SPTA 6" Dustless DA Sander That Rivals Mirka! Full Product Review

An Electric Sander That Will End Your Use of Pneumatic Sanders!

SPTA 6" electric orbital sander

SPTA 6” Electric Orbital Sander

If you are an auto body technician or a DIY type, you’ll definitely want to read this review carefully!

I bought this SPTA 6” orbital sander and haven’t used my pneumatic sander ever since. I’d been eyeing the Mirka dustless sander for years, but at a cost of $229, I had to give this a try.

If you’re sick of the noise from your pneumatic sander, and your forearms are worn down from the constant vibration that damages your nerves, this is something you must consider.

My main goal was to find a sander that actually WORKS well, and rivals the best pneumatic sanders. That’s why I had been eyeing the Mirka Dustless sander for so many years. But I didn’t want to put down the $600 to get one.

But after years of using several brand-name pneumatic sanders, switching from one brand to another trying to find that special one that doesn’t sacrifice work ability while lowering the level of vibration, I finally took the plunge and decided to take a chance on the SPTA 6” dustless sander.

One other big reason that I was considering using an electric sander was the fact that I don’t want to continue cause my 80-gallon shop compressor to take the beating that it gets from constantly running air tools. I wanted to save my compressor’s longevity for when I really need it, for shooting paint. Plus I wanted to try an electric sander to cut down on the noise level from running the compressor.

If you don’t have a super-expensive shop compressor, this is an excellent option. My shop compressor is an 80-gallon 7.5HP Kobalt brand, which I purchased from my local Lowe’s hardware store. It gets the job done, but it’s not meant for regular body shop use for the long term. So I was super excited to get my hands on the SPTA 6” dustless sander.

At a price of $220, I couldn’t pass up taking the chance on trying it out. But when I received it and took it to my body shop for the first test use, I was absolutely astonished at how well this sander works.

First of all, the vibration is absolutely MINIMAL. What I’ve noticed when buying pneumatic sanders that advertise a lower vibration level is that they either don’t reduce the vibration enough to save my old forearms, or they would sacrifice actual work ability. That wasn’t the case with the SPTA electric sander.

On the first use, I was absolutely astonished at how smooth the action was, while working efficiently in removing old paint and smoothing body filler. I could hardly believe that this sander was performing so well while operating as smooth as butter. And the noise level is practically zero!

This sander has a great build, a long thick durable power cord, and comes with an exhaust hose for capturing dust. You can hook up the hose to a regular shop vac and reduce the amount of dust emitted, or you can run it with regular sand paper that doesn’t have exhaust holes, and it works just the same.

What I also really liked was the electric activation buttons that allow you to turn on or turn off the unit, plus set the maximum rotational speed while having the ability to adjust the speed on the fly with the activation lever.

The 5mm throw keeps vibration to a minimum, but is enough to put in the work to take down material fast. I’ve noticed that I’m able to feather out filler a lot easier, and control the amount of primer that is being sanded down better than what I could with my best pneumatic DA.

The unit is brushless, and maintenance-free. So it’s easy to use and maintain. There’s no need to spend the money on the Mirka brand when you’ve got this as an option. I give it a five-star recommendation for any body shop professional, or DYI garage enthusiast.

Give this sander a try if you’re looking for ways to save the pounding on your compressor, and save your forearms from damage over the years. You won’t be sorry. Click the link below or the product picture above to check this product out on my Amazon Associates page!

Carlton Flowers
Color Boss Custom Auto Body


DIY Pro Tip - Single Stage Paint vs 2-Part Paint Explained

Pros and Cons of Single State Versus Traditional 2-Stage Coatings

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For the “do-it-yourself” garage painter, you’ve got options on the type of coatings you choose to paint your car or truck. Depending on what your end goal is, there are several things you can consider which will help you to make the decision on which way you go. I’ll describe what I’ve learned from my experience on using both types, and this can help you narrow down your decision.

To begin with, the difference between single stage paint and 2-part paint is exactly how it sounds. Single stage coatings are meant to be sprayed on after putting your vehicle in primer, and when you finish, you’re done. There’s no need to apply a clear coat layer, because the base coat was made with ingredients that give it a glossy finish.

2-part paints separate the color from the clear coat, giving the vehicle a glassy finish that is much more visible than single stage paint. The base coat is applied after the primer stage, and it has a dull, matte look. It gives uniform color coverage. A separate clear coat is applied at the last step, which gives a translucent layer that can be finished to a higher shine.

For starters and DIY’ers, let’s talk about the advantages of single stage paint. The first is the most obvious, and that’s saving a chunk of time for your overall paint job. You can apply 2 good coats of single stage paint, and you’re done. That means a lot less time waiting in between coats for the paint to flash, which is normally 15 to 25 minutes.

Cost wise, you’ll save a bundle of money by finishing with the color coat. Adding a clear coat might cost you between $100 and $200 more, and you must have the skill to be able to lay on the clear coat in a way that it is uniform, and free of dust to give a nice finish. If you don’t have a professional paint booth, you’ll end up doing quite a bit of finish work on the clear coat, which involves wet sanding, buffing, and polishing. That’s an entire skill in and of itself.

For the more experienced folks like me, the single stage route loses my interest for a handful of reasons…

First, it’s hard to shoot. The last time I did a single stage metallic black paint job, I noticed right off the bat that the paint does not flow out of the gun and atomize like standard 2-stage base colors. It was frustrating. Second thing I noticed, it runs super easy. The consistency is not the same. That’s because it has the clear coat components built into the paint, which is much more prone to run.

When I completed the single stage metallic black on my friend’s 1993 Ford Ranger, I wasn’t satisfied. There were small areas that a dull look, because I didn’t have the gun at the proper distance away from the surface, and it laid on dry. I think that happened after I experienced a few runs, which prompted me to back off the surface a bit.

Single stage paint is very finicky. Shoot it too close, and you’ll run it. Shoot it too far back, and it lays on dry. You’ve got to have perfect control of the gun, and lay on the right amount of material to achieve a final gloss, avoid dry spots, and not run the paint. For me, it’s a waste of time, after considering how long it took me to wet sand out the runs in the first 2 coats and re-shoot those areas.

In comparison to 2-stage base colors, spraying single stage is really challenging. Spraying standard base colors to me is almost mindlessly simple and easy to control. You get better coverage, which means less variation in color plus a deep rich opaque covering. Spraying 2-stage paint means you’ve got to learn the skill of putting down the clear coat, but the trouble you go through with getting that single stage paint to end up looking glossy almost cancels out the advantage of it.

My recommendation is that beginners and DIY enthusiasts who want to maximize cost effectiveness and minimize the time needed to spray a car use single stage paints. But those of you who have a bit more skill, or have use of a paint booth, stick with the 2-stage paint and put on that protective layer of clear.

The last thing I would mention is durability and aesthetic longevity. The single stage paint is a great way to go if you’re not too concerned with look and you’re happy with a moderate shine. But you should consider the fact that the single stage finish coat is going to be directly exposed to sunlight and weathering, and it’s going to go dull in a short period of time. Spraying clear coat will extend the period of time that the car will keep that initial shine.

A bonus tip for the serious experimenters - if you’re totally dissatisfied with your dull single stage paint after you complete your home shop job, you can in fact shoot a clear coat over single stage paint and improve the shine. Just remember to properly prep the surface to ensure adhesion before you shoot the clear on.

What are your experiences with single stage and 2-stage paint? If you’ve got more pros and cons that you’d like to add or discuss along with mine, chime on in! Post your comments below and let’s talk about it!

Carlton Flowers
The Color Boss

UPDATE - Due to the high number of questions I have received about single stage paint, I have written a new article that focuses on that topic alone. Check it out here! —> What Is Single Stage Paint? Answers From The Body Shop Pro!

Looking for single stage paint for your auto project? Check out my recommended suppliers on Amazon.com and help support the Body Shop Tips page!

Hit the link below to browse the Amazon store for automotive paint supplies, or click the link to the product pics for ideas on where you can start.

Why Toothpaste Won't Fix Scratches - and Other Paint Fix Fails

The Toothpaste Scratch Fix Myth & Two Other Bad Ideas

You've seen it a countless number of times on life-hack websites and YouTube videos... "fix the deep scratches in your car's bumper with toothpaste!" The question looms in your mind, "does it really work?"

Well folks, I'm here to fill you in from personal experience on the real truth about repairing those ugly scratches and gouges in your car's bumper or panels with a tube of toothpaste, a buffing cloth, and sheer determination. I'll also hit on two other "methods" that we've often seen circulating on the internet. So let's get started!

The Toothpaste Scratch Fix

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This scratch fix method is probably the most popular and circulated of all the ideas because it only costs you a squeeze of your current tube of minty fresh Colgate. Can it work? Yes. Does it work in most situations? No.

What I found out the first time that I tried to fix deep scratches in my bumper with toothpaste was that Colgate won't fix the deep gouges in plastic. Nor does it magically replace paint that is missing from the bumper.

The only thing that Colgate (or any other fantastic brand recommended by the American Dental Association) can do for you is remove paint that has been laid on your bumper by another vehicle, or a painted pole when there is no further damage to the plastic bumper or your metal panel.

But unless you've got some seriously skilled hands, it's not going to look like it did before you had that minor fender bender. You'll see a dull remnant of where you applied that elbow grease to scrub off those marks.

If you don't mind an imperfect repair, this might work for you. But if you're driving a new car with some seriously ugly scratches on the fender, get your car to a body shop to have it repaired professionally where nobody will be able to tell that it was hit.

My advice? Leave toothpaste to teeth and the American Dental Association. Consult your licensed auto body shop for scratches on your car.

The Paint Touch-Up Kit

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This method is worse than the toothpaste solution. You are guaranteed to be able to clearly see that you used a touch up brush if you try to paint that scratch on your own with the little kits they sell over the counter.

Why doesn't it work? Because it isn't spray-applied, where the paint is finely atomized. But what about the little spray cans? They can be slightly better, but will splatter, and will only work for large areas.

Besides the fact that the touch up bottle of paint isn't spray applied, it's not going to look good because it is a base coat color. Your car has a base coat, and a clear coat. Sometimes there can be three coats: base coat, pearl coat, and clear coat.

paint brush scratch repair

You can't paint on a 2-stage base/clear combination with a paint brush. You can actually buy your car's base color in a rattle can, along with a can of clear. But even the most skilled hands aren't going to be able to apply it in such a way that you won't notice the repair.

In fact, if you try this yourself and have no experience, you could end up making your car look worse than it did before it got scratched. How do I know this? Because I tried it years before I owned my first body shop. I tried to rattle can base and clear coat on my 1988 sky blue Cadillac that I ran underneath a shipyard chain in a closed parking lot, and I ended up with horrific tiger stripes running length-wise down my hood.

My recommendation on touch up brush kits? Don't ever, ever do it! It will be uglier than you can imagine, like a 5-year-old using finger paint to fix your car. Trust me on this one. If the scratch is deep enough for touch up paint, and can rust the metal, leave it up to a professional to have it repaired!

The "WD-40" & Flame Method

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I shouldn't even post this one, for fear that someone will actually go out and try to do this. This quick-fix method claims that you can use WD-40 to hide and remove scratches from your car's paint by spray applying the product to the affected area, and then spraying a small flame to create a blow torch that "re-seals" the clear.

This method is an absolute hoax. The key word in the description is "hide". Rather than fixing the scratches, it's just concealing them with the oil in the product. The oil is shiny, and sprays on the surface like a clear coat. But after it dries or is washed off, you've got the same old scratches that you started with.

Blowing flames on your car to fix the paint is not just dangerous. Applying a high heat like that is actually damaging to your paint coating, and this part of the method actually has no benefit or positive effect. If you're a pyromaniac, you'll have a blast with this method. Plus your original scratches. Otherwise, my obvious recommendation is to avoid this one at all costs!

Cost of Professional Scratch Repairs

Now that we have exposed all of the crack-pot scratch fixing techniques that won't do you much good, we can move on the actual cost of having your ugly scrapes and bumps fixed the by someone who has the skill to make your car look like new, as done by a professional in a body shop that has the tools and equipment to do the job right!

There is a significant amount of prep time required to mask off the car to protect it from overspray getting on the panels that are not effected. This is required to have the most professional looking end result. That's why it costs quite a bit more for a body shop to perform a repair, but the end result is worth the time put into protecting the other paint surfaces, the windows, windshield, and tires.

The following examples are rough estimates, and each one can vary depending on the size of your car, the expense of the original paint, and the severity of the damage. Keep in mind that the focus of this guide is on light damage repair, not heavy collision damage. But this will give you a better idea of what you'll need to invest in order to properly restore your vehicle's paint, and the shine.

Light Scratches - $75 to $100

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A "light scratch" is damage that only goes through the top layer of your vehicle's clear coat. The clear coat on your paint job is actually paper-thin, but if the scratch doesn't reach down into your base coat, it can be wet sanded with 1200 to 1500 grit sanding paper and then buffed with a body shop orbital buffer and buffing compound.

The key is having the experience to know how much you can sand the clear and not remove too much material that takes the clear coat completely off, and then restoring the shine with the right buffing compound. Orbital buffers, when used improperly, can completely remove the clear coat and even strip base coat down to the metal if applied with too much force. It's possible to triple the cost of the repair if not done correctly. That's why it is best to have a skilled body technician perform this repair to save you time and money!

Deep Scratches - $150 to $250

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When scratches go through the clear coat down into the base color, or even down to bare metal, the repair area has to be sanded a little more where the scratch is feathered out into the surrounding area. Next, base coat color is sprayed onto the area, blending it into the surrounding area. Finally, clear coat is applied over the entire panel to make a uniform shiny finish that doesn't show any signs of defect.

Some smaller body shops will apply clear coat only to the area where the base color has been sprayed, and blended into the rest of the panel. When the clear coat is not applied over the entire panel, a hazy ring is left surrounding the area that has been sprayed. Some people don't mind this, but it won't leave your vehicle looking like it did when it was new. The average cost of repairing the deep scratch ranges from $150 to $250 per panel, depending on how many panels the scratch runs through.

Deep Scratches With a Dent - $200 to $400

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When a deep scratch is accompanied by a dent from the contusion that caused the damage, the metal surface has to be re-shaped before the new base color can be blended in and the clear coat can be applied over the panel. This requires using special dent fixing equipment in order to work the metal surfaces, and in some instances, a small thin amount of body filler must be skimmed over the finished area and sanded flat before the paint is applied. Etching primer must be applied to bare metal surfaces before spray coatings can be applied to insure proper adhesion.

The deep scratch requires a bit more labor to correctly re-shape the metal in addition to prepping and masking the vehicle before the spray coatings are applied, hence the higher price. You have to watch out for amateur repair specialists who fill dents with body filler rather than re-shaping the metal. When body filler (like Bondo) is applied thicker than 1/8th of an inch, it will be prone to cracking, and can even break away from the metal surface over time. It's not fun wasting money to repair the same dent twice, so it pays to have it done the right way the first time!

Rust Repair - $150 to $750 (or more)

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The bad thing about rust is it only gets worse over time if you don't have it taken care of when you first discover it. Sometimes rust will be visible, and other times the only indication of rust forming is when your paint looks like it has a swollen lumpy raised spot. Rust can either be on the surface of the metal, or it can go completely through a panel.

If you discover rust damage in time, it only requires sanding down to bare metal in the area affected. But if rust is allowed to spread, it can eat straight through the metal like a cancer. Surface rust can be repaired at a cost similar to deep scratches, and is refinished in the same manner. But rust that goes completely through a panel requires the affected area to be cut out, and a new patch panel welded in.  In that case, replacing and refinishing an entire panel could cost less than welding in patch panels.

That's why it is very important to inspect your vehicle's surfaces to insure that you catch rust damage before the cost gets out of hand.

Damage to Plastic Bumper Covers - $150 to $600

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Deep scratches and gouges to bumper covers can get a little dicey. If the scratches are shallow enough, it might only require sanding, application of primer and a special adhesion promoter, and spraying of the paint coatings. As with regular panel repairs, the clear coat must be applied to the entire bumper panel in order to restore the original shine without a trace of the blended repair.

If a bumper is damaged extensively, or if there is cracking in the plastic, there are two different ways it can be repaired. Cracks can be "welded" back together with a special tool that fuses the fissure back together with staples, but this can increase the overall cost of the repair if it is bad enough. The alternative is replacing the entire bumper cover and applying the base color and clear to match the vehicle's color.

The challenging thing about bumpers is adhesion. Paints don't like to stick to plastic. A special primer and an adhesive promoter have to be sprayed on the bumper to insure the new paint won't peel and flake off. You've probably seen several instances of flaking on bumpers that have been repaired, and this can even happen when bumpers are painted at professional body shops. That's why extreme care must be taken when refinishing plastic surfaces.

Conclusion

The amount of money you spend on refinishing damage done to your vehicle's paint depends on the newness of your car, the cost of the type of original paint color, and whether or not you want it to look like it did when it was new. For newer cars, it is best to have scratches and dents repaired professionally, because you want to protect the value of your investment. But for older cars, your level of comfort with a less expensive repair might be different.

If you have questions about how much it will cost to have your mishaps refinished, send a picture of the damage to your car to carlton.flowers@gmail.com and I'll be glad to give you an eyeball estimate of what it will take to restore it to its original glory!

Carlton Flowers
The Airgun Artist

Wanna know what brands the pros use to detail their own cars? Check out these recommended products available on Amazon.com. These are some of the exact same products you’ll find on the shelf in my body shop, so you can trust that they work. Hit the links and help support the Body Shop Tips blog when you purchase!