metal flake paint

I have black metallic paint and I've always said, even when I first got it brand new, that it doesn't appear as black as regular black.

Not saying that makes it fact but I agree with you. I think mine in some light looks to have a grayish tint.

Do you mean

People that buy a new car that comes from the factory with a metallic finish?

or

People that fix up a car and then $$$ pay to have a custom metallic paint sprayed?



Or both?


It takes more skill as a painter to spray a show quality metallic paint job. I'm pretty sure at the factory level the robots spray whatever's in the line and it comes out pretty good except the factory orange peel.


I think it depends upon the body lines of the car and then everyone's opinion is influenced by whether they like or don't like that type of car in the first place.


I think the multi-color metallic finish on this Corvette we buffed out last Thursday looked awesome on this classic Corvette but you have to keep in mind this car was new in 1977 and it received the custom body kit which was the hot customization for Corvettes in the 1970's as were custom metallic paint jobs and candy paint jobs.

Picture & Comments - 1977 Can Am Corvette - Extreme Makeover - Modeled by Amy and Janna










So for the time period it was built it was cutting edge...

I think this is the blackest paint I've ever worked on, it's a single stage urethane...






I don't think it would look as good with metalflake in the paint...

Metalflake can distract your eyes from surface defects and to some extent even body lines...

Scatman320 said:

I mean both. I don't see how metal flakes in the paint are an eye catcher compared to the liquid shine look that the plain paint job gives.

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I've been told that GM is going away from non-metallic paints, in fact I think it's already happened. See if you can buy a non-metallic black finish on anything.

I think what I heard was that is the trend for the foreseeable future for car manufactures. Everything will have some level of metal flake in the paint.

My guess is that it's harder to see surface imperfections or body panel issues with metallics than non-metallic finishes so the big picture is supposed to be less consumer complaints and a higher overall CSI rating.


I heard this from a colleague in the industry, they've always been very reliable.

That kinda blows as I've seen a ton of resprays or panels repainted and you can tell 20 feet away that the flake is either not uniform or sprayed differently than the rest.
I was told from a painter at a body shop that when you spray left to right the flake lays differently from spraying up and down and you never know what technique the robots at the plants went with...

Scatman320 said:

I have been looking at a lot of details on the show n' shine part of the forum and it feels like the metal flake paints don't show off the detail of a car's paint job after a detail. Maybe it's just me. Does anyone else feel the same? If so, I wonder why people bother getting a metal flake paint job on their car in the first place. Just a random thought I'd place out there. Thought it would be a good discussion.

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Of course you are right. Little metallic flakes are little surface areas oriented in many different directions or angles in a clear medium which makes the refection of the light much more complicated than a solid color does. Reflecting the light in different directions is the whole point of metallic paint. There is no possible way to see the true shape of a car with a metallic paint job. Orange peel in a paint job does somewhat the same thing to the light reflection as metallic does, in that it makes it more complicated by making it more multi faceted. Metallic paint hides the shape of a car, making it more subdued, which, if you have an ugly car, really helps. On the other hand, if you have a car with really beautiful flowing lines like a Ferrari GTO, metallic paint would take away from the shape of the car, reducing it's sensual appearance. With metallic paint, you see the paint much more than you do with a solid, and with a solid color , you see more of the car.

A well detailed metallic looks like the metallic sparkles and pops more, because the clear medium in which the metallics are suspended is more clear.
Why do people like metal flake? I think it is to make a car with a simple shape that is very boxy or is an indiscriminate blob or egg shape more visually interesting.

Example, 1970 Chevy Nova looks nice with metal flake because its boxy, with pretty straight simple lines. A 1980 Chevy pick up truck looks much better in a metallic than a 1950 pick up truck truck does.

richy said:

My 2004 FX35 was straight black and it was a mile deep reflection. I traded it for a 2011 MKX with black metallic paint. I miss the straight paint. I've been told the manufacturers do that to hide the inherent defects in the paint.

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Yeah and the Tuxedo Black Metallic is not really that black. It is often more gray but some waxes/sealant will darken it more than others.

I guess Im the odd one out.

I strongly prefer metallic paint. The more flake the better.

I find most single stage paints boring looking.

timaishu said:

I guess Im the odd one out.

I strongly prefer metallic paint. The more flake the better.

I find most single stage paints boring looking.

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I like metallic too but wish some makers had a non-metallic black option..like with Ford.

timaishu said:

I guess Im the odd one out.

I strongly prefer metallic paint. The more flake the better.

I find most single stage paints boring looking.

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Well, solid colors are certainly more simple in appearance. ( You can have base coat/clear coat non metallic paints, but I'm sure that solid color is what you meant.)
I think it depends entirely upon the car. I think that metallics look best on some cars just like solid colors look best on others. Similarly, I believe that some colors complement certain shapes better than others. I realize that you can have a favorite car and a favorite color, and paint your favorite car that color, but what if you had a LOT of cars? Would you really want them all the same color? I wouldn't. I would want to pick the colors that best complemented the cars, for an overall nice variety in my collection. I think that red is a sensuous color that goes best on sensuous shapes. Black looks best on cars that look a bit agressive or ominous. I like the color yellow, but there are some cars I wouldn't want in that color. A bright yellow Ferrari or Corvette yes, but a Cadillac or an Aston Martin, or a Rolls Royce, no.

A solid color shows off the curves of a car better than a metallic or a pearl. With a metallic, you see the overall shape of the car well, but you don't see the finer nuances of light and shadow as it plays on a car's bodywork that you can with a solid color.

It seems like there are very few new cars that are very curvy anymore. Solid colors are best on a curvy car, like a 57 Corvette or a 57 Testarossa. A 2011 Corvette or Ferrari is much more angular, and so a solid color isn't as complementary as it is on the early cars, because of the simpler, more angular shape of the newer cars.