a question about a paint job

[new_2_z]

Ok first my car orginal color is that leaf green #302 not a fan of the color. but the owner put a black over it. the thing about this black is that it goes all over your hands when u rub on it. im thinking of going to #907 Dark Green(its a sexy color) i read that your orginal paint is a good primer because it is stuck to the metal. if this is true how could i get the black color off with out taken off the leaf green. im thinking with going over a lighter color with a dark color might do better or am i just fooling myself? the black paint was definantely half arse. or just do the chemical stripper and go to metal?

[waynekarnes]

greetings, let me inject my 82 cents here ...

safety 1st !!! get a package of acid resistant gloves at local hardware, napa or other auto parts house, a good pair of coveralls, leather boots ( or those rubber boots ), and GOGGLES eye protection is a must ... you may also want to get a decent 10 dollar disposable air filter ( mask ).

you'll need a drop cloth of some sort to catch the residue ( stripped paint ) ... i have used one of those blue tarps, with a cheaper plastic tarp on top of that and a quality paper drop ( for absorption ) on top of that ... taped down with good duct tape if on the cement, or staked down if on the lawn or dirt. try to avoid asphalt, the chemicals may react with the asphalt and cause it harm. you can either jack the car and slide the tarps under the car or drive it on top ... prefer it be pushed ... watch out for heat from exhaust system coming in contact with your tarps.

don't wash the chemicals down the curb, even though neutralized, still some nasty stuff.

the problem with a chemical stripper is, it will/may get into any bondo/body filler that was used to correct any imperfections or repairs. in which case, you may have to seal or remove the filler.

that said, there are gentle strippers made for fiberglass ( think corvette ) that are milder than those generally used for stripping metal ...

i would recommend, that if you don't want to mechanically ( sand ) the paint off the car, use the gentle chemical stripper .. it will take longer, but i think you will be happier with the results.

if the car was prepped properly for the second color, you should find primer between the original color and the new color. if not, will be new color on top of the original paint ... in the past, i have used a quality masking tape ... mark off sections like racing stripes ... on the hood, or other fairly flat surface ... i brush on an appropriate amount of stripper inbetween the taped areas ... so i have stripes of stripper separated by masking tape.

wait about 15 minutes for stripper to react ( read the instructions for an idea of time )... then scrape a bit of the stripper back, see if this is how far you want to go ... if so, scrape all the other stripper off ... if not ... you have 3 or 4 more test strips of stripper setting on the paint ... wait another 5 minutes or so ... have another test scrape ... eventually you'll find the approximate time you want to wait to get through the amount of paint you want to remove.

some strippers use water as the neutralizers, other use their own product ... have this on hand and at the ready.

scrape/squeegie off as much of the residue ( paint and stripper ) as you can, deposit it in a container of some sort, before neutralizing the stripper ... will make for an easier clean up.

again, safety at all times, you only have one set of eyes, and this stuff will remove skin.

follow the instructions on the label of the product you decide to use ...

i would buy a product at an auto paint supply house ... not something from the home depot ... most of the employees at the paint store have painted and are familar with the products they sell, can offer you sound solid advise.

i none in your area, skim through a copy of most any corvette magazine, there are always ads for paint stripper in em. contact one of the distributors/advertisers in the magazine. they should be able to tell you where to buy it.

i have assisted in hand sanding to bare metal and fiberglass of about 4 cars, have assisted chemically strip about 8 cars. both have their own pros and cons .. different hazards and messes .. both work ... chemical seems faster, it certainly is easier, though you will still end up with a little sanding. hand sanding is a long and tiring process. it will leave you dirty and your hands numb, skin tore up, but it is more precise, and no harsh chemicals to deal with. plus, chemical stripper gets into places you wouldn't think it would ... inside doors, the braces on the sides of the hood, in pinch welds, small nooks and crannies ... waiting to weep out into your new paint job ...

remember, you MUST get all the stripper off and neutralized. any residual stripper hidden anywhere will ruin your new paint job ...

good luck with which ever process you choose, both are work and both work,

wayne

some sites on the web .. check out the auto body forum below lots of info there if you don't mind scrolling ...

http://www.halonmarketing.com/mall/Spra'%20Strip.htm

http://www.diynet.com/diy/ab_detailing/article/0,2021,DIY_13684_2278594,00.html

http://www.courier-journal.com/cjextra/csx/day4/ke051601s23862.htm

http://www.goldcar.com/autobody/forum/archive.html

[new_2_z]

where and how would u dispose of teh chemical. some of the black paint is flaking off. i have my car in a barn and i think the winter is dead for the south so i think im ok with the weather right now to do it. another question for the engine buffs. i want to get my engine out and do the engine bay. i just want to know how yall rember where all teh wires are and this and that. i have been studying the engine bay and i think the owner did some riggin on it. since im wanna go with that dark green im thinking of doing the engine bay black or should i do it the same color as the car? i plan on doing a front air kit, rear glass protector(i forgot name its 4 o'clock in the morning) and the tail light part black. kinda give it a mix feeling. how about inside teh car i already have gutted out but the guage console. should i take that out. i dont plan on painting the inside just puting down some por15 on the new floors im getting in.i want to do teh door jams a color but i dont know if i should do them green or black. they are a mix between black and leaf green right now kinda funny. should i paint the inside of the hatch black or green? i want to take all the doors and rear hatch off to clean them up. just cause im a perfectionist person (its becoming a hobby)when im doing this stuff should i take the glass off and the rubber. for xmas i got the whole rubber package for teh car. its a huge arse box full of rubers..... i have been doing searching on this and hybrid and of course google. i could sand parts that needed sanding but i want to do less damage to the body. as far as bondo goes i hope their is non on it :)like yall say if you going to do it might as well do it right.

[26th-Z]

Hey new2z!

It doesn't sound like the black paint is very well applied and stripping might very well be the best solution, especially with body work you are proposing, but consider just sanding it. Get somebody to show you how to sand a car, but get the rough spots with a rough grit first and then fine sand and wet sand. You will get to bare metal spots - don't worry about it. You are going to sand the car after you strip it anyhow. Try sanding it really well and see if that doesn't do it for you. It sounds like you have never done anything like this before. Do your hood first. It will give you a lot of experience and keep your car intact while you try this out. Take the hood off, lay it on a table, and re-finish it. That task will give you a really good idea of what the car is going to be like. You are talking about months of work to a garaged car. Winter will be long gone before you are ready to paint.

As far as painting the engine bay- its just a matter of how much you are willing to take off or mask. I never liked Her Majesty's engine bay and that was another reason I took her apart. For color, I always prefer the cuffs to match the collars. That goes for door jambs too. As long as you have the rubbers, pop the glass and paint the whole thing. 907 green is possibly THE most common / popular color of the early birds - shows a nice waxing very well.

Have fun and good luck!

[Bambikiller240]

.............. i just want to know how yall rember where all teh wires are and this and that.

Notes, lots of notes describing where the wires were when you found them

Pictures, lots of pictures showing ALL of the details

Paper or Tape tags on ALL ends of ALL wires describing where they were when you found them

[EScanlon]

Punching in with my 2¢.

Personally, having painted a few cars in my life, I would NOT use paint stripper on the car if I intended to save any of the paint at all. The paint stripper works by a chemical reaction that softens, bubbles and essentially breaks down the paint. In my experience that softening agent can creep way way down into the paint making "saving" the paint or any body work bondo or fiberglass repair totally useless after the amount of time to "save" it. If you truly intend to "get it down to the x color" then I would either hand sand or use a D/A sander.

Then again remember that it is going to be hard to remove the paint in such a manner that you only remove a certain layer / coat / color. Whether chemical or sanding removal methods are used you will undoubtedly, if you are sanding correctly (i.e. sand the PANEL and not the paint), go through more than that top layer.

So rather than waste time and money trying to "save" the paint, address the paint job by itself and don't worry about what's below.

Now, that being said, let me address a point that you made initially.

That your original paint is "stuck to the car" is true, and yes it can make an excellent base for any future work. But whether or not to get rid of it, depends on various factors, not the least of which is $ and how much time you want to devote to it.

From what you've written, I would first inspect the car for any "dings" and other miscellaneous imperfections on the metal. Then I would begin wet-sanding the car with a 220 grit wet/dry paper to remove the bulk of the black paint and then follow it up with 400 grit. Then top that off with a good base coat of SEALER (to prevent reaction with your next layer of primer and paint). Then paint whatever color you wish.

The stripper method is best when you are taking ALL of the paint off, and as Wayne pointed out, it is a job requiring care not only in the application but also in the disposal of the waste.

Enrique

[new_2_z]

thanks for the info. i will keep looking over my car. i will prob go with what yall say just sand/wet-sand it off. this is a project car so i guess their is no real rush which is a good thing. its just i want to work on my car non stop. its that kinda a relationship

Well i got a sander and i started on the hood to see how it would be. I am having fun almost as much as learning to mig weld... :laugh: I took my time and it made the black alot darker u can say. i guess it brought out the better part of the black out. Still sanding to get to that GREEN. could not find the 400 grit so i have alot of 220 grit. not to complain but to get a idea do i keep doing the 220 till it get where? it kinda just making it very smooth which is really cool but its not really taken paint off. unless i just keep at for sometime. yea im new to this so im reading and learning.