Kustom Paintwork By Kev Reilander

Part 3 - Flake Choice...

There are 3 main different applications of flake;

  • 1. SPINDRIFT - which is a light dusting of flake, and unless you are good with a spray gun, can be difficult to get uniform.
  • 2. ECONOMIC - this is when a base coat is applied that is the same kolor as the flake. Normally only 3 coats of flake are applied from 6 to 8 inches in a 75% overlap.
  • 3. FULL FLAKE - the most striking of the finishes, it is exactly as it sounds. Ignoring which kolor base has been applied, the aim here is to totally cover the panels with flake. It is applied in exactly the same manner as the last style, but will require 7 coats.

Your next choice is size of flake.
HOUSE OF KOLOR RANGE:-
1/500th Ultra Mini Flake, which is available in 3 different kolors; Gold, Silver and Rainbow.
There is also available a 1/256th Rainbow flake.
Next you have 1/128th Mini Flake, which you have Gold, Silver, plus 10 different Kameleon kolors to choose from.
Finally there is the more popular size 1/64th Flake, which comes in 12 normal kolors and 9 Kameleon kolors.

METALFLAKE RANGE:-
There is also a good selection of 20 kolors in the 1/64th range, including Black and Bronze. There are 9 kolors in the huge flakes of the Glowble range, Microglow - which is the same as 'HOUSE OF KOLOR' Mini Flakes, is available in Gold and Silver. Mirra is only in Silver, and the effective Spindrift which has 5 different kolors.

The most obvious difference in use between the 2 different manufactuers is the METALFLAKE range are heavier flakes, and require alot more agitating, even during spraying, because they start to sink almost instantly. Therefore my advise is if you are trying flake for the first time, use a flake from the HOUSE OF KOLOR range, as they stay suspended in the lacquer much better when spraying.

The coverage styles listed earlier can be achieved with any size flake, and there is also an unlimited range of kolors possible when you spray a Kandy Kolor over the flake. So your options are endless!

Flake must be applied and buried in Acrylic or Cellulose lacquer. 2 pack lacquer does not have a long enough window to allow for multiple lacquer stages, and is only designed to be used in 2-3 coats, which is way too few to bury the flake effectively, and if used to high build, may suffer from line checking and crows feet. Also, because 2 pack is stickier than air dry paint, it prevents the flake from flowing into the lacquer and laying flat.
Cellulose lacquer is an economical choice price wise, but it has a natural yellow tint to it. My first choice is always to use HOUSE OF KOLOR acrylic lacquer, which is crystal clear and has a deeper shine when finished.

Part 4 flake Application


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