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Firebirdjones · 09-06-2012, 08:58 PM

They both have their good and bad points.

Your single stages can look nice if the time is spent to cut and buff, and a very good quality paint is used, the finish will look rich and deep. It's also much cheaper (less materials needed to purchase) and later down the road if a repair is needed, it's much easier to shoot and blend a single stage paint and keep the repair smallish without shooting the entire panel.

Two stage (base/clear) can provide a better looking finish, but again I stress good quality materials used. It's more costly, since you are buying more materials. You'll use nearly twice as much clear as you will paint since base/clear systems are generally 50/50 paint/reducer but your clears are generally 4:1 clear/reducer. So a gallon of clear doesn't go as far.
The other draw back is when a repair is needed later down the road. Once a spot is repaired you can't simply blend and leave it. On a base/clear system you'll have to clear that entire panel for a correct undetectable repair even if the spot is only the size of a dollar bill. So repairs obviously are more costly too for both materials and labor.

Just some things to think about. Most of my customers seem to be split 50/50 on which paint system they prefer. I still seem to do alot of the single stage stuff simply because I think people want to save money in this economy.

09-06-2012, 08:58 PM	#3
Firebirdjones Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Prescott, Arizona Posts: 2,396	Re: single stage or 2 stage? They both have their good and bad points. Your single stages can look nice if the time is spent to cut and buff, and a very good quality paint is used, the finish will look rich and deep. It's also much cheaper (less materials needed to purchase) and later down the road if a repair is needed, it's much easier to shoot and blend a single stage paint and keep the repair smallish without shooting the entire panel. Two stage (base/clear) can provide a better looking finish, but again I stress good quality materials used. It's more costly, since you are buying more materials. You'll use nearly twice as much clear as you will paint since base/clear systems are generally 50/50 paint/reducer but your clears are generally 4:1 clear/reducer. So a gallon of clear doesn't go as far. The other draw back is when a repair is needed later down the road. Once a spot is repaired you can't simply blend and leave it. On a base/clear system you'll have to clear that entire panel for a correct undetectable repair even if the spot is only the size of a dollar bill. So repairs obviously are more costly too for both materials and labor. Just some things to think about. Most of my customers seem to be split 50/50 on which paint system they prefer. I still seem to do alot of the single stage stuff simply because I think people want to save money in this economy.