I'm with you,I think I have tried just about every paintline there is or was avaliable from Sikkens,to ICI,to PPG,Glasurit,Diamont,DuPont,Martin Senior,Lessonal,Sherwin,Valspar,Pro-spray,SpiesHecker,Matrix, and some other ones,but if you try Matrix,you will want to forget about 4th dimension, try Matrix AG42 clear,you will not want to use anything else,

the main reason I went tru so many paintlines is to find the best match, and I can tell you, just stick with whatever system you use,some paint brands have better matches on domestics,some do better on imports, I have found that Sherwin Williams Ultra 7000 has awsome match on late model Hondas and Acuras,as I've painted and did alot of spot paint work on brand new Acuras,painted and installed spoilers on them , but for all over resprays Matrix is untouchable with ,coverage and ease to work with

hows the cost on the matrix stuff? and who carries it?

try to google your area body shop supply stores,and BTW, I've done a few Supras with Matrix back in 97 and till this day it looks like I just did it ,and it was the regular 4:1 mixing ratio clear, AG 40 is high-solids clearcoat with awsome UV protectants,I've manipulated and experimented with that clear so many times ,and I'm amazed ,you will forget what solvent pop is even if you hose on coat after coat after coat with no flash time, even if you mix in reducer,there is virtually no die-back and it's not hard to buff, use slow or very slow hardener and you will have glass-like finish,with the right gun anyone can lay it down with amazing results and best part,5 liter kit cost around $175

thanks ill definatley have to try that. Im at the point where i want to start broadening my horizens anyway. Im 22 years old and have only been painting a little over 3 years, I think iam starting to get the hang of it and am contemplating making a career out of it. I really appreciate all the help.

I use Dupont Chroma series for most jobs. I will use the higher end Dupont or HOK when the job calls for it. I have used all the cheap stuff over the last 15 years. Learned by trial and error like you are, and with every paint job, I bought nicer paint and nicer guns. Gone from $50 gal paint and $50 paint guns to $400 gal paint and $400 paint guns.

You will never realize it with overall paint jobs, but trying blending a collision job with cheap paint. Isn't going to happen unless you are a professional at blending and even then is a SOB. Not worth the headache.

i only do full paint jobs so i havent had the problem of blending.

Good info guys! I personally have only done some very small jobs with a couple cars I wasn't afraid to mess up. I had an 83 Camaro years ago that I didn't mind making a mistake on and then helped my mom paint her 89 S-10 Blazer. We did all the paint prep and priming in the shop I owned at the time and took it to a friend of mine for the final paint. Since my IROC is one I plan to keep, I don't want to screw it up if I make a big mistake. This is why I'm researching shops to do the work. Either way, keep the comments going - I'd love to see more.

well, since we are on the topic of advice, what do you guys use when color sanding, buffing, polishing? Any particular brands you guys like? Ive been using 3m stuff and it seems to work well, its just kinda expensive.

I use one product in my shop SYSTEM ONE! no other product in my shop. One product for all three steps! :hail:

is the price comparable to the 3m brand stuff?
what makes it so good?
sorry for all the ?s