What's a good clear coat?

I have found that the clear from Napa works the best for rattle can clear. It is called U-Pol and I used it on the 2 baseball helmets I did. When it is cured, there is no smell left. It took about 2 days to be odour free.
Be advised that it is also very expensive.....about $25 for a 450ml can. You do get what you pay for though. I had a great shine after only 2 coats.
Heres the link.....http://www.airbrushforum.org/works-progress-finished-artworks/5537-baseball-helmet.html
 
A few points I'd like to hit on-

DO NOT try to cut corner or cheaop out when it comes to safety equipment!!!! There are a lot of ex-painters who thought that these chemicals weren't "all that bad", and now can't walk into a room with new carpet without triggering an asthma attack, much less spray any paints. An OV-rated respirator will work, but the filters need to be changed often, which adds up quickly. A supplied-air mask is the best, safest way to go. If you can afford one, get one. If you can't afford it right now, make it a priority.

Also, the isocyanates and other wonderful petro-chemicals are also absorbed through skin, mucus membranes, and eyes. Wear nitrile (NOT latex) gloves, cover up as much skin as possible (full paint-suits can be bought for less than $20, and re-used. A wise investment, imo). Also, wear some safety goggles or something to keep the over-spray away from your eyes. Prescription glasses typically aren't enough, and besides, they tend to get trashed pretty quickly in a spray environment.

Most definitely DO NOT overlook the importance of ventilation. With enough ventilation, using proper fans, spraying 2k clears is really relatively safe. Without it, it's begging for trouble, and lots of it. Ideally, you want an enclosed area with filtered incoming air, an approved non-sparking fan with enough power, and paint arrestors to filter the exhaust (which will save a lot of headaches with pissed off neighbors, too). The non-sparking/explosion proof fan is important. Expensive, but important. The fumes, particulate, and overspray are all flammable. A normal fan, with the electric motor mounted directly to the blades, will pull all of that flammable stuff directly over the electric motor, which creates a spark with every rotation. Condensed fumes+particulates+spark is NOT a good idea.

No, it won't result in you blowing up your garage every time. And yes, lots of people have used those types of fans and not blown themselves up. But, it's the point that it's setting up a potentially dangerous situation. There is a reason OSHA and NIOSH require spray booths to have explosion-proof fans with non-sparking blades, and it's not because the inspectors enjoy climbing though exhaust walls to inspect them.

One last note on the spray-area bit- the requirement for air movement for a legal spray booth is 100 feet/minute of air "across the face of the booth". Realistically, if you can get 60 ft/min to 80 ft/min, you're fine. There are equations you can use to figure out the theoretical flow rates given your "booth" size, fan CFM, etc. I just bought a little wind-meter thingy off Amazon for $30 and use that to verify the ft/min in my booth. Then again, I'm not what you'd call a good mather. lol.


As far as good clears, there are a TON of options. My "standard" clear is Matrix MS-42. For me, it tends to resist runs and sags, lays out well, gives a good finish, and is pretty durable. With other clears, I tend to run into the problem of putting runs and sags in the clear, which, of course, leads to more work getting rid of them, lots of sanding, etc. The MS-42 just seems to agree with my painting style.

ALWAYS read and re-read the tech sheet, no matter what clear you use. With most clears, if you want a show-finish, you'll spray 2-3 coats, let it cure (typically overnight), wet sand everything completely flat, then spray another 2-3 coats. I usually let the peice "gas out" for about 24 hours after sanding and before spraying the next round. While sanding, and for a while afterwards, you'll notice the smell of the clear off-gassing.

If you've managed to lay the clear down without any runs, sags, orangle peel, or other defects, call it done. If there are imperfections (which there almost always are), you'll have to color sand and polish the clear, which is a whole other thread in itself.

Sorry if I got a little long-winded there, but, as mentioned, clear coating is a whole artform in itself, and there is a lot of info you really need to be aware of before you start playing with it. Also, common sense is a must. I remember one idiot trying clear coat motorcycle parts in the bathroom of his apartment. That he shared with his girlfriend AND children. He wound up giving himself iso-poisoning and being hospitalised, and ending his short-lived painting career. Hopefully, the rest of his household managed to avoid of negative effects from contact with the chemicals...
 
Dont apologize.....Super advise to give......

thanks.

I almost forgot about the spray gun thing, too. In my embarrassingly extensive Harbor Freight expirience, I can say that most of there spray guns will work pretty well. Once. After that, they tend to go downhill quickly. If you're lucky, you might be able to squeeze an entire job out of one before it's ready for the garbage can. So, yes, in a pinch, they work. I've seen people claim/brag that all they use are Harbor Freight guns, and that they spray just as well as a $700 Iwata or SATA. If you ask these people to post pics of their work, it usually becomes glaringly obvious that they suck. And, in those cases, they may be right. A $15 Harbor Freight special is probably all the spray gun there talent and skill level can handle.

SATA and Iwata are probably the best-known spray guns, and are priced to match, so I'll skip over those for now (although they are great guns if you've got the money).

In my expirience, the actually "good" spray guns usually start around the $200 mark for mini-guns. If you're painting helmets, MC parts, and small items like that, a mini-gun will be all you need. Especially if you have a smaller compressor. My current favorite clear-coating gun is my ANI R1 HPS, which cost around $225. For clearing, I much prefer a conventional or compliant gun to an HVLP. The high air pressure helps to atomize and break up the clear better, which results in a smoother, more even coat. The Ani R1 is available in conventional (high pressure), HPS (compliant- higher pressure than an HVLP, but still maintains the 65% transfer rate), and HVLP. Any of them can be had with a chrome finish, a matte black, and one other option I'm forgetting. lol. Anyway, very nice guns for pretty reasonable money. I forget the exact CFM ratings, but they are pretty reasonable as well. The one drawback is that they can be tough to find in the States. I had to order mine through ANI-USA directly.

Another nice mini is the Asturo 878WB. They start around $170-ish. They use very low air consumption, which is especially good if you don't have a full-size compressor. They are HVLP, but with 8 air jets on the cap, atomize the clear or paint pretty well. Plus, you can set the fan on these wider than on some full-size guns. They aren't the prettiest guns to look at, but they do work really well, and offer a nice, versatile mini-gun option. The difference between these and the cheaper mini-guns is pretty vast. Going from a chinese-made mini (like HF guns, any hardware store guns, etc) to one of these is like night and day. Once you try one, you'll be kicking yourself for spending money on those HF guns (trust me. lol).
 
i am going to take your advise dragon on the acount i am also thinking of doing helmets and bikes and i can say after my shakey start airbrushing il stick to a good clearing gun when im ready. i wanted to throw this out to the forum members i was at staples and they were doing a lamination on a photo and i wanted to know the best way to clear a piece of poster board im going to try to laminate it il paint a couple of diferent pieces all the same size as the paint pals and laminate the whole thing this way il have a bunch of s,mall protected pieces to carry around with in case i come across any bikerish people to show as an example of my work
 
if you don't have the option or desire of purchasing the spray gun, spraymax has an aerosol 2k can, both gloss and flat, that i have used on my motorcycle to really nice results. no clean up but you only get a limited time to shoot. take the good with the bad.
 
http://www.matthewspaint.com/Products/Clears/Matthews-Paint/Conventional/Clear-Gloss-42-208SP.aspx
Nothing better if your panels going to sit outside. I've seen a ton of south facing florida signage 10 years old with almost no detectable color fade under this.

An HF gun will do you OK.... They really do spray ALMOST as well as a more expensive guns, once, especially if you dont have the experience to spray well enough to really reduce the amount of sanding and buffing you'll be doing anyhow. Like has been said already..... you'll buy a gun per job.... The surface finish on the inside isn't great.. so they just don't clean up that well I guess, Idk what it is but they go downhill quick.


These are nice
https://www.stockwiseauto.com/3m-co...vl9iWPAOmdZmIBp-IaAlX3EALw_wcB&gsID=p2192411&

Astros are decent budget guns that will last a while at $100

SATAs great If your entire living is painting cars
 
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I just recently became aware that you can now get the Iwata w400 classics for like $200
Certainly what ill be looking at in my next full size gun
Can't go wrong with that guy
Still an astro euro works every bit as well at half the price if the biggest thing your shooting is no bigger than a door or two. They are just much slower. Probably a good thing for most projects you'd run into here and they dont use gaskets on the head, just metal to metal seal.
 
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