Anyway, I am curious if you have compared the "look" of old single stage black finishes to todays BCCC .
Do you think the older paint has a darker, deeper "black" compared to the newer paints of today?
Good questions and tough decision for anyone getting something "cool" painted.
First, here's your car inserted instead of attached, makes it a lot more enjoyable to view on a forum. This picture is now in "your" gallery here on this forum.
As to your questions about single stage versus clearcoat paint system and specifically the color black...
This is just my opinion for what it's worth... I think when it comes to black paint, you cannot beat a single stage finish for depth and darkness of color and this only pertains to black paint that is professionally polished.
Clearcoated black paint looks like black paint with a layer of plastic over it, it's still beautiful but not as rich in color.
This truck was on the cover of Trukin Magazine a few years ago and also voted America's most beautiful Ford F100, the paint is a single stage urethane. When I got to it the paint was completely hacked up with swirls and scratches.
I spent around 10 hours buffing it out back in 2006, before much of the really cool new abrasive technology was introduced.
"Black is not a color, it's a full time job"
Now this truck below Richard Lin and I buffed out a few years ago is not black but it is clear coated and I think you can see by looking at the hood that while the paint is very clear, it also looks like it has a plastic coating over it...
Wild Paint Job - Swirl Removal - Cover of Trukin Magazine
Before
Tough decision as clear coats do tend to be more durable "generally speaking" but if a person takes care of a singe stage paint job then it's not an issue.
Clearcoats can fail over time and with neglect and/or exposure to extreme sunlight and the elements and single stage paints will oxidize. Here's the difference, if a clearcoat finish fails you HAVE to repaint. If a single stage paint oxidizes, you simply buff it out.
