I thought those infrared paint dryers were a gimmick until I used one on a 3-stage pearl job last Tuesday

My shop in Nashville finally caved and got a SpeedTech unit for $2,200 after I kept fighting with dirt nibs and dust settling on wet clear. The guy who sold it to me said it'd cut my drying time by 70% and I figured he was just blowing smoke. First test was a rear quarter on a silver Mustang. 10 minutes at 140 degrees and I could sand and buff without any of that wavy orange peel nonsense. Has anyone else found these things actually work better on metallics than plain single-stage?

2 comments

2 Comments

rosew375d ago

That $2,200 SpeedTech unit better come with a lifetime warranty if you're cooking paint in Nashville humidity. I borrowed my buddy's infrared setup last month and my first thought was "great, another gadget that'll collect dust." Then I hit a three-stage white on a Charger and that thing dried the base so fast I actually had to slow down. Metallics seem to lay down flatter because you're not waiting forever for the solvent to flash off and letting dirt jump in.

the_julia5d ago

Wait, you actually had to slow down because the infrared was drying too fast? That's wild. Most people complain about basecoat drying slow in humidity, not the other way around. I'll be honest, I figured those things were just for curing clear and maybe killing time between coats. But hearing that it cut down dirt nibs in metallics makes me rethink things. That constant waiting for solvent to flash off is the worst part of any three-stage job, especially when you're racing the clock before dust settles.