Project OT II: The rebirth

[TSTONE]

You're just talking underneath right?

nope - and you can now get it custom color mixed

there was a guy at one the shows i did last summer that did his whole body and it was really kool - kinda a dark blue metallic - the surface had this crystalized look to it

[phoenix_rising]

We've got to see pics of that blue crystal thing.

[TSTONE]

I took some - ill see if i still have them on my home pc tonight

[Orange Terror]

I've seen a couple whole bodies coated in the stuff...probably makes sense if you're really serious about off-roading...

nope - and you can now get it custom color mixed

there was a guy at one the shows i did last summer that did his whole body and it was really kool - kinda a dark blue metallic - the surface had this crystalized look to it

Interesting, and that would be cool for off roading. I however have no intention of taking this car on a dirt road if I can help it.

My hope this weekend is to get over to my parent's, pick up some parts and my sand blaster, and get to work on the underside, particularily while the gas tank is still out.

[JoeliusZ28]

if the body is straight i think the best method for him to take is this right here. He can do this 95% by himself, just needs a buff after the final coat & wetsand.

FYI "tremclad" is the canadian version of rustoleum

here's how i painted my car for about $50, it's actually very easy and the results are amazing. First off, get a can of tremclad real orange (or what ever color u want) in the can, not spray, yes tremclad, it is a acrylic/enamel paint which is very durable. next prep your car as if was any other paint job, fix all the rust, ect....no need to prime the car since the tremclad allready contains elements which allow it to be painted over bare metal. next, after prepping the car get a small 4" professional FOAM rollers, it's tiny and has one end rounded off, and the other cut straight, and is a very high density foam. u also need a jug of mineral spirits to thin the paint. The thing i really like about this is that there's no mess, no tapeing the whole car, just key areas, and u can do it in your garage, since your not spraying there is virtually no dust in the air, just clean your garage first, also it does'nt really smell at all, dries overnight and it super tough paint. also it you decide to paint the car professionally later, just prep and paint, there's no need to strip the tremclad. i have done this to a few cars, and i can say it works amazing, u just have to be paitient. next u thin the paint with mineral spirits so it just about as thin as water, a little thicker. get out the roller and paint away, don't get the paint shaked when u buy it, enamel is stirred, otherwise you'll have bubbles in the paint for a week!!! after u do 2 coats, wet sand the whole car, then repeat, 2 coats, wetsand, 2 coats wetsand. i painted the charger using a can since your not spraying the car u use all the paint and not spray 50% in the air, use progressivly finer sand paper each time. it's not really that much work, cause u can stop and start any time, u can do just a door, or the hood, ect. do one panel at a time, and don't stop once you start. once your done the final coat, wetsand with about 1000 grit to a totally smooth finish, and then using a high speed polisher i use a buffing bonnet and turtle wax polishing compound. do the whole car with this, and i'm telling u, depending on the amount of time and paitence you have, the results are amazing. laugh if you want, but for $50 ($30 for paint, about $20 for rollers, sand paper, ect...) it really looks good. also you can do these steps overnight, paint one evening and by morning u can wet sand. i have personally done alot of painting, mostly single stage acrylic enamel, and i've sprayed several cars in my garage with really good professional results, just it stinks, it's a real pain to do, easy to make a mistake, messy, and expensive. The tremclad is awesome paint, the "real orange" is an amazing hemi orange, and almost looks like it has some perl in the sun, awesome color right out of the can. I used this technique on my 1974 beetle also, here are the results:

the car before:

another after pic:

here is a car i sprayed (71 beetle, midnight blue metalic):

here is the car before (71 beetle):


here's a few pics of the charger done:



well that's my 2 cents worth, sorry for the long post. i was borred lol
i painted the orange beetle in 1999, and it still looks like the day i painted it, the 71 blue beetle i painted in 2000, and built the car for my dad, i used the same paint on my charger, maybe one day i'll spring for a good paint job, prepping is 90% of the work, stripping the car, sanding, ect.....painting is overrated!!!
So if you have TIME, then i'd say go for it, the worst that could happen is that it does'nt turn out and your out $50, but if your paitient, and expriement with lets say just the trunk pannel and if you like it do the whole car, if not just get it done by someone else for $4000. i don't know about you guys, but i would rather spend the $4000 on other parts like getting the mechanics sorted out and new chrome, cause when u have really nice paint and crappy bumpers, door handles it just sticks out more.

here's another good how-to:

http://www.rickwrench.com/index79mas...llarpaint.html

[Orange Terror]

Eh, I wouldn't call it straight, doors are kinda wavy. Rest of it isn't bad though.

[JoeliusZ28]

what do you mean by wavy? bondo is your friend for minor straightening.

[GETGONE]

Hot Rod did a car with the rustoleum method a few months back to see if it really worked. They had about $100 or so in supplies to do it and said it takes a LOT of sanding to make it look good, but it can be done.

[JoeliusZ28]

the sanding part is true... i tried the method on a spare hood. i never finished but you need a good 8 or 9 coats with a lot of sanding in between each one. Its a great option if you have more time than money, because you add or sand a coat whenever you have the time to do so.

[Orange Terror]

Hot Rod did a car with the rustoleum method a few months back to see if it really worked. They had about $100 or so in supplies to do it and said it takes a LOT of sanding to make it look good, but it can be done.

Yeah I saw that.

what do you mean by wavy? bondo is your friend for minor straightening.

I mean like, Wavy, lol. like somebody leaned against it and it got pushed in a smidge. Yeah I know, already have a tube of bondo on one door. 1/2 of it I sanded back off, lol.

the sanding part is true... i tried the method on a spare hood. i never finished but you need a good 8 or 9 coats with a lot of sanding in between each one. Its a great option if you have more time than money, because you add or sand a coat whenever you have the time to do so.

More time than money, my time is worth a lot so check, lol. The real question is do I have the patience to do the bodywork. I hate bodywork, almost as much as exhaust.

[WMCC Doug]

Looking Good Jasen, I'm excited to see it on the road.

[Orange Terror]

Little update: I got another crossmember that hopefully is the right one (its supposed to be. $25 on ebay.

For those that didn't see what happened go to this thread. http://www.mifbody.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=14955

So, I hope with the weather warming and now that I have the crossmember I can get under the car and clean it up soon and then get the motor & tranny in. should be fun. Hope to have more updates soon.

[BP_Z28]

time to pick up pace

[Orange Terror]

time to pick up pace

I'd love to, can I steal some extra hours out of your days?

[JoeliusZ28]

Awesome Jasen, you can do this!!! Im confident itll move under its own power within a month! might not look pretty, but thats OK!