A New Wrinkle

Q. We make cabinets of all sizes to house electronic equipment. Due to increased production, we now buy many of our cabinets from vendors. We apply a wrinkle finish applied as a single coat at a wet film thickness of 1.5–2 mils, then air dry the coating for 15 min and bake 15 min at 350°F. This curing schedule gives us an excellent wrinkle finish every time in our plant.

However, the same paint does not produce the same wrinkle texture when applied by the vendors—and we have tried different vendors. The only difference I can see is that we use electrically-fired ovens and they use gas-fired ovens. What do you think about this? S.T.

A. I don’t think the paint film knows the difference between 350°F in an electrically-heated oven and 350°F in a gas-heated oven. Therefore, there should be no difference in the textures of the wrinkle finishes. On the other hand, if the vendors’ paint lines are conveyorized, the time it takes to transport the products into the ovens must be considered. My guess is that the air drying time after application and before baking can have an effect on the texture of the wrinkle finish and may be critical. I suggest you discuss this critical air drying time with your prospective vendors, who may want to adjust their curing schedules.