Kustom Painting 101Tri coats – Pearls and Candies
Custom colors, such as pearl tri-coats and candy require a different application technique than conventional colors to achieve an even finish. Unlike conventional colors that achieve a mass tone quickly (become more or less unchanged after a few coats), candies and tri-coat pearls are translucent color through color that are greatly effected by number of coats applied and how.

If you open a can of candy or a pearl mid coat and stir it, you will see the mix stick right through the paint. The end effect is more dimensional and deeper than what can be achieved with only opaque colors - featuring exaggerated flip on edges and varying hues at different angles. Candy is clear - tinted with a very bright and pure colorant that will allow light through. The opaque base you choose will affect the final color in pearls and candies as well as the number of coats applied over it. You need to do a test panel or have a color chip sample stating the number of coats to see the final color. Pearls have a soft look while candies have a sharper color effect. Be warned that these colors are more difficult to repair due to their multi-stage application.

When spraying a car with candy or pearl tri-coat, it should be all assembled for the application of the mid coat color. This will ensure every panel comes out the same color where it abuts.

Ccandies look most intense over very bright metallic bases with bright silver being brightest. Pearls can go over just about anything but seem to show best over pastel bases or white. If you are using black as a base, you will need very little pearl and conversely a lot of pearl over lighter bases. If you are using black as a base for candy, you will need some pearl or a fog of metallic over the black to reflect out the candy color. The more candy you apply to any base - the darker the color, not enough coats and the color will look weak and uneven, usually you need 4-5 coats of candy for a light base and less for a base closer to the candy color. Too many coats of candy will loose some of the candy effect as it blocks out the base more. Pearls very in strength. Some require a lot of coats or you will barely see it, some will look blotchy if you apply too much – again do a test panel first.

Make sure your base color has achieved hiding and is perfectly even as you will not cover up any flaws or misses with the mid coat. When applying the mid coat you need to use a 75% overlap pattern (not 50%) and use full passes with no interruptions (stopping) until the end of the panel. On sides, you need to “walk the car” – start at one end and continue to the other end each pass. Make sure your airline is untangled and it sometimes helps to have someone with you in the booth to hold and feed the airline so you can move easily and steadily. It takes a little getting used to but is the best way to get an even application. When spraying roofs and hoods, start at one side (not in the middle) and move across. On trunks, go horizontally right across each pass over the quarter panel tops. If you were to “panel paint” (stop part way up the side and continue), you would get dark spots where the mid coat overlaps – very evident in sunlight and ruin your job. Practice this pattern technique on you base color so it becomes familiar and coordinated. When doing inside fender edges turn the pressure down to limit over spray on the sides. When doing areas like grills with openings to cover spray across in full passes then quickly fill in the areas not covered – the mid coat will blend in fine as it changes shades on angles and are quite forgiving in these areas.

With the advent in recent years of some very nice and bright factory base coat pearl and metallic colors, you can create what I call cheater candies today very easily. Simply spray a couple of coats of half strength candy close in shade to the base color you have chosen over it. The effect is fantastic; you will brighten, deepen and expand the flip of your original color with very little work or expense. Looking at a bright car color through tinted sunglasses will give you an idea of what you will achieve but more so. The other advantage is they are easier to touch up than a full-boogie candy (although not as intense) and of course, it is still kustom and unique to your ride.

Most custom colors look best with two separate applications of clear coats, as the number of coats in a custom color tend to result in some loss of gloss after the initial clear has cured. After a few days, fine sand the clear and re clear, for the deep wet look. Custom color application sounds harder than it really is, but the difference is night and day to the effect it has on your vehicle, transform a nice ride into a sex machine head turner!

John