fookgub Posted November 3, 2006 Report Share Posted November 3, 2006 http://www.duplicolor.com/products/nitelites.html I ran across this stuff in an auto store the other day. It's a reflective coating sold for safety and night visibility purposes, but I think it might make for a neat effect. Imagine a light hitting a guitar painted with this stuff on a dark stage... Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has used this before and has any comments. It's $10 a can, so I wanted to ask before I tried it out. If no one has tried it, I'll just buy a can and let ya'll know how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biliousfrog Posted November 5, 2006 Report Share Posted November 5, 2006 haven't seen that...could look good using the clear over a normal colour so that it only shows a pattern when the light hits...or even use the nitelite silver over a normal silver. I look forward to seeing/hearing more! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fookgub Posted December 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Totally forgot about this thread... I ended up trying this stuff a while ago. In short, I wasn't amazed. The reflective coating does indeed work, and it looks pretty cool at night. However, clearcoating it takes away most of the effect. I'm not sure I'd want to use this stuff without a clearcoat because the little reflective particles stick up from the surface a bit. They would probably rub off with the kind of handling a guitar gets. Under normal light, the reflective coating is nearly invisible. If one looks closely from the right angle, the surface appears slightly frosted. Sort of a neat effect... but not nearly as pronounced as I was hoping for. Anyway, It was a fun experiment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 There is a mayor flaw with the clear coats and the duplicolor systems. I have e-mailed them but as of now no response. On the mirage, and I think is the same problem you have, when you clear it kiils the effects or the mirage coat, it melts together, and I think that this quemical bond somehow is the responsible for loosing the effect. I haven't tried clearing with nitro, I did used DEFT to see if there was any reaction, and they "seem" compatible. There is a mayor flaw with the clear coats and the duplicolor systems. I have e-mailed them but as of now no response. On the mirage, and I think is the same problem you have, when you clear it kiils the effects or the mirage coat, it melts together, and I think that this quemical bond somehow is the responsible for loosing the effect. I haven't tried clearing with nitro, I did used DEFT to see if there was any reaction, and they "seem" compatible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 (edited) Clear gloss would reflect more light away before it reaches the color coat. You might have better results with a satin clearcoat. It should allow more light in to give the desired effect while protecting the color coat. If done right Duplicolor base/clear works well. I admit its a pain in the butt and I've made my fair share of mistakes. Some of the major problems I've had dealt with temperature conditions and drying time, kinda finicky stuff. This resulted in everything from crazing to bubbling. But I managed to get it to work eventually. Its also finicky where compatibility with other acrylic lacquers are concerned. When I did a burst with a blue metal flake (some noname brand from Zellers) and Duplicolor gunmetal black it was a disaster. Heres a picture of some crazing that happened. But for some reason Duplicolor clear went ok with the blue metalflake. So I shot the blue then a couple layers of clear then the gunmetal burst around the edges then cleared again. It worked out OK! http://img401.imageshack.us/my.php?image=reality0037wm.jpg Edited December 3, 2006 by Southpa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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