This year modding has kept me sane through the cold Chicago winter, especially developing painting techniques and experimenting with paints unfamiliar to me. First I tried Duplicolor’s vinyl dye with great success. It goes on smooth, evenly, is eager to dry, and does not run. Even the smell is not as awful as one might expect. It works the way I always dreamed that spray-paint would. Next I tried VHT’s vinyl dye and the results were less than desirable. Combing best painting practices with the recommendations on the side of the can, this paint comes out of the can unevenly, immediately running and pooling in some areas while other areas are getting little to no coverage. Additionally the smell is wretched.
I sanded before this picture was taken, but the places where the paint pooled are still clearly visible.
Once fully cured, the durability of the VHT finish is not even better than a well applied spray paint. It is already wearing on the edges and shows even the lightest of screwdriver marks. At nearly nine dollars per can these are unacceptable results.
My question to the community is has anyone else had inconsistent results with their cans of vinyl dye? What are your experiences with various brands? What do you swear by?
