affordable paint meter.

choijw2

choijw2

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I am in search of paint meters
and I am seeing price range from $35 - 600+

so far i am leaning towards to $150 dollar paint meter from ebay, and I was wondering if any of you here have used cheaper ones

if so, how do you like it?
any recommendations?





list of paint meters i've looked at:

CEM DT-156

EC-770 Portable Digital Coating Film Paint Thickness Gauge Meter F N Probe NV63

Portable Digital Coating Thickness Gauge Paint Meter Tester 0-1250um/0-50mil
 
type this in the search...
" CM8801FN Paint Thickness Gauge - Affordable for Everyone! "
 
I'm 23 years in detailing I've never used a paint meter ,and all this tape everyone uses,
 
VISITOR said:
type this in the search...
" CM8801FN Paint Thickness Gauge - Affordable for Everyone! "
Click to expand...

Yes!, i found this one as well after posted this thread and looks like it will do fine for my need.

i am looking for PTG to check if panel has been repainted or polished/ sanded before.

which cheaper gauges can do.

and looks like higher end PTGs can separate the thickness of prime/ color/ and clear coat.....
 
Sorry, no opinion yet. Just wanted to throw in my 2 cents that we use one from time to time and are very glad to have it.
 
I never use tape ad don't buy a meter waste of money unless you're gonna use a rotary at a million miles per hr where the paint will be smokin.after years of experience and mistakes this will get less complicated .keep the money in ur pocket .
 
GSKR said:
I never use tape ad don't buy a meter waste of money unless you're gonna use a rotary at a million miles per hr where the paint will be smokin.after years of experience and mistakes this will get less complicated .keep the money in ur pocket .
Click to expand...

Maybe the OP doesn't want to make the same mistakes you've been making for years.
 
GSKR said:
I never use tape ad don't buy a meter waste of money unless you're gonna use a rotary at a million miles per hr where the paint will be smokin.after years of experience and mistakes this will get less complicated .keep the money in ur pocket .
Click to expand...

So you magically know how much clear every car has that's brought to you? Amazing. What happens when a customer brings you a car and you don't realize most the clear is gone and you work through it? That "waste of money" wouldve saved you a huge problem with that customer.
 
GSKR said:
I never use tape ad don't buy a meter waste of money unless you're gonna use a rotary at a million miles per hr where the paint will be smokin.after years of experience and mistakes this will get less complicated .keep the money in ur pocket .
Click to expand...

so how do you tell if car has been repainted?
and know how much clear coat is left?
 
StangFan25 said:
So you magically know how much clear every car has that's brought to you? Amazing. What happens when a customer brings you a car and you don't realize most the clear is gone and you work through it? That "waste of money" wouldve saved you a huge problem with that customer.
Click to expand...

I literally just experienced this. Working on an Audi A7, paint wasn't in horrible condition. Client was paying for a wash, decon, AIO. I typically don't measure the paint for only an AIO service; however, I did see signs of a previous "detail" and there were holograms in the paint. Long story short all the panels were fine except for one door.... which literally had almost no clear left on it. OEM paint thickness was around 100-120 microns around the whole car. This door had between 40-50 microns total. One of the edges was burned and had been covered up with a magic marker. Pretty much a detailer's nightmare. Without the paint gauge I guarantee I would have polished over that door and would have definitely burned through or at the very least burned through an edge. Instead that door got spray wax and I got to walk away without paying for a respray.

I use a CM8801FN and a Defelsko 200B ADV for measurements. They both work fine. One is considerably less expensive and probably gets used the most. The Defelsko rarely gets used but is very beneficial to have.
 
Nicholas@Autowerx said:
I literally just experienced this. Working on an Audi A7, paint wasn't in horrible condition. Client was paying for a wash, decon, AIO. I typically don't measure the paint for only an AIO service; however, I did see signs of a previous "detail" and there were holograms in the paint. Long story short all the panels were fine except for one door.... which literally had almost no clear left on it. OEM paint thickness was around 100-120 microns around the whole car. This door had between 40-50 microns total. One of the edges was burned and had been covered up with a magic marker. Pretty much a detailer's nightmare. Without the paint gauge I guarantee I would have polished over that door and would have definitely burned through or at the very least burned through an edge. Instead that door got spray wax and I got to walk away without paying for a respray.

I use a CM8801FN and a Defelsko 200B ADV for measurements. They both work fine. One is considerably less expensive and probably gets used the most. The Defelsko rarely gets used but is very beneficial to have.
Click to expand...

Isn't 40-50 microns still workable? How many microns get removed when compounding?
 
Jomax said:
Isn't 40-50 microns still workable? How many microns get removed when compounding?
Click to expand...

This measurement, along with measuring the rest of the car, means that roughly half of the paint has already been removed in this area. That's bad. Heavy compounding... even wet sanding to level texture will only remove 10-15 microns if done carefully.
 
Nicholas@Autowerx said:
This measurement, along with measuring the rest of the car, means that roughly half of the paint has already been removed in this area. That's bad. Heavy compounding... even wet sanding to level texture will only remove 10-15 microns if done carefully.
Click to expand...

So 30 microns left would've been too little?

Just trying to understand why skip it if it only removes that much with a compound. Could have you just used a polish to removed some of the swirls on that door? I'm trying to imagine a car freshly detailed but to have one door untouched and full of swirls lol.

This is not directed as a jab. But a honest question.
 
Jomax said:
Isn't 40-50 microns still workable? How many microns get removed when compounding?
Click to expand...

if youre using cheap PTG, it will only show total thickness instead of separating only clear coat,
and if total thickness shows somewhere betoween 20-70 microns, I would not polish.
 
Jomax said:
So 30 microns left would've been too little?

Just trying to understand why skip it if it only removes that much with a compound. Could have you just used a polish to removed some of the swirls on that door? I'm trying to imagine a car freshly detailed but to have one door untouched and full of swirls lol.

This is not directed as a jab. But a honest question.
Click to expand...

At only 30 microns total film build you would be down to the base coat, guaranteed.

A high filling liquid sealant was used for a uniform look. The rest of the car was not 100% defect free either... just clean and shiny. I never promise correction levels on AIO services.
 
Nicholas@Autowerx said:
At only 30 microns total film build you would be down to the base coat, guaranteed.

A high filling liquid sealant was used for a uniform look. The rest of the car was not 100% defect free either... just clean and shiny. I never promise correction levels on AIO services.
Click to expand...

Ah, there's my issue. I was thinking 30-40 micron was just the clear. That's total paint to the metal.
 
SameGuy said:
Maybe the OP doesn't want to make the same mistakes you've been making for years.
Click to expand...

:cheers::applause::cheers:

Taken with a grain of salt from that poster, (reading what he's said in a number of other threads as of late). :) For instance... might read what he's posted in the high priced detailer thread. ;)

For many a weekend warrior / Autogeek type... they may get away without a PTG. Maybe even if they do a few vehicles for friends even. But I can't IMAGINE a world where a full time detailer, especially one that buffs paint on a daily basis wouldn't own a PTG. (Especially after more than 2 decades.):dunno: Those "mistakes" that were mentioned.... are where even a basic unit would have paid for itself time and time again.

And tape.... lost for words there.:rolleyes:

Guess a dedicated wheel bucket, Daytona Brushes, Wheel Woolies, 2 bucket method, upper panel and lower panel wash mitts, (God forbid Merino wool ones), as well as multiple grit guards and such would be fools play huh? :D



Jomax said:
Ah, there's my issue. I was thinking 30-40 micron was just the clear. That's total paint to the metal.
Click to expand...

:xyxthumbs:

Unless you've spent thousands on a ultra-sonic film measurement gauge that has the capability to differentiate between various substrates... all you will - EVER - get is total "film" to metal.

That's why you see guys talking about taking measurements of jambs compared to outside panels. The clear in jambs is generally less than outer panels (sometimes not any at all), which... (if that factor holds true in your given situation) gives you a better base measurement where you can compare the overall measurements to the jambs and guesstimate the added clear (over what you're seeing in the jambs). :)

Of course comparing all the panel measurements (without the jambs) is where you'll pick up aftermarket painting and repairs. The key is overall uniformity more than anything else, which gives you the real picture of what is going on.


And if it were not complex enough already... we're now into having manufacturers spray a primer-base then clear! (Rather than a true primer, THEN a base, then the clear.) There have been many recent threads actually talking about this on all recent Mazdas in fact. It is not uncommon to see film build in the 70 micron range! :eek:

That however is just part of the overall picture. It could still measure that thin, but being a primer-base type paint along with clear. Where if you compared that to a primer, base coat, then clear coat with the ultra-sonic gauges you might find that the clear is the same general thickness overall. :dunno:

Hey... buffing paint isn't rocket science. But if you're not approaching the field with some sort of scientific inquisition and wanting to know more, learn more, and be better at it... might as well do a Google search and find a qualified local professional that DOES. ;)
 
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