Best "Value" for a Paint Thickness Meter/Gauge?

L

Lumadar

New member
Hey guys and gals... I'm starting to look at getting into the classic hot rod restoration, and I really don't feel comfortable touching a lot of these vehicles (some with paint 30-50 years old!) without knowing what I have to work with.



I realize there are essentially 2 types of meters: the kind that work on metal only, and the kind that work on all surfaces. I can't afford the all surface unit, so let's stick to metal only.



That said, anyone know which models I should look at? I'm looking for accuracy and precision. I don't need fancy printouts or bluetooth, but if the cheaper units do it, that's fine (I have a bluetooth laptop).



Also, if you could point me in the right direction for finding "Deals" I would appreciate that as well. I would *like* to keep the price around $200, but if I must go higher to get a worthwhile unit- so be it.



Thanks! :2thumbs:



Mark
 
thanks Al...I actually have read many of the topics, and the conclusion I came to (couple months ago) was that the Harbor Freight is consistent, but not accurate. That is to say, it was giving readings that varied after buffing/sanding etc, but that the reading given about how much paint was there was not accurate when tested against several high end models.



I also posted a new topic in hopes of finding NEW findings and current prices.



Thanks



Mark
 
Lumadar said:
thanks Al...I actually have read many of the topics, and the conclusion I came to (couple months ago) was that the Harbor Freight is consistent, but not accurate. That is to say, it was giving readings that varied after buffing/sanding etc, but that the reading given about how much paint was there was not accurate when tested against several high end models.



I also posted a new topic in hopes of finding NEW findings and current prices.



Thanks



Mark
Click to expand...



My philosophy is that knowing the exact thickness isn't a huge deal. Since it is impossible to tell the thickness of the clear coat is (without a $3000 gauge), the exact thickness of the paint doesn't matter. As long as it is within a few microns, I personally don't see a big deal of using the HF one and a $600 one. As long it is consistent, that's all that matters. A gauge is good for finding repainted panels vs. factory paint. It is also good to see how much paint you have to work with. There isn't a magic thickness where you know not to polish, because every single car is different.



A factory paint job may have 70 mils of primer / base coat with 30 mils of clear totaling 100 mils with you being able to play with the top third of clear, or 10 mils.



A hand paint job may have a thick primer and base coat and a thin clear, say 140 primer / base and again only 30 mils of clear. Now the total thickness is 170 but you still only have the 10 mils to work with. If that car had been polished before, there is no way to tell how much clear you are able to remove.



So knowing the exact thickness of the paint is misleading because having more paint does not mean you can remove more clear. If the HF gauge reads a thickness of 125 and a PosiTech reads 130 after polishing if they read 123 and 128 respectively, then its not a huge deal. With either one you'll know that you removed 2 mils of paint. Now if the HF gauge was reading 128, 134, 112, 153, 123 all on the same spot, there would be some issues. However that's not the case.



I guess it all comes down to what you are using it for. Do you want to know the exact thickness of the paint layers ($3000 gauge) so you know how much clear to remove? Do you want to know how much paint different polish and pad combos remove? Do you want to know which panels, if any, have been repainted before? Do you want to know if paint is 'thin' (even though you don't know how thick the clear is)? Even if paint is thin, who says there isn't enough clear there? What if the painter laid down a thin primer and base coat (say 40 mils total) and the clear was actually 40 mils thick but after a reading of 80 you're hesitant to polish when there is actually plenty of clear to polish?



Sorry for the long post. It's hard getting thoughts into words .... hopefully something above makes sense ...
 
Thanks for the thorough answer budman.



To sum up my answers to your questions, I am looking to have this mostly for an array of hot rods that in some cases have OLD paint, and varying levels of paint due to custom paint jobs and OE paint that is quite old.



In fact, in many cases it will likely be with single stage paint that I am using it most. I just do not want to risk a burn through on a $10,000 custom paint job.



The other thing is I will need a gauge that reads on BOTH aluminum and steel as the hot rods vary. For that reason, I don't think the HF model would work for me.



Rydawg, thanks for the heads up...I'll shoot him a PM.
 
carcat1 said:
Lumadar: There was a fantastic discussion right here on Autopia at this thread (http://www.autopia.org/forum/detailing-product-discussion/79517-paint-meter-thickness-gauges-11.html).



As of today, the HighLine paint thickness meter is being sold for $199.99 on their website and on eBay.
Click to expand...



Thanks a bunch. I actually just stumbled across the High-line meter as well. I think that might be my meal ticket...I am just trying to find a few reputable people to let me know how it works in practice before I pull the trigger. :bounce
 
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