Question, Im getting my car painted at Maaco, But that is really beside the point. Im doing the prep work myself and need to know how far I have to go when prepping it. As in do I go to bare metal(I hope not ) Or jsut rough it up and feather out peeling parts. Maybe just get rid of the previous paint and get down to the factory paint kinda thing?

And im assuming that primer in a spray can isnt the same as what they would use. Or is it comparable and worth using before I brought the car to them?

On the car now there is the factory paint, and a super cheap paint job on top of that.

Basically I just need a quick run down on what I need to do to prep the car. This is not a show car and I dont have the money to get it that way.

And I did search and couldnt find what I needed.



Thanks in advance guys/girls.

 

DO NOT RATTLE CAN ANYTHING THAT WILL BE PAINTED. the properties in the rattle can paint are different and will cause the paint to peel and do other wierd things. you should not have to go to metal for prep. just make sure everything is smooth.

 

EXACTLY what I wanted to hear. Thanks A Lot Man.

But should I leave anything glossy even if it is smooth? I would think not right?

 

paint won't stick to glossy...make everything rough, but smooth, does that make sense?

 

Perfect sense. Thanks again. What would be a good grit to do the once over on the glossy(but already smooth) parts? And how far should I go? all the way down to a 1500 or not that extreme?

 

I would stop at 600. Paint will stick to that fine. I would recommend wetsanding too. Everywhere you sand should look smooth and shiny like glass when its wet, but it should not look shiny at all when dry.

 

Dont I have to go smoother than 600 to wet sand though? I thought you used like 2000 to do that? Can someone briefly run through what exactly I do to wet sand?

 

Hes right just use 600 and you will be fine. Just go over your paint job and sand everything down until the clear coat is dull and its not shiny anywhere anymore. Feather out any rock chips or anything else that would need it and you should be good to go.

 

Since it involves body work, I'm gonna move this to Body and Interior for ya.

 

Thanks for the help guys I really appreciate it. Anything else you think I should know or consider post it for me.

Rock Out

 

You can wetsand with any grit sandpaper. Make sure and get paper that says it can be used wet though, or it will just fall apart. The stuff you can wetsand with is gray, don't get the brown paper, its not for wetsanding. The water helps to keep the dust to a minimum, and it makes the paper last longer, since its not getting clogged up with dust as you sand.

Here's what I would do:

First, wetsand with 220 grit. Don't try to take all the paint off, just rough it up really good. I would however sand off as much of the 'super cheap' paint as possible. Normally, when you get car paint wet, the water will just bead up on it, and roll off. Sand it until the water no longer beads up on the paint. The water should 'stay' on the paint. While its wet, its going to look nice and shiny, but when its dry, it should look very scratched up. Also, and chips/cracks/etc should be feathered smooth with the est of the paint. You may have to sand down to bare metal to get it smooth, but thats okay. Also, don't just sand until it looks smooth, run your fingers over it while its wet. If you can feel any bumps or anything, keep sanding. If you do happen to reach bare metal, cover it with a little bit of primer as soon as its dry, because it will start to rust within hours. Spraycan primer is fine, but try to use as little primer as possible.

Next, wet sand with 600 grit. At this point, you're not trying to smooth out chips or anything, this is just really to remove the deep scratches left by the 220 grit. Also sand any primer you've applied. When you're done sanding with the 600, there should be no clearly visible scratches, it should just look hazy. I highly recommend using a sanding block, too, in order to sand more evenly. Change sandpaper every now and then, too. If you run your fingers across the sandpaper, and it doesnt feel nearly as rough as it did when it was new, then start using a new sheet.

My father and I have painted several cars that have been sanded to 600 grit, and the paint sticks fine. If you go higher than 600, then thicker paints may not stick well, and could flake off.

Remember that its better to sand the paint more than you need than less. Bodywork is by no means hard, just time consuming. Take your time, don't cut corners, and it will turn out fine.

Post if you have any more questions, hope this helps

EDIT: Whoa, cool, it changed forums while I was replying :P

 

The 600 grit is good, or what I use that works well is a red Scotch-Brite pad. Those are good to scuff the car good with. And basicly remove anything you don't want painted like lenses, headlights and side markers or at least mask it off real well like window trim, the rear bumper emblem and on the GFX if you have them. Pull off the wiper blades, antenna and other stuff. If you have to drive the car there to the shop, pull and tape everything at home and have the lenses and lights attached with as few fastners as possible so when you get there, you can just pop it all off quickly and all they really have to tape off is the windows and mirrors. Make sure everything is noted somehow that you prepped and taped and removed so they don't jack you on the cost. That should be just about everything. Oh, and if your exhaust tips are sticking out and/or chrome or polished, somewhat mask them when you get there or if the tips are removeable take them off at home.

Now I wish I had my project to tear down and paint, lol.

 

That helps a lot thanks.

How big of a sanding block do you think I should use? I have one that is about 6x3.5inches. Is that big enough or should I go bigger?

When wet sanding I just have to keep the surface wet right? I dont need a steady flow of water or anything?

 

Thats a good point on getting them to note that I prepped the car HanSolo. Glad you brought that up man. Ill be sure to do that.

 

That size block should be fine. Some people like to start out with smaller blocks, then work up to larger blocks, to get a 'level' sanded surface, but its alot more work. You don't have to keep a steady stream of water flowing, but it may be easier. When I wetsand, I usually just turn the garden hose on very low, and either hold it with my left hand and sand with my right, or find somewhere on the car to lay it so that the water runs across where I'm sanding.

 

When I wetsand, I get an old 20oz pop bottle or 2 liter, drill some holes in the cap fill with water and put about 2-6 drops of dish soap in it, shake it a little and as I sand let the water drip on the body and paper and "rinse" in a water bucket every so often. This will usually keep the paper from clogging up too much and may even lengthen the life of the sheets. After I finish wetsanding, I'll use the Scotch-Brite and clean water from the hose to get the residue off, like I was washing the car. Don't have to use too much pressure at that point, just enough to get the film off. The sanding block you have will be fine.

 

Alright, thanks to you guys I know how to prep the car now.

Another question though. Im getting the car painted black. And it's white right now. Im sure it costs more to do a "color change" because of the door jams ect.. Would it be a bad idea to paint the door jambs myself with a spray can before(obviously ) I sent it to the shop for paint on the body? I cant think of any reason why I shouldnt do this unless the cost difference is very miniscule. Which I will find out tomorrow. Any input on that?


Thanks for the help again!

 

One more, should I take the spoiler off and have it sanded/painted separately? Im thinking that is what I will do but if I dont have too...that's always nice.

 

Well, you could rattle it, but the paint might react unfavorable with the new paint they shoot. Not saying it can't be done, but you have to be careful with mixind brands and types of paint. But if the cost isn't that much more and in your budget, let them shoot them too. It will add more to the prep time, but if done right, it will be worth it. I'd suggest removing what plastic panels you can like the kick panels, rocker panel and some way pull back the rear quarter panel in the door. Any weather stripping can be either masked off or if easy, it can be removed. But since your not looking for show quality, I'd say tape it all off carefully and completely.

 

Really, it would only be need to be done if you want underneath it to match and it will avoid paint chipping in the future. It depends on what you want out of the job.

 

They arent hard to remove anyway are they?

 

I would definitely take the spoiler off and give it to them to paint separately. This shouldnt be a problem, if the shop is not willing to paint a spoiler separately, then its not a very good shop. Also, I would see if they will do your mirrors sparately.

 

Yeah I will take it and the mirrors off. That should be about it for taking things off right? I dont have GFX so thats not a problem.

 

Not that I remember from mine when I took it off. I think it's mostly 10mm thread cutter nuts and standard washered nuts. But then, it's been almost 6 years since I painted mine when I had it before she got totalled, lol.

 

Haha, I guess i'll find out soon enough.

 

They aren't too hard to remove. The hardest part IMO is getting the nut at the top on the end pieces. Its a huge pita, unless there is some easy way that I don't know of.

This is assuming you have the 3 piece spoiler of course.

 

Yeah I do have the 3pc.

 

I'm trying to remember the top nut and I think, if I remember correctly, I used a 1/4 ratchet with a couple universals and 6" extention, but I could be wrong, lol. I think it only took me about 10-20 minutes to get it off with taking panels off included.

 

Well it sounds like TONS of fun anyways lol

 

Yeah, loads, lol. But you'll appreciate it when you do it right the first time and good prep work is done. Your paint is only as good as the prep.

 

Yeah that makes sense. Im actually really looking forward to starting now.

 

I know the feeling. Just, I'm lacking the car now, lol. But it makes me want to go out and do some kinda work on the car. Got all this built up car moding energy, when I do get my next 3rd gen, I have a feeling it will be stripped down to a shell in the first couple days, lol

Good luck with the paintjob and shoot us some pics when it's done. Should be a good job though if you follow the suggestions everyone had.

 

I will definitely post pics and do what you guys said. I should have the cash to get it painted in a month or less. But the prep work will start very soon.

 

I can't even hardly get the rachet and socket up in there. Maybe I can get to it from farther down and I just missed it though. I'll have to take another look at it.

 

Just curious what you're looking to spend, Berlinetta82..?

 

Well the maaco paint is about $300cdn here. And I figure if I prep and tape everything properly then I can get a pretty good looking paint job from them. Ill probly end up spending about $500cdn. Im still in highschool and have to pay insurance and gas so im kind of tight for cash.

 

I'm Canadian student as well, in the same boat, more or less, as you..heh..that's why I asked!