Does acetone mess up fender flares?

[Moab]

The two posts below are interesting as the OP states that acetone turns the surface of our flares to powder. Thus messing up any subsequent paint jobs.

I have used acetone in my flare prep. And the paint failed miserably. The paint started flaking off within months of my paint job. And i did pretty significant prep on my flares. Sanding with grey autobody scotchbrite pads, Dawn detergent, Acetone, then SEM adhesion promoter and SEM trim black paint.

Can anyone else add to this theory? As plenty of us have recommended and used acetone on our flares.

Post in thread 'Bedliner on fender flares?' https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/bedliner-on-fender-flares.52569/post-916246

 

[jeepins]

I've done a previous set of fender flares twice and honestly never heard of any use of acetone in the process. I didn't use it anyway. Clean well with Dawn using mild scotchbrite pads, autobody wax & grease remover (basically a stronger rubbing alcohol, dries quickly), adhesion promoter, paint.

If your paint does not like acetone then that's the issue.

 

[CharlesHS]

I WOULDN'T recommend it ....
Acetone is known to chemically interact with plastic; which will soften and smear the plastic surface depending upon time and concentration

 

[zackcj7]

I WOULDN'T recommend it ....
Acetone is known to chemically interact with plastic; which will soften and smear the plastic surface depending upon time and concentration

Yep. We used it a lot at a factory I worked at a long time ago. I have seen it even start to dissolve some plastics on contact.

 

[TheBoogieman]

Wipe flares with rubbing alcohol, let dry and spray with Krylon Fusion. Done. No other prep needed.

 

[Steel City 06]

I've used acetone to partially dissolve ABS 3D printed parts and other plastics. (It's actually a really easy way to get a smooth waterproof finish on printed ABS.) I'm not sure what the chemical makeup of the flares is, but I'm sure there is at least a mild interaction. There are a few plastics acetone won't react with much, like polycarbonate

 

[mrblaine]

I WOULDN'T recommend it ....
Acetone is known to chemically interact with plastic; which will soften and smear the plastic surface depending upon time and concentration

It depends on the plastic. The term plastic is far too generic to make generalized statements about the effects of acetone on plastic without know which plastic we are dealing with. PVC, ABS, and similar types will melt and smear, polyethylene, polypropylene and similar don't care. We have to know what the flares are made of before we assign any answers.

 

[mrblaine]

Wipe flares with rubbing alcohol, let dry and spray with Krylon Fusion. Done. No other prep needed.

That will depend on whether or not they've been treated with any appearance improvers that have silicone in them.

 

[mrblaine]

I've used acetone to partially dissolve ABS 3D printed parts and other plastics. (It's actually a really easy way to get a smooth waterproof finish on printed ABS.) I'm not sure what the chemical makeup of the flares is, but I'm sure there is at least a mild interaction. There are a few plastics acetone won't react with much, like polycarbonate

 

[Steel City 06]

View attachment 262812

In my experience, acetone won't dissolve polycarbonate nearly as fast as ABS. That's why it is so much easier to make smooth ABS prints than polycarbonate prints.

You're right that I still wouldn't use it on something I wasn't ready to alter though.

 

[mrblaine]

In my experience, acetone won't dissolve polycarbonate nearly as fast as ABS. That's why it is so much easier to make smooth ABS prints than polycarbonate prints.

You're right that I still wouldn't use it on something I wasn't ready to alter though.

How fast it dissolves or alters it has nothing to do with whether something is acetone resistant or not as the chart shows. Acetone is bad for polycarbonate.

 

[Moab]

In all these years, we still dont know what our flares are made of?

Either way im not using it on plastic anymore. Its what i had laying around when i did my flares. And heard no objections when i posted i was doing so. I think we should spread the word. It was an undertaking to do them. Considering the nutserts. And amount of effort put into prep. Not to mention all the other crap i did to try to get them black without painting.

 

[kenosha whiz six]

Wipe flares with rubbing alcohol, let dry and spray with Krylon Fusion. Done. No other prep needed.

im with you there,i paint for a living and acetone is a bit harsh for plastics...you are just trying to get it"clean enuff"for paint to stick and alcohol will get any grease or waxy flash off without hurting the plastic.also,whether you use an adhesion promoter first or use a product like krylon infusion which includes an adhesion promoter,its not really necessary to scuff/sand because that is to increase a mechanical bond wherein plastic prefers a chemical/etching bond...spray can finishes are so advanced from early times and can be great in that they wont flake,just scratch.if i were going to color match the flares to the body color and couldnt get the right color in a can,i would look for the code on the backside of most automotive plastics and use the adhesion promoter advised,then paint the part with the same paint as the body...