Question about base coat clear coat.

[g_mo]

I'm using a base coat clear coat to panel paint my truck. My question is, once I lay down a base coat, how long do I have before it needs to be topcoated with clear? Do I have sufficient time to get color on all the panels and then lay the clear down? It will probably end up taking 3-4 weeks to get color on the entire body. The truck is outside the majority of the time.

Thanks,
Gary

 

[ORYGUNHAMMER]

ask the jobber

they have `tech sheets' i ask for them if it's product i havent used,they are always releasing some new product,,,,most basecoats i believe it's 16 hours but you're pushing it,,long story short two problems you may have is the basemay wrinkle from the clear and down the road it may delaminate or pop off the base, ya need a chemical bond!,clear needs to bite in to the base,of course once the base skins over enough then it wrinkles,,,,,,,,one product you might try is PPG DBU basecoat it's the original PPG base,cost isn't cheap and you have to use a reactive reducer= DRR but it won't blow up no matter how long it sits,scratch pad it with the super fine pad if it sits a long time,it all depends on the base you're using really,,and why are you doing it a panel at a time,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,ok reread yer post`outside' can you rent a booth or at least some shop space to spray in?,,if the weather is decent (texas???) blast it late morning on a calm day

 

[bigblock72]

That's a very bad idea to let base sit that long, especially outside. Two things will happen: first the base will dry completely and you won't get any chemical bond as explained above. Second, the base will probably oxidize further preventing a good bond. In fact it may oxidize enough the first panels may be a different color than the last panels.
I would recommend you spray at least one coat of clear over the base. When everything is done sand the clear with 1,000-1,200 grit and spray your clear or graphics or whatever over that.