Calling the mod squad | Page 2 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

Calling the mod squad




Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





Should move this in to how to section under,
"How to blow wads of cash on personalizing emblems" lol.
72_011813_460000000.jpg

Its turned out pretty good so far. The waiting IS the hardest part!!! I'm actually enjoying this. It's an opportunity to see if I can fix stuff in the future.
I went with black primer this coat because I thought it would be better for the flash card when I paint the vista blue.

For those keeping track. That's 4 coats of primer on the flash card and 3 coats on the emblems.
 






First coat of vista blue turned out great.
72_012110_400000000.jpg

First coat of the matte black on the emblems turned out ok.

72_012110_420000002.jpg

I went after a cat hair on the big emblem and Fd it up.

72_012110_410000001.jpg

I'll be sanding that and making another attempt tomorrow.

After seeing the 2 colors next to each other it's looking like the vista blue is too dark but that's the whole point of the experiment right?
 












@gmanpaint

Recoat any time after previous coat has flashed but within 18hours or surface will need to be abraded before recoating.

I didnt plan on adding another coat to the flash card. I think It will serve its purpose fine with one good wet coat. I'm looking at it now and looks just like my truck. Blue n sparkly. It's so shiny I cant get a good picture without a reflection.
 






@gmanpaint

While I was replying to your question about recoat times and staring at the flash card I started to wonder if it was dark because I was seeing the black primer through the paint. So I wiped it down and added another coat to the flash card and one coat of matte black to the smaller emblems.
20190902_090517.jpg


I have to say this single stage works great. It has a nice fan when applying, and it lays down flat. It makes me feel like a pro, If only you could get bodywork in a can!!! The flash card I painted was pretty hammered before I painted it. You can see dings, dent, divits, and scratches in it but almost no orange peel!! Just like my truck, it's super hard to take a picture because it's so shiny and reflective.
20190902_090416.jpg

I think I'm done with the flash card... but I added a 3rd coat any way. I could experiment with a clear coat but....i read that you can still clear coat singlestage paint but it's not necessary so i might not.

I added the first coat of matte clear coat to the 2 smaller emblems. First coat is drying.

The big one set enough, I opted to just scuff n repaint matte black. Pictured scuffed.
20190902_091814.jpg

It's been repainted and waiting to be clear coated.

I'm dying to skip ahead and see if the vista blue is visible or disappears but If it does work I will need to repeat the process so I have to continue in order and do it right. Even if this turns out horrible I'll have my answer.

Besides the time, effort and cost of materials (paint, supplies, and emblems), the biggest drawback from doing this is, if I ever need to replace a damaged emblem I cant just order it off Ebay. I'll have to go through this process again.
 






OK, the thing I'm interested in now, is how well the Urethane paint adhesion will be to the matte & clear, instead of over primer.


I'm sure you read it on the can, but just in case....There should be a "pot life" on the vista blue paint once activated. I believe it is less than one day for spray bombs. Like 12-18 hrs.

With that said.... Be ready to paint everything at once after activation, as to not let it go to waste, or thicken up.

Pro tips:
I use tar and grease remover to clean, then a tack cloth, right before I spray.

A few thin coats is better than 2 heavy coats, as it will lie down better, and less egg shell from build up. As the solvents evaporate, the pigmented paint has a tendency to clot together, leaving the raised texture behind. So multiple thinner coats work well. Keeping a wet edge with 50/50 overlaps, working from edge to edge in full even passes ensures uniformity. When you sprayed the flash card, I'm sure you found out how far away to keep the spray tip to get an even coverage coat.

If it is a true 2 part 4:1 urethane automotive paint, the flash time is very quick, and can lay down another coat within a few minutes.

I still think a clear coat over all of them would be best to protect the blue paint. 3 good coats of it can handle trail brush scratches, and can be buffed out. That's just me tho. :D
 






Screenshot_20190902-132730_Gallery.jpg
Heres how the flash card turned out.

Here are the emblems after 2 coats of matte clear coat.
20190902_132221.jpg
20190902_132226.jpg

Only issue with these so far was a couple tiny bubbles on the premier emblem after the first coat of clear. I popped them with a razor and smoothed them out with my fingernail. The big emblem turned out ok and is curing with the others. They will need to set overnight so I can mask and trim out the letters without wrecking or pulling up the matte black.

Emblems before taping
20190902_134143.jpg

After taping.
20190902_125733.jpg

This will be a pain!! I scuffed the big one but I only used a tack cloth on the other 2 because I was afraid of messing up my somewhat half assed tape job with my 50/50 alcohol water mix.
20190902_132033.jpg

The purple hue is from the umbrella above. This is the second coat. I'll hit this with a crystal clear coat after I'm certain they are well covered. I had a chip in the letter N that I forgot to hit with primer so I cheated and used a black permanent marker. Lol. Shiny chrome chip dissapeared but you can see the rough edges still.
 






@gmanpaint

I'm dying to know how the urethane will work with krylon too. So far I havent had any major bad reactions. Lol. Scratch that! Spoke too soon.
Screenshot_20190902-164214_Gallery.jpg

The big chrome emblem with the chip in the N had an issue. I tried to spray some blue into a cup and use a brush to add a glob to hide the chip. As soon as it hit the spot the area bubbled and made a mess. I've cleaned off that spot, hit it with plastic adhesion, primer, matte black and am waiting for it to cure so I can smooth it out and cover it with the vista blue. This wont be the prettiest repair by far but I'll still be able to see how the blue goes over the black.

So the black emblems wont be ready for the vista blue till tomorrow

Wish me luck. I need it.
 






I am a professional painter by trade, but not in the automotive industry. My field is in Commercial/Residential with spray finishes being my area of expertise.

@MONMIX is our resident expert automotive painter around here. I'm sure he can help you.
Nope.
Not a painter. Repair technician.
 












whatever we are we should be qualified to paint some badges after all we have been through!!

Looking good so far!! I was thinking black letters and blue surround :)
Your masking tape skills are wicked good for a stone mason LMFAO!!!!


"Badges!?! we don't need no stinking badges!!!"
oh man I love that movie
 






@410Fortune
I'm a BRICK Mason specializing in chimney restoration and repair, but I'll lay anything. Lol

My favorite quote regarding badges.
" ah sure it's a free country and I ain't got the right...But I got a badge...What do you got?"

@gmanpaint
Im happy to report no bad reaction from the matte clear coat and the single stage urethane. Once I taped the emblems I just used the tack cloth. No scuffing and no 50/50 water alcohol. The letters are recesed so I didnt think there was much chance of contamination from handling. I was REALLY surprised the blue was as visible as it is. I expected it to disappear. I did not add any clear coat to the vista blue.

@MONMIX
Thank you for popping in and saying hello!
 






Now, with out further adew....what we've all been waiting for..... drum roll please......

Introducing the proto types
72_032253_390000003.jpg

Jumbo jumble
72_022131_230000001.jpg

Chrome n black Ranger V8
72_022131_230000000.jpg

Chrome n black Ranger Premier V8
72_022133_530000002.jpg

Blackout Ranger V8
72_022133_530000001.jpg

Blackout Ranger Premier V8
72_022133_530000000.jpg

Chrome n blue Ranger V8
72_022131_240000004.jpg

Chrome n blue Ranger Premier V8
20190903_215530.jpg

Chrome n blue Ranger red V8 by request
72_032309_020000001.jpg

Black n blue Ranger V8
72_032309_010000000.jpg

Black n blue Ranger Premier V8
72_022131_240000002.jpg

Maverick V8
72_022131_240000003.jpg

Maverick V8 long

@410Fortune
I'll make a blue n black set as soon as I can. I may like that the best. Im still liking the maverick, the definition of a maverick fits the truck but I'm not ready to commit to it yet.

Maverick definition: unbranded, individualistic, non conformist, etc...
 






It is hard to get good pictures on the flat. I can try n get better shots of all except the blackout set as it's now the black n blue set. But if anyone wants a better pic just let me know which one or what set and I'll see what I can do.

These are proto types and I'm not a painter. These were created to help visualize. Thanks for lookin!!!
 


















These are the emblems that didnt fit on the fender but may find a place on the hood or tailgate or no where. Lol.
72_040017_530000001.jpg

Heres a set that I considered but....
72_040017_530000000.jpg

I thought this one would get some attention being unique and my ranger is a 3rd gen so....
72_040020_120000000.jpg

It could go on the hood....
 









Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.











Back
Top