# BENJAMIN MOORE ADVANCE VS. SHERWIN WILLIAMS PRO CLASSIC



## SKlaus

Hi everyone! Im trying to understand some products on the market now. I have been reading that it seems the industry is now moving towards waterborne products as they are more environmentally friendly and easier to clean. But I have associated oil products as being more durable to wear n' tear… apparently this is becoming less and less true.

I have plans to build 2 built in tower book cases using cabinet grade maple plywood. I have a gravity feed HVLP and have become fairly comfortable spraying.

I have gone to Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams, and both have this waterborne acrylic/alkyd blend that they say all their commercial clients are moving to…. Namely…. BM ADVANCE and SW ProClassic. Both companies of course will tell you they have the best… Questions are….

What Say you? Any advice/tips/feedback on the products?

Do you need to use the primer that they recommend or can you use an outside primer such as Zinsser?

Which brings me to another question…. How about Zinssers Shellac based primer? will these waterborne blends lay down over the top of that?

Is it true that this is what cabinet shops are moving to for tinted and painted cabinets?

dare I ask… Can it be used over the top of thermafoil cabinets? ( I know someone who is on a tight budget and would like to change the look of the thermafoil cabinets they have before move in time.)

I know its a lot of questions…. Thanks ahead of time for any advice you can provide..


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## sgv

SKlaus, I work for SW, i Have for many years, yes PC is a great product, but there are better, I deal with cab shops on a daily bases, they do not use PC, they use pre cat lacquers, and tint able, lacquers,. If you want to use ProC, you will get great results, and NO!! you dont have to use the primer they say (I did not tell you that) Zinsser make a good product. SW also has oil modified Acrylic, (dont ask) it does a nice job. Pick up a small can of PC and practice before you spray book cases, there is a learning curve. if you have any specific questions on it send my a e-mail hope it helps : )


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## SKlaus

thank you so much!!

I know that Pro Classic comes in waterborne and oil… do you have a preference? Oil I know probably will take longer to dry, and maybe lay down a bit nicer… Does it yellow?


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## sgv

All oil base yellows it is part of the curing proses, it does take years, pros and cons of both, water easy clean up not much smell, semi hard finish, oil hard finish, hard to clean up, lots of smell PC water is a good product. just remember ALL PAINT take up to 30 days to cure(it dries in a couple of hours) but will not reach full hardness for many days


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## SKlaus

Can those pre cat laquers be tinted to any color? I know there are only certain SW stores that can do it… only 1 in about 50 miles of me in palm beach fl. And how easy is it to spray the pre cats? Especially here in South Florida where the air is basically water vapor….


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## sgv

The spraying is not the problem the tinting is, I cant do it at my store in NC I have to send it to Atlanta or a store in GA. if you can find a store there that can tint it you would have to put some retarder in it to slow down the dry time. I would probable go with PC or a water white conversion varnish. drys quick but it takes a good bit to get used to spraying, hope it helps


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## SKlaus

Thanks again… I think there is a store in sunrise that can do it. I guess I will just have to mess around with some products and see how I like it.

Anyone on the Benjamin Moore side wanna chime in?


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## paintingcontractor

I have used both products for years. Here is a review I posted a few years ago on my blog. I also recommend Eco by fine Paints of Europe in the water modified class.

Benjamin Moore Advance vs Sherwin Williams Pro Classic Paint


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