Hey guys,

So my car is good from a far but far from good. Hah. Basically it needs a full paint job.

Since winters rolling around and the car isnt going to be driven, what better time to paint it. I'm not planning on painting the car immediatly, rather getting it completly primed and ready to paint.

The actual body work I'm not concerned about, like changing the d.s. 1/4 and putting a p.s. fender and a glass hood on.

How far should I sand down the current paint thats on there? I don't think its necessary going down to bare metal on the whole car. Should I just thoroughly sand the painted areas that don't require body work? Should I sand down to the "factory" primer? The areas that do require body work will be sandblasted to clean out the rust and previous body filler. The quarter is gettin cut out and replaced with one from a donor car.

Once the body work is done in certain areas and the rest of the car is sanded and ready to prime, do I just start spraying then? Then go back and block sand the primed car, prime again, block sand with finer paper, etc. untill I get down to about 1200 grit? I'm sure there are little steps in between that I'm missing and thats what I would like some clarity on. Can a bare metal primer be sprayed over the sanded down areas of the car that are not metal? A paint guy I was talking to claims I can.

Basically the car isn't worth the amount of money a bod shop will charge me. If it doesnt come out perfect I'm fine with that because it'll look better than it does now.

Thanks

 

If you got the time...

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/...0&fpart=1&vc=1

 

how bad is the paint? if just chips and minor dents use 180-80 to fix your repair areas..prime the areas, then go over the rest of the car with 320 and make sure you feather the chipped areas and around your repairs...make sure of no edges and then paint..you are using base-coat clear-coat right?

 

im in the same boat. i dont need a perfect 3-5k paint job. i just want it looking better. so im not crazy. its worth giving it shot.

 

Youve pretty much got it there buddy, Just scuff rest of the car with gray scotch brite and you should be able to shoot it. Just remember to clean clean clean, I recommend wax and grease remover.

 

here is a suggestion that might save you some money. Go to a fire station. Firemen usually work 2 days a week and have some other skill like carpentry, plumbing etc. They will probably do it in their garage, take longer than say Maco or something. It doesn't hurt to ask or ask if they know anybody who does bodywork. Good luck.