Chameleon paint for car

A great way to give your car an exclusive look is chameleon paint. Named after an animal that changes colors.

Content:

• The principle of the coating
• Coating benefits
• Palette assortment
• Application technology
• Approximate prices for painting
• DIY paint
• Where to buy pigment
• How to add powder pigment

The principle of the coating

This original paint includes artificial pigments. The effect is based on the refraction and reflection of light rays with different wavelengths at various angles on a painted surface. The pigment layers include fine particles with a length of approximately 1 μm, located at different levels.

It turns out something like a hamburger from several thin layers:

1. A central, primary color based on aluminum and chromium oxides, it is also a toner or a substrate - it is this color that is refracted by the microlayers applied after it.
2. Basic, providing the effect of iridescent tones in various lighting and from different points of view. The position of the microparticles matters.
3. High-quality auto varnish, also applied 2-3 times over painted parts of the car.

The combination of transparent layers with translucent and gives the desired mirror effect. The wavelength is determined by the thickness of the toner layer based on the metal oxide, the color of the waves - blue, yellow or red - and the nature of the reflection depend on it: it is reflected or suppressed, that is, what shades will be visually perceived by a person from different angles of view.

Typically, black and white are chosen as the toner. But experiments with brighter and more noticeable shades are acceptable.

Due to the mixing of different pigments and different thicknesses of the layers, the color gamut turns out to be very diverse: it can be green, red, blue, violet, yellow, blue, white, gray and any other color with absolutely incredible combinations of shades.

Coating benefits

Chameleon automotive coating has the following properties:

• creates protection for a surface of the car, as well as ordinary enamel;
• stands out the car, turns it into an exclusive work of art;
• increases the level of safety (a color-changing machine is too noticeable and thus unattractive for hijackers). If you are required to make an unforgettable impression on others by occupation or simply by desire, you can not come up with a better option.

Palette assortment

Common colors:

1. Bronze. Soft tint transitions from rich red to golden (T 10-00).
2. Purple. Hues change from the original to deep blue, deep green and silver (T10-01).
3. Arctic. It seems that the play of tones imitates the northern lights: from a shade of turquoise to silver, bright red, golden (T10-05).
4. Autumn. The machine changes color like an autumn leaf: from bright green it becomes reddish-golden-red.
5. Tropics. Again from greens - in silver, red and orange.It differs from the “autumn” version in the presence of silver tones and sparkles in the composition (T10-08).

Application technology

Before starting work, it is required to prepare the room, the necessary tools, the car itself:

1. In boxing, the garage should be clean and warm, good ventilation or ventilation is needed.
2. The setting of bright lighting is important - it is enough to combine two halogen lamps and one fluorescent.
3. For painting, you need a gun (spray gun), it is better to take a professional one with a normal compressor.
4. It is necessary to remove the old coating, straighten and putty the working area to perfect smoothness and impeccable cleanliness, then properly ground.
5. It is necessary to wash and degrease the future front of work.

The cost of this paint is considerable, and it is better to take care of creating the perfect surface for its application. The most effective chameleon shimmers on streamlined planes, various angles. The smoother the lines of a car, the more beautiful it will look painted. Keep in mind that the promised color is designed to use a black backing. Another toner will give different shades.

Coloring step by step:

1. Apply a layer of toner evenly, holding the spray gun (set the pressure to 2.1–3.2 bar) at a distance of 30 to 40 cm from the working area. Try to work quickly, confidently, without drips - the substrate dries in 10-15 minutes.
2. Until the toner is completely dry, spray the base layer of the chameleon.
3. In 2–5 minutes after drying of the base, apply the following layers, drying each for 5–7 minutes. You can apply from 2 to 7 additional layers, depending on the desired effect.
4. After the chameleon dries up, it is necessary to cover the car with high-quality automotive varnish 2-3 times. Allow 10 to 15 minutes to dry.

Apply both base and subsequent coatings thinly: thick will ruin the effect. Varnish is used as a protection. Now your car is not afraid of the effects of chemical detergents in car washes.

Approximate prices for painting

Prices rise in proportion to the surface area to be painted. The cheapest cost is painting an exterior mirror - from 2 thousand rubles. Painting the front panel - from 4500, wings - from 5 thousand for each (and the rear is more expensive), hood - from 7800.

Full painting (plus the cost of preliminary work) - 86-145 thousand. If you need to do it urgently, the surcharge will be 30-50%.

DIY paint

All that is needed to make a chameleon is transparent paint (base or binder) and powder components (pigments). Keep in mind that most of them are designed to be applied on top of black toner (it allows you to create the most vivid effect). If a white base is implied, this is indicated in the instructions attached to the specific powders.

It is imperative to apply toner evenly without missing hard-to-reach spots.
Then the necessary amount of pigment is added to the binder and mixed thoroughly. If you don’t have a special mixer, use a screwdriver with a paint nozzle on it (run 300-400 rpm for good mixing). The chameleon paint is ready.

Where to buy pigment

You can buy 50g chameleon sets from the Chinese Hali brand on AliExpress. The price for 50 g is 35–39 USD.

How to add powder pigment

The process of adding powder pigment to the base with various effects is simple. The lower its concentration in the binder, the easier the coloring process will be and the less likely the appearance of unnecessary strips on the surface to be painted.

Example: when adding 100 g of powder pigment to a binder with a volume of 2.5 liters, you will apply 2 layers of saturated opaque color to the body (1 layer - 1.25 liters of paint). If you take the same 100 g per 5 l of the base, you get 4 even layers. It is recommended to use a lower concentration per liter and apply more layers - the final effect will be better and more beautiful.

If you have never even been involved in the usual independent painting of the machine, we recommend that you entrust the coloring in a chameleon to professional colorists. They will be able to simulate the result on a computer, correctly determine the type of coating and the required number of layers, competently prepare the car for painting, apply professional equipment. If the result does not suit you, you can return the money spent.