Re: Paint Life

Posted by Jim in Boone On 2014/2/3 8:13:36

Pat I'm no expert so this is just an opinion based on personal experience.

As a teenager I painted a number of cars.

To repaint a car in automotive enamel took about 15.00 worth of material, it looked good, but the finish was somewhat soft in the beginning and would scratch easily, in several years it began to look weathered.

To repaint in lacquer cost about twice as much in material and more labor, but to me nothing much beats the shine and depth of lacquer. The paint on my 48 is old if not original; it's cracked with age, but will still shine with a polishing.

As a younger person I spent more time polishing and waxing than I do today, our eight year old new car lives outside in heat or cold, sun, rain or snow, it has seen few wash jobs and I don't think ever seen polish or wax, I don't think it shines like the old style lacquer, but it still looks good with little maintenance. My opinion is that the new paint is a stronger finish based on the way we use our vehicles today.

Today's repaint may well depend on if it is the bargain basement repaint, knock the dust off and spray the paint, or a more expensive quality repaint. With any paint job the preparation has much to do with the final result and satisfaction.

Jim