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My old foreman swore by feathering clearcoat 6 inches out...
He said if you get too close you'll trap solvent and get fish-eye later. I thought he was being dramatic until I buffed a panel last week that looked perfect for 2 days then erupted in tiny pits. Who else has had a veteran's weird rule turn out to be dead accurate?
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wadejenkins22d ago
Nah man that old timer knew what he was talking about. I had a similar thing happen with a buddy who swore you had to let clearcoat tack up for a full 15 minutes between coats no matter what the can said. I thought he was just being slow but I tried rushing it once and ended up with a haze that wouldnt buff out no matter what I did. So your foreman's 6 inch rule - was that for the first coat only or did he keep that distance for every pass? Ive heard some guys say you can move in closer on the final coat but I dont mess with that after seeing what happens.
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charlieh7422d ago
So you think the old guy was right? I don't buy it. @wadejenkins I think most of those "rules" come from guys who used junk equipment and bad paint. I've been spraying clearcoat for over a decade and I get right in there, maybe 4 inches out, and I've never had solvent pop or fisheye from that. The stuff that happened to you after a few days sounds more like moisture in the air line or cheap clearcoat that wasn't mixed right. Feathering out that far just wastes product and gives you less control over the pattern. Most of these old wives tales in body work are just excuses for bad prep.
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