Paint Meter

Shiny Lil Detlr said:
The thing I wish I could find is a gauge capable of reading on fiberglass that wouldn't break the bank. I do enough Corvettes and other cars with plastic parts that it would be nice to have.
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There is no such animal in the jungle unfortunately. I'd be the first in line if there was!!
 
so do you guys measure inside the door and then compare that to the outside and the difference is the amount of clear?
 
No, not really. The painting in the door can be thicker or thinner than the rest of the body, and jambs get the least amount of prep and post paint work (sanding if any, etc.), so they are a poor indicator of the rest of the car.

Any horizontal surface is fine. Measure enough spots to get a good feeling where the paint is, and search here or other forums for a "typical thickness" to compare to.

PTGs are an essential tool if you are working for money. The Highline is what we use now, and it is the best value of all. The ultrasonic ones that can read off composites are decent, but some pros feel they are not as accurate on metals as a dedicated metal reader. Many times you will see pros have 2 of the big meters.
 
I have the Defelsko sold here and I find it an invalueable tool. I never do any paint correction w/o it at this point.

It reads both steel and Aluminum (ferrous/non-ferrous), so your covered for Audi, Land Rover, Jag, etc. It does this without switching sensors. It's very easy to use -just press against paint and you have your reading. It will read in microns or mils at the push of a button - I leave it in microns. It never needs to be calibrated, but if you got something funky going on it does have calibhration cards -for certain situations. You can always reset it to factory calibration, though. Nice hard case to protect the investment even.

I look at it this way: it only takes a little time to measure the paint to see what I'm working w/ in order to cma. It also makes me a better correction specialist as I can monitor my corrections and see how much I'm taking off, but also how evenly.
 
richy said:
I started with the pen. It is not specific enough in its measurements as far as I'm concerned. I have owned the Highline II for more than a year. It's great. I strongly recommend it. In fact, during my research, it was just as accurate as versions costing considerably more. I choose to keep the extra $$ in my wallet, thanks very much. Several people on L2D have purchased one on my recommendation and have been extremely pleased with it.
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I wasn't planning on spending what it would cost for a paint gauge. Then one night I was chatting with Richy and he mentioned the cost. It was 1 3rd what I thought I had to pay. Quality??? Well if it was good enough for Richy.... Tad and Richard already fished that sentence. Thank you Richy! Love it!

See what you started Richy! I know Detail Dave got one as well. We were just talking about it the other day on the phone.

rwright said:
I ordered the Highline II based on the fact that a couple detailers that I look up to use it. If it's good enough for them, then I know it will be perfect for me :)
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:iagree:

DARK HORSE said:
I am one of those people who bought the Highline II on Richy's recommendation, and I too couldn't be happier. I absolutely love it!!! I have been testing its repeatability, and accuracy. Both are outstanding! Thanks for the recommendation Richy...:props:
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:iagree:
 
On high ticket items like this , do you think a group buy would help lower the price ? I've seen this on other items and forums and it seems to work. Makes it worthwhile for the seller to purchase the item in bulk. Just thought I'd throw the idea out there to see what others were thinking. I see a paint meter , steamer and extractor in my future which all could benefit from this type of deal.
 
2old2change said:
On high ticket items like this , do you think a group buy would help lower the price ? I've seen this on other items and forums and it seems to work. Makes it worthwhile for the seller to purchase the item in bulk. Just thought I'd throw the idea out there to see what others were thinking. I see a paint meter , steamer and extractor in my future which all could benefit from this type of deal.
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All things being relative, $299 is cheap for a paint gauge that is accurate, measures in microns and is stupid easy to use.
 
richy said:
All things being relative, $299 is cheap for a paint gauge that is accurate, measures in microns and is stupid easy to use.
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I thought they were $225?

edit - I see you are from Ontario. $299 Canadian maybe?
 
richy said:
All things being relative, $299 is cheap for a paint gauge that is accurate, measures in microns and is stupid easy to use.
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So maybe if 10 customers bought them on a group buy it might be $250.00 or less. Nothing wrong with a discount. :buffing: More cash to spend on other supplies.
 
Thanks guys. When I have the extra money I'll be picking up the Highline II. Need to actually make some money this year and stop spending! So, a couple wash & wax jobs will pay for a new meter.
 
I've been looking at the Highline Meter II also, just last month it was $225.00, checked again just a few minutes ago and it went up in price to $275.00. What's up with that?
 
skipper1 said:
I've been looking at the Highline Meter II also, just last month it was $225.00, checked again just a few minutes ago and it went up in price to $275.00. What's up with that?
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Must be related to the price of crude oil, everything else seems to be......:mad:
 
Well, I really don't think it's crude. I think it's what's wrong with America right now, the greatest country in the world....GREED.

Later today, I'll probably regret writing this, but it's what I think and I did pay my taxes.
 
skipper1 said:
I've been looking at the Highline Meter II also, just last month it was $225.00, checked again just a few minutes ago and it went up in price to $275.00. What's up with that?
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I remember when it was $225; it's $250 today. I can't see anywhere where they state the accuracy of the Highline, so it could be compared to, say, the DeFelsko. Anybody got that info?
 
Not trying to thread jack or bring up a older thread but what is the learning curve for these devices, especially the magnetic type?

When I bought my truck it had a series of scratches on the one door. I asked them to do the best they could to remove them (as you could catch your nail with them). The detailing guy they had there wet-sanded the spot and then compounded over the area to minimize the scratches for me. He said he did not want to do any more as he was worried he would go through the clear. It definitely minimized the marks but they are still there. He did not use any sort of instrument to gauge the thickness of the clear left, just did it by intuition (as someone else mentioned in this thread). I am really curious to find out of I can (or someone else can) correct it even further to minimize the scratches or possibly eliminate them.

I do not know of or think there are any high-end detailing places in my area, just shady looking wash and detail places that I would not take a $500 car to so I am assuming they would not have anything of the sort there, nor would I trust them.

The scratches are something I can live with but if I can get them removed or minimized further, I can live with that as well =)
 
Tundra_10 said:
Not trying to thread jack or bring up a older thread but what is the learning curve for these devices, especially the magnetic type?
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There really is no learning curve to using the instrument; the learning curve is in interpreting the results. Because of the variation in the factory paint and the multiple layers, it's impossible to tell with any certainty how much clear you have left in that area. You can compare it to other parts of your truck and make an educated guess, but you don't know how the rest of the truck has been polished, either. If you had a vehicle from new with the plastic on it, and kept records, you could be sure how much clear you had removed over the life of the vehicle, notwithstanding any repair work done at the factory.

PS I emailed Highline about the accuracy and they sent me a bunch of jibberish and invited me to call the tech line. Well, it wasn't really jibberish, but it wasn't presented properly and didn't make any sense. I gather (from further research) that they purport to have the same accuracy specs as the DFT.

PPS The Highline II looks just the Phase II 4500 which also has the same specs as the DFT.
 
^^ so being has how I have very limited experience I should leave well enough alone. The tool may be easy to use and testing spots throughout my truck might yield accurate results, accuracy might really need to take the backseat to consistency and there is just no telling the consistency of the paint since I have not owned and maintained the vehicle since its inception, ergo I might be causing a problem that does not necessarily exist except for in my vain mindset.

Maybe one day down the road when I am very proficient with my skills and knowledge I will invest and explore this option, however I think at this time I will deal with the light scratches and focus more on keeping the present state of the vehicle as clean as I can given my current knowledge that I have and gain from this forum.

Thank you Setec!
 
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