Stopped by Southtown Auto/Napa and Canadian Tire today to
pick up some test priming materials. Southtown was a good source of 3M
scotchbrite and ProFrom professional paint supplies. I picked up a bunch of
scotchbrite reloc pads and a reloc holder. I picked up a roll of aluminum from
Canadian Tire as well as a can of Dupli-color Self Etching primer.
I begin with cutting up the aluminum into roughly 6"
pieces. My first test was to see how the scotchbrite pads worked on the
aluminum. I used a 3" reloc
scotchbrite wheel on the test aluminum, and it seemed to really scuff the
aluminum with deep scratches. I immediately sensed that this is not the answer
to prepping the aluminum. I then used some maroon scotchbrite hand pads to
scuff the aluminum. Much better results. The surface preparation is more smooth
and gentle.
I cleaned one piece with MEK and one with the Proform Wax
and Grease remover. I noticed that the MEK seems to evaporate quickly, while
the degreaser/cleaner stays more wet. (Using an individual microfiber cloth for
each, I wiped all excess liquid off and set them outside to dry for 20min
(~23deg C and sunny). The Dupli-Color self etching primer was applied in two
coats, the second being applied 10min after the first coat (as per the
directions). The result is that after 45min dry time, both are easy to scratch
with a fingernail (top right corner). After 3 hours the primer is becoming more
hard, both are becoming difficult to scratch. It took a few tries and lots of
pressure with the thumbnail to scratch the primer (top left corner).
