Yes another Blue paint thread... with a twist. (Calling da Bat and other paint gurus)

[Usudno]

So i have a family friend that has an auto collision shop. He has painted each of our past restorations. I spoke with him for the first time today about colors and the process of painting the car. We both agreed that me doing the grunt work (grinding down parting lines, adjusting cutouts, minor fitting) would save a bit of labor. We then jumped to colors and the painting process. He told me to get him a list of colors that i was thinking about and he could quote each one. He mentioned that the process varies from color to color. My color choices as of now are as follows.

Lexus Indigo Ink
Lexus Spectre Mica Blue
Ford Sonic Blue (im thinking to much purple but an old photo of Dave Smith's car looks fantastic)
Ford Deep Impact Blue

All will have white stripes.

My question is... Of these colors, what should i be looking at as far as cost between these different colors and do any of the colors require extra steps or would they be more difficult to apply.

I'm sure da Bat or Jeff may be the best to answer this.

Thanks

[edwardb]

I'm not the Bat or Jeff, but will respond with a couple points based on my experience. I don't believe the basic body prep or products used will vary based on the colors you've listed. There is definitely a difference in material cost based on the color chosen (red vs. blue, metallic vs. non-metallic, etc.) but I don't know how much that will vary in those specific colors. If any of those colors are tri-coats that will affect labor and material cost. I would expect that to be the biggest potential difference. What that means in dollars and cents I couldn't answer. Personally, I would avoid a tri-coat. For my first build, I was planning to do a color that turned out to be a tri-coat (Chrysler Inferno Red) and my painter recommended against it due to the difficulty to repair. I followed his recommendation and went another direction.

[Usudno]

edwardb, That's exactly what I am asking, I'm sure the paint on my wife's yukon (white diamond tricoat) is more labor intensive and material costs are higher than say just a grey paint job. Based off of my color options I just would like to know if one is much more than the other. If they are all within a few hundred dollars for both the labor and materials then it wouldn't make a difference. If I am talking about 400 more for paint material and two more steps and 1000 more in labor then I may make a concession. Thanks for the help edwardb.

[Usudno]

Just an FYI

my inspiration is as follows61038

[DadofThree]

Just an FYI

my inspiration is as follows61038

Mine too. :)

[Usudno]

DadofThree. I would love to run the 15" wheels with big sidewalls like that but factory five had the special on 17s and 18s when I ordered my kit. Other than that... I plan to look just like that picture. I have tried to find out what color it is but it's off of a 3D rendering website.

[FMJ]

My inspiration.

6103961040

[Usudno]

Nice FMJ

[j.miller]

Those blues should all be very close in price. There is a Mica that can drive up the price called X pearl but I don't think any of those have it. not sure about a different process......they all feel the same to me! Spectra is the cleanest blue with the least amount of change in the off light. Indigo gets very dark (a little purple) in the off light. A linen or cotton white works well. Not a fan of the Arctic white, tends to overpower the rest of the paintjob...da Bat

[Jeff Kleiner]

I have not done any of the other colors on your list but have sprayed Lexus Spectra Blue Mica on a roadster (as well as FMJ's Guardsman Blue car ;)). Using PPG Omni Plus the base color for Spectra Blue was in the $400 per gallon range + or - which is middle of the road.

There are lots of variables; the mid lines like Omni Plus will generally produce great results without having to step up to the highest end products at 1.5 to 2 times the price (Deltron in PPG for instance). Some low demand colors are only formulated in the highest end lines and others such as the Guardsman Blue on FMJ's car are only available in the low or high end but not the middle (As an FYI I did Fred's in Deltron because even though both it and Deltron were "Guardsman Blue" the mix for the lower end Omni line had fewer toners and only one size of metal flake vs. 2 for the higher end paint.

I can't speak for everyone but I charge the same for 2 stage BC/CC regardless of the color. Three stage or colors that require a specific undercoat (I've done a burnt orange/copper that had to be sprayed over black) are a different story.

Jeff

[Usudno]

Thanks Jeff. Those were precisely the answers o was looking for. He did ask me about clear coat. He mentioned depending on the type used that coast could go up. It was a brief conversation but what would your recommendation be?

[Paintwerks]

Another pro painter here. Three of the four colours are Group 1, which is the cheapest in terms of price. Sonic Blue is a Group two. There's probably about US$300-350 difference per gallon (in PPG Deltron) between groups one and two.

All four colours would likely use the same ground coat for optimal coverage. In PPG Deltron that'd likely be a graymatic 5 or 6. There would be absolutely no difference in price between the colours for prepping and they'd each likely use the same amount of material for coverage and they're all standard 2 layer colours. If you want a 3 layer, get one. A three layer can be matched with no issue as long as the painter has at least some skills. Any repair to the body of a Cobra (no matter how small) will necessitate a full re-clearing of the body unless you're prepared to cut corners and blend the clearcoat (not recommended) as at some point it will start to delaminate which will require a full repaint of the body.

[Jeff Kleiner]

Thanks Jeff. Those were precisely the answers o was looking for. He did ask me about clear coat. He mentioned depending on the type used that coast could go up. It was a brief conversation but what would your recommendation be?

I've used PPG's Velocity clears with good results but switched to 5 Star "Extreme Glamour Kleercoat" a few years ago and love it! My friend Miller used to shoot it also until the California air regulations took it away from him. It's about half the price of PPG (which customers appreciate) but even if the cost was the same I'd still use it 'cause the stuff just goes down so nice :) It keeps laying down for 24 hours so isn't what a production shop like your friend with the collision center would ordinarily want but for those of us who don't need to spray it in the morning and deliver the car that same afternoon it's great! Here it is straight out of the gun before cut & buff:

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj43/jkleiner/Fred%20J/100_5534.jpg

It's durable; I've got cars out there that are 4+ years in with a lot of miles and they still look new. As much as I like the 5 Star I can't ignore the good things I have heard about Southern Polyuerethanes Clear and might give it a try sometime.

Good luck,
Jeff