Paint micron Article

[faisal]

Hi dear
Is this down article is right
Most vehicle paint film systems (127 - 178 µ) which comprise a Primer coat of 2Mils (50 µ) and a Colour coat of 1-2Mils (25 -50 µ) and Clear coat 2-3Mils (50 - 75 µ) a surface scratch that will `catch' your fingernail is approximately 0.04 Mil (1.0 µ) deep will usually require wet sanding and refinishing.# Generally speaking the clear coat makes up 50% of the total paint thickness. The paint system is split 50-25-25% please note that this is a very general approximation# Measure the inside of door; this will give you an approximation of the paint system minus the clear coat. The difference between readings inside the door and on the exterior paintwork gives the thickness of the clear coat )it should be noted that some vehicles do have a clear coat) Removing more that 0.5 mil (12µ) of clear coat will cause premature paint film failure as the ultra violet (UV) protection percolates to the top of the clear coat, there is ultra violet (UV) protection all the way through the paint, but the majority of it migrates to the top of the clear coat along with the thinner solvents and particles.# These numbers are offered as a guide only, as there are too many variables to provide any more than an approximation. Note: 1 µ (micron) is 1/1000th of a millimetre or 0.0393700787 Mil or 0.001 of an inch &bull; 200µ + can be expected on older cars that have been hand painted or a re-painted vehicle &bull; 100 &ndash; 200µ 4 &ndash; 8 mil - normal paint thickness# &bull; 80 &ndash; 100 µ - 3 &ndash; 4 mils, thin paint# &bull; 80 µ < - less than 3 mil, very thin paint


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[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Originally Posted by faisal

note that this is a very general approximation

8 mil - normal paint thickness

Historically for factory paint jobs, I would say yes, give or take a mil


A paint thickness gage is handy to have because it helps you to make the,

Go or No Go decision


That is, either taking a reading, inspecting the car and interviewing the owner leads to a "yes" I will detail your car or "no" I would like to let someone else have the blessing.

[Lowejackson]

Or to put it another way, normal paper is about 100 microns so the average new car has a total thickness of just over one sheet of paper

[jfelbab]

I believe the article is spot on for new factory paints by-in-large. I also believe that clear coat not only has much of the uv protection near the surface but it is also the most dense and hardest near the surface as well. It seems like that to me in my detailing experience anyway. After wet sanding the clear is no longer quite as glossy and hard as the original.

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Originally Posted by jfelbab

I believe the article is spot on for new factory paints by-in-large. I also believe that clear coat not only has much of the uv protection near the surface but it is also the most dense and hardest near the surface as well. It seems like that to me in my detailing experience anyway. After wet sanding the clear is no longer quite as glossy and hard as the original.

Kind of like some fruits and vegetables have a "skin" that you peel off, (like an apple), an original paint job has a skin (on the very top surface), that can be abraded off and the paint under it while the same material is a different make-up?


I've always wondered that too.... where's a great paint chemist when you need one?

[Lowejackson]

Originally Posted by jfelbab

.... I also believe that clear coat not only has much of the uv protection near the surface but it is also the most dense and hardest near the surface as well....

Autoglym (UK), used to say something very similar regarding the lower levels are softer

[FUNX725]

Originally Posted by Mike.Phillips@Autogeek

Kind of like some fruits and vegetables have a "skin" that you peel off, (like an apple), an original paint job has a skin (on the very top surface), that can be abraded off and the paint under it while the same material is a different make-up?


I've always wondered that too.... where's a great paint chemist when you need one?

BC's...
-Contains: Pigments/pigmentation system
-Have no need for: Any isocyanate hardeners and their particular catalysts
-Their solvent carrier systems: More VOC compliant (including water-based)...than CC, at the present time.

Just my personal observations/opinions...
Not a Chemist of any nature...



Bob

[RMM]

Originally Posted by jfelbab

I believe the article is spot on for new factory paints by-in-large. I also believe that clear coat not only has much of the uv protection near the surface but it is also the most dense and hardest near the surface as well. It seems like that to me in my detailing experience anyway. After wet sanding the clear is no longer quite as glossy and hard as the original.

The UV protection on a clearcoat is distributed throughout its thickness and not concentrated on the top layer. In terms of hardness (with Ceramiclear in mind), the fumed silica (low specific weight) is in the top 5 or 6 microns and, yes, if removed will make the underlying clearcoat very soft.