Mixing Ratios Help ....

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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 12:16 am
Hey guys, I have a gallon of SS Acrylic Enamel that states a 4:1 ratio of paint to reducer on the can, but it doesn't state anything about hardener. On the pint of hardener it states 1 pint per gallon. So how do I mix paint/reducer/hardener properly for a 600cc cup? I do have the measuring cups with the lines and it shows the 4:1 ratio lines but where do I go from there with the hardener? Thanks in advance, you expertise is greatly appreciated!

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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 12:50 am
Are you spraying equipment enamel? What paint are you using? Do you have a link to the tech sheet? They sell big mixing cups with ounce lines.

:knockout:
Last edited by timbo on Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:46 am, edited 2 times in total.
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:12 am
I'm using this paint.

https://www.carpaintonline.com/products.php?PPGCode=402016&PNId=9586&SPCId=9

On the can it says 4:1 paint to reducer, I got that part but I'm having a brain fart on the hardener. So just go get the bigger cups with the oz on it instead? So it looks like what, 1oz hardener for every 8oz paint? (128oz in a gallon, 16 oz in a pint. 128/16=8?) I dunno, my math stinks, HELP!!!! Thanks again. :neutral:

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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:21 am
PINE GREEN
Premium fast drying acrylic enamel

This is a fast drying acrylic enamel. This product can be used by itself or combined with a Polyurethane enhancer. This Product equal to H101 is added at a rate of 1 pint per gallon. The addition of the hardener will provide increased durability and performance. This Product is applied at the following air pressures:
H.V.L.P 8-10 psi at the air cap
Conventional 40-50 psi at the gun

To Enhance the gloss and durability of this acrylic enamel, OMC203 can be added to the final coat of activated acrylic enamel. Click The Link Above to see sizes, options, prices and add your selections to your cart.


Well,,,says nothing here about reducer but 1 pint enhancer per gallon. So 4 ounces per qt of paint what it looks like to me.
Call them and ask. Looks like some cheap stuff. Why not use urethane?
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:34 am
Hahaha, it is the cheap stuff, first time painting so when with the cheapest sh!@%t out there. Thanks for the help T. Your knowledge is invaluable.

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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:38 am
I understand about cheap...LOL!. Wish I could have helped more. :allgood:
8:1:2 reckon? 24 oz paint, 3 oz hardener, and 6 oz reducer......
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 2:31 am
timbo wrote:I understand about cheap...LOL!. Wish I could have helped more. :allgood:
8:1:2 reckon? 24 oz paint, 3 oz hardener, and 6 oz reducer......



Yep 8:1:2 sounds right and makes sense! Thanks for clearing it up. You did help, thank you.



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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 5:13 am
I bought paint from them in the past. Their enamel and economy basecoat are repackaged PPG Omni. Their better basecoats are PPG Shopline and PPG Deltron.
The H101 hardener is Omni MH101, you could also use MH202 for higher gloss, with or without the mixing clear. I ordered H202 hardener from them and they sent me Omni MH202.
FWIW, for practice, I shot at least 10 gallons of various brand enamels, with a few different hardeners, using a 4:1:1 mixture. I had no ill effects with adhesion, mixing different brand enamels with different brand hardeners. Limco LHM and Omni MH202 hardeners held the shine, but I had die back every time with Matrix enamel hardener.
HVLP and LVLP guns produced excessive orange peel, while conventional and RP guns produced orange peel comparable to factory.
Also got better finishes with Limco mixed 8:4:1, and better coverage with Omni mixed 8:1:1, as per their tech sheets.
You'll find the Omni tech sheet here:

https://buyat.ppg.com/refinishProductCa ... 9674801be7

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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 11:49 am
edpol wrote:I bought paint from them in the past. Their enamel and economy basecoat are repackaged PPG Omni. Their better basecoats are PPG Shopline and PPG Deltron.
The H101 hardener is Omni MH101, you could also use MH202 for higher gloss, with or without the mixing clear. I ordered H202 hardener from them and they sent me Omni MH202.
FWIW, for practice, I shot at least 10 gallons of various brand enamels, with a few different hardeners, using a 4:1:1 mixture. I had no ill effects with adhesion, mixing different brand enamels with different brand hardeners. Limco LHM and Omni MH202 hardeners held the shine, but I had die back every time with Matrix enamel hardener.
HVLP and LVLP guns produced excessive orange peel, while conventional and RP guns produced orange peel comparable to factory.
Also got better finishes with Limco mixed 8:4:1, and better coverage with Omni mixed 8:1:1, as per their tech sheets.
You'll find the Omni tech sheet here:

https://buyat.ppg.com/refinishProductCa ... 9674801be7




Edpol! Thats exactly what I needed! So you tried 4:1:1 with it and had good results? I think I will try that if your results were acceptable. Thanks again!!!!



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PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:37 pm
I'm sorry, I omitted some important info.
Omni acrylic enamel with hardener tech sheet calls for 8:1:1. Omni acrylic enamel without hardener tech sheet says 4:1 So, using the hardener, the ratio of solvent to paint is the same. It's easier and less confusing to print 8:1:1 than it is to print 4:1/2:1/2, or 4:.5:.5
Coverage will be less going to 4:1:1, which means you'll need to spray more coats. With more coats, you'll get solvent pop if you don't allow for much longer flash time between coats. Stick with the 8:1:1 mixture.
At 8:1:1, with a lot of practice, peel was similar to '"factory" orange peel".
Keep in mind, I hadn't done any auto painting in over 30 years, at which time we used mostly lacquer sprayed out of conventional siphon guns. So, I bought a lot of cheap enamel (Some of which is Omni) to get used to the newer gravity fed HVLP guns. All that practice has helped a lot, especially getting metallics to lay down without striping. It's also how I found out about poor coverage and solvent pop at the 4:1:1 mixture.

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