Money saving secrets
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any products out their that you guys would say competes with the big boys at half the price? Good primer substitutions /detail products/clears…etc
A norton rep once told me that 3M panel bond (08115) is identical, made by the same chemical company as the norton equivalent (don’t have #, sorry). He went on to say 3M would deny it to the death, but anyway I’m passing it on.
We just switched to norton sand paper 30% less than 3m and I personnaly feel it last longer.and cut better.And this comes from a shop that has used 3m for 35 years.
Anyone tried the Mirka sandpaper.36 and 40 cut real good.Weve been using it now for about 2 years.
I’ve never tried it, bondomerchant was going on about the other day. I’m leaning to move us from 3M to norton, whats the cost difference like with mirka?
(bondomerchant made me attach mirka to the sandpaper preference survey on the main page. I’ve never seen any shop using it)
Just bought a roll of 80 DA paper for 31.00,another paper we use is Indasa and its less than the Mirka brand.Around my town everyone is trying to save money so they can put it in their tanks so we try to save too.
any of ya guys use the meguirs unigrit paper not cheap but damn nice wetsanding paper the 2000 cuts better than the 3m goldback 1500 lasts alongtime 2:)
that mirka IS nice stuff though aint it nothing cheap about the quality top notch stuff;)
As of a couple of weeks ago we started using Norton paper, plastic and masking paper. I like all of it better than 3M. They gave us a case of tape and the stuff works damn good also. We were using hookit paper and the price difference between the two was 3M 86.23/box and Norton 46.08/box. The Norton works better imo!
wow that quite a $$$ difference. same quantities in the boxes?
That sounds like the savings we need.Im going to see if I can find someone that carries Norton products.Ive used the blue polycoated paper from Norton but cant remember the price nor where it was purchased.
I think if any of you do a cost analysis, you’ll find that sandpaper is a very insignificant cost to begin with, and any savings you may believe you’re getting are even less significant.
Jimmo, in your original question, you asked about possibly saving money on primers, clears, etc. A key factor there is if you are getting a warranty from your paint supplier, using any other products (including other products from that same supplier) voids that warranty.
However, even in that case, you may take in jobs where that isn’t a factor. Maybe it’s a customer pay job and they need the cost to be as low as possible. Even then, your paint and materials cost make up such a small percentage of the cost of the job, it isn’t going to change much.
With all that said, I sell a good amount of Refinisher Select RS3401 DTM primer and RS6030/6040 clear to shops and painters who don’t want to go with the more expensive primers and clears. Both are excellent products that work well and look great (there are custom cars around here with HOK base and RS 6040 clear) at a price that won’t strain your wallet.
I’ve actually used the 6040 for a bit, It was a really nice clear.I think it was just over a $100 a gallon in my area. We do many used car work for dealerships and anyone who can relate knows they want everything done for nothing. This is where I try to use the cheapest products possible. For the rest of the jobs, like you mentioned I have to stay with basf to keep the warranty in tact.
Your probably right about the sandpaper cost by itself. I find that Nortons whole line of products is more competitive from their paper to adhesives. I know that their is a substantial difference in price between their 2 way tape. Anyone using 3M may want to check into that. I think if you were to swap everything from 3M to norton you’d see a noticeable savings.
(if funny, a month ago I was mr 3M)
Speaking of “tighter than bark on a tree” car dealers, namely me, I’ve been using Rubber Seal clear on some older stuff, and can’t believe how much I like it. That, comming from a guy that would never mix and match product line.
I’ve used Norton for along time, and really appreciated it more when they were out of it and sent me 3M gold instead. I used about 5 sheets of it, and sent it back. The 3M green is good, but it’s the same color of money, and not THAT good.
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