Modern car paints are of very good quality and have excellent characteristics; with their help you can protect your car from possible damage, scratches and many other problems. However, not in all cases, even very good modern paints can save a car from negative external influences. That is why painting your own car with Raptor can be a very reasonable and competent decision.
Most often, Raptor is used for jeeps, pickups, trucks and other vehicles that are usually used in harsh natural conditions. The fact is that ordinary paint, no matter how high-quality and reliable it is, can quickly become covered with various scratches and other damage. As you know, scratches for any car are a very dangerous thing, since rust can form at the site of the scratches.
That is why painting a car with raptor, that is, a special substance designed for trucks, pickups, SUVs and other similar vehicles, is a very reasonable and correct choice.
DIY raptor painting
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- After stirring, the bottle is screwed to the gun, which, in turn, must be connected to a compressor. You need to adjust the pressure to 2.5–5 atm, depending on the desired texture. Lower pressure will produce a coarser texture, and higher pressure will produce a finer texture.
- The distance and speed of the gun will also affect the texture.
- Adding thinner (up to 10%) will give a smoother finish. For this, it is better to use a special thinner, but a universal acrylic thinner will also work. It is not recommended to use solvents as they will weaken the properties of the coating.
- Experiment with pressure settings and do a test spray on cardboard to find a texture you like.
- Recommended distance is 40–45 cm (up to 150 cm). A closer distance will produce a larger texture.
- You can read about how to make passes with a gun when spraying and about the basic principles of painting in the article “Car painting technology.”
- The time required to spray diluted Raptor is 60 minutes.
- If more than 5 hours have passed since applying the layer, then before applying the next layer you need to sand the surface a little.
- U‑pol recommends applying 2–3 coats of Raptor. More than 3 layers are not recommended.
- Subsequent coats can be applied with a 60 minute drying period between coats.
- Between changing bottles, the gun must be washed for trouble-free spraying. Immediately after use, the gun must also be washed. The gun can be washed with either solvent or acetone.
Drying the Raptor coating
Raptor dries touch-free in 1 hour. After 2-3 days you can use it with caution. After 7 days, the surface painted with Raptor is completely ready for use. Drying can be accelerated by increasing the temperature (60 degrees), but complete hardening will also occur no earlier than 7 days.
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It is not recommended to infrared dry the Raptor.
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Paints for coating the bodies of modern cars have excellent characteristics and a glossy appearance. However, on jeeps, pickups, and trucks operating in harsh natural conditions when transporting goods, ordinary paint can very soon become covered with scratches from branches or abrasions from transported goods. As a result, rust appears at the site of the scratches, and the car loses its attractive appearance.
There are many products on the market for repairing car bodies. We suggest you choose products from the U-POL brand, which has more than 60 years of experience in this field. Polyurethane raptor coating and consumables for it from U-POL are specially designed for application as a protective coating on the bodies of pickup trucks, SUVs and trucks.
Bottom line
Raptor is a very reliable and high-quality product that allows you to protect your car from a number of external negative influences, and therefore extend its service life. Painting cars with Raptor is a very smart choice for those who want to protect the surface of their own car from negative influences: moisture, corrosion, sunlight and others. Raptor is best used for SUVs, pickups, trucks and other vehicles that are used in harsh natural conditions.
Advantages and disadvantages of Raptor
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When applied to a car body, raptor polyurethane coating forms a protective film, which has a number of advantages over conventional car paint, namely:
- high strength of the material;
- resistance to friction;
- resistance to most chemical elements;
- easy to clean;
- does not fade in the sun;
- reliable surface protection against corrosion.
Despite all the positive aspects of the coating, the raptor is not without its drawbacks. The following points can be highlighted from them:
- the coating cannot be varnished, so it will always be matte;
- the surface has the appearance of pebbled leather, which does not always look aesthetically pleasing;
- If the Raptor painting technology is not followed, it may chip.
Reviews from car owners
Most motorists speak well of the Raptor paint. The specificity of the issue plays a role here. Repainting the body is an expensive undertaking. And if you take into account that you will have to paint in an unusual format, instead of car enamel, blowing the entire body into polymer, then it becomes clear: before making such a decision, car owners thoroughly study the issue and do not do this work “at random.”
This paint gets good reviews mainly for its really high resistance to external influences. Foresters, hunters and fishermen who drive their vehicles through forests and off-road have appreciated the ability of Raptor coatings to withstand abrasive dirt, stones and tree branches.
Negative reviews of Raptor paints often include motorists' dissatisfaction with local peeling of the coating and the impossibility of spot repairs with an acceptable result. This problem is especially relevant for plastic elements. It happens that almost half of the coating falls off from a bumper or molding at one time.
Typically, motorists with an adventurous streak decide to undertake such experiments. Those who are not afraid to try new things. Those who try, for example, “Titan” paints or protective compounds like “Bronekor”. And often such experiments end in positive emotions.
Packaging and completeness of “Raptor”
Raptor goes on sale in a package containing four bottles of the base material, each 750 grams, and one liter container with a hardener. The kit also includes a special anti-gravel gun, calibrated to work optimally with the raptor.
Bottles with raptor coating are adapted for pistols. Consumers can order raptor sets, either black or cloudy whitish, which can be tinted in any desired color. The set contains instructions that contain technological recommendations and a safety data sheet.
Preparatory work before painting
Painting a car with raptor is not a complicated process and can be done by a car enthusiast, but it requires careful preliminary preparation. If painting will be done over the entire body of the car, then initially you need to remove all the attached parts from the body: bumpers, headlights, corners, mirrors, and so on.
Then traces of rust and peeling paint are removed from the body. It is recommended to prime areas of the body with exposed metal with ACID #8 primer. If necessary, the body is straightened and puttied in places of dents. The surface should be degreased with anti-silicone cleaner S2001.
At the next stage of preparing the body for painting, P80 sandpaper is used to remove the gloss. The surface to be painted with raptor should be matte. All parts of the car that remain on the body and will not be painted should be covered with protective material, using masking tape as fastening.
a brief description of
Car paint Raptor is an ideal two-component urethane substance to protect the paintwork of a car from the effects of water, dirt and other negative factors. Protects against the appearance of rust, mold and the effects of sudden temperature changes. In addition, after applying this enamel to the body, the degree of surface strength increases in relation to the effects of ultraviolet radiation and mechanical damage.
The Raptor product is capable of maximally restoring already damaged coating. Moreover, the paint is available in different colors - from dark blue to bright yellow. Everyone will be able to choose the optimal color solution for themselves.
Raptor painting technology
After all the preparatory work, you can proceed to painting the body with raptor. The instructions for use recommend mixing the material with the hardener in a ratio of 3:1. In the can where the paint is located, there is a mark at which you should add the hardener - it will be exactly 250 grams.
Close the jar and shake the contents for several minutes to mix the paint and hardener. The company offers hardeners for Raptor with different drying periods, which makes it possible to select the desired drying speed of the coating. And in order to reduce the texture of the applied coating, the company recommends adding 10% S2040 thinner to the bottle with the material and hardener.
We screw the gun onto the paint can, to which the hose from the compressor is connected. You can apply the first layer of raptor to the car body. Painting begins from the roof of the car using even movements. The gun should be kept 40 - 50 centimeters from the surface to be painted. You need to make sure that the layer goes on without overflowing.
The instructions say that thickening the layer leads to a violation of its mechanical strength. To dry the first layer, a temperature of +20 and 30-60 minutes are required. Then you can apply a second layer.
Upon completion of coating the car body with the second layer of raptor, the paint should polymerize within 5-7 days. The car can be used after 12 hours, however, without serious loads on the coating.
How much does Raptor paint cost?
Raptor paint is sold in ordinary plastic or metal containers. There are bottles on sale that can be immediately mounted on the spray gun.
The price for 1 liter, when compared with conventional car enamels, is approximately 50-70% higher. The cost of 1 liter of Raptor paint, depending on the color, form and class, is around 1500-2000 rubles.
Recently, Raptor paint in cans has been in demand. Despite the more convenient form of release, its cost is not much higher than in regular packaging.
Professional paint shops buy this paint in bulk in its simplest, unprepared form, and then prepare it themselves. Craftsmen who paint car bodies and other metal surfaces through practice develop the required consistency of the prepared paint and the technology for performing the work.
Painting a car in the desired color
In order to paint the body of a raptor car in the desired color, you need to purchase a kit from the U-POL company with a cloudy-whitish material, which is intended for tinting. You can also purchase ready-made color pigments from U-POL. To purchase, you should contact the company's representative office - they will give recommendations on how to mix the pigment and raptor and how it should be applied to the surface of the body.
Next, you need to mix raptor with the hardener in a 3:1 ratio and add up to 10% of the base pigment to the finished mixture. If you have difficulty selecting the right color, you can contact a colorist and use the selection system to determine the right component.
In the case when the color of the car is light, and the owner wants to preserve it, you need to take into account that the raptor itself is milky in color - this can give a peculiar shade.
What is Raptor paint?
The Raptor coating in the traditional sense is not exactly paint. This is a polymer multicomponent composition. The exact list of components included in the paint, as well as the production technology, are not disclosed by the manufacturing company. However, it is known that Raptor U-Pol is basically a quick-drying polymer that does not require the classic hot application scheme.
There are many differences between Raptor paints and conventional enamels used when painting cars at factories. Firstly, this paint is an exclusive product. There are similar compositions on the market in small quantities, but their characteristics are far from the original. While car paints are produced by many companies. Secondly, this coating is not used in any automotive production line. The same cannot be said about small factories that produce various metal structures.
Also, Raptor polymer paint is rarely found in markets or small regional stores. It is mainly sold in large partner stores of the company, which was previously explained by its low prevalence and low trust among motorists. Although recently, due to growing demand, it has begun to appear more and more often in small retail.
Separately, it is worth mentioning the nuances of application technology. The so-called shagreen - a fine-grained relief on the surface of the paint - is a variable value. The size of the grains, their frequency and structure on the painted surface strongly depend on the method of preparing the paint and the process of its application. To put it more simply, if you give the same paint to two painters, the output will be a coating with different roughness. Even the color will be slightly different.
This feature of the paint means that in case of local damage, you will have to at least repaint the entire element. In the case of Raptor paints, no standard procedures for selecting or smoothly transitioning colors can be performed. In addition, the master and the tool used during the work must be the same as during the initial painting. Otherwise, the texture of shagreen may differ from other elements of the body.
Safety precautions when working with raptor
Painting the body of a car with a raptor should take place while observing personal protective measures. The passport that comes with the product itself indicates the main types of danger the raptor poses to humans:
- the material is flammable;
- irritates eyes;
- open contact with the material leads to dry skin and causes it to crack;
- vapors may cause drowsiness and clouding of consciousness.
Therefore, you need to work with a raptor in protective clothing and gloves, goggles and a respirator. The room where the work will be performed must be equipped with exhaust ventilation and fire safety equipment.
Is it possible to galvanize the body yourself?
When a galvanized body[/anchor] or some parts are produced, the car is completely immersed in a galvanic bath. This is a process that there is no way you can do at home or in the garage. But you can use the so-called cold galvanizing of the body using various elements. This is a process during which a zinc solution is sprayed onto the surface of the part and forms a base for further paint application. The effectiveness of this method depends on the performer, and the process is as follows:
- the transport is prepared, all old paint is removed, the soil is completely removed and a complete wash is performed, then all manifestations of rust are removed;
- the next step is high-quality puttying of irregularities, since after galvanizing it will be impossible to fix anything, the body is leveled;
- Next comes the stage of galvanizing itself; for this, a pre-purchased solution containing zinc and several other important elements is used;
- After the solution has dried, a primer is applied within 24 hours, and after a few hours you can directly paint the body to give it an aesthetic appearance.
Such simple processes allow you to protect the body, but the quality of protection will not be too great. The problem is that galvanizing only has real power when done galvanically, so it is better to use this method. For this you will need a bathtub the size of a car, as well as some important and expensive materials to fill it. As a result, galvanizing will cost more than purchasing a new car with a good galvanized body. So it is much better to use more democratic processing methods.
Connecting various electrodes and other devices
Recently, motorists have been offered a simply magnificent range of anti-corrosion products. Among the magical means that you simply need to attach to the body from the inside and leave in contact with the metal, you can highlight a certain electromechanical device that reduces the risks of corrosive effects and even stops the development of corrosion foci that have already begun. This magical remedy does not work at all, as has already been proven by hundreds of tests and inspections.
The fact is that electromechanical protection of the body requires factory preparation, and the effect should be on each part separately, and not on the entire body as a whole. Therefore, such a simple opportunity that looks so attractive is just a deception that you can safely forget about. This method can only help in the rich imagination of the buyer.
Advantages of painting a car with raptor
- Painting as a process does not require special qualifications of the performer.
- The coating is not afraid of moisture, salt, extreme temperatures, and does not fade in the sun.
- Protects the coating from rust.
- Reduces noise and vibration levels.
- Has high adhesion to body metal.
- Does not require meticulous preparation of the surface for painting.
- It can be applied not only with a spray gun, but also with a regular roller or brush.
- Painting can be done outside the garage, even outside, at a temperature of +20. An awning is desirable - it can protect from rain.
- Preparing for painting does not take much time.
- The coating retains its protective properties for a long time.
- There is no need to coat the raptor with an additional layer of varnish.
Protective coating "Titan"
From the point of view of typical coatings for cars, “Titan” is not one. This paint is not traditional due to its composition and appearance. It is made on the basis of polyurethane - a heterochain polymer from the urethane group, which belongs to synthetic elastomers and acts as a kind of rubber substitute.
Polyurethane paint "Titan" allows you to get a super-durable body coating, very hard and quite thick. Compared to other materials, such a “shell” will be more resistant to damaging external factors. The principle of operation of this car paint is simple: during the application process, a reaction with the hardener begins, causing the paint to quickly harden and form a protective layer.
The most attractive property for motorists is the ability to prevent damage to the body from the influence of mechanical factors. The coating has no analogues in strength and ability to resist cracks, scratches, and chips. Also, body parts will be protected from:
- UV rays,
- moisture,
- chemical substances.
A unique feature of the paint is the creation of a relief surface. The “Titanium” coating helps to make the so-called shagreen with different grain sizes, and this indicator depends on several factors:
- application technologies,
- the amount of solvent in the paint,
- spray nozzle devices.
As a result, the coating can be whatever the owner wants, although this imposes certain difficulties on restoration work. If you only need to tint a small area, it is not always possible to select shagreen in strict accordance with the original option.
Disadvantages of painting a car with raptor
- Relatively long time for complete polymerization of the coating (according to the instructions, up to 21 days).
- The coating has the appearance of an orange peel.
Those car owners who decide to cover the body of their car with raptor are not embarrassed by these shortcomings, but the advantages leave them in full confidence that their car is reliably protected for many years of operation in the harshest conditions.
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