The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Paint Durability, 20 years later

In my opinion, if you want durability, go with singlestage.
What I mean by durability , is scratches, chips & dings.

As far as hold out to weather, both single stage & Base coat are about the same.

The only problem with single stage is it eventualy chalks out & the color fades with age, especially Acrylic enamel.

With the base coat system, the color lasts longer. Some times the clear will peel with age due to the suns ultra violet rays.

The base coat clear coat system was developed to protect the color from acid rain and fading. It is also easier to for repairs, blending into adjacent panels, & spaying metallics.

Rust oleum is a very good durable enamel. it is great for what it was designed for, basically anything that's gonna take a beating.

As far as the finish on a body or a truck cab I would go with either The base coat system or single sage urethane.

Single stage urethane is great for solid colors and has almost the same shine of urethane clear and the durability of Enamel.
It uses the same hardeners & reducers as the clear, depending on what brand you use.

Im seriously considering going with single stage urethane when the time comes to paint my GMC. If not it will be Base/clear