my car is severely in need of a paint job. its close to rotting out. since maaco told me 1700$, 1200 of it being prep and repair work, ive decided i want to take on the prep myself and then get a nice paint job somwhere else.what i need to know is before i spray primer on, do i need to take off all of the paint completly down to metal? also, should i use the aircraft paint remover and then sand, or sand and sand and sand? im going to need to bondo the hell out of the rust spots, they're pitting. any tips for doing that would be helpful and appreciated. also, opinion on ground effects being body color vs. complimentry color?

 

If you have a lot of rust, Id sugest taking the car down to bare metal. Youll need to then remove the rust and patch any holes before even thinking about paint. Using filler over rust isnt a solution, it will only come back to bite you in the *** a few years down the road. If its just surface rust, you can get chemical sprays that convert the rust to a paintable surface and stop it from spreading. If you have pitting/holes, you need to cut the rusty parts out, no if ands or buts.

As far as HOW to remove the paint, chemical strippers can be expensive and hazardous, but generally a lot quicker. Be sure to use in a highly ventelated garage, or outside in the open air. Sanding takes more time, but gives you more control and can be cheaper. Its really more of a personal preference. If you do go with a chemical stripper, be sure to remove ALL of the stripper before starting any patch work or spraying primer.

Take your time and do the prepwork right, since thats what mainly determines the quality of paintjob you end up with. And Id steer clear of Maaco for any work. You can get a reputible shop to spray the car for you for a reasonable price if you do all the prep work yourself.

 

so what about the parts that the paint is okay....or the parts that the paint is just degraded and cracking but the metal is fine. how much do i need to sand that?

 

If the car has been painted before, Id say go bare metal on all of it. I usually go bare metal regardless, just so I know the that what is on top of the metal is quality material. Not quality material on top of previously applied garbage.

 

alright. reccomended primer?

 

Clausen ALL-U-NEED Primer is great stuff. its high build, self etching, polyester (so no worry about shrinkage) and easy to spray. you can even roller brush it on as long as you block sand everything nice and smooth.

 

alright, well thank you. i may contact you if i run into trouble, if you dont mind

 

If your not going to do what travis401 suggested by using that type of primer you have to use self etch primer before applying regular automotive primer or it will not stick properly and fall off down the line.