# Breakthrough for a new Fibreglass door?



## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

I just got a call to paint a new fiberglass front door. Will Breakthrough do the job? One of the paint store clerks said to prime it first. I'll turn this job down if I have to prime it too.

The customers wants both sides painted and I'm trying to find a way to do 3 coats in 4 hours time. I'm thinking about buying some 'stack racks'. That way you can flip the door over yourself and do both sides. I'm not going to bring another guy and pay him to do nothing for 4 hours. I take on small jobs because they often lead to bigger jobs and more referrals.


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

breakthrough will adhere to fiberglass.

checkout @ridesarize system for doors..


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

cocomonkeynuts said:


> breakthrough will adhere to fiberglass.
> 
> checkout @ridesarize system for doors..
> The Ultimate Best Door Painting System Spraying Hacks - YouTube


Will the low VOC version of Breakthrough adhere too? I've heard that the 250 g/l version sticks like crazy and somebody in here said that the low VOC BT didn't pass the fingernail test. This is an unprimed, new fiberglass door.


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

That looks like a good system in tight quarters. Did he just screw a 2x4 on top of the door?


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## cocomonkeynuts (Apr 14, 2017)

Mr Smith said:


> That looks like a good system in tight quarters. Did he just screw a 2x4 on top of the door?


Yes, he has some comments there. Several of my painters have said it looks like an efficient system when you need to spray on site.

Not as fast recoat but a fast dry bonding primer or even stix and scuffx would work nicely too.

I like some PPG stuffs but low voc breakthrough :thumbdown:


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## Center_line_Painting (Jun 4, 2017)

I do small projects as well for the same reasons.

While in the past breakthrough was my go to- I'm leaning more and more towards MSA. Not sure what else to recommend for a front door in that scenario. I haven't really put SW emerald urethane to the test but I know the stuff dries harder than the newer breakthrough. 

As long as you are taking out the weather stripping for a day or so, MSA should be cool. I don't trust SW's dark colors though.


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

Center_line_Painting said:


> I do small projects as well for the same reasons.
> 
> While in the past breakthrough was my go to- I'm leaning more and more towards MSA. Not sure what else to recommend for a front door in that scenario. I haven't really put SW emerald urethane to the test but I know the stuff dries harder than the newer breakthrough.
> 
> As long as you are taking out the weather stripping for a day or so, MSA should be cool. I don't trust SW's dark colors though.


I'm not worried about finding a good exterior paint. I have to do this door efficiently in less than 4 hours or I won't do it. I'm not going to spend all day at a house for $200 + materials. I charge a minimum of 4 hours for a small job. Nobody is going to pay $460 to get a front door painted. I thought Breakthrough would be the perfect 'specialist" paint for the job because it dries fast and supposedly doesn't need a primer. It's also a fiberglass door which can be finicky. If I had the time I'd prime it and finish it with Regal exterior pearl. Yes, the MSA is good too. 

I don't believe that the low VOC version of BT can do the same job as it's predecessor.


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## Center_line_Painting (Jun 4, 2017)

it's busy season!

Yeah, with those kinds of jobs...it's tough...
I get where you're coming from. 
I have low voc breakthrough on fiberglass front doors on a commercial strip. They haven't peeled or anything in a year. Obvious hand grease type stuff going on though. I did use a primer on that job because breakthrough's coverage is poor. 

If the homeowner can commit to keeping the door cracked all day, there are a number of options that will suit the bill. If it needs to close, asap, that's a different story and I probably wouldn't take the job. 

Front doors are sacred to me.


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## finishesbykevyn (Apr 14, 2010)

Center_line_Painting said:


> it's busy season!
> 
> Yeah, with those kinds of jobs...it's tough...
> I get where you're coming from.
> ...


I Just tested some breakthrough on a piece of varnished wood. No sanding or anything. 2 hours later I could not budge it with my fingernail. That stuff sticks like crazy.. I've been considering using it on a metal front door and garage door..


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## finishesbykevyn (Apr 14, 2010)

Didn't mean to quote you centerline. But got my 2 cents in..


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

finishesbykevyn said:


> I Just tested some breakthrough on a piece of varnished wood. No sanding or anything. 2 hours later I could not budge it with my fingernail. That stuff sticks like crazy.. I've been considering using it on a metal front door and garage door..


You must be using the Low VOC Breakthrough if you live in Canada. Painters in here have said that it doesn't pass the fingernail test. I guess it might depend on the substrate.

I wish posters would say if they're using the 250 g/l Breakthrough or the low VOC Breakthrough. Those are two entirely different products.


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

Center_line_Painting said:


> it's busy season!
> 
> Yeah, with those kinds of jobs...it's tough...
> I get where you're coming from.
> ...


I called the customer back and said I couldn't do the job.
My plan was to remove the front door and spray it flat. I was going to get some "stack racks" so you can flip the door on the ground. I'd wait about an hour between coats and then rehang an hour after the final coat. I'd remove the weather stripping just in case.


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

That's weird. I edited the above post TWICE and it did not work. This has happened a few times before. Something is broken.


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

Mr Smith said:


> That's weird. I edited the above post TWICE and it did not work. This has happened a few times before. Something is broken.


Mods can compare edited versions of posts. Looking at the first version and the second (edited), it shows you edited out a sentence from the quote in your first one then put it back in. Not sure what you meant to do but that’s what happened.


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## Mr Smith (Mar 11, 2016)

RH said:


> Mods can compare edited versions of posts. Looking at the first version and the second (edited), it shows you edited out a sentence from the quote in your first one then put it back in. Not sure what you meant to do but that’s what happened.


I added more content including a 5 line paragraph the 2nd time. It did not record.


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

Mr Smith said:


> I added more content including a 5 line paragraph the 2nd time. It did not record.



Assume you made sure to hit “save” when you were done editing?


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

Mr Smith said:


> I added more content including a 5 line paragraph the 2nd time. It did not record.


Was it this?

_
“Needing to prime the door threw the timeline way out of whack to make the job profitable. I wasn't going to take a chance with the Low VOC Breakthrough. I'm not a gambler when it comes to business. A little job like that can turn into a nightmare.”
_

If so, you inserted it into the quote from Center Line.


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## Center_line_Painting (Jun 4, 2017)

From what I've seen of the stock wrought iron black, it covers really well. Deeper bases have always cover well for me, and whatever technique I'm using....will it be that way for you though? My comment about priming and poor coverage was directed towards stock white. 

It's always good to remember when reading both positive and negative content, it is coming from an individual with a particular experience. Every batch is different (even if subtly).
While asking a friend can generally be helpful to a point, testing things ourselves always yields prompt and real answers. No matter how convincing what someone else wrote is, their procedure and all that.

There are many reasons why a coating could fail the fingernail test, prep? how diluted, extender? the particular batch? etc. 


sounds like you took the safe route, which is generally the best one.


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## finishesbykevyn (Apr 14, 2010)

Mr Smith said:


> You must be using the Low VOC Breakthrough if you live in Canada. Painters in here have said that it doesn't pass the fingernail test. I guess it might depend on the substrate.
> 
> I wish posters would say if they're using the 250 g/l Breakthrough or the low VOC Breakthrough. Those are two entirely different products.


Ya, I Believe it's a version of the low VOC Breakthrough. But ya, it could be a gamble. Priming IMO is always better, as is not having to rush..


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

Will do a front door if it’s part of a larger job since I can fit it into the overall project. But if it’s going to be a stand alone job, I will pass. Try and charge what it really takes to do one properly and people will scream like scalded cats. And if you charge what they generally feel to be a “fair” price, you won’t make any money on them.


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## ridesarize (Jun 19, 2012)

If anyone is afraid of the cost to prime a fiberglass front door, just go buy a aerosol can of xim bonding primer and spray it, then paint it 20 minutes later geez.


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## ridesarize (Jun 19, 2012)

New version: blocks screw on flat side against top of door. works like a champ


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## mug (Dec 22, 2010)

ridesarize said:


> New version: blocks screw on flat side against top of door. works like a champ


This is a great idea! However, I think I am more impressed by that nearly perfect straight line of overspray on the base masking paper.


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