how many light coats to fill a chip on average ?

[chip douglas]

Hey all, been doing chip repairs on the car for couple days now, using light coat, to slightly overfill the chip then wetsand etc....i hear all the time it takes many light coats to fill the chip, which makes sense but how many are many actually ? A chip on average isnt something 1/16`` deep(althought there might be a few at times), so figured about 3 coats would do the trick.



The thing is this year is the first year i really attempt to do em chip repairs to perfection. I use match sticks cut at a 45 degree angle, yet the problem is to apply very light coats, one has to dip the stick just a bit, but i found that dipping very lightly just doest let any paint in the chip, so i dipped again a tad more(not that much more though) and applied it to the center of the chip once more, this time it did work, but tended to blob, so all in all, i wonder if artist`s brushes(#2 or something) wouldnt be much better at applying light coats.



But basically this post is to know how many coats in a chip repair is considered a good job............i mean i know it has to slightly overfill the chip, but how many coats does it require on average to get there?





Many thanks to all of you and have a nice weekend :wavey

[JPS911]

Good question Chip...I`ve been following your recent posts (and Guitarguy`s), and I think part of the problem is that touchup paint is rather viscous, and doesn`t lend itself to spreading on very thinly...the blobbing happens with me to. I have tried with the brush, not the match, so I`ll have to try and report back.

[chip douglas]

JPS911, feels good in a way to know i`m not the only one to whom it happens ;)





But tell me, once they`ve dried up(chips repairs) and blended in with the surrounding paint, does it look good(in your case that is), and does it flake after some time ?



By the way, so the touch-up paint dries way faster, i had the guy at the paint supply store add some more hardener, and i have to say that the repairs do feel tougher, than with regualr touch-up paint..........here`s why : i applied regualr touch-up paint let it cure for 4 days, then used *adhesive remover* and wiped all of the repair off, so i thought to myself * gee that paint aint going to dry anytime soon..........so i went back to the paint supply store, and had the guy add more hardener in the small bottle, then re-did the repair, and THIS TIME, after only an hour i couldnt wipe any of the paint off, using the same product with the same pressure, so i get the idea that those repair will be tougher/harder, and what s more the surface was thorougly cleaned prior to doing em repairs.



Just wanted to share in case this might help you out.





Best regards JPS911

[jr weeks]

One other thing you can do is use a (very)small amount (%-wise) of thinner in the touch up paint, (lacquer thinner for lacquer-enamel thinner for enamel etc.) so it flows better and gives you more control. I always thin in "batches" i.e. I don`t thin the entire lot of touch up, just what i`m about to use, in a small plastic cap or such.



You just have to make sure you don`t over thin because then you lose the paints ability to stay in one spot and skin before it runs.



I pretty much always thin it down a bit, because, as stated by JPS911, the viscosity of most touch up paints (most are lacquer BTW) is too thick to easily work with.



Takes more time to build up a chip this way, but for me I feel it gives better control once you have the proper thinning down to a science. :)

[chip douglas]

Guitarman, gee my savvior lol ;) May i ask on average how many coats you apply on average to slightly overfill the chip ? Why do i ask ? Cause it`d give me a hint as to whether or not the job i did, is ok. On most chips, 3 coats is pretty much what it took for most chips i`ve done so far.........but i was under the impression that you guys meant that it should take even more thin coats, yet i don`t know how i could apply them thinner than i did lol.



As i mentioned above in my first post, i had the guy add something to the paint, dont know if it is thinner, but the paint that i have is now way more fluid and dries much faster, and can`t be wiped off using adhesive remover, as i did with the previous one i applied, the bonding seems to be much better with the surrounding paint.



P.S. do you use a matchstick, or artist`s paintbrush like for instance #2 ?



thanks and have a nice weekend

[jr weeks]

Y`know Chip, I actually never really thought to count as i`m doing the process, but you`ve made me think about it now and I`d generally say 3-5 layers puts me where I want to be. The variables of how deep the chip/scratch is (just to primer, or to metal) and how much paint is on the car ( I sprayed my T-Bird with 4-5 coats of clear for instance, oem`s are different) and the touch-up paint`s thickness level all factor in.



It sounds from your description that your supplier added some activator to your paint, which will improve hardness and indeed help it flow out a bit better, since it acts as a thinner of sorts too.



You have a good weekend too. :D



P.S. I use a fine artists brush myself, because IMO it absorbs a bit of the paint and gives me more control.

[chip douglas]

Thanks Guitarman, now i should be fine about doing them chip repairs, again it s great to have people like you on here, it saves us rookies lots of trouble.........i give you 2 :up up lol



:wavey

[MBZ 500E]

Guitarman,



Needs your help on this one........I had major problems when I tried using an artists brush, I found the paint started drying on the brush and made it difficult to apply. The paint would get so sticky I would create a little spider web when I pulled the brush away from the chip:confused: I`d end up having to wipe the whole area to remove the little strand of paint. You suggested using a little paint thinner, is this the secret to using an artist brush without the drying issue? :nixweiss



I`m currently using the matchstick method and tossing the stick after touching up 3 chips, just about the time the paints starts to get sticky in my case. I was successful with this method but I`m always looking for better ways.



BTW it takes me 3 - 4 coats to fill a chip.



In the future I won`t be overfilling the chip since I`ve found my paint is so hard it won`t sand down easily and I end up sanding the clear coat around the chip. I`ve also noticed (on my paint at least) that the chips are hardly noticeable if they aren`t filled to a bubble and most people won`t find them unless I point them out.



These are my observations only and considering the thousands of variations in touch up paint it may proove only partially helpful to others.



Ugghh did I ever mention how much I HATE paint chips.:(

[jr weeks]

I feel that if the toothpick is working allright for you, stay with it.



I always had a harder time with a toothpick, but then, I started out in college as an art major, even won some ribbons for oil paintings at shows, so perhaps that`s why i`m good with a paintbrush, lol. It feels more natural to me I guess.



Thinning the paint makes all the difference for me also, I doubt I would be able to work with the paint with the fine paintbrush if it was so viscous, as they (most) seem to come out of the bottle.



It`s not a "fun" thing that`s for sure, even on customer`s cars -I hate touchups too.



BTW, if Chip has indeed had a hardener added to his paint, he must be using enamel touch-up. Lacquers are Ik paints and uncatalyzed. Chip-there`s one way to know for sure; If your touch-up paint has hardened in the container overnight, then you HAD a hardener in there, lol. The pot life of cataylzed paint is only a few hours. If your paint is still fluid, they probably just thinned it some for you.



Cheers.

[chip douglas]

Hum, well to test the paint i`m using i sprayed a considerable amount of it in a small cup(enough for it to create a real good peel) and hours laters, the paint was FAR from being fluid.........in fact, i had to scrape it, and even then it was not so easy to scrape.............i love that paint :bounce but God do i hate them chip repairs :(





All the best Guitarman :up

[gez]

Sorry to hijack the thread guys but how long does one have to wait before applying anothere coat of paint in hte chip???



Many thanks



Gerry