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Clearcoating a metallic surface?

Nic.

Nic.

Aug 28, 2009
1,502
746
Singapore
sangriento.bandcamp.com
#1
I'll be doing a rough and uneven metallic surface for a bass refinish (a very grunge look).

How can I clearcoat this so that it still retains the metallic lustre while having coat thick enough to protect it?

The past few times I clearcoated a metallic surface (with lacquer or a spray on clearcoat layer, I tried both my usual wood varnishes, from Ronseal, and some acrylic epoxy), it either dulled the metallic shine, or turned it into a glossy plastic-y shine instead.

Any suggestions? I'm guessing I should be looking more towards "satin" rather than gloss, and I'm definitely staying away from yellow-ish coats... I haven't really gone out to try a wide range of products, but I don't want to buy a tin of every type of clearcoat in the store just to find out which is right.

Edit: I'm aiming for a finish something like this-


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s8mm_sig.jpg


It is definitely going to be uneven, so I most likely won't be able to polish it without putting 2mm of clearcoat over it, which I don't intend to do. I will probably just lay on the clearcoat thinly.
 
#10
I couldn't find the kind of products recommended... so I went to an arts supplies shop and asked for recommendations on what to use for metallic surfaces.

I was directed to this product-
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Gave it a try...

Before clearcoat-
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After clearcoat-
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So far so good. I'll give it a few more layers, let it settle for a week, then buff.
 
#14
Just to let you guys know the end result of clearcoating it with that product-

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It's still kinda metallic-shiny, but not as shiny... can live with that, though.

Like you can see in the "before clearcoat" photo, originally it was reflective enough to be able to see the reflection of my fingers. Now, it can't really show that, just a pink blur at best. Ah well. Maybe I should just have used mirror epoxy and lived with it being glossy instead.
 
#16
The clear coat is not going to give you the mirror like finish unless you buff it out with some polishing compound. Not sure how that would work with the surface you're working with though, as it does not appear to be flat. Still looks very cool though.
 
#17
salman said:
The clear coat is not going to give you the mirror like finish unless you buff it out with some polishing compound. Not sure how that would work with the surface you're working with though, as it does not appear to be flat. Still looks very cool though.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I buffed it with McGuiar's Ultimate Compound. Been using that one since my drumming days to polish lacquers. But like you mentioned, it's insanely uneven... so I was hoping to be able to do it without polishing. Because of the uneven surface, I avoided sanding it, but due to that I think the buffing didn't really have much effect. Hmmm gotta think this one out and see if I can figure out a solution.
 

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