Clear + Polish + decal + wax - drying times?

Yes, it's this weeks clear coat question, but please bare with me.

I’ve done a search on this, and it appears that using Tamiya TS-13 clear is a little tricky.

I’ve got an imprezza WRC car body that I’ve sprayed with TS-50 Micra Blue. The body will have a lot of decals, as it’s a 1998 Monte Carlo Rally car. Never really applied a large amount of decals before. So this is a learning curve.

The body colour isn’t overly glossy, as it’s a more metallic paint; therefore I need to clear it, before I can polish it. I’ve read that clearing decals is a little tricky, therefore I won’t risk it, as the TS-13 could eat the decals.

Therefore I’ve painted the body, however I read you need to wait 30 days to allow the paint to cure, due to shrinkage, and TS-13 drying faster, or something like that??? Is this true, as 30 days is a long time?

So, my plan is this, and I need to check this is right –

Leave painted body 30 days – if needed.
Clear with TS-13 clear – mist coats first then final wet coat – leave 7 days
Polish the clear to get a shine
Apply decals – using Microscale Sol and Set - Leave to dry for 5 days
Apply light amounts of wax to polish decal and body

This is 43 days to complete a car body.. Wow.. Long time. I must have this wrong. Can someone advise, searching just confused even more.

http://www.briansmodelcars.com/tutorials/tutorial.asp?TutorialID=12&CurPage=1

try this it may help it reccomends upto 10 days if im reading it right, im not sure about the decal application. sorry

In regards to the Tamiya lacquers, everything I have heard and read recommends applying the clear coat either immediately after the last wet coat of paint (Not sure how long that means exactly....) or wait until the color coats gas out for a month. Otherwise, the difference in cure rates can cause the clear coat to crack.

All I know is that when it comes to the body you must use the same manufacturer's paint & clear. i.e. Tamiya Lacquer will need Tamiya clear. I've also heard though that Microsol has a problem with Tamiya Clear. Although maybe Microsol only has a problem with Tamiya Clear if it hasn't been rubbed out. I'm not 100% sure to be honest, let's hope one of the nice "masters" can shed some light here. After all, I've seen some good looking sub's on this forum so somebody knows how to go about it!

I've never had a problem waiting 7 days before doing a Tamiya clear coat. After clear coating I wait another 7 days and polish it all out. 30 days for a color cure is pretty extreme. I could understand if we were talking about Tetsors enamel but this is not the case. I've heard that you can do it immediately. From experience, that can do funky things to the wet color coat.

Some say if the paint doesn't smell than it's close to cure. I just wait it out for 7 days. Plenty of time, IMO, as I've never had a problem with cracking, hazing, mystery fish-eye etc.

As far as Microsol and polished TS-13. That is false. I don't dillute my Microsol and have had nothing but good things to say about it on finished bodies.

Take a look through THIS THREAD (http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=232285). This is my experience with Tamiya Mica Blue, wait 7 days and hit it with TS-13, wait 7 days and polish. the third or fourth page shows the 100% completion.

http://www.spc.org.uk/subaru/i/2005_wrc_subaru_impreza-001.jpg

This is my on going 2005 Subaru Impreza (http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=352491) painted with TS50 Mica Blue
I gave it 4-5 Coats of paint with the airbrush, then 2 Wet coats form the can.
It was dry and ready to decal in 3-5 days. No need to clear coat IMO.

So how did you rub it out Steve? Did it turn out that shiny from the can?

So how did you rub it out Steve? Did it turn out that shiny from the can?

I would say yes, it is Hiroboy after all :D

A high gloss finish is quite simple to get straight from the can, especially if you use Tamiya. The trick is to use 'wet' coats, that is, coats of paint where you spray a little closer and longer than normal.

Check out Primera Mans guide, he is the best at getting it straight from the can!

Cheers

Farrokh

So how did you rub it out Steve? Did it turn out that shiny from the can?
No Rubbing at all, start from the can :)

I think your a bit confused on this 30 day issue. i always clear coat the same day as color if color is nice and smooth. if color needs a little sanding or touch up ill wait 3-4 days then sand or what ever. then i will clear coat the same day day or the next after sanding.i never had problems that were paint related. i think the 30 day thing is for if you dont clear within 4-7 days then you should wait 30 days till clear coating because of various reasons. or you should wait 30 days before buffing clear but then ive never waited more then 3 weeks to buff a clear coat. if decals are involved ill paint color then wait a day or two. then i will use 2 mist coats of clear and wait 3-4 days. then i will lightly wet sand smooth and apply decals the same day. then ill wait 3 days and mist 2 more coats of clear. then wait 1 day then ill wet coat clear 1 or 2 coats. then wait 2-3 weeks and buff out. this is just me put ive never had problems i can say were the paints fault. i use Tamiya and Dupli-color spray only but i use them together often and still no problems.

I think the 30 day drying time before using TS-13 comes from the Tamiya website. It's a classic case of an extremely conservative rule of thumb for the purposes of covering ones arse. In most cases if you know what you are doing you will not need to wait that long. Especially if you keep your coats thin. On the other hand, if you want to be super-duper-extra-didily safe...

Im assuming TS-13 is Lacquer? if so it must be similiar to dupli-color which is what i use, and when i do a race car or something with decals, i normally paint, decal and clear all in one day, as the paint dries in about 5 mins. then i sand and polish the next day, or sometimes wait 2 days if im lazy.

same goes for cars with no decals. i havent had any problems yet.

Im assuming TS-13 is Lacquer? if so it must be similiar to dupli-color which is what i use, and when i do a race car or something with decals, i normally paint, decal and clear all in one day, as the paint dries in about 5 mins. then i sand and polish the next day, or sometimes wait 2 days if im lazy.

same goes for cars with no decals. i havent had any problems yet.
Thats great going BUT..........you cant be doing any wet coats with the clear otherwise the paint would simply run underneath, i for one have experienced this a couple of times & im talking purely TS-13 here. If your gonna do wet coats with clear (TS-13) & i mean heavy ones then the paint will need to dry for at least 2 weeks.

Mike :sunglasse

i dont find "wetcoats" to be nessacary, for the paint i do like 4 or 5 super light coats. same with clear. polishing is what makes it shiny.

at least i find this to work for me

i dont find "wetcoats" to be nessacary, for the paint i do like 4 or 5 super light coats. same with clear. polishing is what makes it shiny.

at least i find this to work for meTotally agree & your finishes are perfect. I just find though (& this works for me) that by doing a few light coats & then a couple of heavy wetcoats of clear this makes the surface totally smooth. Here i am getting away with any sanding, plus "hiding" any possible orange peel effect from the paint, this letting me to go straight to the compound drawer.......!!!

Thanks, Mike.

hmm does TS-13 eat the decals?

hmm does TS-13 eat the decals?

If not used with caution. If you lay down a couple mist coats the decals should be fine.

It's just a matter of how much paint you apply. The thicker the paint longer the drying time. I apply two coats of clear and repeat the process 5-8 times (a total of 16 very thin layers), so there's no way I can start polishing in 7 days. But that's just me. If you have achived an even coat with 2-3 layers of paint, I think you can start polishing in 7 days.

>Jaymes
TS-13 eats decals only when you apply it too thick and gives the solvent enough time to eat them. If you apply it thin (like a few quick storkes of spray can), the solvent evaporates before it starts eating the decals.

thanks a lot for the answers nis.k.a. and hirofkd

I've never had a problem waiting 7 days before doing a Tamiya clear coat. After clear coating I wait another 7 days and polish it all out. 30 days for a color cure is pretty extreme. I could understand if we were talking about Tetsors enamel but this is not the case. I've heard that you can do it immediately. From experience, that can do funky things to the wet color coat.

Some say if the paint doesn't smell than it's close to cure. I just wait it out for 7 days. Plenty of time, IMO, as I've never had a problem with cracking, hazing, mystery fish-eye etc.

As far as Microsol and polished TS-13. That is false. I don't dillute my Microsol and have had nothing but good things to say about it on finished bodies.

Your Skyline looks great - and thanks for the advise, one question, you applied a coat of silver leaf, does Mica Blue need a coat of silver leaf first, as I didn't know that? I thought TS-50 could go right on the top of white primer..!!

thanks..

Yes, any metallic color coat really needs a metallic base.

Yikes.. :uhoh:

I "very" nearly applied TS-50 on white primer, as even though I said I had painted my car body with TS-50, I haven't done it yet as I'm working away at the moment, but I was about to spray it tonight when I get home..!!

Me thinks I'll got and get a can of TS silver first.. Thank you for letting me find that out, I nearly made a mistake..!!

Will any TS silver do? TS-17, or TS-30 better?

Why does metallic colour need a metallic base? My Peugeot 206 was painted Aluminium Silver on top of Plastic Primer, then after a couple of weeks I sprayed Clear lacquer on top. All spray cans were Halfords own brand.

I do have slight orange peel (which, funnily enough was not there BEFORE clear coat) but that's down to my spraying abilities and not the paint surely.

Why does metallic colour need a metallic base? My Peugeot 206 was painted Aluminium Silver on top of Plastic Primer, then after a couple of weeks I sprayed Clear lacquer on top. All spray cans were Halfords own brand.

I do have slight orange peel (which, funnily enough was not there BEFORE clear coat) but that's down to my spraying abilities and not the paint surely.

I think it's because Mica Blue is a more see through paint, then normal solid colours. Even solid colours can have primer see though, as I found out on my Modena. I left a "Very" small area of grey primer, when the overall primer colour was a final coat of white. The red looked darker where I left that small spot of grey, whereas the rest of the car was a vibrant red..!!

I think I can see where they are going with the silver. I read that also if the car body isn't primered first, and then you apply your top coats over the bare plastic, if you were to paint the over side black, say for a hood etc, the colour on the top goes darker, as the plastic could be thin enough to allow the black to darken the top colour.

This is why I've been sold on the primer first, then top coat.. Therefore I shall listern to advise and spray a coat of silver over my white primer first, then apply two mists of blue (was going to be three), and two wet coats, leave for 7 days (hope this is right) and then clear it. Wait 7 more days then polish and then appy decals and then wax..!!

Dya not think maybe wait 2 weeks after clear before rubbing compound? Just to be on the safe side?

My Peugeot will be 2 weeks after clearcoat this Saturday. Surely then it'll be safe to polish. Mind you it'll be my first attempt with rubbing compound so it'll probably turn out plops!

BTW are you gonna wax your sub? If so, before or after decals? I've heard the tamiya wax can actually rub off the decals!!!! Maybe it's just a question of lightly waxing.

The Mica is semi-transparent. Not fully but the metallic base enhances whatever is laid on top of it. Otherwise, the Mica may not have the desired effect.

Even a solid color like red. The secret to getting Italian Red to look like a Ferrari is to have a pink base coat or pink primer. The pink basecoat enhances the red.

man......you're clever! It's been taken onboard and is in the memory banks for future use, cheers!