Rattle can matte clear NOT to buy!

[Appalachian Hillbilly]

I have been using the Duplicolor Wheel paint on the left and could not find it at my local auto store. I got the one on the right and it was horrible. Took 4 hours to half way dry. Very rubbery.  Sanded it off and went to another auto store and got the good stuff. It dries to the touch in 15 minutes.

[kennym]

Love the stuff on left!  I put 3-4 coats of same brand auto clearcoat first , it seems to fill and seal better. But is super gloss so I shoot a couple coats of the matte on last and it looks great and holds up well...

I only build a few a year so not gonna set up to use a spray gun and booth.

[Longcruise]

X2 the can on the left.  FWIW, im pretty certain that the VHT stuff is identical.

That said,  if you see me with any kind of spray can in hand, immediately wrestle it away from me.

[Flem]

Minus the propellents, those rattle cans work out to approx. $350 per gallon.

Killjoy was here

[mmattockx]

Minus the propellents, those rattle cans work out to approx. $350 per gallon.

Convenience store pricing. The rattle cans offer instantly ready to use, no clean up required convenience. No capital investment in buying painting equipment, no time investment in learning to set up the equipment and get good results with it. If you don't paint much or often the cans can be the better economic choice overall.

As always, YMMV. You need to think about what you're doing and make choices to suit.

 


Mark

[Appalachian Hillbilly]

Mark, you are spot in. Convenience.
I used to paint cars and do a lot of restoration  work. I am very anal when it comes to cleaning my spray guns.  Some of them are very expensive. I hate going through all that for one riser.  If I ever make multiple bows at once, I will drag out my big toys to finish them.

[Flem]

Hillbilly, all you need is a small, mid grade, detail gun. Which you likely have. Takes less time to clean than a aerosol finish takes to sand out.

[Appalachian Hillbilly]

Your probably right. I need to order me a gallon of Krystal and just get some good high solids clear for first coat or 2. Last riser I done is going to be a longterm keeper. Need to quit being so lazy and start doing it right.

[Crooked Stic]

My spray gun is from Grizzly $35 when  I got it $49 now. Gravity feed. With 1.8 tip. Real adjustable . The bigger tips work well with clear stuff like Krystal.

[Arlo]

I prefer an HVLP gun with a 1.4 tip for clear coating, but i gave up on Krystal years ago because it just doesn't hold up well enough for a guy that hunts with a bow a lot. Its fine for indoor target bows that never see the light of day, but it scratches much easier than auto clear coat.   Arlo

[Appalachian Hillbilly]

My favorite gun I own is a DeVilbiss GTI Pro. I have several others, but when I shot a lot of HOK clears , if the booth was clean, I can achieve glass without the need to cut and polish! Never painted with anything that lays clear so smooth.

All of my custom bows done by Mike Treadway have automotive clear as a base and grain filler, then sanded and Krystal on top.
They have held up with zero issues. That has been hunting , rain and no great care! I do believe the automotive clear base is what gives them their strength.

They do not scratch easily at all!

[Flem]

I always liked Krystal, but my local shop that sold it, dropped Campbells. Using Mohawk UltraClear, because its the only stuff I can get sent here! Still using some Campbells vinyl sealer for a base.

How do vinyl sealers compare to auto clear base?

[Crooked Stic]

Arlo they do make Krystal in gloss witch is tuffer than the duller ones.
Can't say as I have had a problem with it. And the other stuff is about 3 times more expensive.
The vinyl stuff I got from T-bird is nothing like auto clear coat. But fill pretty good if you brush it but takes a lot of sanding.