By Michael Olvera

(12) (13)
  People first used air-dry varnish systems back in the first part of the
20th century
 o Same process used for wooden furniture and horse
drawn carriages
 o Took up to 40 days to complete due to reapplying
 o The only color possible at this time was black (1)
  In the 1930 alkyds were introduced to the world of automotive
 o The spray gun was invented by DuPont De Nemours
 o Application took a third of the time
 o Minimized the need for sanding between coating
 o Applied paint on evenly (1)
  In 1955 a product called acrylics was introduced to General Motors (10)
 o Paint was thicker
 o Faster to apply and finish due to baking
 o Gave a glossy finish to the vehicle but not enough to
catch people interest (3)
  By 1970 the Japanese and Europeans came up with a two-coated
acrylic systems
 o Provided thicker coats of paint
 o Shinier gloss to vehicles
 o Introduced metallic and metal flake paints
 o Made a huge hit within the United States (3)
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  Mostly all vehicles are now coated with basecoat and clearcoat paints
 o This process created a gloss finish that surpassed all other
systems
 o Fast drying
 o Incorporated UV absorbers that protected the clearcoat and
pigments from oxidizing
 o Technology provided a clearcoat material with superior
durability in all climates (1)
  Process (do it yourself)
 o Purchase basecoat/clearcoat kit (about 175$)
 o First mix paint with activaters
 o Place into spray gun
 o Apply coat evenly throughout entire vehicle
 o Allow an hour maybe less to dry and repeat
steps 2 more times
 o Mix clearcoat with hardener that contains
UV absorbers
 o Place into spray gun
 o Apply coat evenly again (
 o When clearcoat seems dry repeat steps 2 more times again (5)
 A typical basecoat paint system after the two components are mixed is
shown in Table I.
 Table I: General Basecoat Formula
 Petroleum –Based Solvents 40-60%
 Resins and Binders 30-50%
 Pigments & Colorants 5-10%
 Silicone Polymers & Other Additives (Catalysts, etc.) 1-2%
(1)

A urethane acrylate was prepared by heating a mixture of isophorone

diisocyanate, DESMODUR Z 4470 SN (299.4 grams), Ionol (0.38 grams),
dibutyltin dilaurate (1.32 grams) and triphenyl phosphite (0.60 grams) under
nitrogen to a temperature of 70° C. Then, 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate (51.1
grams) was added all at once and held at 68-81° C. for 80 minutes. IR shows
the presence of isocyanate functionality that was estimated to be 4 percent
NCO based on urethane acrylate weight. (9)
 A typical clear coat paint system after the two components are mixed is
shown in Table II.
 Table II: General Clear coat Formula
 Petroleum –Based Solvents 20-40%
 Resins and Binders 50-70%
 UV Absorbers 1-2%
 Silicone Polymers & Other Additives (Catalysts, etc.) 1-2%
(1)

Urethane acrylate of Example A 65.88 grams Urethane acrylate of Example B

6.43 grams Di-trimethylolpropane tetraacrylate 27.22 grams Tinuvin 384-21
2.32 grams Sanol LS-2922 1.10 grams BYK 3003 0.50 grams N-PAL (tris(N-
nitroso-N-phenylhydroxylamine)aluminum)4 0.05 grams Esacure One5 5.00
grams Irgacure 1846 1.00 grams N-Pentyl propionate 20.0 grams Methyl
isobutyl ketone 20.0 grams Butyl acetate 10.4 grams Polythiol of Example D
13.10 grams 1UV absorber from Ciba Specialty Chemicals. 2Hindered amine
light stabilizer from Sankyo Co. 3Silicon resin solution from BYK Chemie.
4Polymerization inhibitor from Albermare Corp. 5Photoinitiator from
Lamberti Spa. 6Photoinitiator from Ciba Specialty Chemicals. (9)
(1) Evolution of Automotive Paint and Protectant Technology - Modern Car Care Magazine,
October 2004 - http://www.optimumcarcare.com/articles/evolution.html

(2) Where Would A Car Be Without It’s Paintwork - Prestige and Classic cars - Standox -
http://www.standox.com/standox/com/en/ClassicCars/History%20of%20automotive%20pa
inting_v1.pdf

(3) A Brief History and Trends in Vehicle Paints - Protect All INC -
http://www.protectall.com/artpaints.aspx

(4) Paint For Cars - image - http://www.paintforcars.com/kits_starfire_silvrmet.html

(5) Basecoat -clearcoat secrets revealed - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7jFNUGUhIs

(6) Autopia - http://www.autopia.org/forum/autopia-detailing-wiki/141327-automotive-

paint-part-i.html

(7) Do It Yourself - http://www.doityourself.com/stry/enamel-paint-vs-lacquer-paint

(8) http://yosemite.epa.gov/ee/epa/eerm.nsf/vwan/ee-0045-03.pdf/$file/ee-0045-03.pdf

(9) CLEARCOAT COMPOSITION FOR USE IN WATERBORNE BASECOAT-CLEARCOAT

COMPOSITE COATINGS
 (10) Fading ad Blog - http://www.fadingad.com/fadingadblog/?p=10192
 (11) How to Spray Paint with Automotive Acrylic Enamel Paint -
http://www.ehow.com/how_6357753_spray-automotive-acrylic-enamel-
paint.html
 (12) http://www.machsources.com/suppliers/mach017/products/12218.html
 (13) http://www.autobodycalifornia.com/repair-procedure-basecoat-
description.html
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