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alternative brands to expensive custom paints

12K views 50 replies 28 participants last post by  wildbillrox 
#1 ·
what paint companies are available as an alternative to the high paint prices of house of color and or alsa custom paints?
 
#2 ·
None really. There is a reason why they cost and it's just part of the "game" if you want to play. Even PPG & Dupont's custom or top lines are expensive.
Google Xotic's line. They are supposed to be compairable to HOK but I've not used any.
Maybe "someday" SPI will have some.
Go Barry,Go Barry.
 
#5 ·
custom paint

Check out the current issue of Hot Rod----the cobras done for the Quaker State challenge were done by 4 different shops from different parts of the country ( weather etc.) and all used Auto Air Colors custom paint.I've used it quite alot and the results are excellent.The cost is beyond resonable but FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS its application is different than spraying the other brands of custom paint.
Good Luck
 
#6 ·
wow its been a long time since i have been here!! anyway i have always thought hok was reasonable. every time i try something else or a major brand it ends up being twice as much. i tried auto air and just cant get into it. its has been a while since i tried it so maybe i should give it another chance. it was rubbery, had poor adhesion and was impossible to do real detailed airbrushing with. like i said though last itme i used it was over 3 years ago.

hey bee, dont see you on the spi forum anymore.
 
#7 · (Edited)
I'm there Jim, I just use my real name. ;)
Mike K. :welcome:

Auto air is a crap shoot IMO and a LOT of the GOOD airbrush guys still have adhesion issues with it.It's a good product but still going thru it's learning curve. Blake at Cross Eyed uses it a lot and does some amazing work but it still has a way to go yet to equal Uro's in ease of use.
Try using some Fantastic in the water for reducer Jim. Yeah, The household cleaner.They are getting a better reducer out but like I said. It's still early for a LONG lasting product.

SEM is coming along as well, I use some of their kandy concentraits and they had some BIG problems with one of their employee/chemists but that was taken care of and therir product is getting favorable reviews. It's a tad cheaper than HOK and getting better everyday.
But still,
Custom paint is going to cost just because of the nature,C-U-S-T-O-M.....=
M-O-N-E-Y......
 
#10 ·
Dang, I could have REALLY screwed with you guys. :D
I can't believe you didn't know it "was" me from all the dumb questions i been asking. Hehehe...

YES!!!! Bob. I still want the 1.4 nozzle "IF" it's at a good price.
Please PM me with a price if you get one.

I got turned loose back in the "oops" paint at the store yesterday and drug home a buttload of screwed up color matchs in Chromabase & Nason for free so I'm going to either figure out "how" to make this SataJet 90 RP-2 spray paint without wasting it or sell the thing. I did get some good advice on it though from someone who uses one so there may be hope for it yet.
 
#12 ·
Listen to Bob on that one. When I switched to Sata I had fits until someone told me about high flow fittings. Really the difference between unusable and good.

As far as HOK pricing... it really deprends where you buy it. My first Kandy job was when I was 16. The topcoat materials cost me about $800.00. You can buy them now for half that. And that was a long time ago.

Larry
 
#13 ·
Personally I use the Kirker candys etc... thinking of just using the lazer dry with AE and using their clear :confused: ... Man that would really cut down my material cost.. :mwink: But first I think I will make my own bodyfiller and epoxy..pretty simple so I hear :p :thumbup:

Besides they been around a long time, they have to be good :spank: :boxing: :pimp: :evil: :welcome:
 
#14 · (Edited by Moderator)
I see some people still have their heads firmly planted up *********. I'd like to know what he's done to get a free ride when it comes to advertising :confused: He and his cronies take over a forum, promoting his products and gets away with it. What proof do any of you have that SPI is such a great product? Because BarryK and a select few that follow him around to other forums say so? Where are the longevity tests that are so critical to a good paint?

Well, I have a lot more to say, but seeing that this post will probably be deleted very shortly, I won't waste my time. I used to have a good laugh everyday reading the SPI commercials but I've had enough :welcome:
 
#15 · (Edited)
gtcway said:
I see some people still have their heads firmly planted up BarryK's *****. I'd like to know what he's done to get a free ride when it comes to advertising :confused: He and his cronies take over a forum, promoting his products and gets away with it. What proof do any of you have that SPI is such a great product? Because BarryK and a select few that follow him around to other forums say so? Where are the longevity tests that are so critical to a good paint?

Well, I have a lot more to say, but seeing that this post will probably be deleted very shortly, I won't waste my time. I used to have a good laugh everyday reading the SPI commercials but I've had enough :welcome:
====================================================
Sorry you feel this way and I never pay no attention to the Kirker, like I don;t to Omni or Nason.

I can't control what people post but The three above are not competitors to SPI in the least, they go after their market and I go after mine, let see 60% of our business is custom and restorers and we have had eight cars in Hot Rod alone this year. Five in the last issue, (4 cobras and the blue stang used as advertising for UTI.)

I have never seen a body shop use Kirkers so I really know nothing about the line except what i hear from other people in the industry that I deal with guess I just call on the wrong 800 shops last year but I consider them no competition at all so I guess your confused.
I really doubt they consider me competition either.

27 cars that "I know of" went through Barrett in AZ at the last auction, 4 cars at Pebble beach think what you want but when we make a product we never test to compare to the lower grades at all, MS was a copy to start with years ago of MS Glasurit, so the only thing in common I guess is the price and whatever is in your head.

I guess I just got the stuff priced to cheap to get compared with them.

Hey their price is right, use it thats why they make it!
 
#16 ·
I've used most all of them on the market, and when I used Kirker it would look great, but, in about 18 months it would look like the old dulux enamel, all chalked and starting to craze. Now that was about ten years ago, so it may be better now, when I used it, it was a good cheap paint to put on used cars that you would never see again. Just my experience, sorry if I have offended anyone. John
 
#17 ·
gtcway said:
I see some people still have their heads firmly planted up BarryK's *****. I'd like to know what he's done to get a free ride when it comes to advertising :confused: He and his cronies take over a forum, promoting his products and gets away with it. What proof do any of you have that SPI is such a great product? Because BarryK and a select few that follow him around to other forums say so? Where are the longevity tests that are so critical to a good paint?

Well, I have a lot more to say, but seeing that this post will probably be deleted very shortly, I won't waste my time. I used to have a good laugh everyday reading the SPI commercials but I've had enough :welcome:
I will not edit your post other than to remove the rather juvenile profanity. However, I will offer these observations.

It seems you have a distinct dislike for SPI or anyone who uses this paint line. That's fine but understand this...... BarryK does not advertise his products on this forum. We have specific rules against people who are connected with a product advertising it on the forums. There are a number of people here that use his products and often discuss them. Barry will join these conversations but is very careful NOT to advertise because he knows the rules. If you can't understand the difference between advertising and answering technical questions then I strongly suggest finding another place to hang out.

Finally, your tone tells me you are one of the "Kirker Klan" that invaded this forum a while back. If you are let me warn you right now: If you have a paint line you like, fine.... tell us about it and tell us specifically why you like it so much. If you can't do that without bashing another product, or if we find that you are connected with the product you're advocating then you can expect your posts to be deleted or edited. If that's not acceptable, do everyone a favor and hit the road.
 
#18 ·
FYI, I shoot mainly Dupont.
When ALL you ever read or hear about is GOOD for a product, You naturally will be interested in using it. Be it SPI or whatever. Main reason HOK got so popular.Great product from a guy up North who started out small and word got around how good his paint was. Sad thing is,it's owned buy Corperate now and IMO the quality is showing. I've read and talked with more and more painters who are having some major problems with it. So word IS getting around.
Problem with Kirker would be the opposite it appears to me. More bad than good. My advice to these Kirker guy's would be to,
SHOW me what your stuff does. Let's SEE some of your Custom jobs.
Put up or Shut up.
As far as being someones "cronies", these cronies are for the most part,WELL RESPECTED professionals who do some of the BEST paint work around.
I'll be using SPI completly on my current job and form my OWN oppinion of SPI. Believe me, IF I have any "issues" with the product,I will be making it known.
Good or Bad.

As for my air set up, It's ALL 3/8". I went to this a couple of years back.
I just have not had or really taken the time to learn the gun and that's MY fault. But it will get a work out soon. Thanks for the tip though.
 
#20 ·
I think the Valspar product line is good value for money. The technology
behind it is pretty good. They reciently added a line of pearls of various colors
so custom work will be easier or atleast offer more options to the mix.

Across all paint lines today, most are pretty similar. Some ya pay for the marketing effort, some ya dont.

IMHO even the lower cost urethane based stuff of today is good, compaired to the higher end enamel of 10 years ago.

><
 
#21 ·
gtcway said:
I see some people still have their heads firmly planted up *********. I'd like to know what he's done to get a free ride when it comes to advertising :confused: He and his cronies take over a forum, promoting his products and gets away with it. What proof do any of you have that SPI is such a great product? Because BarryK and a select few that follow him around to other forums say so? Where are the longevity tests that are so critical to a good paint?

Well, I have a lot more to say, but seeing that this post will probably be deleted very shortly, I won't waste my time. I used to have a good laugh everyday reading the SPI commercials but I've had enough :welcome:
I have never used SPI,with that said I have talked to Barry on the phone several times and he has always helped me out with what ever info I needed,on any product I was useing.Do us all a favor,post something relavant,or hit the road.BTW.....if you are on the right ocean,stop by my shop some time.....we can talk this out in person........ :evil:
 
#23 ·
The only real test of the quality level of paint is time.
Show me a paint that's got at least 3 yrs on it and then
I'll consider it.
3 yrs is the benchmark for me, I've been fixing a lot of collision
repairs that looked perfect when first done, but now, 3 yrs later blend lines
reappear, clear delaminates, and all kinds of things show up.

Just because a car has a glass smooth finish after spraying doesn't
mean it's a quality paint job that will hold up, lacquer can do that.
My own Kirker mess looked perfect for the first 3 yrs, then went to hell
in a hurry, (I thought it was "high quality" too)
Most people pushing a cheap product on here has just started
painting and has no idea how it's going to hold up but are quick to
defend it by showing a buffed out car, nice and shiney, Really
amazing. :pimp:
 
#24 ·
I am not going to comment on the quality of any paint brand, like Kirker, that I have never used because I don't know how good or bad it may be but I can't help but notice that a lot of the time when the subject of Kirker comes up some of the people who are trying to push it resort to name calling and crude remarks. Hey if you like the stuff then tell us so and tell us what you like about it but bad-mouthing another product and resorting to name calling and crude remarks is not going to win over anyone and in fact will just have the opposite effect. If Kirker has an unjustly earned bad reputation here it is because of the crude and insulting attitude of some of the people who have tried to push it. No one is going to try a product because they have been told that they have their head up ******* for using another product that they tried and like and I truly believe that most people who have not used Kirker are going to be very negatively influenced by this type of attitude.
 
#26 ·
The omni single stage urethane on one of my cars has 5 years on it, no real loss of gloss or adhesion in any places. I have some rust coming back through the worst being on the rockers where I didn't even really notice anything to take care of. They must of been rusty inside and waiting to come through. I got lazy and just filled some of the holes with fiberglass filler. It was an older gm paint peeler and very rusty. I didn't want to spend a ton on material, considering what the value on the car would be, and the amount of rust on it. It was stripped to metal and I skipped the epoxy and sprayed a few coats of marhyde high build urethane over the whole car and painted over that. The marhyde primer is around 60 bucks for the gallon, the omni about 100 a gallon with the activator. Pretty user friendly if you don't rush things. I painted white and it covered well. Had a few problems with omni base before getting coverage though, but then again, dbc had some pretty poor coverage on a light green I sprayed. The products are not failing, and the rust that is coming back isn't the products fault. If I only got three years out of a paint, I would be real dissappointed. I would want at least 5 or 6 out of a lower line, and over 10 using higher priced products. Most things I have painted though, I have not seen again that far down the road. I've read too many post of problems they've had using kirker to consider using it, and if they don't give customer support when someone has a problem, I don't see why I would want to use it. I've used Limco, Omni and other lower priced products. I haven't had many problems other then coverage of the base, and it does look pretty good when done. I know the results with these, so no reason to really try kirker when I've have read people say they had issues with it, and isn't really that much cheaper then what I've been using if I am going for a lower line. Plus the omni or limco and marhyde I can just run across town to buy.
 
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