Going back with oem color and its been a few years since i've educated myself with paints n such and wanted to know what the going materials are these days? anyway,..the color is black and do i use black primer? sealer? combo?
any advise or direction is appreciated as i prepare to start this part of the resto.

 

The factory used a gray primer on my black car. I've used this the last couple of go-rounds and it's been great. I've used it over bare metal, even though you're not technically supposed to, without issue. No reason to tint the primer with black going over it, IMO. Sealer is just another coat to attract dust, so I don't use it.(IMO)

 

It has been a while since I have done painting but here we go:

A couple of questions:

1. Are you going total OEM restoration?

2. Is the car stripped down all the way or are you going over the old paint?

If you are going back to points perfect OEM I would use the factory style gray primer.

One purpose of the tinted primer is to reduce the amount coats needed to cover with the base color. When I worked in the Corvette restoration business we used primer tinting on a couple of cars, like we had red tinted primer for red cars and black for darker colors. There were a couple of Corvettes that actually used black primer from the factory, '58-62- Marlboro Red used it.

Tinting also changes the brightness of your base color.

Another reason to use different tinted primers is when you block sand so you have an idea how far you have sanded down.

Sealer is something I would use if I scuffed up the old paint or bare metal with body work, then I would use primer after that.

 

if youre not going down to bare metal, i highly recommend a sealer over the old paint. you can tint the sealer to mess with the base color you put on top. like on my car, i used a bright white sealer with a hugger orange base coat is its a lot brighter then if i tinted the sealer to a darker color. if youre going down to bare metal then its usually an epoxy high build primer, blocked down then a layer of sealer over that, then the base coat.

 

wow great info,thanks ...i do plan going down to the metal with it and there will be some very minor plastic body filler on the dings on the horizontal door crease. what do i do here to make sure you dont see the circle or the what looks like its rough or the material was absorbed a bit.

 

sealer stops that from happening. if you want a super straight paint job your gonna need to get it to bare metal, then fill the little dings and imperfections. then prime with an epoxy primer, let it dry, block sand it (with a guide coat perferably). then sand and prime and sand (some pros will block sand the primer on a high dollar car 3 or 4 times). then once thats all nice and straight, you throw down a coat or 2 of sealer, let it flash then base coat and clear with appropriate flash times. and if you want it to look like glass youll need a LOT of clear(like 5 or more good coats). then once the clear is cured for a day to 2, you start with the sanding and polishing.

 

Sealer is a huge step for me, I do not want anything bleeding through the primmer. Your paint will be as good as your prep work, I still use the old school method of primmering the entire car than speckle painting it. I block sand the speckle to find high and low spots. Once I get that done I lay down my sealer, let that dry for a day then go back to the booth for base. I always say mixing the paint is just as important, paint is not a hobby but an exact science. Reducers, hardners and accellerators all affect your flash and cure time. I also like to edge and cut in before I spray the entire car (just my style) If you want stripes now is the time to put them on so you can bury them in the clear. Three to four coats of clear will be good, all depends on how it lays down and that will determine how much wet sanding will be done. Good luck post pics and ask lots of questions, there is no thing as a stupid question, usually just stupid answers lol.

 

Man o man, this is way more info than i expected
and i do understand the "word terms" used in your comments. I'll be taking my time to prep the car as its going back to OEM black so YES guidecoat will be used,Ok Now,.....what reasonable,economical primer and sealer is available? Please understand that i know its important to use a good quality product but i wanted to see if any of you had any secrets or a good generic brand that you liked. If not, tell me your recommendation....again,..thanks,thanks,thanks

 

Use a quality catalyzed primer from Marhyde or Evercoat and skip the sealer. That'll save you some cash and headaches. As long as you cover the entire car in a catalyzed primer, using multiple coats, guide coating and blocking after each application, nothing will bleed through, you won't see filler "halo's", and you won't need sealer. If you were painting directly over your old paint without an overall primer coat then yes, you may want to seal it.

 

i used summit house brand 2k primer and sealer. its good quality and not hard on the wallet. and they come in 3 basic colors, black, white, and grey.

 

Yes you do not need sealer, like I said it is just my security blanket, sorry for any confussion

 

true you dont NEED it for a fully primered, but its just that extra bit of insurance.

 

Well thank you guys,i appreciate your comments