Paint questions

[hoogiesngrinderz]

My convertible is a 15 footer as it sits, but I'd like that to change. The car looks to have been painted once before, and poorly. I have all the materials (primer, 2k primer, base, euro clear) and equipment (60 gallon compressor, line dryers, HVLP and conventional spray guns) but lack the experience of spraying.

Parts that need to be sprayed:
Front bumper
Chin spoiler
Hood
Driver fender
Side ground effects
Tonneau cover
Trunk lid
Rear spoiler

Might as well get the whole thing sprayed

So my questions are
1) What ballpark number am I looking at to have someone do this for me? I'm staying black, no dents, everything will be stripped.
2) If I try it myself, can I run a 400 grit DA over it and lay down new color/clear...or do I have to go further down, lay a sealer, and then bc/cc?

Any tips would be appreciated! Thanks

[TylerT/AZ28]

you can get a cheap maaco job. my dad had his 76 grand prix sprayed at maaco back in the day but he did all the prep work, it actually turned our pretty good. ive been doing a thicker grit then keep going finer, get all the clear off then id do your filer skim coats, and dent fixes, then sand with some fine stuff. then you could probably lay down some primer. i havent researched into it but id take the front off and add some flex agent of sorts to that batch of paint so it has some stretch to it. otherwise im assuming you can spray the car as a whole. theres a few guys on here who have attempted this with succes that will probably chime in.
P.S. can i bother you for some photoshoppin sometime soon?

[bri2203]

If your staying black 400 grit should be fine(but it depends on who is spraying and what kind of product you are using). When you get into fancy colors and metalics it is more important to sand it to 600-800.

Preperation is everything. You can apply the rule of "if it doesn't fit now, it it not going to fit when it is painted" in different way.
Price range from a few hundred to many thousands. Even if there are no dents I can guarentee you the car is not flat. Once you start block sanding you will find all of the high spots.

[Gregs_gsxr]

if your going to through the process of a total repaint, take the time to do it right and do the prep work, like Brian said prep is everything, and if you can see a blemish in sanding its gonna show in the color and through the clear.

Metalics are harder to spray, standard solid color BC,CC are easy enough, single stage is the base and simple to do. Spraying a car is something that take time, patient and a feel for the fun. Some people can spray others should stay clear of a paint booth. Use cardboard and run straight water through your gun and practice over lapping on the cardboard, get a feel of the gun, read the book to set all "spray pattern" and read about how much distance you need between the panel and the gun.

After get some cheap paint and practice with a test panel, any old fender works great cause you have body lines, curves and flat surfaces to practice on.

start with those and you should be ok, body work on the other hand is a totally different feel

[hoogiesngrinderz]

Front nose is already off. I also have the flex stuff for the plastics, forget the brand though. The black is Omni AU MBC WA8555, clear is Tamco high solids clear. The worst part on the car is the driver side front fender, but I have a new one on the way. I have a second tonneau, I'll pick the best candidate for respray. I have guide coat and tack cloth, plus 55 gallons of solvent

[hoogiesngrinderz]

Oh, and what I should have said is that this would be my first respray over an existing paint job with acrylic urethane. I've worked with it before on the Bel Air...it isn't like the older lacquer paints that I've used in the past (did a 81 Corvette and 83 GMC long bed).

[hoogiesngrinderz]

P.S. can i bother you for some photoshoppin sometime soon?

Depends on how big of a project it is. I need to get a tablet ordered, the high resolution stuff takes forever with a mouse. Shoot me a PM

[Gregs_gsxr]

Front nose is already off. I also have the flex stuff for the plastics, forget the brand though. The black is Omni AU MBC WA8555, clear is Tamco high solids clear. The worst part on the car is the driver side front fender, but I have a new one on the way. I have a second tonneau, I'll pick the best candidate for respray. I have guide coat and tack cloth, plus 55 gallons of solvent

Omni products are pretty good, I have used them in the past with great results. I bought my stuff from a company in waterford off of dixie highway called Wilte's Paint or something like that, family owned. You can also pick up the same products from Finish Master, there is one in Farmington Hills. I wouldnt mix products from base to clear and reducers but I understand you have to work with what you have.

[hoogiesngrinderz]

Im located near Grand Rapids, but we have a few nice paint supply stores around. I do have Omni clear (it's for my Bel Air) but this Tamco stuff I bought is compatible with Omni MBC and is supposed to finish very well. I should probably focus on getting the HVLP gun set just right, I hear there are forums dedicated to the Harbor Freight guns

[Gregs_gsxr]

I only use harbor freight guns for primer only, I use a Sharpe spray gun for base and clear.

[hoogiesngrinderz]

I do have a siphon feed that I'll have to check out. What size tip would you recommend? 1.5mm?

[TylerT/AZ28]

how much did that paint cost in all iof you dont mind me asking

[Gregs_gsxr]

I do have a siphon feed that I'll have to check out. What size tip would you recommend? 1.5mm?

1.6 is for general purpose use for HVLP or siphon feed, however I would not spray my clear coat with this, even though you could it may just give you more "orange" peel if not sprayed correctly.

I personally use HVLP and a 1.8 for high build primers and sealers, then a 1.6 tip for my base or single stage paint if I were to use it, then finish with a 1.3 for my clear coats

how much did that paint cost in all iof you dont mind me asking

Well when I bought I my caddy escalade blue with a pint of silver, with all my reducers and clear it came to about 600 bucks. No I haveny price paint yet for the camaro, keep in mind you brighter the color cost more. Also depends on metallics, pearls or candy colors are gonna cost 1.5 to 2 times more then you the normal BC/CC Black and white are probably the cheapest colors to buy, yellows, reds are gonna be on the higher end of the price scale.