Touch Up Paint

[cctsurf]

I'm looking for touch-up paint for my bird.  she's got a number of chips that I would love to touch up, many of them in the stripes.  She was painted from her original colors back in the '70s and I can't find what the stripe colors are in the log book. 

I dropped past the auto parts shop to see if they could match them with their electronic system and they stated that they couldn't come close (I don't know what it means, but they said that one was a 4 and the other was more than a 6 for color accuracy.  I believe the technician said that something below a 2, or even a 1, was a good match.)

Any thoughts on where else to look, it's not like its huge areas to cover, but it would be nice to have some.

Thanks,

James

[Bob - S50]

19 minutes ago, cctsurf said:

I'm looking for touch-up paint for my bird.  she's got a number of chips that I would love to touch up, many of them in the stripes.  She was painted from her original colors back in the '70s and I can't find what the stripe colors are in the log book. 

I dropped past the auto parts shop to see if they could match them with their electronic system and they stated that they couldn't come close (I don't know what it means, but they said that one was a 4 and the other was more than a 6 for color accuracy.  I believe the technician said that something below a 2, or even a 1, was a good match.)

Any thoughts on where else to look, it's not like its huge areas to cover, but it would be nice to have some.

Thanks,

James

Don't go to a parts store, go to an auto paint supply shop.  Take a clean panel that is the same color you want.  If the chips are down to the aluminum then let them know that.  They'll tell you to get a self etching primer to get a firm grip on the aluminum and then you can paint over the primer.  We needed to do an entire panel so we asked them to put the colors we needed into spray cans.

[mooneyflyer]

The color code is on the first page of my airframe log book

[cctsurf]

6 minutes ago, mooneyflyer said:

The color code is on the first page of my airframe log book

Sadly, not true in this case.

[cctsurf]

1 hour ago, Bob - S50 said:

Don't go to a parts store, go to an auto paint supply shop.

I guess I didn't use quite the right language.  The shop I went to supplies paint (along with other auto parts) to shops all over the area.  I wasn't looking for duplicolor...  I'll have to look for something better than them, they mix their own paint and can put it in spray cans, etc...but they are limited to paint colors that are in their computer.  They matched my old Cherokee pretty well.

[carusoam]

Sounds like a different paint shop may explain why they can’t get close...

Maybe they were shy about saying it costs more money to get it closer...

Color matching to perfection may take a few extra tries...

getting closer and closer with each try...

pp thoughts only, not a color match technician...

Best regards,

-a-

[GeeBee]

The auto paint store I go to not only matches it, they put in a bottle with a brush in the cap. You need to try another place.

 

 

[LANCECASPER]

21 hours ago, cctsurf said:

I guess I didn't use quite the right language.  The shop I went to supplies paint (along with other auto parts) to shops all over the area.  I wasn't looking for duplicolor...  I'll have to look for something better than them, they mix their own paint and can put it in spray cans, etc...but they are limited to paint colors that are in their computer.  They matched my old Cherokee pretty well.

That's crazy - if you needed the colors that already have color numbers in their computer you wouldn't need them you would just order that color number.

The idea of the going there and having them scan a color is to create a custom color. Sometimes people at the counter don't "get it". Make sure you tell them you want a custom color match.

[jetdriven]

Imron numbers for example do not cross over to any commercial or automotive paint. They have to scan it to basically generate a number

[Jeff_S]

This may not be helpful since you don't have the original paint colors, but you might try http://www.aerotouchups.com to see if they can help you.  I have been able to get exact matches from them based on the paint colors in the original logs, but even without that they may be able to help.

[cctsurf]

14 minutes ago, Jeff_S said:

I have been able to get exact matches from them based on the paint colors in the original logs, but even without that they may be able to help.

Do they have some sort of color match sheet that I could put up against my plane?  I can't find any colors on their website other than matterhorn white and similar.

Oops, Found some under the aerosol...

[PT20J]

I went to an auto paint store and the red match was way off. Turns out they just matched it to the nearest auto color (Mazda in my case). I went to another auto paint store recommended by a local aircraft paint shop, and the  computer match was perfect. So be sure that the shop can do exact matches.

Skip

[cctsurf]

4 minutes ago, PT20J said:

So be sure that the shop can do exact matches.

I'm pretty sure that's the problem here, They said that they could match any car color I wanted, but the technician specifically said that he couldn't match Semi-truck colors or commercial paint colors.  Problem is that where I live there are not a lot of shops that can match paint...let alone things that are not their bread and butter...  I did just have an idea, though.  I'll have to give a local auto-body shop I've worked with on other things with before  a try.  I know they work on semis, etc.  Maybe they can do better.  If I want to work with www.aerotouchups.com, I'd still have to get a color match...  I saw Imron color match sheets and there are MANY colors nearby the ones on my plane.

[PT20J]

Once you get a the color right, you will also need to decide on the type of paint and the application method. Autos these days use a 2 stage (also called base coat/clear coat) paint that makes it easier to blend because the clear coat evens out the sheen. Mooney uses a single stage polyurethane (no clear coat) which doesn't really blend. Small chips can be touched up with a brush. For larger areas, it's best if you can spray paint an entire panel. If you want to spray an area and try to blend it, you could try to overspray lightly into the area where you want to blend and wet sand with progressively finer sandpaper ending with maybe #2000-4000 and then polishing out with compound. It would be interesting to hear from someone who has done that.

Polyurethane paint is 2K (two component) and is mixed with a hardener (also called a catalyst to make it more confusing). You can get it in a can with a can of hardener to mix or you can get it in a special spray can with the hardener included. You punch a button on the bottom of the can and it mixes the hardener and then the can is good for a few hours. Spraying that stuff is nasty -- the hardener is toxic and the overspray will stick to whatever it touches. Professional shops do it in a spray booth with hepa filters and wear a pressure suit. 

You don't have to mix the polyurethane with the hardener. It will still dry, but it will take longer. It also won't have the durability of the catalyzed paint. (You can rub MEK on catalyzed polyurethane without affect unless you really scrub hard). For touch up you could also get the color matched in an enamel which is a 1K paint and doesn't require a hardener.

Skip

[carusoam]

Looks like the words ‘color matching’ have been robbed to mean different things to different shops...

Matching your paint to one they have on the shelf isn’t going to cut it...

It will be easy to find the right shop... because the wrong shop isn’t matching a blend of paint to your specific paint sample...

The basic paint match is great for newish vehicles... that haven’t been out in the sun too long...

There are plenty of classic car people that need this service every where...

Finding the right shop is only a phone call away...

Best regards,

-a-