Technical Define "Driver Quality" paint

in my case, driver quality is anything I can spread with a sponge roller. had a guy ask what the color was on one of my tbuckets and I told him, "ask the wife, it's the same color as our bedroom."

 

Earl Shieb..$29.95..... or any 1-Day.

 

There is no top,or...you can't get there from here.

 

It's simple... if you are satisfied with it... it's done. Screw what anybody else thinks...

 

There is a painter that is not allowed to do his best work because the customer it too cheap to pay for quality work. The car is given a sub standard paint job, this allows the customer to bad mouth the painter, bitch that the car doesn't win at shows, and drive away future customers from the paint shop.

 

I totally agree with 37 Kid. When I had my shop in Florida , customers would beat me up on the price and then bitch about the results.
I would quote them a price and then they would say I can only afford this much and since I only did one car at a time and the shop was empty you would agree to the price just to have something to do.
Then in the end they would nitpick every little piece of dust in the end project.
I finally started giving them the I don't want do it price and they would say when can you start.
Never do a job for a friend or you will end up with one less friend.

 

Well if it aint show quality then its driver quality, after that its a "10 foot" job.

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It's like pornography : "I can't define it, but I know it when I see it".

 

We used to call it a "20-20" paint job. Looks good 20 feet away, going by at 20 miles per hour...

 

If I was to drive something old on the street...this would what it would look like...only drove this old guy maybe 5 or 10 times before it went away...but this is perfect daily driver finish...IMHO

 

So, for all of us who paint cars, it is new terminology for "It doesn't have to be that good, I just want a paint job.", for sellers, it means whatever paint is on the car, and for buyers, it is another bargaining point to beat the seller up with, got it. Thanks everyone for the replies.

 

I have paid a few painters their asking price to paint a few cars through the years. When I handed them the money, they assured me the paint was going to be "show quality", but when I picked up the finished product, they were happy with the "driver quality" paint job they had given me. Everyone one of them bitched about how they didn't make any money because of all the extra work they had to do on my car (to get the "driver quality" job they gave me). Problem was, I paid the price they told me it was going to cost for the "show quality" but it was somehow my fault they underestimated how long it would take. Never once through the process did they say anything about more money because it was taking longer. I would have paid more for a better job then most of the ones I'd gotten.

I've done 3 or 4 cars & trucks myself (the last one someone else painted). I'm quite happy with my "driver quality" because I know the guy that did the body work can only stand to do body work for so long, then its done and gets painted. In a few more years I'll have another chance at making it better, cheap paint works that way.

This last one someone else painted because I ran out of good weather to paint in (I paint outside), and I traded the paint job for welding work on his hot rod. It looks about like it would have had I painted it, which I didn't have to do. That said, the guy runs a body shop, I guess I expected a little better (he kept telling me how great it was going to be). But in fairness to him, I did pick it up before "he was done with it". It was sitting outside his shop for about 3 weeks, and I had things I wanted to do with it.

My experience with many body shops I have been in are that I think too many body guys/painters convince car owners that cars are suppose to be perfect, but the painters/body guys lack the ability to reach the level they tell the car owners the cars are suppose to be at. The body/paint guys set an expectation for the car owner they are unable to achieve. Then they expect the car owner to pay them as they make many attempts to reach that perfection they can't seem to reach. When the customer balks at the estimate over runs, then point out the short comings in the finished product, the painters whine about how everyone is too cheap to pay for "show quality" paint job.

I will go back to my original post, paying someone to do a "show quality" paint job on anything I own would be a huge waste of someone's time and my money. One color and fairly smooth that looks good from 10' away is OK with me. Gene

 

WTF? . Is it seriously, actually, too much to expect a relatively smooth surface (- notice I didn't say perfectly mirror-reflection-quality w/gaps measurable to a .01" -), properly laid-down paint (w/o runs, sags, orange-peel, dirt n gravel in the paint - & notice: I didn't say wet-sanded/rubbed-out), & while I'm whining like a little girl; fkn paint that at least matches color on the panels n doesn't lift/peel/fade in , 1yr? Come-on... Daily driver paint *can* be anything from single stage enamel (including cough - couch.."tractor paint") to nice bc/cc (readem). How do you define it
? - & it *does* matter for different vehicle types. Sure, nicer is going to be abit more expensive, but *how much more!!!* Repair shops, dealer repairs, backyard, geez - even earlsheib-type/etc can all turn out dd-quality. How about a little pride in the work. I've only done a couple of paint jobs(for me only), came out half-assed,( although they weren't too bad, read: DD... & "passable" as such), but I knew my skill level(read: lack of it). I've paid for some that weren't all that bad, but weren't close to perfect, although a bit more care should've been taken as to paint coverage/etc - what I paid for. The guys that cared about their work asked if I was happy & would've fixed the trouble spots if there were any. The ones that didn't care essentially said: there you go, it's done; & expected allocades for the less-than-quality work. None should be junk-quality. If your skills don't live up, then don't charge for labor. Swap it/ barter it/etc. Yes I know it's time & energy consuming; damn straight - a lot of work..., but if it's being done for $$$ or even trade, that means no fkn around n keep your word. Lots of guys can't do bodywork/paintwork - much less correctly; but I suppose charging like a pro helps even it all out. If, otoh, you are that good, then charge away. Fair enough. Helping a buddy? - make damn sure he's there sanding/doing grunt/dirty work/etc every day or time you work on it, so he's well aware of the work/effort/time involved. Let him watch you blow the paint on, & the after effects/work to finish up. Primer ain't paint, rust n rot ain't patina... Marcus...

 

Wow ! How did a what's a driver quality paint job turn into a dump on painters post? Not all of the people who paint cars are thieves. Some of us really care about the product that comes out of their shops.
I can't tell you how much sleep was lost worrying about the final results of a job and did I spend enough time to make sure it was right. The times I wasn't satisfied with the way it looked and did more work for free labor and materials to make sure the customer would be happy.
It led to several best paint awards , but that's just me talking.

 

Yah, I get it... Guess the "dump" resulted from experiences w/paint jobs; which were done by painters, some w/attitudes... . It was the quality - or lack of perfection - that usually defines a dd paint job. FWIW; I've never owned show-level paintwork, usually oem-level to much worse. . Didn't want the expense, nor the upkeep. Or the worry from folks ruining what they didn't/couldn't have; due to lack of respect for themselves, much less others. No jealousy here, I do admire the effort n skill to lay it down n keep it up.
For some reason, now anything requiring care to apply = custom, w/the price to match. But w/o the quality of even a dd-level stuff. Tired of a lot of the attitude, can see both sides... & notice I didn't call anyone out... . General Rant over...
Marcus...

 

Like some of us, I paint cars for a living. Well, mostly old pickups, due to my location. I have some rules, the price is the price, period, and the customer buys the material, as needed. One reason I like doing it that way is there is no need to skimp on shit, so incomplete coverage is my problem if it happens, and I will fix it. If there is stuff left over, I will buy it back if they wish. I do not cut breaks, I do the same job whether the car is white or black, the occasional run gets sanded out, and panel alignment is fully explained beforehand, like everything else. You all may have guessed by now that a prospective customer asked for a price, then asked how much for "driver paint". I told him the same price. I don't see much sense in doing this work for McDonald's wages. Those of you shopping for a painter should take a long hard look at their previous work. If they are too lazy to bend down and get enough paint on the bottom of the car, you probably want a different painter. Be realistic, you most likely are not going to get Ridler quality at Maaco prices.

 

Done with a brush, cost about $50 US to do the entire car.

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s55; that is the correct way. & I'd bet your prices are fair, too.
Marcus...

 

Driver quality paint is what you see on any new show room vehicle. They aren’t perfect no one spot stands out as being better or worse it kind a like a universally flawed finish.

There’s a few steps up from that and a few steps down. Steps down would be fleet, dump truck, dumpster. Steps up would be better best custom top 8 contenders

If you pin driver quality to new car showroom Quality there’s usually no misunderstanding

 

usually means that it looks good while you are driving and looking out the windshield

 

31V;
Best definition of dd I've read, & the +/- steps, too.
Marcus...

 

Paint it drive it been like this for 50,000 miles hard miles from dirt to salt and left to right of the country wash and polish it and it still looks good all the chips are battle scars worthy of journey

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About the “never do a job for a friend “ So True!!!!!!!!!

 

That is driver quality paint! It is not some crappy rolled on or bushed on house latex paint job. To me it is a weather and time worn, well applied paint job that is showing her age if you look too close. A chip here or there that doesn't matter. A scratch that you tried to get out but the paint got too thin before it disappeared. It held its own once, now it looks good at 10-20 feet or with your glasses off. My olds 442 was painted over 20 years ago, don't look too close but at ten feet she is flat, glossy and pretty. I don't want to re-paint her, she is perfect as is, a driver quality finish.

 

looks like everyone agrees, it means whatever the guy doing the talking says it does.

 

Exactly!!!
It’s very subjective, this “Driver Quality “ description.

 

That phrase comes out of the same bag as the following...

Ran when parked...(So did the Titanic when it parked it'self on the Ocean Floor)

Needs TLC...(Yes a warm garage, a fuzzy fleece blanket, a warm quart of oil and a bed time story will make it all better)

Thousands invested...( Every quart of oil, every gallon of gas, every tire, every power bill, every tag fee, every trip to the parts store.......)

My loss is your gain...( what better way for the bloodthirsty buyers to get in touch with their internal sadist....It's always plus when somebody cries..... Does a bag of unwanted kittens come as a bonus?)

Minor Rust....(yep, the rust holes are below the age of 21)

Easy Restoration....(if you have a multi million dollar shop fully staffed and a couple of hundred grand)

Not many like this...(Thank God)

Tired Engine...(Yep a little expresso should fix it right up)

One owner...(who never changed the oil, or did any maintenance whatsoever)

Parts easily available...(if you have thousands upon thousands)

Very rare Model...(As rare as the other 12 in the county)

90 percent Restored...(thanks, this leaves the hardest part...the last 10 percent)

All the hard work done...(incorrectly I might add.)

Comes with extra parts...(because I was too lazy to go to the dump?)

It's all there...(None of it's worth a damn but it's all there)

A good runner...(except it only brakes on one wheel and lays a smoke screen that any Fletcher Class Destroyer would be proud of)

Draws attention...(So does a house fire and a train wreck)

Lost Interest...(Along with most of the parts)

Trophy Winner...(Yep, best challenge, best wreck, best patina, best under construction and the Honorable best to cause Lock Jaw award will look nice on the mantle)

Mint...(except it has a tired engine, needs TLC, but it's all there, the hard is work done, my loss is your gain, parts easily available, it's a good runner, it has driver quality paint, draws attention, comes with extra parts, one owner, very rare model, minor rust, very easy resto, I have lost interest, not many left like this...)

 

"driver quality" could be just a worn out paint job or a piss poor new one. Not the worst thing as you can still have fun without having having quality paint.

 

Paint that stays on the car when you wash it!

 

Por15 and a good $4.00 brush and you got it.