Blue Technology devices are 100% Polish paint thickness gauges. All stages of production take place at our headquarters: Mineralna ST. 48 02-274 Warsaw.

Yes. There are many other names that consumers use, e.g. varnish tester, thickness gauge, varnish meter, paint tester, paint meter, varnish sensor, paint thickness gauge, coating thickness gauges, automotive paint thickness gauge.

The paint tester is safe for the body, it has a specially designed measuring element made to be safe for the paint. Remember to apply the probe pointwise. Moving the meter over the car body can cause sand / dirt particles to damage the meter or paint.

The naming of our meters is very simple.

• E / P / DX / MGR / A – Series designation, where the E and P models are equipped with precision ball probes, the DX models have flat probes with pressure, and the MGR and A models are equipped with flat probes
• 10/11/12/13 – proper names for the series.
• S-means that the meter has a measuring probe on the cable. No “S” means that the meter has a built-in probe.
• FE- means that the meter only measures and identifies steel (FE). We will not measure aluminum with such a meter.
• AL-means that the meter measures and identifies steel (FE) and aluminum (AL)

Example: MGR-13-S-AL – meter from the MGR series (flat probe), series 13, probe on the cable, steel and aluminum detection.

The ball probe has been designed for precise measurement. It allows you to measure curves, bars, thresholds, rounded elements. It does not require the user to apply the probe to the ground with precision.

Of course yes! The automotive industry is still evolving, more and more brands are choosing aluminum components. Even in older cars we can deal with the use of this alloy.
On the other hand, used car sellers often try to cut the costs of potential repairs and replace factory aluminum components with cheaper steel substitutes. In this case, the coating thickness gauge gains another application.
Selected cars in which aluminum components were used: Audi A2, Audi A8, Jaguar XJ, Land Rover Defender, Ford F150, Mercedes SL, Mercedes AMG-GT lub aluminiowymi elementami nadwozia, np: Opel Vectra C, Opel Insignia, Citroen C5, BMW 5, Volvo V50, Volvo S40, Volvo XC90, Subaru STi, Mercedes E211, Mercedes E (W212), Mercedes-Benz W204, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Chrysler Voyager, Audi A6.

Inspection (measurement) of the vehicle should be started from the roof and then made several measurements on each element of the car (the more the better). The original varnish (coating) on the car should be in the range of 80 μm – 180 μm and on one vehicle can deviate up to 40%. The second layer of varnish is twice as high (up to 400 μm). The values above may suggest a body filler. If doubts arise, then the right side should be painted symmetrically with the left side, if it does not help, then compare with the second same car model and year. Please note that each manufacturer may apply different standards regarding varnish thickness. Before examining the car, it is worth checking the manufacturer’s specifications for a specific model and year. Example: Asian cars often take values around 80 μm – 100 μm, where for cars from the European market this is definitely not enough.

All Blue Technology coating thickness gauges include a calibration plate covered with a 200 μm, thanks to which you can always be sure that the meter is working properly. If necessary, the customer can easily calibrate the meter to correct the measurement error.

The thickness of the original paint coating is not the same on all cars. Cars manufactured in Asia – e.g. Hyundai, Honda and Nissan are painted with a thinner layer – at the level of approx. 80 μm – 100 μm. European brands are painted less and here the car tester will show approx. 120-150 and even 170 μm. The exception will be examples produced in Europe after 2007, which are covered with water varnish and in these cases the layer may be slightly thinner. Varnishers set the difference at around 20-40 μm, so 120 μm on Volkswagen or Audi should not come as a surprise either. It is assumed that the metallic varnish layer is always slightly thicker. For acrylic varnishes – e.g. standard white or red without a colorless layer is about 80-100 μm by default. The coating on the inside of the elements is usually about 40 μm thinner.

Can the thickness of varnish on individual elements be different? Yes, but the differences cannot be too pronounced. It is assumed that the correct deviation between the elements is a maximum of 30-40 percent of the thickness. A layer 100 percent thicker is almost one hundred percent sure that the element has been varnished again. If the thickness exceeds 350-400 μm, it should be assumed that the car was putty in this place.