OliilO
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| posted on 25/1/14 at 09:47 PM |
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Gelcoat Colour Matching
Does anyone know of a company that does gelcoat colour matching? I'd like to improve/repair a few areas on my car, but it's not a standard
RAL colour... I've tried East Coast Fibreglass and they don't offer a colour matching service, so are there any other places to try?
I don't really need that much, but would happily by a few Kg of it to 'future proof' myself, should the need for it arise...
[Edited on 25/1/14 by OliilO]
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Charlie_Zetec
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| posted on 25/1/14 at 10:19 PM |
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Try looking at the marine side of things, as this sort of request is a lot more popular with boat hulls and decks that have sustained damage.
Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity!
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plentywahalla
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| posted on 25/1/14 at 10:41 PM |
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This is a real can of worms. With gelcoats it is not as simple as paint matching. The problem is that the colour will change when the gel is catalysed
so you cannot just scan a sample with a photospectrometer and make up a mix as analysed.
I have spent many happy and fruitless hours mixing pigments into clear gelcoat, catalysing, curing, flatting and polishing and comparing the finished
product only to have to start all over again.
The only totally reliable answer is to find the original pigment. The largest manufacturer in this country is Llewellyn Ryland (LR). If you know what
you are trying to match and who the original moulder was then they may have records of the pigment used.
Rules are for the guidance of wise men ... and the obedience of fools. (anon)
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garyo
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| posted on 26/1/14 at 06:53 AM |
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I've also spent lots of time going round in circles on home made pigment blends. The exact number of dropletts of catalyst affected how much of
a green twinge my orange contained. Could be worth a shot though, and at least it's fairly cheap - in terms of money if not time!
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Fred W B
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| posted on 26/1/14 at 08:18 AM |
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Another issue is that gel coat has a shelf life, so you can't store it indefinitely
Cheers
Fred W B
You can do it quickly. You can do it cheap. You can do it right. – Pick any two.
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jossey
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| posted on 26/1/14 at 08:28 AM |
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It won't work. Take it from someone who has wasted a lot of money in the past trying.
Yes you can get it looking close but bit like patching up a wall you painted white ten years ago with bright white.
Paint it all if you want to improve the look or wrap it.
[Edited on 26/1/14 by jossey]
Thanks
David Johnson
Building my tiger avon slowly but surely.
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stevebubs
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| posted on 26/1/14 at 11:31 AM |
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West and Senior offer such a service but IME there will always be some discrepancy as your gelcoat will have changed colour over time due to
oxidisation / sun...
[Edited on 26/1/14 by stevebubs]
[Edited on 26/1/14 by stevebubs]
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OliilO
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| posted on 26/1/14 at 02:18 PM |
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Thanks all. I'll try and contact the original moulder and see if they've got a record. Hopefully it may well be a 'standard'
non-RAL colour, if that makes sense.
If not, I'll contact West and Senior and see what they can offer.
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