Tdekany has this one): http://www.1car-detailing-training.c...gage-p-87.html

Here is the other which is less expensive but I know nothing about the accuracy or quality:
http://www.wholesalepaintmeters.com/

The other is from autoint, but im not considering since I have read the ETG-1 Model only reads from metal.
http://autoint.com/autostore/pc/view...&idproduct=131

This is a pretty big investment as far as money! I just dont want to buy a piece of inaccurate trash and throw my money down the drain!

Anyone with expierences with either of these? Do you all think its a worthy investment?

Thanks

35TH LE · 10-24-06, 11:55

Im interested in this topic too.... I just ordered a rotary and was thinking about getting one of those.

qadsan · 10-25-06, 08:30

I have two of the ETG-1 gauges and they've been very helpful to me for the kind of work that I do, but I need to get a gauge that measures coating thickness on both Ferrous and Non-Ferrous objects. The FS488 from www.wholesalepaintmeters.com looks very nice, but it doesn't have the accuracy that I need. It's accuracy is 5% and it reads to 1/2 mill, but I need a gauge that's more accurate than 5% and reads to 1/10th of a mill.

I spoke to the guy at Wholesalepaintmeters.com and they have a deal where you can buy 3 of their FS488 paint meters for $299 each if they're shipped to the same address, but he'll take 3 different card numbers. If enough of you live within the same areas, this would be a terrific deal 'IF' this gauge is what you're looking for.

He said they will be coming out with a new thickness gauge in about ~30 days or so that will be more accurate. It will be called the FS502 and it will cost about $100 more than the FS488. It's accuracy will vary between 1% and 3% depending on the thickness being measured. It will measure up to 50 mill and it will read in 1/10 of a mill or in microns. It can also be calibrated to a given thickness so its accuracy will be greater within that range. It will allow both single and continuous readings. It will also be backlit with a cool blue light. It will be about the same physical size except for being 1/4 inch taller.

He's putting me on a list to keep me updated on their new FS502. If there are any introductory offers or quantity discounts or group buy possibilities, he'll let me know and I'll post the details here if anyone is interested in the FS502.

SilverLexus · 10-25-06, 08:53

Great thread Chris. I've been thinking about adding one to my arsenal.

01bluecls · 10-25-06, 08:58

qadsan- thanks for the info...im not in a hurry so it helps. Keep us posted!

The guage will be important for anyone looking to do pretty much any paint corrections, especially deep polishing and the dread wetsanding. Extemely useful for cars with older single stage paint or just older cars in general. Allows you to see how much paint you have left to play with!

Danase · 10-25-06, 09:04

The EGT is a great tool. I used one daily when I used to work for a custom boat trailer manufacturer. One of my jobs was to make sure that the trailers had enough paint before shipping them out.

ShineMGood · 10-25-06, 09:07

Is there a way to determine the clearcoat thickness?

01bluecls · 10-25-06, 10:36

There are gauges that read multiple layers on multiple surfaces using ultra sonic...BUT you are looking at spending about 2500-3000 at that point.

Earl Keese · 10-25-06, 10:58

Hey Guys,
I have an ETG-2 I got from someone on Ebay who used to be a paint rep for 300.00 bucks, I really like it because it measures both Steel and Aluminum. I don't have the calibration plates with it as he lost them, but I use it as reference point, taking reading before I do any work, then measure again to see how much clear I have removed. it measures in .01 mils so it's pretty precise and I'm glad I got it. To me it's just another tool to help insure I don't make any costly mistakes.

Tom Weed

01bluecls · 10-25-06, 11:04

I saw the ETG-2 which comes with two probes one for each type of metal. But I couldnt find anywhere that carries it. Autoint looks like it only has ETG-1

Grouse · 10-25-06, 11:56

this is a tag, a big tag, tag tag tag this thread is it.

finerdetails · 10-25-06, 12:12

I use one, and wouldnt be without it, especially when de-swirling