A film applicator is a device used to evenly spread a substance, such as paint, ink, or cosmetics, over a substrate such as a drawdown card.
Applicators are usually metal bars that are manufactured to high tolerances to give consistent, repeatable results.
Even with high manufacturing tolerances, the actual wet film thickness can vary from 50% to 90% of the gap.
These variations can affect the quality of the drawdown and thus the measurements of film properties such as abrasion resistance, hiding power and gloss.
The use of an automatic film applicator guarantees consistent speed and pressure, providing repeatable and high quality results.
[1] Used for high viscous coatings, this type of applicator has four different clearances built in, one on each horizontal surface.