What is a hammertone coating?
What is a hammertone coating?
Hammertone coating is a specialist coating application that, when dried, looks like hammered metal. Consequently, it is also known as hammer paint or hammered finish paint. It is a popular application to coat metal applications and equipment such as trailers, tools, railings and pumps, just to name a few. As well as providing a decorative, aesthetically pleasing and corrosion resistant coating for metal, hammertone coating can also be applied to certain plastics and woods when applied over a suitable bonding primer.
What is the best way to apply a hammertone coating?
Most variants of hammered finish paint – such as Hammerdry – can be applied to applications by spray and small areas could be coated by brush or roller. The coating is extremely versatile and will provide a fast drying, durable surface. Hammer finish paint can also be directly applied to steel, however, for a better and longer lasting coat it is recommended to apply an anti-corrosive primer unless a direct to metal (DTM) type hammertone is selected.
How is hammer paint created?
The unique coating system is made using a special lacquer that has minerals suspended into the mixture to give it an iridescent look – the most common mineral used for this purpose is mica. Mica is a resilient, insulating and lightweight mineral that provides a reflective aesthetic as well as making it hard and scratch-resistant. Alternatively, aluminium or bronze powder may be used. In order to make the ‘hammered’ effect more pronounced a small amount of silicone oil would then be added to the coating.
What are the advantages of using hammertone coating?
The visual advantage of applying a hammer finish paint is that surfaces have an attractive finish even if the underlying surface is not flat and smooth. For regular paint to look smooth, the surface would have to be prepared properly first – by sanding or grinding. Hammer paint means that this step can be omitted and offers great hiding power of surface imperfections such as welding seams etc.
Consequently, hammertone coatings are usually used as a decorative application in addition to acting as a protective coating. Certain hammer finish paint made using superior resin systems offers improved exterior durability and UV protection.
What is Hammerdry?
Hammerdry is a specialised fast air-dry coating providing a “hammer” finish effect on metal surfaces offering good abrasion and weather resistance in an economical alkyd formula. After applying, the hammer paint is touch dry in 10-15 minutes, hard dry in 2 hours and can be recoated within 45 minutes to 6 hours, or after 72 hours. Surfaces should have rust removed with abrasive paper or a wire brush, with grease and other residues wiped off too. An anti-corrosive zinc phosphate primer would be recommended as an undercoat if a superior DTM (direct to metal) type hammer finish coating is not selected.
Properties
- Fast drying
- “Lacquer” qualities in an economical alkyd formula
- Range of stock colours
- Appealing metallic finish
- Good weather & abrasion resistance
- Resists splashes of hydrocarbon solvents
Typical Applications
- Steel fabrications
- Trailers
- Machinery
- Pumps
Wagon Paints are the leading suppliers of a range of high performance coating systems, including high quality hammertone coating applications – such as Hammerdry and Hammerdry HS/DTM. Contact our team today on +61 3 9729 1344 to discuss how we can help you with your next project.