More epoxy questions.

[hinges56]

After a slow start thanks to my old primer gun, I managed to spray epoxy primer on my s-10. It looked so nice and shiney that I almost stopped right then but it would have looked pretty funny with white jams and black epoxy body. A guy can dream can't he? I had a few dings and some trash in it so I started with the filler, and sanding and ended up blocking the whole truck so it would all be the same. I had some induced primer left and the tech sheet said it lasts 3 to 5 days so I tried to spot the filler and bare spots with it. Wrong! Naturally, I was having problems spraying it but what I didn't realize that it was setting up in the gun. Then I spent quite a of time bit cleaning the gun. It sprayed like real bad orange peel. After it dried, the filler spots still look dull. If the epoxy were fresh, would the one coat of epoxy cover the filler spots? The spots that were bare metal seem ok, just a little rough, not shiny like it was the first time. Should I sand that coat off and mix a new batch or wait till I seal it with reduced epoxy? Is 2k primer necessary or can I seal wet sand and paint? It's a daily driver and not a show truck but I still want it nice but not perfect. I started this project as a learning project so I can paint my 56 belair at a later date and because the paint on the s-10 was blowing off in the wind and rusting badly. The only problem is the belair is in bare metal in my neighbors garage and he's coming home soon. I'm running out of time! I'm working on pics but I'm having problems. Imagine that. Thanks for all your help!

 

[Steves69LS3]

I believe that the reason the epoxy looks dull over the filler is because the filler absorbs the epoxy

 

[Barry]

Steve is right and just wait till you seal, also NEVER leave the epoxy inn the gun, it will settle out in about 2-4 hours and plug up the gun.

 

[black88coupe]

I believe that the reason the epoxy looks dull over the filler is because the filler absorbs the epoxy

So then the proper procedure would have been two coats of epoxy over the filler spots? Thanks.

 

[Bob Hollinshead]

The first application of epoxy primer over filler will show as dull over the filler no matter how many coats are applied-the solvents go into the filler and come back out causing the dry dull look, over the metal areas or areas where no absorption takes place the epoxy cures shinier. Once the epoxy cures and provides a solvent barrier over the filler the next application of epoxy will cure out uniform. This is the same for all primers but it's not very noticeable with most urethanes because they cure out dull no mater what they are being applied on. Hope this makes sense.

 

[black88coupe]

The first application of epoxy primer over filler will show as dull over the filler no matter how many coats are applied-the solvents go into the filler and come back out causing the dry dull look, over the metal areas or areas where no absorption takes place the epoxy cures shinier. Once the epoxy cures and provides a solvent barrier over the filler the next application of epoxy will cure out uniform. This is the same for all primers but it's not very noticeable with most urethanes because they cure out dull no mater what they are being applied on. Hope this makes sense.

It sounds like what you are saying is to top coat the filler then let the epoxy dry (beyond wet on wet) and apply another coat of epoxy to reach the desired finish?

 

[hinges56]

Steve is right and just wait till you seal, also NEVER leave the epoxy inn the gun, it will settle out in about 2-4 hours and plug up the gun.

Thanks Steve and Barry. I also get a bit confused with the tech sheets because I have a few different ones. Some that I downloaded, a catalog from a couple years ago, my new catalog and then I saw the updates here on this site. The reducer that I bought before to reduce my sealer coat is #870. Will that be slow enough? The weather here is in the low 70s. On the amount to use I've read a double shot glass per quart, 5-50% and 25- 50%. Maybe I should be working more and reading less? Thanks again for all the help. Scott

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The first application of epoxy primer over filler will show as dull over the filler no matter how many coats are applied-the solvents go into the filler and come back out causing the dry dull look, over the metal areas or areas where no absorption takes place the epoxy cures shinier. Once the epoxy cures and provides a solvent barrier over the filler the next application of epoxy will cure out uniform. This is the same for all primers but it's not very noticeable with most urethanes because they cure out dull no mater what they are being applied on. Hope this makes sense.

Thanks Bob, So would the "next coat" be the sealer coat or would I coat the spots twice and then the sealer? My single stage white just came today. I'm excited and nervous at the same time.

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Does everyone use 2k after the epoxy sealer coat? Can I paint right over the sealer coat or would I run into problems?

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Does everyone use 2k after the epoxy sealer coat? Can I paint right over the sealer coat or would I run into problems?

 

[Bob Hollinshead]

Whatever you spray over the filler will typically get sanded and if it sands out good with no flaws showing it's then ready for sealer and paint.

 

[hinges56]

Whatever you spray over the filler will typically get sanded and if it sands out good with no flaws showing it's then ready for sealer and paint.

Thanks for the response. Sorry for the dumb questions. I think I'm in information overload. I just don't want to make any fatal mistakes. I've been reading the forums, tech sheets, updates, wikis, perfect paint job, how to upload pics, etc. and it can get a bit confusing for a one (old) man hobbiest! For example, I read somewhere that it is important to add #885 reducer to the epoxy for sealer and another said the slowest reducer that you can get away with. When I got the reducer out of the garage that I bought for this, it was #870 which is a medium reducer. Why I bought this? I have no idea. Will it work for the sealer? I have no idea. At least they found me a jobber in my area that can ship SPI to me in a day or so otherwise it takes almost a week to ship to california. I will say that from everything that I've read, SPI has the best products and support, hands down! Thanks to everyone for helping me get it all straight! Scott

- - - Updated - - -

Whatever you spray over the filler will typically get sanded and if it sands out good with no flaws showing it's then ready for sealer and paint.

Thanks for the response. Sorry for the dumb questions. I think I'm in information overload. I just don't want to make any fatal mistakes. I've been reading the forums, tech sheets, updates, wikis, perfect paint job, how to upload pics, etc. and it can get a bit confusing for a one (old) man hobbiest! For example, I read somewhere that it is important to add #885 reducer to the epoxy for sealer and another said the slowest reducer that you can get away with. When I got the reducer out of the garage that I bought for this, it was #870 which is a medium reducer. Why I bought this? I have no idea. Will it work for the sealer? I have no idea. At least they found me a jobber in my area that can ship SPI to me in a day or so otherwise it takes almost a week to ship to california. I will say that from everything that I've read, SPI has the best products and support, hands down! Thanks to everyone for helping me get it all straight! Scott