Aftermarket Clearcoat

[58LesPaul]

Sorta off topic but I was told by a body man that aftermarket clearcoat is not as good as original CC applied at the factory. He also said that after about 5 years the aftermarket CC will begin to fail. Is that an accurate statement?

Thanks


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[Setec Astronomy]

I believe the statistic that aftermarket CC will begin to fail after about 5 years could also be applied to factory paint (conditions effect that, of course). I believe Dr. G from Optimum has stated the half life of the UV absorbers in CC is 5 years.

There are definitely different "grades" of clearcoat, and I'm sure you can argue this many ways...like that the mfr. almost certainly has a more controlled process for applying it...however the mfrs. seem intent on applying the minimum amount they can get away with (presumably for cost reasons), while a body shop might spray a lot thicker (or could). Because of the less controlled conditions in the body shop, that may cause them to use less-than-ideal catalysts due to temperature, and likely they will get more "dust" in the paint.

But that's just me flapping my gums. Perhaps one of the painter-members we have will chime in.

[WillSports3]

Depends on the grade of clearcoat and the bodyshop. The ones that do custom paintjobs and use higher end clearcoat, it's just like factory clear except without the chemical hardening effect and that it'll be a lot thicker. Plus if its a reputable shop they'll be using a clean room to avoid dust or anything going on the paint as they paint. Half life of clearcoat is about 5 years, period pretty much. Factory or aftermarket, some fail right at 5 like a lot of hondas and what not and some stick around better but they do eventually fail.

[Setec Astronomy]

Depends on the grade of clearcoat and the bodyshop. The ones that do custom paintjobs and use higher end clearcoat, it's just like factory clear except without the chemical hardening effect and that it'll be a lot thicker.

You mean thermal hardening effect, don't you? Since a factory paint job is baked at a higher temperature because it's only the body-in-white without and plastic, rubber, gasoline, etc. By definition 2K clear is catalyzed and will "chemically harden".

[WillSports3]

There's an extremely toxic chemical that's really only safe in full PPE or a room full of robots that renders the paint rock hard once it's off the assembly line. Thermal hardening takes place too depending on the manufacturer that might bake individually painted panels but not all manufacturers do that. Some just rely on the extremely toxic chemical to chemically harden the paint.

[Setec Astronomy]

There's an extremely toxic chemical that's really only safe in full PPE or a room full of robots that renders the paint rock hard once it's off the assembly line. Thermal hardening takes place too depending on the manufacturer that might bake individually painted panels but not all manufacturers do that. Some just rely on the extremely toxic chemical to chemically harden the paint.

Yeah, polyisocyanate, it's also in the aftermarket paints, it's the catalyst for 2-part urethane paints.

[WillSports3]

I believe you are right, I'm not 100 percent sure it's used in all the clears across the board since I believe toyota/lexus uses a different one for their higher end self healing clear. I believe it's the concentrate level in factory paint that let's it harden off the assembly line but aftermarket you are waiting for it to degass.

[70fastback]

Sorta off topic but I was told by a body man that aftermarket clearcoat is not as good as original CC applied at the factory. He also said that after about 5 years the aftermarket CC will begin to fail. Is that an accurate statement?

Thanks
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I do not believe this statement to be accurate. I painted my first vehicle nearly 8 years ago, a Chevy S-10. I used DuPont's Nason line of base and clear, not their best stuff. After I painted the truck, I cut and buffed, and have only washed. I have not put a drop of wax, sealant, or anything on the paint, and have yet to see any sign of CC failure. This vehicle is kept outside 24/7 in the panhandle of Florida.

There is a broad spectrum (quality and price) of auto refinishing materials...usually, it is a, "you get what you pay for" kind of deal...

What is an aftermarket clear-coat anyway? Down the street there several body shop suppliers. One sells DuPont, the other PPG, another Sherwin-Williams...and more...are they aftermarket? PPG supplied GM factories with painting materials for years!

[JKDesign]

How long an aftermarket clear coat lasts depends on many factors: What clear coat was used, how was the surface it was sprayed over prepared, how was it sprayed (most important factors being how closely were the mix ratios and flash and cure times followed per Technical Data Sheets), and lastly how was it maintained over an extended period of time.

What aftermarket does have going for it is that because of application techniques, it tends to have a thicker film build.

There are aftermarket clear coats out there that reach full working hardness within an hour @ 65deg F. There are also clears that even after a 30min bake @ 150deg F ambient booth temperature still take up to another 24 hrs or more to reach that full working hardness.

By full working hardness, I am taking about the paint being cured just enough to the point that a technician can put there hands on the vehicle and do reassembly work. All-in-all it still takes around 30 days for a clear coat to reach its full cure and hardness all the way through.

Also, what color was sprayed underneath is another large factor.

[Setec Astronomy]

What is an aftermarket clear-coat anyway? Down the street there several body shop suppliers. One sells DuPont, the other PPG, another Sherwin-Williams...and more...are they aftermarket? PPG supplied GM factories with painting materials for years!

I think it would be correct to say that at least some of those suppliers would have different products for OEM use vs. refinish use...possibly due to the refinish market not using electrostatic systems for application.

For example, PPG has separate websites for their OEM and Refinish product lines:

PPG OEM

PPG Refinish

However, I did notice that they have a fairly extensive selection of 1K clears; perhaps that was what WillSports3 was referring to. Not sure how prevalent 1K vs. 2K clear is at bodyshops.