Easy-Flex DIY Painted Screen Solution

**Tiddler** · **09-17-07, 02:59 PM**

I still need to know how smooth or rough the wall is?

The smoothness of the wall will dictate what is possible.

**mechman** · **09-17-07, 03:19 PM**

Quote:

tiddler wrote:

The only thing I can think of is to apply a very light gray with a Pearlizing Clear Coat.

Todd,

You did see where he/she's doing a whole wall, right? I don't think you'd recommend that for a whole wall would you?

mech

**mechman** · **09-17-07, 03:23 PM**

Quote:

Pastor Jodie wrote:

It wasn't a Behr paint (I forget what brand). I thought it did a good job but get the impression from this forum that the picture would be a bit clearer if it had a touch of
grey. Is that right? If so, is this the paint I should use:

Behr Ultra Pure White Flat Latex #1050
with tinting "Easy-Flex-03"
0 3 0 Lamp Black
0 1 0 Yellow Oxide

If not, which tinting would be best for this larger painted screen?
If so, how do I describe this tinting to the guy at home hardware?

PJ,

First, welcome to the Shack!

Second, yes under your conditions you'd want a bit of gray. As to how dark a gray it would normally depend upon the amount of ambient light coming in. Todd will be able to get you in line with regards to which of the tints you'd need. I'd guess the EF03 would be fine.

mech

**GbrNole** · **10-01-07, 09:37 AM**

since other than flat white primer, easy flex was my first foray into DIY screen mixes and tiddler was kind enough to provide me an EF06 formula using a UPW 1850 base.

my projection room is in shambles right now because it too has been part of my whole house remodel but i thought i would share some screen shots of my xv-z3000 projecting onto 3 coats of EF06.

i should point out that the camera is pushing red a little bit but other than that the black levels and color pop are pretty much as i see in the room. the screen has yet to be bordered because i'm debating doing a ploy -or- pearl/poly clear coat and i'm still dialing in my preferred size (80" min - 94" max and 90" seems to be my happy medium)

last but not least my projector really can paint some pretty deep blacks especially since it's only a DC2+ and all of the screen shots are with both iris' stopped down, pj set to 6500, color decoder being dead even on red and blue but it's about 5% weak on green (i have no adjustment on green) and avia basic video calibrations for contrast, brightness, color, hue and sharpness.
the piece of junk source was a cheap DVD player feeding the projector with an svideo cable - i'll make much better screen shots with my PS3 and bluray titles once i get done with the remodel.

the camera i used was my fuji f40fd set to auto but with flash off. the camera adjusts it's ISO like crazy to capture what it's seeing and introduces very little noise upto ISO 800 but some of the pics it pulled in at ISO 1600 to eliminate hand shake.

the images are random from wild wild west and the movie wasn't paused. the EF06 with upw1850 works well by itself from a sheen perspective but i actually find the shade of gray just a bit too dark and it's why i'm likely going to top coat it.

**GbrNole** · **10-01-07, 09:44 AM**

oops!!!

forgot to say a big thank you to tiddler for helping me with this first mix and once top coated it will be my initial reference screen and then i will make up some comparison panels. my panels will all be lighter shades though because the darker grays are just crushing the blacks too much when i set the PJ for max contrast.

**Tiddler** · **10-01-07, 09:55 AM**

Quote:

GbrNole wrote:

oops!!!

forgot to say a big thank you to tiddler for helping me with this first mix and once top coated it will be my initial reference screen and then i will make up some comparison panels. my panels will all be lighter shades though because the darker grays are just crushing the blacks too much when i set the PJ for max contrast.

I'm not sure what you mean by "setting for max contrast". I have the Avia and also a copy of the THX Optimizer on the TII DVD. I found the Brightness and Contrast adjustment using the THX Optimizer much easier and the results were quite noticeable. If the contrast setting is too high it will crush whites and blacks but I'm not sure that is what you meant.

If you want to lighten the overall shade of gray then a Pearl Clear Coat is the way to go. The poly alone actually deepens the color slightly while boosting gain slightly. The pearl clear coats all have a lightening effect on the overall gray and boost the gain as well.

**GbrNole** · **10-01-07, 10:10 AM**

when i say max contrast i'm referring to the iris settings of my projector. i believe you have the optoma hd72 that has one iris that can be turned on or off, right? my PJ basically has the same option but it has twin iris' so i have what the PJ labels as 3 brightness settings in any display mode.

1) high brightness (both iris' open)

2) medium contrast (one iris closed same as your HD72)

3) high contrast mode (both iris' stopped down for maximum black)

in #2 medium mode the EF06 works well but in #3 high contrast mode the second iris cuts the lumen output by close to 200 lumens (less) and without screwing up other settings the blacks get crushed a little bit more than i would like.

i've only ever adjusted with avia so i'll have to dig through my dvd's and find one with the THX optimizer - my uncle has my T2 disc but i think cars has it as well?

as for the clear coat - i have 2 bottles of folkart #659 at home but i've not been able to find pearl medium. the only thing that worries me with 659 is that it has a coloring to it and i was unsure if i should go that route or keep searching for the pearl medium?

thanks again, tiddler!

**Tiddler** · **10-01-07, 11:32 AM**

Quote:

GbrNole wrote:

as for the clear coat - i have 2 bottles of folkart #659 at home but i've not been able to find pearl medium. the only thing that worries me with 659 is that it has a coloring to it and i was unsure if i should go that route or keep searching for the pearl medium?

thanks again, tiddler!

The 2xPearl (two 2oz. bottles of Folkart Metallic White Pearl / Quart Behr Poly #780) would introduce some white pigment to the clear coat. In your case that may be desirable since it will lighten the overall shade of gray. The white pearls tend to be a bit warmer white, but the amount is so small it is hard to detect any change in color by eye. So I would go ahead and use the two bottles of Folkart Metallic White Pearl. Be sure you understand the down rolling technique and if you can spare the poly + pearl do a sample panel first.

I can see why your blacks are crushed if you are down to 200 lumens. A lighter gray would be better.

**GbrNole** · **10-01-07, 11:47 AM**

ok i'll go ahead and do the 2xPearl then - does the pearl medium also have that ever so slightly red/gold cast to it that the #659 has?

just to clarify my PJ in mode #3 is ~200 lumens less bright than it is in mode #2 (medium) so with a brand new lamp i get ~350 lumens output in mode 3 and about 550 lumens output in mode 2. my lamp has quite a few hours on it though so i'm getting 289 lumens in its best setting right now.

one quick observation - my PJ is known to be a little weak in greens and cause them to have a slight yellow cast. in wild wild west there is a corn field scene where the guys are being chased by the blades and the greens looked great! should have taken a **** pic of that but i was too busy being impressed!

**Tiddler** · **10-01-07, 12:00 PM**

Quote:

GbrNole wrote:

ok i'll go ahead and do the 2xPearl then - does the pearl medium also have that ever so slightly red/gold cast to it that the #659 has?

The Pearlizing Medium is just pearl flakes in a clear medium. That is why I prefer it over the metallic white pearl. It is clean and does not introduce any color due to pigment. The pearl flakes may introduce some color. Mechman believes he sees some blue push in my screen shots but I have not seen that in person. I did notice the Decoart Pearlizing Medium seemed to produce a warmer image with less gain. So I do think the pearl flakes have some effect on the color. I just noticed the whites looked much cleaner and brighter when I compared the Folkart Pearlizing Medium to the Decoart Pearlizing Medium. As I have said before the Liquitex Iridescent Medium may be a better choice but I did not observe any real improvement over the Folkart Pearlizing Medium.

just to clarify my PJ in mode #3 is ~200 lumens less bright than it is in mode #2 (medium) so with a brand new lamp i get ~350 lumens output in mode 3 and about 550 lumens output in mode 2. my lamp has quite a few hours on it though so i'm getting 289 lumens in its best setting right now.

one quick observation - my PJ is known to be a little weak in greens and cause them to have a slight yellow cast. in wild wild west there is a corn field scene where the guys are being chased by the blades and the greens looked great! should have taken a **** pic of that but i was too busy being impressed!

The slight greenish push that Mechman has observed in the EF08 sample he has made up may just explain why the green corn field looks better with your projector on and EF06 screen. We just got lucky there I think.

If your projector has a tendency to push greens yellowish then you would probably be better off to use the Folkart Pearlizing Medium. I think I would be nervous about the Folkart Metallic White Pearl with your projector. You may have to order the Folkart Pearlizing Medium off the net somewhere. I know that Cynical2 had to get it off the net.

**GbrNole** · **10-01-07, 01:30 PM**

well that screws up tonights plans then! - LOL

**Tiddler** · **10-01-07, 03:49 PM**

Quote:

GbrNole wrote:

well that screws up tonights plans then! - LOL

I didn't mean to ruin your plans but other people are saying there is a color shift and I can't really prove it one way or another. My best advice to everyone is to try these things on sample panels that are at least 2'x4' to see for yourself.

I am no longer setup to do any testing or comparisons and really should not be dispensing advice on things I have no visual or measured proof of.

**GbrNole** · **10-01-07, 03:59 PM**

it's all good. i went down the DIY path because i like to tinker with things and the best advice of all is like you always say - only $30 and you have a new screen

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