Hmm. Maybe I should wait for development on the BW 6.4.. I'm just running short on time to complete it now.
Im going to be blasting this screen with over 2x the lumens considering throw distance and screen size changes from the previous elektra screen. The sparklies might really take over if you think making it darker will make it more pronounced.
I alway hear that BW tends to be rather shimmer free?
The fact is that with PJ's getting brighter every year we are reaching a point where reflectively enhanced mixes are becoming niche items and people can use simple OTS gray paints to make excellent screens.
There are ALWAYS unwanted visual effects waiting in the wings for those using reflectively enhanced mixes, This applies to ALL reflectively enhanced mixes, including ours.
If too much reflective agent is in a mix it will hot spot or produce a "filmy" or "shimmering" effect in bright areas (large patches of blue sky or snow and ice). Our mixes don't have these problems because we use enough low-gloss opaque paint in our mixes to counter the refractive effect that causes them.
The larger the reflective particles are the greater chance there is of seeing a "graininess" in the projected image.
All these effects are magnified as more of image brightness hits the screen, and the darker shade of gray the screen really is the more chance these effects will become visible. The angle of the projected beam also has an effect on this.
A few have sworn they saw a graininess in their BW™ screens, but we developers here have been unable to reproduce those results with our own projectors. :huh: Since the reflective agent in BW™ is real aluminum (which is VERY reflective, but not refractive) seeing a graininess in the image is theoretically possible. IIRC when Mech tried increasing the amount of aluminum in BW™ that was the effect that prevented recommending that mix.
If you could Id still love those formulas. It may be worth experimentation.
No problem, here they are. Keep in mind that Valspar samples are always in satin finish so adding them to a mix will increase the total gloss of the mix. In the case of adding them to an Elektra™ mix I doubt the added gloss would become a problem. but I haven't tried it.
N4 using Valspar 8 oz. sample BASE 4
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N3 using Valspar 8 oz. sample BASE 4
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Are there any OTS n5 or n6 paints from lows or home depot? Something not custom mixed but that i can get a "example card" of to compare against my screen and estimate the munsel value?
The term OTS applies to a paint that is mixed for you at the store and the only thing you do is tell them the finish and color you want (or hand them a print-out containing that info or even the tint formula itself). The only "sample card" I know of that contains all neutral grays is from Glidden and they are older colors so the color deck at Home Depot no longer has them in it (they are still in HD's tinting computer). See
this link for a list of the colors. The important into isn't the color name (Deep Onyx), but rather the color code (00NN 07/000). The leading 00NN means the color is a neutral gray. Your best bet of getting a sample card with these colors on it is from a Glidden Professional store.
Here is a locator for these stores. I think I found 3 stores within 25 miles of you.
As for
pre-mixed neutral gray paints, the least expensive one I know about is Liquitex BASICS 'Neutral Gray Value 5' (this is a satin paint) which is an N5. Other than that Golden paints has a neutral gray series in their Heavy Body line that run from N2 to N8, but at ~$9 for a 2 oz. tube they are prohibitively expensive to use as screen paints. :gulp:
. You could try getting some black paint and mixing it with some of your remaining Elektra™ and see what you get. I would be happy to measure a sample of anything you come up with for color neutrality, just PM me for my address.
