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Single Stage Paint- Any reason not to?

16K views 26 replies 23 participants last post by  Klutch 
#1 ·
I have decided (for this week anyway:smile2:) to paint my 64.5 vert Raven Black. I was oringinally thinking I would do a BC/CC, but the shop that is painting my car has suggested doing single stage instead. I have seen a few cars that they've painted black in single stage and they came out really nice- very deep "wet" looking blacks.

They said that there should be no difference in durability, single stage should be easier to touch up/repair and that single stage is a lot less expensive in terms of labor and materials. This car is not going to be a daily driver and will probably spend 6 months a year parked in the garage and I (unfortunately) don't live in a hot sunny tropical climate, so UV exposure isn't a huge concern.

Thoughts?
 
#3 ·
Having the same thoughts as I near final body prep and such. Weekend car, no shows etc.
 
#4 · (Edited)
The modern single stage urethanes have uv additives in them and they look pretty good. I'm also planning to shoot my car in black single stage, probably PPG urethane, Concept or Dietzlers which they brought back.

Since you slowly wear the paint down over time with compounding out haze and polishing, you need to spray more coats to build it up. It is a bit more delicate perhaps than a base/clear but my car is a fair weather, non-daily driver and it is garaged out of the elements so I think it will hold up just fine.

My 79 F150 is single stage and I have to put on a good buffing polish about once a year. It sits outside parked in my yard. It has held up for around 8 years so far with no major problems. It was also a cheap acrylic enamel paint which is hard, brittle and has a tendency to chip easier than urethane would. Still it has worked fine for my truck.
 
#5 ·
Another timely post. My original plan was single stage, and the first coat is single stage while the car is being partially assembled. A final coat was planned while major parts were installed and panel gaps were adjusted. Lately I've been considering going the base/clear route. I'm hoping some really smart painters jump in :)
 
#10 ·
I use to order Kirker single stage. Been so long don't even know if there still in business.. Not that expensive and could get a really smooth/slick shine with it. Painted a BOSS 302 Grabber blue one time with the single stage and was one of the best looking paint jobs i done..
 
#15 ·
When I was in the trucking business, I used Kirker single stage with hardener on quite a few trucks, easy to lay down, held up very well, looked pretty good. Recently, I painted my Dakota PU with Restoration Shop (TCP Global) acrylic enamel with hardener. Although it has been over 25 years since I sprayed any paint, I am more than pleased with the results. Since I am a bit rusty, I had a couple of sags which I sanded and buffed after a week of curing, turned out good. To get to the point, single stage will do the job very nicely.
 
#16 · (Edited)
If you live in Cali, you have no choice for any color...it has to be 2 stage. First stage is water based color...no fake (regulations to reduce VOCs)...second stage is clear coat urethane or some other Cali friendly clear coat. In 2003 before water coloring, I had my car painted black single stage and I had a few experienced folks tell me to single stage it since it was going to be painted black.

Tracy Blackford
Anaheim, CA
http://www.pacificthunderperformance.com

65 Mustang FB, 331 custom built with 289 H beam rods and 383W piston, 282S cam, self ported '70 351w heads, Dougs Tri-Y headers. 1.7 shaft rockers and 26986 beehives. Hurricane Single Plane and custom 750 HP. T5z and 3.50 9" posi rear.
430 HP @ 6500...not too shabby for old school heads!
:cheers:
 
#19 ·
If you live in Cali, you have no choice for any color...it has to be 2 stage. First stage is water based color...no fake (regulations to reduce VOCs)...second stage is clear coat urethane or some other Cali friendly clear coat. In 2003 before water coloring, I had my car painted black single stage and I had a few experienced folks tell me to single stage it since it was going to be painted black.

Tracy Blackford
Anaheim, CA
Pacific Thunder Performance Engineering ? Pacific Thunder Performance Engineering Inc

65 Mustang FB, 331 custom built with 289 H beam rods and 383W piston, 282S cam, self ported '70 351w heads, Dougs Tri-Y headers. 1.7 shaft rockers and 26986 beehives. Hurricane Single Plane and custom 750 HP. T5z and 3.50 9" posi rear.
430 HP @ 6500...not too shabby for old school heads!
:cheers:
i live in cali but i dont buy may paint in cali.
 
#17 ·
I personally would stay away from "Majic" paint or other tractor supply type paints. I have painted SEVERAL vehicles with such paint and over time they have faded and become chalky, especially any darker colors. I use to praise those paints but when looking at reality and the cost/time to prep it is no longer worth it to use such paint. Yes, you can clear over it but then basically you are doing a BC/CC type work and the alkyd paint can take forever to dry/cure. What I do suggest now is PPG Delfleet Essential. It is a "commercial" type paint but is VERY easy to use, painter friendly, single stage. It goes on smooth and gets hard. It stays durable and holds a nice gloss. You can spray it in a windless garage using a few box fans and a good respirator. I even lay it down with a cheaper HVLP from HF. Yes, you do get some orange peel but after a good cure period (I let mine sit at least 7 days) it wet sands out. I just shot a whole car the other day with it including inside, dash, hood, everything, I took about 2.5 quarts to lay down 5 coats over epoxy primer. Total I had about $125 into the paint, hardner, etc. The only drawback is that it has a limited palette range of like 250 colors but I am sure you can find a color you like. Good luck!
 
#23 ·
Don't mean to HiJack but I have a question...Does Lime Gold have metallic in it? It's my cars original colour and I'll be going back soon. Just never seen the colour in person. I've seen the "new old" lime colour on the newer fords but I don't know if that's it or a revamped colour.

BTW I plan on using a SS that's why I'm asking.

And +1 on the PPG Delfleet. I used their ESU 430 epoxy and it was great to work with! PLUS it's a 1:1 so it's a pretty good value. I actually rolled it on and your wouldn't know.
 
#24 · (Edited)
My budget I went with singe stage from Maaco. We did all the body work and prep. They did the car, door jams and trunk lid for less than 1000 dollars and that included a second wet sand and a sealer first. I just could not afford an expensive paint job and the car is gonna be a driver anyway. My other option was spraying it myself in the driveway which I have done before, but they did a great job in my opinion. The shop I took it to has a good reputation around here. There was one flaw in the hood I pointed out and they are respraying that for free. I think single stage is fine.
 

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#25 ·
Some thoughts on single stage vs BC/CC.

What you need to take into account is what 'patina' are you shooting for?

The factory paint looked nice, but it was not any real deep gloss. It was just a quick paint job on a low cost car. It had a decent gloss, but no where near modern standards.

The problem with BC/CC is it always has a super gloss and depth. It looks plastic and out of place on a Mustang for people that know what the paint should look like.

Now for the kicker, a properly applied single stage like Concept will have a pretty deep gloss. To get closer to the correct look you need to buff it out. This is how Model A restorers handle work to get the buffed lacquer look. They go one step further with having to spray on flattener in places like the jambs and the firewall.

So it kind of comes down to what look do you want.
 
#26 ·
Good point. 1st pic is right after spraying the panel with 1K AE. 2nd pic is after buffing, got the right patina, but not an exact color match due to the original paint being slightly faded.


 
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