#PAINT FISHEYE HOW TO#

A relatively aggressive 'rubbing compound' and aggressive wool pad were used on every paint job that was produced. For those painters who have been around for some years, we will recall the days of lacquer paint, when all paint jobs needed to be buffed.

#PAINT FISHEYE HOW TO#

However, these are the more commonly seen defects in many shops, and reviewing them will provide a good idea of how to approach them, as well as others you might encounter.Ī few terms and their historical context might be of value at this point. Since this list is by no means a comprehensive one, these may not be your most common defects because of your individual shop's conditions. If we were to narrow it down to just a few of the more commonly seen defects, they would be: runs, orange peel, solvent popping, dirt nibs, fish eye and overspray. We do not have the time or space to review them all, but will concentrate on some of the more commonly seen defects that can be either prevented or easily repaired. What defects are we talking about? Whole chapters have been written regarding the identification and repair of paint defects. But in practical application, it is inevitable that defects will occur. Does that mean all paint detailing is a form of repair, and that all defects should have been prevented? I suppose theoretically that all paint defects can and should be preventable. A very small quantity of silicone in sanding dust or in a cleaning rag can contaminate a surface being prepared for coating/bonding.įor more information on preparing a surface for bonding or coating, please refer to our “ Surface Preparation” section on our website under “Tips & Tricks”.Shop foremen have been known to say that 'if the buffer is running, we're not making any money' (Fig 1). Many automotive manufacturing plants will not allow silicone based products in their plants, because silicone contamination is difficult and almost impossible to remove and control. This is why low surface energy polymers such as polypropylene (30 dynes/cm), natural rubber (24 dynes/cm) and Teflon (20 dynes/cm) are difficult to bond to as coatings typically do not have surface tensions low enough to wet out these substrates. If the surface cleaning of the substrate leaves behind these polishing contaminates, the coating with a higher surface tension will not wet out these low surface energy particles leaving behind fish eyes as a result.

Many waxes and polishes contain silicone which has a surface energy of 24 dynes/cm. So, applying this coating to a substrate that has a surface energy equal to or greater than 46 dynes/cm should wet out and provide a satisfactory bond. Epoxy and polyurethane coatings may have a surface tension in the range of 38 dynes/cm.

These fish eyes are produced because the coating is unable to wet out the contaminated area.Īll substrates have a surface energy and as a general rule, adhesion is achieved when the surface energy of the substrate is 8-10 dynes/cm greater than the surface tension of the liquid being applied to the substrate. When a coating is applied to a substrate that is contaminated with low surface energy particles such as oil, wax, grease, or silicone, fish eyes may develop in the coating as it is applied.

Paint fisheye