Imola 3 stage paint question...

[Erik B]

So Im having my paint guy paint my front lip because it had 3 tiny rock chips on it from the previous owner (Im so anal huh..lol). Well he was telling me about the 3 stage paint the car has or something like that and I really didnt get it. Can anyone explain the process or know of a link that explains it some? I checked wiki and did a search but didnt really come up with anything.

Thanks,
Erik B

 

[ImolaOrange03]

So Im having my paint guy paint my front lip because it had 3 tiny rock chips on it from the previous owner (Im so anal huh..lol). Well he was telling me about the 3 stage paint the car has or something like that and I really didnt get it. Can anyone explain the process or know of a link that explains it some? I checked wiki and did a search but didnt really come up with anything.

Thanks,
Erik B

Try this one...

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifications-accessories/24662-pearlascent-paint-options.html

 

[Erik B]

Stage I: Base Coat - Usually a Solid Color Coat which gives the final color its hue which you normally see when the car is in shade.

Stage II: Ground Coat - This is the coat with the pearlascent tinter in it which gives it the shifting effect, pearls are available in colors like red, green, gold, violet, etc which give it the shiny and shifting look.

Stage III: Top Coat - The clear coat.

Is what I was looking for! Perfect thanks man!

 

[Big_D]

You know as soon as you have it repainted your going to get some more rock chips...not worth in IMO. But its your $$$ :smile:

 

[Erik B]

and itll get fixed in a few months :biggrin:

 

[enkrypt3d]

is this the same process that honda uses to paint the colors like Imola orange and midnight pearl?

 

[Erik B]

is this the same process that honda uses to paint the colors like Imola orange and midnight pearl?

And thats pretty much why I posted this topic. Althought i dont think Honda themselves paint the car, I cant see the process being any diff but I could be wrong. It seems liek some of the best painters still cant match that OEM look. Ill post pics once I get it back to show u how it came out. Although with the Imola and a lot of 3 stage paints I have noticed that certain angles make it look like the color doesnt match. Even in person sometimes it looks off but as you walk around it, it just blends in to make the nicest NSX color ever made! :biggrin: (had to get that in there...lol)

 

[enkrypt3d]

And thats pretty much why I posted this topic. Althought i dont think Honda themselves paint the car, I cant see the process being any diff but I could be wrong. It seems liek some of the best painters still cant match that OEM look. Ill post pics once I get it back to show u how it came out. Although with the Imola and a lot of 3 stage paints I have noticed that certain angles make it look like the color doesnt match. Even in person sometimes it looks off but as you walk around it, it just blends in to make the nicest NSX color ever made! :biggrin: (had to get that in there...lol)

yea i take that back. If I remember correctly, I think honda dips the entire chassis into a bath of paint with the body electrostatically charged so the paint sticks to the car in all the nooks and hard to reach places...

as for the body panels, im not sure how they do it. I would love to repaint my car but it would cost me about $10K

 

[Veleno]

is this the same process that honda uses to paint the colors like Imola orange and midnight pearl?

If I'm not mistaken Honda paints in more stages than 3. More like 27 http://www.nsxprime.com/Gallery/press/tidh/tidh-20.htm

 

[LJSB]

i dont think Honda themselves paint the car

Who do you think does or rather did?

 

[LJSB]

If I'm not mistaken Honda paints in more stages than 3. More like 27 http://www.nsxprime.com/Gallery/press/tidh/tidh-20.htm

There's a difference between the metal prep stages and actual painting. Look at the page referenced above. Once the metal is prepped it is base coated, blown off and clear coated. From the electrostatic primer coating on up (and this is how new parts come) it is the same coating order as in done in the field. Primer, tinted primer, base, clear.

As for the example shown in the above link of the assembly then roof painting process that can't be correct. The black roof is not painted after assembled. I've taken these cars apart and know better. There are many parts on the roof that are assembled after it is painted such as gaskets, glass, hatch side garnish and more.

They didn't dip these cars to paint them. It would not be possible to do so with mica, pearl or tinted mid coats and have proper layout.

 

[Erik B]

I dont think the whole chassis is dipped, Ive seen parts of my NSX from the bottom that you can clearly tell it was sprayed.

As far as WHO actually plaints the car...Im not sure.

 

[NSXrebel]

Who do you think does or rather did?

Earl Scheib :biggrin:

 

[KooLaid]

you live in a place where it snows. Get the car clear bra'd or you're going to be hating life no matter what time of year you take it out and it gets peppered. To do it right, you have to do everything mirrors forward and rear spats.

 

[comtec]

That is not how the LBBP is painted from the factory and i would think they are done the same way (but not sure). The base coat is a reddish blue (sort of purple) and over that is the blue tinted clear coat. There is no final clear as polishing the car leaves blue on the cloth. Do you see color on a white polishing cloth?

When someone else paints to match these colors, they use the paint manufactures recommendation to use the clear (clear, 3rd) over the tinted clear. Probably because the tinted clear would be harder to get perfect and the clear (clear, 3rd) will hide any problems in it.

The guy i used to paint my nose and lip called the LBBP a candy apple blue and told me about the clear 3rd coat recommendation.

 

[LJSB]

The reason paint manufacturers recommend putting a third clear coat is for UV protection not because of the challenges of application. A clear won't hide a paint application problem it will magnify it.

The top clear also prevents the accidental removal of the tinted coat from actions such as polishing.
Polishing eventually will take it's toll and leave the finish with a mottled appearance as the tinted clear coat begins to unevenly wear and be removed.

Paint technology has developed so much in the past 20 years (it's more like dog years :smile since this base/tinted clear technique was first used.

 

[enkrypt3d]

The reason paint manufacturers recommend putting a third clear coat is for UV protection not because of the challenges of application. A clear won't hide a paint application problem it will magnify it.

The top clear also prevents the accidental removal of the tinted coat from actions such as polishing.
Polishing eventually will take it's toll and leave the finish with a mottled appearance as the tinted clear coat begins to unevenly wear and be removed.

Paint technology has developed so much in the past 20 years (it's more like dog years :smile since this base/tinted clear technique was first used.

So would it be cheaper now to do a full respray? No color changes...... :redface:

 

[RacingHeart]

and itll get fixed in a few months :biggrin:

Just some friendly advice - if you repaint a three stage you might end up regretting it because its almost impossible to attain the same hue.

This is because the pearl color is not solid - it's like lemonade.
Spray a thin coat and it gets too light, spray to much and it gets too dark - very very hard to get it right.

It may be hard to tell on a small piece like that lip, but you dont want to repaint a door or a fender.

 

[comtec]

The reason paint manufacturers recommend putting a third clear coat is for UV protection not because of the challenges of application. A clear won't hide a paint application problem it will magnify it.

The top clear also prevents the accidental removal of the tinted coat from actions such as polishing.
Polishing eventually will take it's toll and leave the finish with a mottled appearance as the tinted clear coat begins to unevenly wear and be removed.

Paint technology has developed so much in the past 20 years (it's more like dog years :smile since this base/tinted clear technique was first used.

Thanks for clearing that up :smile:.

 

[LJSB]

Just some friendly advice - if you repaint a three stage you might end up regretting it because its almost impossible to attain the same hue.

This is because the pearl color is not solid - it's like lemonade.
Spray a thin coat and it gets too light, spray to much and it gets too dark - very very hard to get it right.

It may be hard to tell on a small piece like that lip, but you dont want to repaint a door or a fender.

I understand your logic but in my experience the nature of the tri-stage makes it easier to attain the correct hue.

The problem with matching color is whether you can see it and properly identify the tint that will move it in the direction you want.

The other problem, and this is one you're seeing in Europe and some of you guys are seeing in California, is the tendency to apply a water based mid-coat in the same manner as waterborne base/clear control coat. There is a common misconception on how the mid-coat in a pearl should be applied in a water-based format. What happens is what you describe with the light/dark changes, but that's not a paint problem, it's the technician having been trained wrong. I've encountered a/m factory paint instructors teaching this technique incorrectly and it was hard to get them to stop blaming the color and realize their application technique was wrong.
We're really getting OT here.
Sound like a good tech topic for a NSXPO.

 

[docjohn]

yes Joe you and three other guys will delight and enchant each other over the mid coat water soluble pearl conundrum:wink:

 

[LJSB]

Yeah, you're right. Dumb idea.:redface:

 

[latzke]

I've encountered a/m factory paint instructors teaching this technique incorrectly and it was hard to get them to stop blaming the color and realize their application technique was wrong.
We're really getting OT here.
Sound like a good tech topic for a NSXPO.

yes Joe you and three other guys will delight and enchant each other over the mid coat water soluble pearl conundrum:wink:

Yeah, you're right. Dumb idea.:redface:

I think it would be interesting. Then again I'm geeky enough to be up past my bed time on a work night reading about how to paint a 2002+ orange NSX (mine is red, 18+ years old, with original paint).