Opinions needed

jbojo · Jul 8, 2013

Just curious how everyone feels about the hood treatment irt to the black paint around the NACA hoods. I have see some painted black with a flatner agent mixed in (10%) and some painted black with a high gloss. Not sure if Ford produced any with high gloss so hoping someone will know. I believe the cons of the flat black is that it requires more maintenance but I think that it looks better myself. Just wondering what everyone thinks.

thx

-jbojo

auron73mach1 · Jul 8, 2013

I would go with gloss b/c flat fades imho

midlife · Jul 8, 2013

High gloss black will reflect more sunlight back into your face, which (I think) is why Ford when with a flatter black.

johnwanzel · Jul 8, 2013

IMO, the original matte black hood treatment is super sexy on these cars but I can see your concern about the care and upkeep. If you look in the paint section of

429mustangcougarinfo.com it will explain in detail the paint, reducer, thinner mixture to get it right. Hope that helps. Good luck.

Don65Stang · Jul 8, 2013

I like the look of the low gloss/satin gloss black the best.

turtle5353 · Jul 8, 2013

i painted mine gloss black and i like it. also did the bottom stripes in gloss black. i like the shine

Doug The Dog · Jul 8, 2013

Ford treated their hoods to a flat black paint. Looked good at first, but was a PITA to take care of. If you accidently got wax on it. It would stay their till the end of time. not to mention, it would fade to the color painted below it. I highly recommend a semi gloss (for originality sake) or full on gloss black for the best look. Just my opinion. My opinion and five bucks will get you a small cup of Star Bucks coffee.

droptop73 · Jul 8, 2013

You may want to experiment with a base coat without the clear coat. My understanding is it is easier to maintain.

Totalled · Jul 8, 2013

After seeing a Mach with gloss black at the show last friday night... I'm thinking hard about just clearing it all at repaint time....

Tubo · Jul 8, 2013

With Black, I'd semi-gloss clear it.To have a durable Black finish.

I'm have the hood, not blacked out, done later this week, with a gloss finish.

Tubo

hyena429 · Jul 8, 2013

I like the gloss finish my self...It is easier to take care of...And having one on my hood for 18 years..I never had a reflection issue ...I think high gloss looks great..semi too...Not too big of a fan of the mat...But i like it too...It just seems like the fully gloss hood stripe looks deeper..richer..and higher quality...even if it is not correct.

coupe351w · Jul 8, 2013

Semi-gloss thats what I had done. Flat way to hard to take care of.

Bill73Ragtop · Jul 9, 2013

My hood was done with a custom mix that was sorta 40% flat / 60% semigloss. After 15 years & 25K miles, it still looks pretty good. I have noticed some UV damage is just starting to show, but the casual observer would not recognize it. I imagine the climate on the west coast and southwest would have a bigger impact on UV damage than here in the northeast.

Boss1Ray · Jul 9, 2013

SInce you are requesting personal opinions, I like the original low gloss (flat) type finish. It looks best for the hoods and other blackout areas like the lower body and tailight panels. - Either in black or argent. I would tape off the edges as I polished and it worked great! Worth the extra effort!

Ray

MechEng · Jul 9, 2013

I like the gloss look personally, easier to take care of is also a plus. But for my car I don't plan to stay very original. So I think it comes down to your intent with the car, personal preference, and how much work you're willing to agree to for the life of the pain job

Boss1Ray · Jul 9, 2013

SInce you are requesting personal opinions, I like the original low gloss (flat) type finish. It looks best for the hoods and other blackout areas like the lower body and tailight panels. - Either in black or argent. I would tape off the edges as I polished and it worked great! Worth the extra effort!

Ray

Mister 4x4 · Jul 9, 2013

I'm going glossy with mine - because the West Texas sun will chew up and spit out flat finish in no time (the original hood black-out area on mine is a perfectly stenciled surface rust area - that's how completely the sun burned off the flat finish).

At one point I'd considered laying down some 3M Di-Noc black carbon fiber vinyl for both the hood black-out and hockey stripes... but soon discovered that the sun will make quick work of it as well, so nix that idea.

It's your car - build it how you like! There are no wrong answers here.

hyena429 · Jul 9, 2013

I'm going glossy with mine - because the West Texas sun will chew up and spit out flat finish in no time (the original hood black-out area on mine is a perfectly stenciled surface rust area - that's how completely the sun burned off the flat finish).

At one point I'd considered laying down some 3M Di-Noc black carbon fiber vinyl for both the hood black-out and hockey stripes... but soon discovered that the sun will make quick work of it as well, so nix that idea.

It's your car - build it how you like! There are no wrong answers here.

+1...Reason why some one painted my hood full gloss before i owned it...He lives only 20ish miles from me...And we got simular sun issues as you down in Texas ..A desert with alot of sun and hardly no clouds or rain during the summer..And most of the year...Sun is death too mat black around here....Even the mat black on my little escort wagon car i had...Got it at only a year old..all peeled up...Mat black is tuff to deal with around here...Not impossible..Just tuff..lol

whitesoc · Jul 9, 2013

Personally I'd go with the gloss, I've seen a few cars with it done and even though the mat does look good I like the shine.

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