Reduce or not reduce Epoxy - Why?

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palerider

Just have a newb question.

Shot epoxy on car this weekend. Was either bare metal or e-coat that I roughed up with 80 grit. I used a 1.8 tip - only other one I had was a 1.3. Could have used a cheaper gun but wanted to use the new DeKupps system I got. In any case finish is a little rough which is okay since it will get smoothed out during fit and finish phase except underside and engine bay area. Have not done underside but have 2 coats on engine bay.

In speaking to sales rep he mentioned if I use a reducer and smaller tip should smooth it out.

Question I have is what are some of the guidelines of when you reduce or not and any tips for moving forward.

thanks
 
You can reduce as little or as much as you like.... All the way up to 50% for sealer duty!
 
Thanks but I'm still a little fuzzy on why you would want to reduce. Alos any impact on the sheen. I noticed where I laid it a little thicker it was nice and smooth but a little more sheen than I care for.
 
The slower the epoxy dries, the more gloss you will have. Example: spraying multiple unreduced coats with minimal flash time would provide maximum gloss.

When you add reducer, this reduces the solids content and makes the epoxy dry faster (reducing gloss).

The only time I ever reduce epoxy is when I'm using it as a sealer. Sealer needs to go on texture-free and thin so it can dry quickly.
 
Why does it matter what kind of sheen you are left with? Are you using as a final finish?

I struggled with the epoxy at first becuase I was spraying it like a primer, I was thinking heavy wet coats with a large tip. Once I realized it goes on more like a base coat, we get along much better. Reducing just thins it up a little and lets it lay down smoother. Everyone seems to have thier own process between how much to reduce and how long to let sit and iduce before spraying.

Also depends on what you are using it for, are you spraying over bare metal for corrsoin protection? As a primer for blocking? As a sealer before base coat? As a final finish with no top coat?

I'm actually thinking of shooting epoxy the project I'm working on as I'm done with the body work on the back half of the car and a shiney coat of epoxy will help me evaluate that the contours of the quater panels look right.
 
palerider;19303 said:
Thanks but I'm still a little fuzzy on why you would want to reduce. Alos any impact on the sheen. I noticed where I laid it a little thicker it was nice and smooth but a little more sheen than I care for.
Click to expand...

As a sealer you want it to lay flat and thin so it does not affect the way the mettalics lay(if you are spraying a mettalic base) hence reducing it.

for corrosion protection I've always sprayed it 1:1 as I was priming on top anyways.
 
Arrowhead;19310 said:
I'm actually thinking of shooting epoxy the project I'm working on as I'm done with the body work on the back half of the car and a shiney coat of epoxy will help me evaluate that the contours of the quater panels look right.
Click to expand...

I use almost all epoxy for blocking. I love it for a number of reasons and using the gloss to evaluate my work is one of the best things about it.
 
Thanks fof the responses - On the engine bay and underside I am using as the epoxy black as final coating and want to get it close to factory which was a very light satin look. Also want it to be smooth. Engine bay was bare metal - currently has 2 coats of unreduced on it now. Little rough feeling. I have not done the underside yet but its a mixture of bare metal, original OEM primer and ecoat from replacement floor. I scratched ita ll with 80" grit and cleaned up with wax and grease remover.

Should I knock the roughness off the engine bay and shoot a reduced mixture to smooth out and cut down on sheen. As I reading the responses I'm assuming the higher percentage of reducer I use the more flatness I will get, correct? Thanks
 
Yes, more reducer or faster reducer will cut down on the gloss. Remember, gloss will be controled by how fast the epoxy dries. You should do some tests first, and then replicate the spray technique, flash between coats, gun settings, temperature, and amount of reducer when doing your engine bay.
 
Just put it with 20% reducer and a 1.3 tip. Spray really nice like that.
 
Just a thought.
How many other epoxies are on the market that give this much versitility?

I would be surprised to find another that can provide all the qualities Barry has engineered into this product!
 
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