paint prep....any suggestions?

[zimmy]

well, its 70 degrees and i thought i should get motivated if i wanna cruise this summer , so i went and spent $100 on paint prepping equipment.....im gonna use a polyeurethane paint as suggested by my car painting friend....gonna cost another $150 for the paint etc.......
aterwards ill b pulling the motor again to get my clutch and
sticky tranny problem fixed...
just letting u guys know im still here......
any suggestions on body work, etc, will b appreciated...zimmy

 

[Trevor Jessie]

So are you going for a quick dust over spray job to make a ten footer?

 

[tosoutherncars]

I find Car Craft's how-to articles pretty useful...

https://www.carcraft.com/howto/24820/index.html

https://www.carcraft.com/howto/116_0404_paint/index.html

 

[zimmy]

what was that Trevor?

 

[Trevor Jessie]

What outcome are you hoping for on the paint job? I'm asking because that will affect that type of prep you do.

 

[zimmy]

i want it pretty smooth....
ive been wet sanding with a block of
220 grit, with an orbital sander getting
the nicks and really bad spots....
done the front fenders and the hood...
its lookin ok ,i guess.....
still alot of work from the "fender bender"
, but i do have a front clip now....z

 

[jlaird]

Just remember the paint job is all in the prep.

Stop at a local paint shop and look around at how they do it.

 

[bugimike]

220 grit paper would still be considered pretty preliminary sanding for a fine paint job! :wink:

 

[zimmy]

should i use finer grit after the repairs, before painting?
maybe 600? ........z

 

[Trevor Jessie]

Get to an auto paint store and ask some questions. You most likely will need to use a sealing primer over the old paint, then some high build primer, and a bunch of block sanding. 400 grit should be fine enough for the final blocking if your paint flows properly.

 

[Bayless]

400 grit is the usual stopping point. If you go too fine then you don't allow a good "tooth" for the new paint to stick to. Too coarse and the new paint won't fill the scratches. Also, I strongly suggest doing everything beyond where you are now by hand rather than the DA. You really should use a sealer coat of something compatible between the existing paint and the urethane too.

Oops. Looks like Trevor got in while I was typing. Looks like similar advice though.

 

[PC]

What kind of sander are you using? Pneumatic DA? Do you know the stroke?

Sanding with #400 prior to laying down color may be common but these days I’m seeing <span style="font-style: italic">lots</span> of cars with sanding scratch visible <span style="font-style: italic">below</span> the base coat.

Look in the tech manual <span style="font-style: italic">for the specific coating system</span> that you’ll be using on <span style="font-style: italic">your</span> car and see what the paint manufacturer recommends. Recommendations for #600 or #800 for base coats are not uncommon. A primer/filler won’t need as fine a scratch as a color coat but a primer/sealer will probably need finer than a filling primer.

Read the instructions.


PC.

 

[Trevor Jessie]

I assumed he was intending on using a single stage paint. Most of those flow and if applied properly would require nothing more than #400.

But... we are all just guessing here since we do not know what product he is using. He really needs to go to the auto paint supply house and get some advice AND read the instructions.

 

[zimmy]

ill b using 3 coats of polyeurethane and i did
get some sealer to cover the still painted areas
when im done with the primer, sanding,etc....
the primer has directions and such on the can,
but, my friend that paints cars for a living says
400 grit is fine....
itll be a while before i get to the actual painting
part, so alls fine so far :wink: ....zimmmmy

 

[jlaird]

Do not upset that friend. He should be a great resoruce.

 

[PC]

I assumed he was intending on using a single stage paint. Most of those flow and if applied properly would require nothing more than #400. ….

I don’t doubt that <span style="font-style: italic">most</span> do, but what’s important is the exact one he’s spraying on his car.

…But... we are all just guessing here since we do not know what product he is using. He really needs to go to the auto paint supply house and get some advice AND read the instructions.

Agreed.

ill b using 3 coats of polyeurethane …

<span style="font-style: italic">Everybody</span>, Dupont, BASF, PPG, Sherwin-Williams, etc, etc, etc makes polyurethane and they’re all different. What’s important is to get the lowdown on the specific paint (brand and <span style="font-style: italic">exact</span> product) you’ll be using.

....the primer has directions and such on the can…

That’s a good start. But you need the info on <span style="font-style: italic">all</span> of the coats. Get the data sheets. They have a lot more info than the cans.

… my friend that paints cars for a living says....

All the bad paint jobs I’ve seen lately were done by guys who paint cars for a living. It’s up to you to inspect examples of his work and decide for yourself how much you trust him.


PC.

 

[jlaird]

 

[zimmy]

thanks for ur concern guys....
i dont know what brand paint ill
b getting yet.....
400 grit appears to be fine for
the primer/sealer coating.......

my friend was also my neighbor
for a while....known him for
10+ years...he knows what hes doin,
and runs his own shop...
he wont steer me wrong....
i will get back with him (and the
paint supplier) once the body
work is done.....zimmmmy