Polyurethane paint are shinny by nature and need flatten agents to reduce
the gloss. One of the easiest way to reduce the gloss is to add talc. 25%
will give you a semi-gloss and 50% will give a satin. The more talc, the
weaker the paint. The second characteristic of a polyurethane is the
isocyanides love for moisture. After the paint gets tack free, just mist
water on the surface and it will be flatter than any flattening agent and
you keep the strength of the finish.
Good Luck
Bruce
Shield Finishes and Nauticoat Marine Finish Systems
www.shieldfinishes.com
"YSTay" wrote in message
...
Hello all,
I was hoping that some of you may have a solution for me:

I require a flat black paint for a fiberglass surface (gel coat). All the
paints I have tried use flattening agents which scratch VERY easily. If
you run a fingernail across the paint, you will leave a shiny streak where
the flattening agent has been worn off. It doesn't take long for the
paint to look very old indeed.
So far, I have tried Polyurethane 2 packs, acrylics, enamels, latex
exterior and lacquers. All of these use flattening agents which I suspect
to be the cause of the problem. Several years ago, I used a slow drying
enamel which did not use flattening agents (was matt even when wet). This
was good paint and pretty scratch resistant but I can't get it any more.
Any ideas? How about if I used metal flake or some other additive to
flatten the paint?

Thanks in advance,

Arnold