Painted Parts? Anyone know a source

[blackout07]

 

My sentiments exactly. By the way that new tahoe is sweeeeet!

 

I already have the code (BC/CC WA 800J or 98U) and will be talking to the local body shop here about a few things on Monday. This guy has done work for me in the past and explained that when they input the VIN the computer generates the exact paint used from the factory. The blending really comes into play when you have age/sun discoloration and the paint isn't exactly as it was when the vehicle was new. Mine's just over 2, and she is usually in the garage.

 

 

Thank you. All this talk of WDT paint work being a PITA is making me nervous.

[montyss]

I'm wishing it was that easy as just inputting the number

here is a partial list for that color :

the numbers with the ( X )are variations of the standard color

 

TRI COATENVIROBASE HP

 

PRIME //D Darker Flop than Prime

//B(X8) Bluer Flop than Prime

//D(X11) Darker Flop than Prime

//D(X19) Darker Flop than Prime

//L(X7) Lighter Flop than Prime

//L(X21) Lighter Flop than Prime

B//L(X22) Bluer Face ; Lighter Flop than Prime

D//D(X36) Darker Face ; Darker Flop than Prime

D(X34) Darker than Prime

D(X38) Darker than Prime

D(X39) Darker than Prime

DB(X40) Darker Bluer than Prime

DR(X33) Darker Redder than Prime

DR(X42) Darker Redder than Prime

DY(X44) Darker Yellower than Prime

L(X23) Lighter than Prime

R//D(X45) Redder Face ;

Darker Flop than Prime

R(X18) Redder than Prime

[Duelin]

I'm on board with the complexity of paint work, but it seems to me that GM would paint all of their vehicles using the same methods, paint, etc. so per the vin there would be a code right? I would never have thought that a good body shop would have to custom match factory paint jobs...they aren't custom jobs for goodness sake. Hell, duplicator does it.

White Diamond Tri Coat is a custom paint. It's almost a $1000 option.

 

 

 

 

My sentiments exactly. By the way that new tahoe is sweeeeet!

 

I already have the code (BC/CC WA 800J or 98U) and will be talking to the local body shop here about a few things on Monday. This guy has done work for me in the past and explained that when they input the VIN the computer generates the exact paint used from the factory. The blending really comes into play when you have age/sun discoloration and the paint isn't exactly as it was when the vehicle was new. Mine's just over 2, and she is usually in the garage.

The computer doesn't generate the exact paint used in the factory. It generates a formula and the paint has to be mixed. This is done by using a scale and weighing the different color base coats binders etc. Using this method One drop of a base coat can change the tint in one direction or the other. Now the mfgs. control the color of the paint with an optical computerized system the looks thru the paint while it is being mixed to see if was mixed correctly and adjust anything that needs to be adjusted. These computers cost over a Million dollars a piece. Not quite the same as mixing a can of paint in the mix room with a $200 scale that should be calibrated before each can of paint is mixed to be as accurate as possible.

 

I agree blending comes into play with older vehicle. Thats a given on any paint job. OH! By the way the type of wax you use on a White Diamond Tri Coat can change the tint of the paint. That being said as I mentioned in my other post we would have problems in our paint repair department trying to match paint that wasn't even a day old. Thats because you use a different process. Now here is another problem you can run into. You can lay down your base coat and then lay down your pearl and it is perfect. Now the difference between factory clear coat and a paint shop clear coat is this. The factory lays down the whole layer of clear coat and then it is cured by going thru ovens. At the body shops you mix an activator in to the clear coat in a can. The activator starts working right away (like two part epoxies). Now do they mix all of their clear coat at once or do they mix each coat separately. If mixed all at once then every coat after the first is a different composition due to the curing factor of the activator. Now there are a lot of factors that controls ( humidity, temperature) the drying time. Different drying times (too fast or too slow) affects the finish of the paint. The vapors from the activator has to come to the surface and evaporate. Some times is doesn't and it will create little microscopic bubbles or prizms. So now when the light goes thru these prizms and reflect off the pearl it is a completely different shade. So just because the paint is new doesn't make it any easier to match. And of course you can throw in Murphy's Law into the equation. That always going to help you out a lot.

 

While I am at it I will give you my thought on having someone painting a panel and shipping it to you. To start with 90% of the new panels that come into a body shop have dings or scratches in them. Now that being said if the panel comes in perfect it still has to be installed without being scratched or dinged. Not an easy process even the best have had problems. This is where Murphy's Law comes into effect. Anyway good luck with your quest.

[hollis092]

I think you exacerbated your point clearly.

 

A little note, the body shop I am dealing with has one of those "million dollar a piece" machines and that's what he will use to produce the paint. They don't mix a single thing. He puts in the VIN and the computer generates the exact paint, base, mid, and clear - all seperately of course. He has explained this to me thoroughly and I have seen the equipment - it is too advanced for me and I am an engineer, computer at that. There are no cans of paint, no human mixing. The computer generates the paint formula internally and the painter steps into the booth grabs the gun and its ready.

 

This body shop is the factory body shop for all regional Toyota dealers and several GM dealers. I think he knows what he is doing.

 

And on your second thought, the company I am talking to guarantees 100% satisfaction. So if the fender arrives damaged, I get a new one. If the paint doesn't match, they'll repaint it.

 

I will likely go with my local body shop as I am likely going to have some new bumper caps done (yes - painted to match) adding some led cube fogs.

[blackout07]

White Diamond Tri Coat is a custom paint. It's almost a $1000 option..

I'm aware of the cost. I have a vehicle that color. But calling that custom paint is like calling the optional 22" wheels custom...it's just not. It's a factory paint job. Plain and simple. I'm certainly not arguing the difficulty in matching it with you. You clearly know what you're talking about. It just seems to me that in this day and time, when I can take a chip of paint to Sherwin Williams and they scan it and then a machine mixes paint to match it virtually perfectly, that paint and body shops should be able to do about the same. It's not like this is some rare coating on some NASA space station. It's a factory paint job, and I feel very certain that there are well equipped shops that do it well.

[Duelin]

I'm aware of the cost. I have a vehicle that color. But calling that custom paint is like calling the optional 22" wheels custom...it's just not. It's a factory paint job. Plain and simple. I'm certainly not arguing the difficulty in matching it with you. You clearly know what you're talking about. It just seems to me that in this day and time, when I can take a chip of paint to Sherwin Williams and they scan it and then a machine mixes paint to match it virtually perfectly, that paint and body shops should be able to do about the same. It's not like this is some rare coating on some NASA space station. It's a factory paint job, and I feel very certain that there are well equipped shops that do it well.

You are correct that it is possible to mix paint that will match the factory perfectly. But lets give these 4 different cans of paint( primer included) to 100 different body shops to paint a repair with. How many different matches do you think you would get? Now everything is in the process. And every painter does his thing a little different which affects the out come. One use a different clear coat. one uses a different primer. one will use a $200 spray gun one will use a $700 spray gun. One guy will use a different psi on his gun because it isn't spraying like he wants. one guy will lay the paint down a little slower than the other. One guy will over lap a little different. One spray booth will be a different temperature than the other. One spray booth has a different lighting system. One spray boot vents different than the other. One guy may induce more static electricity into the panel than the other guy. The list goes on and on. And the variable goes on and on. So out of those 100 paint jobs if you put them side by side it is possible to have a 100 different paint jobs. I have seen perfect paint repairs in the paint booth under fluorescent lights. But get it out in the sun and it is completely different. A lot of times that is cause by those microscope prism. That is cause by the refracting sunlight thru the prisms.

 

And as far as I know what I am talking about. I know a little. I won't say I know a lot. When you get to the point that you know everything then you can't learn anything. I hope I never get to that position. As far as my knowledge I worked for General Motors for almost 40 years. I inspected a lot of paint in that time. I worked a lot with the chemical engineers from the different paint mfgs. and different engineers from paint equipment mfgs. And they will be the first to tell you there isn't a perfect match in a paint mix. Close yes but not perfect. Our paint would be shipped into the plant in 500 gal. stainless steel containers. The next 500 gals. that came in might not quite match the one we just used. .But close you have + and - tolerance before it would be rejected.

[blackout07]

You are correct that it is possible to mix paint that will match the factory perfectly. But lets give these 4 different cans of paint( primer included) to 100 different body shops to paint a repair with. How many different matches do you think you would get? Now everything is in the process. And every painter does his thing a little different which affects the out come. One use a different clear coat. one uses a different primer. one will use a $200 spray gun one will use a $700 spray gun. One guy will use a different psi on his gun because it isn't spraying like he wants. one guy will lay the paint down a little slower than the other. One guy will over lap a little different. One spray booth will be a different temperature than the other. One spray booth has a different lighting system. One spray boot vents different than the other. One guy may induce more static electricity into the panel than the other guy. The list goes on and on. And the variable goes on and on. So out of those 100 paint jobs if you put them side by side it is possible to have a 100 different paint jobs. I have seen perfect paint repairs in the paint booth under fluorescent lights. But get it out in the sun and it is completely different. A lot of times that is cause by those microscope prism. That is cause by the refracting sunlight thru the prisms.

 

And as far as I know what I am talking about. I know a little. I won't say I know a lot. When you get to the point that you know everything then you can't learn anything. I hope I never get to that position. As far as my knowledge I worked for General Motors for almost 40 years. I inspected a lot of paint in that time. I worked a lot with the chemical engineers from the different paint mfgs. and different engineers from paint equipment mfgs. And they will be the first to tell you there isn't a perfect match in a paint mix. Close yes but not perfect. Our paint would be shipped into the plant in 500 gal. stainless steel containers. The next 500 gals. that came in might not quite match the one we just used. .But close you have + and - tolerance before it would be rejected.

 

Well you damn sure know more than I do. I never would've e thought it was so varied. I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

[Duelin]

Well you damn sure know more than I do. I never would've e thought it was so varied. I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

Here is a well known fact. What I know and $2 might get you a cup of coffee.

[oldmann]

Paint it flat lack and forget about it or let them blend it. This is a tough job. Even GM has paint matching issues. Look at every yellow Camaro produced. The front bumper cover is way off compared to the fender and hood. If the sun has faded your paint slightly you will see it if not blended. If you want just the fender done order it online and live with it.

[Duelin]

It not only yellow Camaros but just about any vehicle if you look close enough. You usually notice the front and rear fascias and the mirrors (one of the reasons they us flat black mirrors). A lot of the time these parts are painted and shipped into the assembly plant by another vendor. The plants that paint their own have a Urethane room for painting these parts. They use a different process for for painting these parts. And the paint lays down a lot different on urethane than it does on metal.

 

I have a couple of friends that have body shops. The one has been in business for about 60 years. The son runs it now. Any way a customer brought in the ground effects that he bought for his car and wanted them painted. No problem gave him a price and told him they would be ready on day so and so. Well after prepping and making sure everything was perfect they painted them. After the drying process they looked over paint job. Well big problems the paint wasn't stick. Well they stripped them and tried again. No Luck. They called the customer and had him come in and showed him what had happened. The customer called the mfg. of the ground effects for suggestions. The mfg. had a couple of suggestions but the body shop had already tried them. Then the mfg. said it was the body shops paint process. And wouldn't ship out a new set of ground effects. So son called me down and ask me what I thought. Well without being able to take into a lab and checking it out. My best guess was the the chemical that they use to spray inside the mold so the product will release form the mold was imbedded into urethane. And would react to the paint and wouldn't let it stick. Any way the customer got another set of ground effect from a different mfg. and there was no problem. Any way just another problem that you don't expect to run into. And another job you didn't make any money on. But learned a valuable lesson.

[whitecrew2016]

Revemoto, is one...never did any business with them. Another is car-part.com, get the right link and its like a junk yard listing. Alot of listings for OEM parts, new, and colors available. some are selling new overstocks and can order what you need by color. Yes its a big savings. fenders as low as 280.00 plus shipping painted and never installed. are they a perfect match..probably not. I couldnt spend 40k on my truck either.

Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market