Time to Paint!!!!

[TBK1]

Well a big thank you to all you guys for the "coaching" along the way. Think I have gathered enough info to give it a go. here are a couple "BEFORE" pics. gonna be in the 70's this weekend, think it is time!!! Been talking to the paint rep from napa (guy that services all the paint and body shops) and here is my intentions.

first step is WHITE TINTED SEALER, not a primer sealer cause I used rattle can duplicolor high build primer and he said that is laquer based and could have an issue spraying primer sealer over it!

second step of course base coat, getting a gallon so should have lots with left over.

then clear coat, all are supposed to be ureathane based! got to go start taping things off! Oh already did single stage in engine compartment underside of hood and underside of hatch for those that have been following along! And yes I did end up tacing the buckets to fender and hiding the seam! Why, Just because!!!

[EScanlon]

As a suggestion, put some plastic sheeting (12 mil or so, thick enough that it won't flutter with air hitting it) on the sides AND ceiling of your proposed work area. You're looking to make an encloseable area. This will keep the dust and fumes localized AND will stop the dust that is bound to be hidden in the nooks and crannies of the studs from blowing on your finish.

Also, once you've shaken the gallon can of paint, BEFORE you add any additives (hardener ~ which may or may not be required on the base coat~, reducer, or other) pour yourself an emergency quart. This quart will be to fix or touch up any problems you may encounter later....voice of experience here. Do the same with the clear. This way you will have the ACTUAL color and clear you used on the main paint job.

Put a thermometer IN the enclosed area AND keep an eye on the outside temp especially if you will be drawing outside air to vent paint fumes. I can't emphasize it enough, a sudden change in temperature WILL cause problems in your paint. Especially if it has NOT set...and that can be as much as an hour AFTER you finish painting. Remember, there is a chemical process going on as well as simply "cooking" time (time for the reagents to finish cooling off AFTER the reaction has finished). Changes in temperature during this critical time CAN and WILL result in problems.

Again, voice of experience here. I had an Austin Healey literally have the paint DRIP off when the outside temperature dropped 25 degrees in the span of an hour (I was in Michigan at the time) and the MWR supervisor thought that I needed to vent all that paint mist (he turned on the big ventilator fan AND opened up the big outside roll up door so that the fumes would clear quickly). When I got back from the mess hall, the paint could be seen in rivulets all along the bottom edges of the car. NOT a pretty sight.

Check the expected temp and humidity range and make sure you have the proper reducer for that temperature range and humidity.

Since you've already done some painting, you have a good idea of how and how much your paint gun can cover in a single pass.

Before you start mixing paint, mentally run through your procedure to paint the car. Remember that while you are shooting base coat, a dry line isn't too much to worry about, but should still be avoided, but it will cause you a BUNCH of work if you do that when shooting the clear coat.

A dry line is when you spray fresh material right next to material that has had a chance to "skin" and begin setting. The new spray will not get a chance to melt into the older and you'll have a distinct line that looks like overspray. That's why you plan the paint pattern out in your head so that you do NOT have to spray fresh paint next to the paint you sprayed earlier in the same "coat". If you don't have a choice as to having to spray onto the beginning of the coat, then you either work real fast to get to the beginning before it skins....OR you work back and forth advancing each side of the beginning spot such that both "sides" of your coat of paint are fresh.

Lastly, and this is very VERY important. When reaching over your vehicle to paint the roof, top of cowl / windshield area...WATCH YOUR AIR HOSE!! Some painters wrap the air hose around their arms so that it won't droop down into the fresh paint they've laid down, or mar the previous coat.

Don't forget to purge your compressor of any moisture in the tank before you start.

Hope this helps;

Enrique

[TBK1]

Thanks "E". Already did the hose drag bit, only took once to remeber that!

[TBK1]

Hey "E" would you start from the bottom up or the top down, I would think top down because of the overspray/misting settleing down?

[EScanlon]

Top down....again because of the hose drag AND because after holding the paint gun up and out away from your body, after a while your arm gets...very...VERY... tired. By the third coat you'll be using your other arm to help hold the paint gun and arm up.

Remember, you want to raise the car up off the floor enough that you can spray to the lower edge of the rocker panels....all the way to the inner seam where they butt up against the floor pan, YET not so high that you need ladders to reach over and paint the middle of the roof. That height, depending on whether you have a bottom cup or a top cup (and hence bottom gun, making it twice as tall as a bottom cup gun), needs to be enough that you aren't straining to reach on the roof, yet not so low that you can't adequately spray the rocker.

Since you've already painted the engine bay, and presuming you do not need to paint the underside of the hood, I would put the hood ON the car and paint everything together. Then again, I would also paint the fenders on the car since you've already painted the door jamb area. But that is just ONE method/procedure. Whether you should paint the doors, hatch, hood, and fenders on or off the car is critical only if you are painting metallics or candy paint. Most (and note the use of the word MOST) other paints, do not require that kind of placement.

One way I would paint, with hood and hatch off, I would begin my coat of paint in the middle of the hatch area, work my way forward along one side, doing the rear part of the fender on that side all the way to the bottom, then up towards the center of the roof, do that side of the roof and then bring the paint coat back towards the back...shooting a small "freshen" up on the rear panel part that's already been painted and carry it forward to the cowl. Then repeat for the other half of the car starting on the other side of the hatch. If you have the hood and fenders on, you would repeat this basic procedure there.

OR

But presuming you paint as you have it hanging....Start at the roof, work your way down to one "C" pillar, jump to the other side and do the same, jump back to the first side and continue the paint down that side to the floor and back to the hatch area, jump to the other side and do the same, then the hatch area. Go back to the first side and finish front of rear fender and then door...repeat for the other side.

Both those procedures address the "refreshing" of previously laid paint so that you do not have a paint line, since the paint will not have had sufficient time to totally skin and refuse the new paint to blend / melt in.

But all of these are MY personal methods and not necessarily what YOU will want to do. Do a mental rundown and if possible a WALK-THROUGH. This way you can note where your hose might get caught, or obstacles to remove, or.... you get my drift? Once the paint starts flowing, there is not enough time for farting around fixing problems.

Looking forward to seeing some pics.

E

[TBK1]

Thanks again!

[jmark]

Good stuff E!

[TBK1]

I'm telling you, Hell I do good to type a line or 2 and ole "E" writes chapters for us, BANG UP BUDDY!!!

[1 Bravo 6]

That's the kind of help/advice/assistance this site is famous for.

Well done "E".

Rick.

:devious: :devious:

[EScanlon]

Yikes....I'll try to keep the "chapters" more "Reader's Digest" style...

One other thought for you Donald.

Put the car up on jackstands and remove all the wheels. This way you can get to the rockers, won't have any overspray on the tires (and therefore won't have to mask them off) AND (usually) you'll be at the ideal height for spraying.

Also, a quick damp mop of the floor where you'll be painting will help eliminate a lot of the blow dust.

E

(is this better? )

[bartman]

Lots of good information. I will be painting my car soon and I'm sure this information will help me as well.

One thing that I would like to add is that if you don't follow Enrique's advice and put your hood and fenders on the car, make sure you paint them oriented the same way as the will be once they're installed. For instance the hood should be laying down not hanging vertically. If you don't do this you may find that when you put the car back together the colors don't completely match.

Here's a link to a thread on HybridZ that you may find useful. He painted the hood vertically off the car and wound up redoing the whole paint job!

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=115685

[bobc]

And, make sure you secure your plastic sheeting very, very well. My neighbor was painting his Mustang in his garage and was just about done, when the plastic sheeting above the car (he built a fully enclosed area) let go from the ceiling in his garage and fell onto the wet paint on the trunk, hood, and roof. He had to start over....