Can I paint my car myself?
12-28-2005, 11:27 AM
#21
Le Mans Master
Back in high school, a friend held a party. By the time it was
over, we had his Triumph Spitfire down to the metal.
NOT THE DESIRED OUTCOME (esp with a 'Vette)
But in moderation, 'many hands make light work...'
.
over, we had his Triumph Spitfire down to the metal.
NOT THE DESIRED OUTCOME (esp with a 'Vette)
But in moderation, 'many hands make light work...'
.
:
12-28-2005, 04:36 PM
#23
Racer
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I am a professional painter for a living. I don't paint cars (yet), but I can tell you that what everyone has said is true. Prep is the key for a good job, and the paintitself should be the easiest part of the job. I would say you can probably do a better paint job than your local shop from the perspective of taking time and being picky. Let's face it, for them time is money, but for you this is alot more personal. So take your time prepping the car and remember, you will have to prep it different than any other vehicle (it's SMC not metal) and you may also have to prep it different depending on what color you decide to go with. I.E. - paint with metallic flakes in it. Also, you will need a booth or garage that you can completely isolate your car from all dust, bugs, and anything that could damage the paint finish while it's drying. Go online on any search engine and get as much detailed info as you can on how to prep your vette for a paintjob. You will be suprised how much work goes into it. But you can also save alot of mioney and have a paintjob to your exacting standard if you are picky. Good luck, do alot of homework, and keep us all informed!
12-28-2005, 06:14 PM
#24
Drifting
Originally Posted by MNorlander
Hi. I'm an 18year old student who was lucky enough to find a good deal on an '86 vette. Would it be possible to do a paint job on my vette myself? The hood really needs it and the body kit and back could use a touchup as well. As you could guess I really enjoy this car and am trying to get it looking, running, and sounding really nice. It's just that I work for every cent that's spent on it and I really can't imagine paying $600 just for a hood paint job.. argh.
Here are the pics:
Here are the pics:
You can do anything you want.
12-29-2005, 12:06 PM
#25
I found a great deal just down the road from me. We have a Vo-Tech school and they have auto body and paint classes at night. For $150 bucks a semester you get:
1. Professional heated and vented booth
2. Wet sand area with water and a drain
3. Professional tools that you don't have to buy
4. An instructor that knows what he is doing
5. Hugh compressor with all the filters and dryers
I bought a cheap pick up and did a complete paint job on it to learn the process. This is such a good deal that some guys take the class every semester and figure the tuition is just the rental price of the shop. School doen't care they just want the classes full.
Bottom line is YOU can do it, but it sure helps to have someone experienced teach you the tips and tricks of the trade. Trial and error is a poor teacher.
1. Professional heated and vented booth
2. Wet sand area with water and a drain
3. Professional tools that you don't have to buy
4. An instructor that knows what he is doing
5. Hugh compressor with all the filters and dryers
I bought a cheap pick up and did a complete paint job on it to learn the process. This is such a good deal that some guys take the class every semester and figure the tuition is just the rental price of the shop. School doen't care they just want the classes full.
Bottom line is YOU can do it, but it sure helps to have someone experienced teach you the tips and tricks of the trade. Trial and error is a poor teacher.
12-29-2005, 02:53 PM
#27
Team Owner
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St. Jude Donor '05
Corz over in C3 has done a few I believe, did his own.
12-29-2005, 02:59 PM
#28
Drifting
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12-29-2005, 03:07 PM
#29
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St. Jude Donor '15
"In honor of jpee"
M, these are some very good ideas--it's even got me thinking, hmmmm, maybe I can do this....
Like your neighb doesn't look like some place you want to do it "on your driveway". And you DO live in Kalifornia. And as said, "Overspray carries for remarkably long distances. Don’t assume that any part of your car is too far away from the work to not need masking." corvette55
---your neighbors would NOT love you if there houses became ____Corvette color (fill in the blank).
But I like that vo-tech thing; that's a great idea. So is if you got a place in a backyard to make a "paint booth".
The idea of doing the hard prep work and then working a deal with a local shop is a good one, too.
I'm especially glad to hear so many "you can do its" and it'll be worth it to give it a try.
But, did I say I really do like that vo-tech course with full paint body shop? Hmmm.
And that's a heckuva an offer from Orlando; I'd ask because it's a great list of things to do, anyway!
Like your neighb doesn't look like some place you want to do it "on your driveway". And you DO live in Kalifornia. And as said, "Overspray carries for remarkably long distances. Don’t assume that any part of your car is too far away from the work to not need masking." corvette55
---your neighbors would NOT love you if there houses became ____Corvette color (fill in the blank).
But I like that vo-tech thing; that's a great idea. So is if you got a place in a backyard to make a "paint booth".
The idea of doing the hard prep work and then working a deal with a local shop is a good one, too.
I'm especially glad to hear so many "you can do its" and it'll be worth it to give it a try.
But, did I say I really do like that vo-tech course with full paint body shop? Hmmm.
And that's a heckuva an offer from Orlando; I'd ask because it's a great list of things to do, anyway!
12-29-2005, 04:21 PM
#30
Burning Brakes
I would say as long as you are going to stick with a simple base clear then there is nothing to worry about. I would caution against a highly complicated job like a HOK candy or pearl job for your first one. With those your prep matters but your spraying ability and technique will play a huge factor into the end result. With what you seem to be asking you are capable of doing it. Tear into it and learn from your mistakes, even myself, who has been a body man for over 8 years still makes a few from time to time. The key is not making them again! Good luck!
12-29-2005, 06:01 PM
#31
Drifting
Member Since: Jul 2003
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details on the project
This is the entry I made in my service book (It’s a hobby to keep obsessive records):
---------------------------------------------------------------------
6/27/05-
9/23/05 80043 miles
Paint Project - 1 primer coat, 2 color coats, 2 clear coats
Body Prep: Wet sanded 1st with 400 grit, then final with 600 grit. Acetone wipe and tack cloth final wipe. Entire body sanded with 1000 grit before cleat coat.
Removed: Front and Rear bumper fascias, rocker panels, headlight doors and buckets, front license plate cover, gas door, gas filler insert and boot, all lights and lenses, mirror wind deflectors, door handles, entire belt line, old emblems, wheel wells, mud flaps, outer window seals, mufflers, interior door panels.
Reconditioned: Dyed beltline with “Forever Black” (multiple coats); painted door handles; sanded, primed and painted wheel wells and attaching screws; sanded and painted underside of hood; painted mufflers with High Temp BBQ Rustoleum spray paint, reglued/stapled interior door carpet; dyed gas filler boot with “Forever Black”; dyed mud flaps with “Forever Black”; painted spare tire carrier
Reinstalled: Front and Rear bumper fascias, rocker panels, headlight doors and buckets, front license plate cover, gas door, gas filler insert and boot, all light lenses, mirror wind deflectors, door handles, entire belt line, wheel wells, mud flaps, mufflers, interior door panels.
New: Emblems, outer window seals, tail light bulbs
Final preparation: body wet sanded and buffed (1000, 2000, 2500 grit)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
First, you’re going to need a full 2 car garage with nothing in the way. I parked my car at an angle to get the most room around it. Get 4 good jackstands and get the car as high up off the ground as you can so you’re not killin your back (I’m only 26 and I was hurtin). Get about 70 large freezer bags, labels and a pen. Use those bags to put in all the screws/bolts, etc and label them as you go. Example: “Driver’s side headlight door”, “Rear passenger wheel well” etc etc. This makes reassembly a breeze with no left over parts. Take digital pictures as you go incase something doesn’t go as you remember…and don’t trust your memory, it may be a LONG time before you reassemble. Get about 10 sleeves of 3M (the best) automotive sand paper in 400 and 600 grit and a sanding block to wrap the sand paper around. You’ll need a bucket and a sponge too. 2 cheap box fans will act as exhausts.
Get some plastic sheeting, duct tape and a staple gun. Cover the walls and ceiling of your garage and wash the floor. Make a paint booth out of your garage. Duct tape the seams shut and put duct tape in the plastic before stapling to avoid tearing. Also tape it to the floor (It will stick if its clean. Make a strip to cover the door opening, just open enough to fit the box fans in.
Remove the emblems (nose, gas door and “CORVETTE” rear wording). Take off the wheels. Take off all 4 wheel wells. Remove all the light lenses (except the front fog lamps). Left and right, front and rear corner markers, 2 reverse lights and 4 round tail lights (have fun ) Remove the entire belt line. The only parts that will not come off are the very front and rear; they can only be removed if the entire front and rear fascia are pulled off (and we’ll get to that). The door belt lines are only held on with 2 10mm nuts at the very front and rear of the door, the rest of it is held in place with clips that need to be compressed and pulled with a plastic putty knife. Gently pull them and you will see. Take off the door rocker panels (they’re easier to paint separate, and my color consistency was fine). Take off the gas door and also remove the inner gas surround and the rubber boot. Take the antenna bezel off. Pull the interior door panels off and then work the door handles off (take your time, its tight in that door panel). Once the door handles are off, make sure that you can still reach the interior handle to open the door or wrap a rag around the receiving post, of you can’t get back in the car! Take off any mirror wind deflectors you may have. Take off the headlight buckets. Take off the headlight doors.
Fill a bucket with water. Cut the 400 grit sandpaper into sections that neatly wrap around your sanding block. Use the sponge to wipe a section of the body, dunk the sandpaper in the bucket and start sanding. The key is to keep the surface wet. Dunk the sandpaper often and keep it unclogged. Rotate often. Work in small sections. I was told that there is no need to get all the way down to the primer or even the gel coat. Just get all the clear coat off and at least a layer of paint. Run your hand across the surface, you’ll just feel it when its right. I’ve good a million pictures of the process. Take your time and work around the entire body…and hit every nook and cranny. At some point you should remove the front and rear fascias so that you can remove the belt line and sand them really well too. Remove the license plate cover front the front too. Then repeat the whole thing with 600 grit. Now roll the car out and give it the wash of its life. Twice. Mask off the car with butcher paper and masking tape. Right before we were ready to paint, we did a quick round with 1000 grit. Get the fans running, pulling the air out. Then use a lint free paper towel and wipe down the body with acetone and then a tack cloth.
As far as paint, I had a club member help me with this. Depending on how the primer goes on, you may want to smooth out some places when it dries. Then color and clear. I didn’t buff the car after it was done because I know I would burn through it, so I the guy in my club help with that. It removed all the flecks of dust and orange peel. Now it looks like glass. Now reassemble…those labels bags will be your best friend now.
The best advice that I have it don’t cut any corners, cuz it’ll just **** you off later that you didn’t do it right the first time. If you want pictures or more detail, let me know.
I’m very proud of the work that was accomplished and its even better knowing that you mostly did it yourself. And you’ll save yourself THOUSANDS. Quality paint work in Florida is about $6000 to $10000 or more!
This concludes my longest post ever.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
6/27/05-
9/23/05 80043 miles
Paint Project - 1 primer coat, 2 color coats, 2 clear coats
Body Prep: Wet sanded 1st with 400 grit, then final with 600 grit. Acetone wipe and tack cloth final wipe. Entire body sanded with 1000 grit before cleat coat.
Removed: Front and Rear bumper fascias, rocker panels, headlight doors and buckets, front license plate cover, gas door, gas filler insert and boot, all lights and lenses, mirror wind deflectors, door handles, entire belt line, old emblems, wheel wells, mud flaps, outer window seals, mufflers, interior door panels.
Reconditioned: Dyed beltline with “Forever Black” (multiple coats); painted door handles; sanded, primed and painted wheel wells and attaching screws; sanded and painted underside of hood; painted mufflers with High Temp BBQ Rustoleum spray paint, reglued/stapled interior door carpet; dyed gas filler boot with “Forever Black”; dyed mud flaps with “Forever Black”; painted spare tire carrier
Reinstalled: Front and Rear bumper fascias, rocker panels, headlight doors and buckets, front license plate cover, gas door, gas filler insert and boot, all light lenses, mirror wind deflectors, door handles, entire belt line, wheel wells, mud flaps, mufflers, interior door panels.
New: Emblems, outer window seals, tail light bulbs
Final preparation: body wet sanded and buffed (1000, 2000, 2500 grit)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
First, you’re going to need a full 2 car garage with nothing in the way. I parked my car at an angle to get the most room around it. Get 4 good jackstands and get the car as high up off the ground as you can so you’re not killin your back (I’m only 26 and I was hurtin). Get about 70 large freezer bags, labels and a pen. Use those bags to put in all the screws/bolts, etc and label them as you go. Example: “Driver’s side headlight door”, “Rear passenger wheel well” etc etc. This makes reassembly a breeze with no left over parts. Take digital pictures as you go incase something doesn’t go as you remember…and don’t trust your memory, it may be a LONG time before you reassemble. Get about 10 sleeves of 3M (the best) automotive sand paper in 400 and 600 grit and a sanding block to wrap the sand paper around. You’ll need a bucket and a sponge too. 2 cheap box fans will act as exhausts.
Get some plastic sheeting, duct tape and a staple gun. Cover the walls and ceiling of your garage and wash the floor. Make a paint booth out of your garage. Duct tape the seams shut and put duct tape in the plastic before stapling to avoid tearing. Also tape it to the floor (It will stick if its clean. Make a strip to cover the door opening, just open enough to fit the box fans in.
Remove the emblems (nose, gas door and “CORVETTE” rear wording). Take off the wheels. Take off all 4 wheel wells. Remove all the light lenses (except the front fog lamps). Left and right, front and rear corner markers, 2 reverse lights and 4 round tail lights (have fun ) Remove the entire belt line. The only parts that will not come off are the very front and rear; they can only be removed if the entire front and rear fascia are pulled off (and we’ll get to that). The door belt lines are only held on with 2 10mm nuts at the very front and rear of the door, the rest of it is held in place with clips that need to be compressed and pulled with a plastic putty knife. Gently pull them and you will see. Take off the door rocker panels (they’re easier to paint separate, and my color consistency was fine). Take off the gas door and also remove the inner gas surround and the rubber boot. Take the antenna bezel off. Pull the interior door panels off and then work the door handles off (take your time, its tight in that door panel). Once the door handles are off, make sure that you can still reach the interior handle to open the door or wrap a rag around the receiving post, of you can’t get back in the car! Take off any mirror wind deflectors you may have. Take off the headlight buckets. Take off the headlight doors.
Fill a bucket with water. Cut the 400 grit sandpaper into sections that neatly wrap around your sanding block. Use the sponge to wipe a section of the body, dunk the sandpaper in the bucket and start sanding. The key is to keep the surface wet. Dunk the sandpaper often and keep it unclogged. Rotate often. Work in small sections. I was told that there is no need to get all the way down to the primer or even the gel coat. Just get all the clear coat off and at least a layer of paint. Run your hand across the surface, you’ll just feel it when its right. I’ve good a million pictures of the process. Take your time and work around the entire body…and hit every nook and cranny. At some point you should remove the front and rear fascias so that you can remove the belt line and sand them really well too. Remove the license plate cover front the front too. Then repeat the whole thing with 600 grit. Now roll the car out and give it the wash of its life. Twice. Mask off the car with butcher paper and masking tape. Right before we were ready to paint, we did a quick round with 1000 grit. Get the fans running, pulling the air out. Then use a lint free paper towel and wipe down the body with acetone and then a tack cloth.
As far as paint, I had a club member help me with this. Depending on how the primer goes on, you may want to smooth out some places when it dries. Then color and clear. I didn’t buff the car after it was done because I know I would burn through it, so I the guy in my club help with that. It removed all the flecks of dust and orange peel. Now it looks like glass. Now reassemble…those labels bags will be your best friend now.
The best advice that I have it don’t cut any corners, cuz it’ll just **** you off later that you didn’t do it right the first time. If you want pictures or more detail, let me know.
I’m very proud of the work that was accomplished and its even better knowing that you mostly did it yourself. And you’ll save yourself THOUSANDS. Quality paint work in Florida is about $6000 to $10000 or more!
This concludes my longest post ever.
12-29-2005, 06:23 PM
#32
Safety Car
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Originally Posted by Orlando85UCFvette
This is the entry I made in my service book (It’s a hobby to keep obsessive records):
---------------------------------------------------------------------
This concludes my longest post ever.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
This concludes my longest post ever.
Good one on ya!
Now you just need to illustrate with pics and you'll have a tech tip in the making. I would love to paint my car but am scared chitless. I will probably take the "strip off as much as you can" (maybe some sanding) and dropping it off at the body shop route.
12-29-2005, 10:18 PM
#36
Instructor
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Oh...And I've been told...
Several posts mentioned washing/wiping dowm before painting. this is very important. I have been told by several painters of cars is that any area of the car you touch with your bare hand, has the potential to create a bubble in the paint. It might not show up right away, but it is likely to show up. The oil in your skin acts as a paint repellant. The final prep quality is likely the most important step in the process. Good Luck!
