Results/Thoughts: Applying Opti-Seal/Opti-Coat with an Air Brush

**SuperBee364** · 10-13-2011, 03:40 PM

This:

Came yesterday afternoon. It`s a Paasche Talon Dual Action air brush. Spent several hours last night spraying distilled water through it, trying to get the hang of the "Fan Air Cap" it comes with. This particular air cap is meant to give a spray pattern similar to an HVLP mini-gun. Turns out, it does a fairly nice job of it.

So today I gave the Charger a thorough washing, removing all remnants of LSP. I then wiped each panel down with a 50/50 IPA/distilled water mix prior to spraying each panel with Opti-Seal.

The good news:

The process was quick, easy, and the results were fantastic.

The bad news:

The compressor I bought with the air brush is puny. It`s not capable of delivering enough pressure to get the droplet size down as small as I`d like. While it`s not a complete deal killer, it does cause you to use much more product than I`d like. Yeah, I expected to use a lot more product, but I ended up using about 3 ounces to cover the entire vehicle (I did the glass, trim, everything except the wheels). In order for this to be a viable technique for Opti-COAT, I`m gonna need a bigger compressor to get the pressure up and the droplet size down.

Tip: if you`re thinking about getting an airbrush or HVLP mini gun to apply WOWA sealants or Opti-Coat, do yourself a favor: Skip the expensive (and puny) dedicated air brush compressor, and grab a small pancake compressor from Sears, Home Depot, or Lowes. They are less expensive than a good air brush compressor, too. You`ll end up with a far more versatile tool, as well.

My car hasn`t seen the business end of a polisher in quite a while, so these pictures don`t quite do justice to how well I imagine a properly polished vehicle would look after spraying, but it still looked *darn* good. Wish my photography skills were better, as these pictures really don`t look as good as it does in person. (No jokes about the wheels... this was not a "proper" detailing, just an experiment in spraying).

A few thoughts on the process...

At first I was very concerned about over-application (as I always am with WOWA products). I used a minimum of product, but noticed that my droplet size wasn`t small enough to get good, even coverage unless I used a bit more product (larger droplet sizes mean you have to use more product to achieve an even coat). So I went big... applying a coat that looked noticeably "wet". I noticed "high spots" that failed to quickly flash over. Rather than panic, grab an MF, and start wiping, I decided to wait. Turns out that was, surprisingly, the best thing to do; high spots did eventually cure, and the results from a "wet" coat look fantastic. If you happen to notice rainbow-y areas (high spots or areas of over application) when you`re doing this, don`t stress... just give it time, and they`ll eventually flash over.

Next week, I`ll probably go shopping for a pancake air compressor, as there`s no way I`m gonna use 3 ounces of Opti-COAT on a car!

Opti-Seal really does a great job of popping the flake in my metallic paint... wow. Wish the pictures would have caught the pop.

I`m very impressed with the Paasche Talon air brush. :2thumbs:

Edit: Sheesh, forgot to "give credit where credit is due"! Huuge thanks to Anthony Orosco for this idea and the great information he provided on how to get it done!

Another Edit: I hope Bence doesn`t mind that I`ve taken the liberty of stealing something he posted on another forum to help describe the look of Opti-Seal. Ah well, it`s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, right?

Bence pretty well sums up exactly how I feel the OS looks, but couldn`t quite put in to words. Here`s what he said: "It is a subjective thing but after using both the OOS and the UPGP I think that the OOS looks better. The Ultima looks wet and classy only from flatter angles, from wher the surface has a nice glow and shimmer, otherwise it is losing something undefinied when the viewing angles start to grow. OOS look excellent from right angles too, so it wins in my book."

That`s pretty much my opinion, as well. One sprayed-on coat doesn`t really give the "thicker clear coat" look, but it really pops the flake and shows off the gloss when looked at straight on. As the viewing angle grows, the reflectivity steals the show.

Looks wise, OS is a stunner for sure.

**SuperBee364** · 10-13-2011, 03:43 PM

Reserved for more opti-seal and opti-coat results.

**Deep Gloss Auto Salon** · 10-13-2011, 03:46 PM

Thanks for the review SB!

I have been playing with the idea of begining to spray on opti-coat as welll..... Only thing holding me back is I have a pretty great application method (after trying a few).

PS: Good to see you back posting, I`ve always appreciated your perspective

**RaskyR1** · 10-13-2011, 03:49 PM

Thanks for the update Bee! If I get some time this weekend I`ll try and tweak my gun again and give it another shot.

**SuperBee364** · 10-13-2011, 04:06 PM

Originally Posted by Deep Gloss Auto Salon

Thanks for the review SB!

I have been playing with the idea of begining to spray on opti-coat as welll..... Only thing holding me back is I have a pretty great application method (after trying a few).

PS: Good to see you back posting, I`ve always appreciated your perspective

Thanks, Jason.

Honestly, I never would have pursued this if I was able to achieve good results with "Wiping on, walking away." For some reason, I`ve never been able to get WOWA`s down to where they looked good enough. But now my car looks like someone sprayed it with a layer of liquid glass.

Edit: I probably should mention that the entire process (and I went slowly) took about 30 minutes. I think it`s reasonable to get it down to 15 minutes with practice. That`s a ton less time than what the LSP step normally takes me.

Originally Posted by RaskyR1

Thanks for the update Bee! If I get some time this weekend I`ll try and tweak my gun again and give it another shot.

Anxious to hear your results, Rasky. Also anxious to get after it with the Opti-Coat... syringe is sitting on the counter... taunting me...

**Dan** · 10-13-2011, 05:01 PM

I checked the MSDS for OptiCoat and I don`t see a solvent listed, as that would be nice to dilute the Opticoat for spraying purposes. While I think you`ll get good coverage, I think you`ll end up using a lot more. Would be interesting to see how thick you can get it by hand vs sprayer though.

**C. Charles Hahn** · 10-13-2011, 05:03 PM

Awesome SB... I think I`m going to be picking up one of those Paasche air brushes to play with

:

**SuperBee364** · 10-13-2011, 05:21 PM

Originally Posted by Dan

I checked the MSDS for OptiCoat and I don`t see a solvent listed, as that would be nice to dilute the Opticoat for spraying purposes. While I think you`ll get good coverage, I think you`ll end up using a lot more. Would be interesting to see how thick you can get it by hand vs sprayer though.

Anthony Orosco says he can get about two 911 sized vehicles out of one Opti-Coat syringe when sprayed on. I don`t doubt him a bit. My droplet size was just too big to get an even coat without using substantially more product. Paasche recommends a minimum of 20 psi for best results with the fan air cap, and my tiny little compressor stabilizes at a meager 12 psi while using the fan air cap. I could just drop down to a smaller needle/cap, but that would mean going back to a cone shaped spray pattern rather than the fan pattern. I`ll probably give it a shot, though, just for grins. With the small .25 mm tip/needle combo, I`d imagine you could cover a bunch of cars with one syringe of Opti-coat. The fan air cap uses a .66 mm needle/tip.

This was just the first attempt, there`s still a bunch of experimenting left to go before the Opti-COAT gets sprayed on. I`m not gonna attempt Opti-Coat until I can cover my entire car with less than 20 cc`s of Opti-Seal first.

Originally Posted by Shiny Lil Detlr

Awesome SB... I think I`m going to be picking up one of those Paasche air brushes to play with

:

Just don`t let the wife know you got one. Mine has already started picking out painting projects to add to my already rather long Honey-Do list.

**NWS Alpine** · 10-13-2011, 05:23 PM

Wow 3 oz of opti coat would be 5 tubes! I hope it can be reduced a ton by using a better compressor.

**SuperBee364** · 10-13-2011, 05:29 PM

Originally Posted by NWS Alpine

Wow 3 oz of opti coat would be 5 tubes! I hope it can be reduced a ton by using a better compressor.

I`m sure it can, thankfully.

There`s two different ways to go about using less product, both depend upon getting a smaller droplet size:

1. Stick with the .66 mm tip/needle/fan aircap with a bunch more pressure.

2. Use the same compressor, and drop down to a smaller tip/needle combination.

I gotta go out of town for the next three days, but when I get back next week, the car is going to get stripped and re-sprayed. I`m planning on going down to the smallest needle/tip combination the kit comes with (.25 mm) to see if I can cover the entire car in less than 20 cc`s of Opti-Seal.

**C. Charles Hahn** · 10-13-2011, 05:47 PM

Originally Posted by SuperBee364

Just don`t let the wife know you got one. Mine has already started picking out painting projects to add to my already rather long Honey-Do list.

Don`t have a wife.... but I`ve got a plenty long list of projects

**SuperBee364** · 10-14-2011, 10:11 AM

Originally Posted by Dan

I checked the MSDS for OptiCoat and I don`t see a solvent listed, as that would be nice to dilute the Opticoat for spraying purposes. While I think you`ll get good coverage, I think you`ll end up using a lot more. Would be interesting to see how thick you can get it by hand vs sprayer though.

Dan, I`ve been thinking about this quite a bit since you posted it yesterday...

There`s no doubt that you can get it much thicker by spraying vs. by hand, but the question remains as to exactly how thick is *too* thick. Several guys have mentioned that, when applying by hand, high areas are quite noticeable. One guy (sorry, I can`t remember who, as I`ve read so many posts about Opti-Coat names are getting jumbled in the head) said that high areas look a bit "opaque". Hmmm. That can`t be good. Opacity is the last thing you want, IMO. If Opti-Coat tends to go opaque when the coating gets too thick, then the idea would be to get it thick enough to give you a nice, resilient coating, but not so thick as to detract from the overall look (opacity). When spraying, the total coating thickness is limited by the viscosity of the stuff you`re spraying; when it starts to freely run, you`re past it`s thickness limit. As a guess, I`d bet you could get Opti-Coat on *thick* by spraying. Like an entire 3 oz(!). The question is whether or not you`d start to enter the opaque realm by doing so. Not to mention the fact that I`d hate to foot the bill for 3 oz of Opti-Coat!

The magic is going to be attempting to find the "sweet spot": A nicely even coating, thick enough to give maximum protection and resiliency without having the look affected by any opacity caused by the layer being *too* thick. If I had the funds, I`d spray an entire 3 oz of Opti-Coat on the car just to see how it would look at such a thickness. I kinda have a feeling, though, that Dr. G formulated Opti-Coat to give maximum results at thinner layer thicknesses, so going much thicker than what you`d get by applying by hand is just overkill.

The primary reason I`m spraying it on is not necessarily to get a thicker coating, but rather to have a more *even* coating than I could achieve by hand application.

There`s a bit of a "change of mindset" here... instead of thinking of LSP application, I think it`s more appropriate to "change the mindset" to painting. Spraying on a paint can give a much smoother, even coating than a brush, roller, or any other "rub it on" type of application. What we`re doing here with WOWA`s (Opti-Coat can be grouped with the WOWa`s, really, even though it`s permanent, the procedure is the same) is pretty much painting a layer of stuff on to the clear coat.

For those that struggle to get good WOWA results, spraying just might be the ticket for them. For those that are already getting good/great results wiping it on, it`s an alternative method that *might* give a better result. Too many variables to know for sure.

I`d love to see Optimum release a version of Opti-Coat that is specifically formulated for spray application, but the total market for such a formulation might be kinda limited.