noticeable soft transition on basecoat

A

avusblue

Promoted Users
newbie here painting a whole car, had to sand my quarter panel, after 2 coats of basecoat due to runs. I really didn't want to spray the whole side because the coverage looks really good. I'm hoping the clear will smooth out the soft transition? I really don't want to mess with it, if I don't have too lol.

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That will stickout like a sore thumb when you clear it. I'm assuming that is the edge left when you recoated the quarter. What brand of paint? What brand and speed of reducer are you using? It looks very dry (the edge), like you are using a low quality reducer that is too fast for the conditions.

To fix it you need to do one of three things. First nib sand it with 1000 grit if there is any roughness on that edge. Then spray one to two coats extending out on each side from the edge. This will be hard to do if you are using low grade reducer that is too fast for the conditions. Each coat should be medium at most and each coat should extend a little farther out. You want to have the gun moving before you pull the trigger, and keep moving the gun as you release the trigger, so that you don't have hard stop/start areas.

Second would be to get some blender, mix it with your RTS base 1:1 and do the same. Spray one to two coats extending out on both sides of the problem area. You need to have good reducer that is the right speed. Slow or very slow. Blender is available at your paint jobber. Most base lines have a blender that you can use with the base. Spray the same way as I described above.

Third option if you don't want to buy any additional product, is to mask off the rest of the car, ( you don't want any dry edges) and spray the side again. One to two coats till that area is hidden.
 
I'm using automotivebasecoat.com and SPI slow reducer. I was hoping I can do your first option, but I don't think I have the skill to do that lol, because I'm afraid to have a hard stop no matter what I do. I'm using DV1 base gun, showing 15 psi on the gun digital readout but 20-21 on the air inlet.

I do have speedkote color blender, but I'm afraid introducing new product into the paint or do you think it'll be ok?

seems like the safest option would be just spray the whole side medium wet ? mask of the rest of the car?
 
Learn up on doing a drop coat. Some here don't like it but it works. Standox recommends doing it for tough colors.
 
Just a thought looking at the photo, it looks like stuff I did before learning that base reducer has to be slow enough for the blend to lay down. The blend is basically overspray, slower reducers will let it melt in where faster will flash off before it hits the panel. Perhaps the ambient temp was too high even for 885. The reducer (depending on the base brand)might need to be one step slower than you'd normally use for the ambient temp, especially if a blend is involved.
 
To avoid the hard stop I think of it as if I was painting a 90 degree corner. Imagine standing at an inside corner of a room and having to paint it. You would need to rotate your wrist in order to do so.

It is basically the same when blending. You begin with the gun pointing away from the panel and as you start to make your pass you begin moving and at the same time rotating the gun towards the panel. You pull the trigger just before the gun gets perpendicular to the panel and while still moving. When you reach the end of your pass, you rotate the gun away from the panel releasing the trigger.

I not a professional by any means but this simplistic thinking is what I use to get the right mind set when blending a panel.
 
Easiest way to teach yourself how is to practice moving the gun before pulling the trigger and releasing the trigger while the gun is moving. You don't fan any when doing that. Fanning the gun if you are new to this results in what you see in the picture. The further the gun moves away from the surface the more the orientation of the metallic changes and the drier the edge.
 
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