It 'ain't wot it used to be!!

[christopher.bogue2011]

Well, today I thought I would touch up my Roadster's chassis and front suspension bits with good old Smoothrite. WRONG! What have they done to it? Back in the good old days (1980's) I can remember slopping the stuff on in dollops and it drying to a perfect glossy finish in a couple of hours. Not any more. The stuff that they call Smoothrite is rubbish. It just does not cover like before. I can only assume that the EuroCrats and Greenies have been meddling once again. The stuff is still tacky after nearly three hours and is drying a dull black, not the shiny gloss that I was expecting. Anybody have any brands of paint that they can recommend other than Dulux etc. as I certainly won't be buying Smoothrite again which incidentally was not cheap!

Chris

[terryreed1664]

Re: It 'ain't wot it used to be!!

Hi Christopher, I used Hammerite smooth and got a very good finish, but I warmed the tin (with the lid removed) in very hot water, by doing this it seems dry with very few brush marks, almost like powder coating.
TerryDSC00235.jpgDSC00236.jpg

[Dane_Rescueman]

Re: It 'ain't wot it used to be!!

I fell foul with hammerite recently. I have quite a few tins of different colours which are still OK and some newly purchased colours. I tried to thin an older tin down a bit with the Hammerite thinners and created couscous! Yup, they changed the type of thinners and thus the formula of the paint a couple of years ago. I managed to get a tin of xylene (earlier paint type) at my local farmers supplier and have separated the two types of paint on to different shelves alongside their respective thinners. The latest thinners will not clean brushes or thin the older smooth/hammer - ite. The older recipe is much better than the modern one but the COSH H&S etc don't like the earlier xylene based paint. B**g**red up a couple of old tins and three brushes finding this out!! I did email the Hammerite people but they said new paint much better (for the environment) and everything is wonderful, fine and rosy! Ho Hum! They'll ban white spirit from Waxoyl next and make it with water and salt instead. Better for the environment but no use for rust proofing! Harrumph......rant over.

[billjackson54]

Re: It 'ain't wot it used to be!!

WELL...feeling suitably warned by my researches here and elsewhere, I bought some stuff called POR15 from Frost Restoration. Frost were very helpful, they even sent me a link to a Youtube clip of preparation technique. The finish is really good, as it happens, really glossy and the coverage is good...but I must mention several caveats....1) It's not cheap..., 750ml tin costs around £40. You also need the special thinners £22 for a litre), POR'a own degreaser at £20 for a quart and also their own "Prep and Ready"at £36-£45 for 3.5 litres....and you're advised to use cheap throw-away brushes (I spent £8 at Wilkinsons on 1" ones) as they'll be useless afterwards. 2) It's really messy....maybe it's just me, but it gets everywhere despite gloves and old clothes and if you don't get it off your skin immediately (they say to use their thinners for this) it probably won't come off at all. 3) It's a 4 step process...but at least it goes a long way (10 square metres on above quantities) and it takes a while: wire brushing / degreasing / hosing off / drying time / Prep and Ready (the actual rust conversion) more hosing off / drying time / POR15 application (two coats, drying time between. .....AND if it's to be used in an area exposed to sunlight, it needs a topcoat as well...the Chassis black top coat is a wapping £140 on top. I reasoned that the chassis won't see much sunlight so I haven't bothered with a top coat. 4) It's advisable to buy multiple small tins.....as if you replace the lid with any product AT ALL in the grooves, after an overnight stand you will not be able to remove the lid again so any product left is wasted. My son and I decanted from the original tin into two jars....but when we came to do the second coat (overnight drying time) the only way into the jar was by way of a drill through the lid and a pair of tin snips....ALSO it's really horrid: loads of H and S advice on the tin / bottle concerning ventilation / breathing masks and miscellaneous toxicity) TIME WILL TELL how good this stuff really is....it certainly looks good at the moment....but I think it's probably best used for a ground up restoration rather than a touching up. Costs would then equate to about £300 for the entire chassis...for a (possibly better) finish equivalent to powder coating?

[Alan c]

Re: It 'ain't wot it used to be!!

You can buy POR15 in a pack of 8 x 50ml tins - gets over the reseal problem - open once use or throw away - or at leats one second shot with help of can opener. Its like steel when it sets - used it on motorbike frame but issues above eventually put me of it.