Tri-Coat and 3 Stage Color Matching

At the risk of bragging on my son, who paints for me, he has developed a foolproof strategy for matching 3 stage colors that I have not heard anyone else mention before. My BASF rep was here yesterday and since this technique was something he had never seen before either, I felt compelled to share it as it has proven to be 100% successful.

The typical color card is prepared in direct sunlight until the card matches the vehicle. No attention is paid to counting the number of mid-coats, the focus is on color representation on the card. Since the main thing that gets coat counters into trouble is consistency in the heaviness of the mid coat, from application on the card to application on the vehicle, he simply takes the card he KNOWS matches the vehicle in the booth with him.

As he is applying the mid coat, he can check coverage by holding the card to the vehicle and moving it across the entire area to check coverage not only on the repaired area but over the blend transition as well. His technique has proven to be 100% successful.

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Permalink Reply by Bob Sanford on February 14, 2010 at 7:32am

Tri-coats.... The difference between a good painter or a person that knows how to paint. A good painter will do what they have been taught & trained and will get an acceptable job done but a real painter such as your son will take it that extra step and figure out a process that works best for the situation. Brag all you want, he deserves it.