at kragen..

Well.. My car still has the original paint on it. Doesn't look bad either. If i give it a nice wash and wax job.. I can get it shining.. But there are some spots on the car that look like they have been rubbed by someones clothes getting in and out of the car for 25 years and its faded. I've been thinking about touching up the spots with this original color spray paint i have.. My question is.. How would i be able to get it to get it to blend properly? I just dont wanna screw it up even more.. should i just tape off the bad spot.. primer it and spray the color on then spray some clear coat on? it doesnt have to be perfect.. just dont want it sticking out like a soar thumb anymore

 

i would sand down the original paint then throw on some primer then the paint so you dont have an uneven spot cause it might be a little higher just sand with something that isnt to rough that will leave scratches like a 600 grit just to take off some of the original paint

 

no matter what you do its gonna stickout unless it is blended. and ur not really gonna blend something with a rattlecan. you will surely tell.

 

The only way I would use a spray can would be somewhere near the bottom cause no matter how close it looks it won't match after u spray it. Even when u buy paint at automotive paint shops that match it to paint code it all depends on how u shoot it especially metallics. So unless you've got rust coming thru and u need to take care of that I would just leave it alone cause it most likely will stick out like a sore thumb. Good luck. Later.

 

It won't match perfectly but there is a way. First you need to remove all and any wax within a foot and lightly sand the area to be painted 1200 or 1500 grit paper. Don't mask with tape because that will leave a harsh line. Instead use a cardboard dowel like the kind that comes from christmas paper.

When you need to feather an edge you hold the dowel against the area where tape would normally be and make sure the paint can is held back so it doesn't run and make an edge.

Repeat several times with light coats of paint and wait for at least a couple of week for comeplete drying. Then lightly wet sand with 1500 grit paper until most imperfections are gone and hit it with some polishing compound. Don't press hard. Wax it real well and call it done.

Like I said it won't be perfect but better then before

 

dont do it. simple as that.

 

Thank You....im a body man....you WILL make it worse let a pro do it if it brothers you that bad...it will be worth it...and if the origanal paint is faded bad enuff...even a blend will still stand out to the next panel..

 

forgot to throw in earlier, im a painter lol dont do it man. dont even bother with what the others have said it may work but itll still look like crap.

 

get some polishes and try to buff it out first...might be good enough to satisfy you other then that...its not ganna be perfect...id just save up and take it to a body shop...

 

Ok but the question is "How would i be able to get it to get it to blend properly?"

The question is not "should I try to paint some sore spots that bother me"

And the question is definitely not "should I leave my daily transportation in a bodyshop's cage for months on end to spend thousands of dollars for a just couple of spots that bother me"

 

Blade, guess u got to post some pics so we could see exactly what u mean. Later.

 

it would only take a body shop a week or so if they're not busy and winter usually isn't a big time for people to be refinishing their cars due to the holiday spending.

and I too have been in school for bodywork for 2 years and I say it'll look worse then before once you rattlecan it, just leave it to the pro's.

 

I'd say there's about a 99.9999999% of it looking worse but why not post some pics of what you're talking about so we can see?

 

If you're going to do this no matter what people here say then my best advice is to practice on something first. And you may also want to check the color match before you do anything on your car. Spray out some of your paint on a test panel ... anything metal and preferably flat, a putty knife works. Make sure you get enough light even coats on it to completely cover it so the true color is shown. Then hold it up to your car and see what it looks like. This may be your best place to stop.
As far as getting the best job on your car all I can say is keep it as small as possible. Clean and sand the area lightly, prime any bare spots, lightly sand the primer after it's completely dry... probably overnight. Clean it again, mask off an area larger than the area you are going to spray, you don't want any tape lines, and you don't want paint all over everything else. Then make sure the area is clean and dust free. Go ahead and buy a Tack Cloth to wipe the dust off before you start and between coats. Don't wipe so hard with the tack cloth that you leave residue. Just lightly wipe it. Then start spraying. Light even coats... one at a time...let it dry some between coats. The second coat will go out a little further than the first and so on, to keep the edge down. My best guess is you're going to have an edge that shows. I don't think you can get around it with spray cans. I don't think clear will help. After it's completely dry you can wet sand it very lightly and try to polish it some. But it's spray can paint. It isn't going to polish up very good and probably won't look very good either.

 

heres a picture for you guys..

I'll probably just do it enough to cover the white and be done.. I dont wanna get too involved in it

 

dude, i do this for a living, dont touch the car...its gonna cost you more in the end, but then again it is your car...you do what you want...

 

when i got my car the entire thing was painte with a rattle can but i've never tried to fill in spots that way

 

How about someone try and help the guy. Not everyone can afford "proffessional". He is asking for help on HOW to do it, not if he SHOULD. If you dont like it, walk away.

 

you should check out the dupli color website they might have some info that might help you out and if you find a similar paint and you just take your time on doing it it cant be that noticeable id give it a shot if i was in your shoes you cant really make it worse than what it already is unless you do it carelessly

 

Do it, doesnt really matter how, it will look...ok. Don't expect perfection but here is what I did and how it came out.

Paint was peeled off the roof. About a 1/3 of the roof was just primer as shown here on the driver side.


Went to get paint, had a color mixed, not exact paint code, just close by using a sample.
Sanded down the edges and blended the painted -vs- non painted surfaces together as much as possible.
Painted it with a spray can, masked it off at the bottom of the C-pillar. This is how it came out:


You can see a line at the C-pillar if you really look. The light has to hit it exactly right to tell there is a difference.


I didn't do any prep, no final sanding, no clear, did it outside... about the worst painting condition. If you take any time like everyone says, it should be acceptable.


Knowing the car needs a full respray anyhow I am ok with it. As long as you are not expecting perfection, you can't go wrong.