Automotive finishes?

[Mike Seals]

I've painted more cars than I could shake a stick at and I've used automotive paint for some wood products. But I'm wondering has anyone done any clear coats with automive clear. It has a fast dry time, that can controlled by the activator/reducer. The finish will strech and shrink as in the bumper flex and the hood temperatures.

I have a few gallons of Dupont clears laying around and was thinking of shooting some for kicks. Has anyone done this with any success?

[Mike Hollingsworth]

A buddy of mine owns a body shop and does some first rate restorations. He sprays old wooden steering wheels with Automotive products. They turn out beautiful. No flex necessary.

Mike

[Jim Becker]

Well...as long as you can spray it SAFELY...as in proper personal protection and a safe environment to work in.

[David Wilson]

Afriend who owns a body shop did a clear coat job on my kayakhttp://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=42279&d=1152285381

[Matt P]

Nice looking kayak..

[Monte Milanuk]

I've seen it used on a number of rifle stocks... seems to be *very* durable on laminates, and the UV protection helps prevent fading of the colors...

http://accurateshooter.net/GOTW/dekortbigx640.jpg

Not mine... wish it were, though. :D

[Ernie Kuhn]

Hey Monte,
Is that the kind of rifle you guys use for hunting the moutain goats accross from Lincoln Rock State Park?
Just kidding,
Ernie

[Joe Jensen]

I've painted more cars than I could shake a stick at and I've used automotive paint for some wood products. But I'm wondering has anyone done any clear coats with automive clear. It has a fast dry time, that can controlled by the activator/reducer. The finish will strech and shrink as in the bumper flex and the hood temperatures.

I have a few gallons of Dupont clears laying around and was thinking of shooting some for kicks. Has anyone done this with any success?

No reason why not. In my experience, for film coatings they are superior. But, they are WAY expensive. I was going to do some black lacquer look for a project for my church. Went to the auto paint store to buy qt of whatever the guy said was best for wood (flex additives, etc). 1qt was over $100 :eek: .

I ended up buying a gallon of Sherwin Williams black lacquer for like $25 instead.

[Monte Milanuk]

Hey Monte,
Is that the kind of rifle you guys use for hunting the moutain goats accross from Lincoln Rock State Park?


Nah, thats what we use for F-Class matches either up at Fancher Heights or down at Rattlesnake (just north of Horn Rapids) out to 1000yds. Fun stuff.

Gotta be sneakier for the mtn goats (just kidding!).

[Mike Seals]

No reason why not. In my experience, for film coatings they are superior. But, they are WAY expensive. I was going to do some black lacquer look for a project for my church. Went to the auto paint store to buy qt of whatever the guy said was best for wood (flex additives, etc). 1qt was over $100 :eek: .

I ended up buying a gallon of Sherwin Williams black lacquer for like $25 instead.

Time is money.
No need for the flex additives, that's old school. The paints today will flex fine on their own. The piant store I deal with gives me some good prices, but it is expensive. The trade off is in the drying time. The clears will flash in about 15 minutes and depending on your mixing, can be handled in an hour. If you need a good durable shine think about the trade off. Two or three coats, fifteen minutes between coats and one hour dry time and you are ready to go.
I've used automotive for painting speaker boxes, but thats over MDF and it serves a good purpose for sealing. I've just never shot the clear on wood. I've painted cars for kicks for about the last twenty years and have several gallons of left overs. If the weather holds out this weekend, I'm going to try some on a few pieces and see how it comes out.

The gun stock looks good, what kind of wood is that?

[Monte Milanuk]

Most places use some flavor of Rutland ply; I think it's made from birch.

The place that particular stock came from...

www.masterclassstocks.com

One of my favorites (I've had two very nice stocks from them... one an electric-blue-n-black laminate like in the pic, the other figured walnut w/ curls and ray-flaking)

www.mcgeestocks.com