Practice Panels

[m1lkb0x]

Anyone use practice panels (specifically car hoods) to test product? Any makes you prefer? I know some manufacturers clear coats are thinner than others.

[shane@detailedreflections]

We have a trunk deck from a corvette a client gave us to polish out and play with. Also a spoiler from a Volvo S60. I need to polish out the trunk deck and apply different coatings so people can see the difference. Then film over part of it so that can be visualized as well. 

[RayS]

2 hours ago, m1lkb0x said:

Anyone use practice panels (specifically car hoods) to test product? Any makes you prefer? I know some manufacturers clear coats are thinner than others.

I have multiple practice vehicles, but I don't tell the children that I use their vehicles for testing.  The kids are always happy, they get free detailing along with touch ups and I get to learn about the products and usage methods.  My wife's car also gets some testing, only because she get any new products used on her car first, but I'm real careful on that one.

 

As for the variances in the paint, I am finding more variance between the years than between the manufacturers. We have red vehicles from 1994 - 2017 and many manufacturers, Chevy, Ford, Lexus, Mazda, Range Rover, Subaru and Toyota.  Nearly every vehicle is Red, so that does help level the field for learning the products and comparing the differences.  I'm not sure you would get the same comparison if you were trying different chemicals/techniques on a White and Black panel to compare.

[mc2hill]

One of the best practice panels is the trunk from a fox body Mustang.  They are flat with a minimal lip, and not as large as a hood, so it easily fits on a body panel stand.