Sikkens paint

[MarkM66]

Anyone use this brand? Or have opinioins on it?

I know someone who works for them, so he can cut me a deal, just wondering if I should use it or not.

Usually use DuPont.

[trackzonie]

I have had it on my camaro since October and its great, havent had any problems. I didnt lay the paint on so i dont know about the application of it.
Any questions let me know
kevin

[myclone]

Ive used it quite a bit in the past when I was in the body shop business and continue to use it to this day on my own projects. The two trucks in my sig were painted with Sikkens single stage (non base coat/clear coat) and I have yet to wax either one since they were painted.

Personally I like Sikkens for its "rich" look compared to other companies products but as anyone who is into paint and body work can tell you is that just about any paint line can be made to look really nice but the diff in "cheap" paint vs something more expensive is its durability under harsh conditions such as UV light, neglect from lazy ppl like me not waxing it, acid rain, etc.

If you use Sikkens I cant see where you will be disapointed in any way especially in 5 or 6 years when it will still look good as the day it was first sprayed.

My .02

[68protouring454]

sikkens is right up there with standox and spies hecker, the best of the best , i beilieve sikkens is a eurpean (german) paint and has way more solids in it than any american paint. like clone said, the way it withstands uv and other harsh conditions i second to none, t is more money but you use alot less of the product,
jake

[myclone]

sikkens is right up there with standox and spies hecker, the best of the best , i beilieve sikkens is a eurpean (german) paint and has way more solids in it than any american paint. like clone said, the way it withstands uv and other harsh conditions i second to none, t is more money but you use alot less of the product,
jake

Yes, Sikkens is european and back when I was in the business they were the OEM supplier for BMW, Audi, Volvo, Porsche, etc. IMO the high solids is why euro cars would have a "richer" look to them compared to a domestic that was the same color. IMO even though black is just...well. black Sikkens black looked WAY better/richer (there are actually several shades of black but thats another subject all togeather).

If memory serves me correct Spies is OEM on high end cars like Lambo (pre chryster days), Ferrari, and a few other cars I'll never be able to afford. Ive sprayed it once myself and it was a VERY nice product but the price for it was way beyond expensive.

Sikkens is a nice product that a mere mortal can afford and provides excellent results IMO.

[MuscleRodz]

Sikkens in top of the line in paints. You won't go wrong using it. I have shot quite a bit of Spies Hecker and liked it alot. Funny mix ratios though with euro paints so make sure to read the directions.

Mike

[camcojb]

Sikkens is very high quality. In some cases though a less expensive paint is exactly the same. A friend of mine owns a couple paint stores. He sells Sikkens as well as House of Color. Lesonal, and a few other brands. In some of the colors the stuff is exactly the same between the different brands. I wanted Sikkens for my new Camaro color and he said he'd be glad to do it under Sikkens' label, but when he went to mix it up it would be the EXACT same ingredients as another less expensive brand. Only difference would be the label on the can and how much I paid, the product inside was exactly the same.

Jody

[myclone]

Sikkens is very high quality. In some cases though a less expensive paint is exactly the same. A friend of mine owns a couple paint stores. He sells Sikkens as well as House of Color. Lesonal, and a few other brands. In some of the colors the stuff is exactly the same between the different brands. I wanted Sikkens for my new Camaro color and he said he'd be glad to do it under Sikkens' label, but when he went to mix it up it would be the EXACT same ingredients as another less expensive brand. Only difference would be the label on the can and how much I paid, the product inside was exactly the same.

Jody

Good call Jody and you are 100% correct as far as Sikkens is concerned (I think PPG has a "no name" line too) and I didnt think to mention it myself. Sikkens actually does make a cheaper line of paints and Im sure MarkM66's Sikkens paint rep friend can tell him what the name of it is because the name escapes me at the moment.

Basically its the same paint but youre not paying for the name or the R&D that went into developing it and John Q Public isnt really supposed to know its the same. The purpose of the low cost stuff is to give the paint rep something else to offer should a shop balk at the cost of the name brand stuff. Typical marketing stradegy in that the manufacturer would rather make a little less money off a shop by offering a low cost alternative than to only offer the high end stuff and not make any money at all off the shop.

Once you hang out/drink beer/bar hop with a few paint reps you learn all kinda "inside" secrets about the industry. My two best friends are paint reps one being Sikkens and the other being PPG (talk about arguements between those two after a few beers...sheesh).

[MarkM66]

Thanks for all the replies. I'll give it a go.

[68protouring454]

yes clone, standox is used on alot of the high end euro cars these days, it is expensive but per sprayable quart it is as cheap as anything, cause you do not use nearly as much of it, i can do 2 overalls with a 5liter of clear, there clear mixes 2-1-15% and so on the other biggie to standox is you use the same thinner for base/primer/clear/sealer etc, same goes for hardner, so theres no more chasing 10 cans of paint around, i will never use anything but.
the other nice thing is all the base coats are 84 dollars, no matter the color, black is like 65, but other than that is 84 no matter what, maybe a 10 doallr chareg on a super high pearl content base.
not until you get into the exclusive line will it change and they only have 6-8 colors in that, mostly flip flop colors
spies/standox do not hve a lower label like sikkens
anyways good luck, you will love the paint
jake

[BRIAN]

Not used by too many because they had huge problems a couple of years ago. Not sure if quality is any better now?