Paint durability?????

[new2novas]

I finished spraying my front end with omni single stage semi gloss...so i was putting on my upper control arms and accidently hit the downtube with the ratchet, not super hard, but it made noise...and it made a chip....i thought it would be a little more durable than that....what gives

[72GreenRally]

If am not mistaken, Omni is not acrylic enamel, it is straight enamel. Also, did you use a hardener in it? Hardener will make it a bit more durable. If the impact was "just right" it may not have mattered what paint you used. It would chip. There are many other factors to paint durability than just the paint. How well was the surface prepped before you painted? What did you spray the paint over? Primer or bare metal?

Randy (everything matters when dealing with paint);)

[Joe]

I thought Omni was a Urethane Product?I have not used it.
Joe

[paulanntim]

The paint might have not been fully cured. If I'm not mistaken some paints can take up to 30 days or more to fully cure.

[Maxturbo]

Another probable cause...Urethane paints ARE durable and especially abrasion resistant due to the paint's hardness. Unfortunately, you give up paint flexibility and get a more brittle paint that isn't as forgiving to impact. :(

[72GreenRally]

OK, you piqued my curiosity, so I looked it up. Omni is a economy PPG product. It can be either A/E or A/U. It can also be a low VOC paint. On the PPG website, it says the A/E can be "upgraded" to a two component technology if desired. That means you can use it without the hardener, but if you want it to be really good, then use the hardener. It is kind of like the ads for one of the "quicky" paint chains that advertised that you could upgrade the paint with an urethane additive.

Paint is like fiberglass resin. It will dry without the catalyst, but it won't have full strength or durability. Once the catalyst is added, it causes a chemical reaction that causes the resin to be very hard, strong and durable.

Randy

[69SSAcadian]

I finished spraying my front end with omni single stage semi gloss...so i was putting on my upper control arms and accidently hit the downtube with the ratchet, not super hard, but it made noise...and it made a chip....i thought it would be a little more durable than that....what gives

Did it chip down to the metal or primer? Just wondering if you may have lost some adhesion.

[Joe]

72Green,
Thanks for the Info,I really didn't know.Sounds like one of those Products that is Really a Modified Enamel.As you Said,Chip Resistance relies on Many Things.When I was a Young Painter Emron was the Hot Item.That was some Tough Paint but what was under it had to be right.
Joe

[new2novas]

i did use hardener with it, i mixed to a 4:1:1 paint,hardener,reducer...basecoat is epoxy, then filler, then high build then the paint, all omni products...i thought about possibly having not cured as well, it has been cold and all i did was have it under lamps and a small propane heater for an hour, then cold....


Did it chip down to the metal or primer?

primer thank god...

[evldoer]

I have had bad luck with omni, it really seems to chip easier than other stuff. But I do think as fresh as the paint was might have something to do with it. I do all of my suspension stuff with emron now, I think it is the next best thing to powder coating.

[72GreenRally]

It could be that it was just way too fresh. Temperature will affect how fast the paint cures. When you are assembling freshly painted parts, putting masking tape on anything that may impact the paint is a life saver!!!

I do all of my suspension stuff with emron now, I think it is the next best thing to powder coating.
Is Emron different than DuPont Imron? The most durable paint that I know of that is not strickly an industrial paint is PPG Durathane. This stuff was designed for use on aircraft, so it has to be pretty tough!!

Randy

[evldoer]

I meant Imron, by Dupont. This stuff was originally made for big trucks that are on the road all the time out in the weather.

[72GreenRally]

I used to sell them both. They both are pretty tough, but Durathane is a bit tougher. The price reflected to too.

Randy (ever try to do a repair on Imron?):shh: