I'm not a sprayer but I get by. Usually I'm trying to get the best gloss finish, but spraying matt green means you have to have a different way of thinking for the best result.

I've spent ages spraying most of the bike (twice now as I wasn't happy with the 1st colour) but the finish was still far too glossy. So I discover over spray!

I thought I'd take a picture for you, it's the same paint on both parts. 2 pack matt with 50% matting agent. I asked my supplier to add more matting agent. I was told, any more and it stops becoming paint. So I lightly over sprayed each part. The rear mudguard is still glossy but the chain case is very matt even in bright daylight. This will be the 3rd time I've sprayed everything. When will this job end

email (option): horror@blueyonder.co.uk

I looks like the matting agent had settled in the tin, or you left it too long in the gun, as, as soon as you put the activator in there it starts going off, usually around the 15 minute mark

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

Ok thanks, I do give the tin a good shake then a stir, but the paint does seem slow to go off. I mix it with the hardener in a clean tin, if there's any left the next day it still hasn't gone off. It can stay in there for a few days before it starts going to jelly. Is this not right for 2 pack?

email (option): horror@blueyonder.co.uk

It should form a "skin" on the top of it if left in the open air, but the chemical reaction of the hardening process has actually happened. Ideally you should mix the paint, add the hardener and spray it straight away. You should only mix the hardener when you are about to use it. Other factors may have come into play too, such as did you paint it on a different day with different weaather conditions such as humidity or with different heat in the spray booth? Moisture in the air plays an important part in the final look of the paint, a bloom in a matt paint sends it to a satin finish, so can applying too much paint. The top item looks like it has been "dust coated" whereas the bottom one looks like it has been applied with a heavier coat

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

I had the same problem with the paintwork of my triumph 3hw.
After the paint was well settled I rub al the parts with a scotch brite rag (the softest in there range) and had a very good result on the two pack paint.

email (option): guy66@skynet.be

Hi Horror...Good to meet up at Netley....I don't want to 'piss on your bonfire' but it is amazing how many people have trouble with two pack...apart from the fact you are going to waste a lot if the amount mixed is too much for the particular part(s) you are spraying. There seems to be trouble getting it to 'matt' off, however much matting agent is put in and frequently it seems sensitive to the amount of paint applied (inconsistent gloss levels) and the prevailing atmospheric conditions..particularly temperature.
I have always used synthetic from Jeeparts UK, it comes in a military finish, not requiring the addition of matting agents and it can be left in the tin for months on end. Also I have mixed different colours, sprayed under extremely varying conditions (temp and humidity) and not being a proffessional sprayer I tend to have some variations in paint density and gun set up. I also only mix paint and thinners 'by eye' so there is variation there as well. I don't have any 'dedicated' spraying facilities..sometimes I spray inside and sometimes not depending on the weather!
Despite all this the results are predictable and consistent across the whole set of parts for a bike.
I use a synthetic 'fast' thinners with this paint mixed approx. 50/50. Drying time is reasonable though not as fast as 2 Pac or Cellulose and the paint takes longer to reach full hardness, though it can be handled without a problem.
In conclusion, if you want an easy life...Go Synthetic!....Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com

Yes Dave, you're right, I have deliberately dust coated the primary case because it was glossy like the rear mudguard. All the parts are glossy like the rear mudguard.

Hi Ian, my bonfire has been p*ssed on so many times with painting this bike that there's no fire left. Lots of learning as I go along. I went to my local paint supplier wanting cellulose Matt and they told me I needed polyurethane. I did a test piece which was still soft after a week and after a month I did the petrol test and if wiped straight off. After a big row with the supplier, I was told 2 pack would be a better option. The 1st lot of paint I decided was not the right colour so I made my own with 3 different colours. It's cost me hundreds so far and the bike is half sprayed but too glossy. A dust coat is the only option left as far as I can see, and I like the finish. The supplier has asked me what I'm doing with all this matt paint, they think I'm spraying a tank now and not a bike

I mix the paint and use it straight away, if there is a bit left I will use it the next day. The result is the same. I do like to put a good coat on, but not enough to run. What ever the weather outside when I'm spraying (exept rain) the result is the same. I guess the paint is consistent. I'm not changing the paint again as I have about 4-5 litres of it which has cost me about £150 with hardener and thinners, plus the cost of the other 2 lots of paint must be over £300 now. So I'm having to solve the problem as best I can, a very light dusting seems to do the job and isn't hard to do, just time consuming doing it all again.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but do Jeep parts do KG3..?

Now someone's going to tell me "your paint isn't KG3" I'm past caring now, it's matt green and better than it looked before

email (option): horror@blueyonder.co.uk

Hi Horror..You have my sympathies...I've been there myself ....Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com

The problem with the matting agent is that it will not give you a true matt finish unless you spray it through a hose pipe as it will block your spray gun's nozzle, This is why I don't want to use it, apparently it also weakens the paint finish. what a lot of people do is spray it in the 2 pack base coat, then apply a matt laquer as Harley Davidson do on their matt black Harleys.

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com

Here's another paint related question...Does anyone know whether 2 pac laquer can be applied over enamels or synthetics..or will it react? I have seen it sprayed over Gold Leaf and it doesn't seem to react with the Size that is used to attach the gold...Ian

email (option): ian@wright52.plus.com

Two pack is reasonably inert compared to cellulose, a quick test is to give the part a quick wipe with a 2 pack thinners soaked rag on a part you won't see and see if you rub it a little if it starts to stain the rag, in fact 2 pack thinners make a pretty good tar remover and panel wipe

email (option): davmax@ntlworld.com