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We're excited about this one and hope our readers will be too. We will be featuring the bus in an upcomming article next week when it is ready to go back to Joe to have him and his partner cover the sides of the vehicle with original artwork! The vehicle will then come back to us for a clear coat and finishing.Posted by Unknown
Posted by Unknown
Summer is my favorite season. Fun in the sun, vacations, and all kinds of great things to do. Now, we all know that protecting ourselves from the Sun has become a very important issue for our Summer activities. Depending on where you live, the Sun can really do some damage if you're not careful! Here in Florida, the Sunshine State, everyone knows the advantages of sunscreen. Without it, you can turn a fun day in the Sun into a very painful evening!
Protecting your vehicle's finish from the Sun and it's damaging effects is easy to do and very affordable. Definitely more affordable than re-painting your car! We've all seen what can happen to a finish when left in the Sun's heat. Peeling clear coats and dull finishes are not at all pretty. And, they can be easily avoided.
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Ahhh, the satisfaction of the "do-it-yourself" project. It's a great feeling to finish a big project and see the return on your "sweat equity" investment! Working on a classic or custom vehicle project that you've done yourself certainly ranks high on the list of "do-it-yourself" accomplishments. While going thru my list of blogs that I follow, I came across a great article for the "do-it-yourself" car enthusiast that was really well done. It's definitely an 8 or better on the rating scale for covering some great information and so I'd like to share it with you here. It's a great place to start for anyone wanting to take on the job of putting an excellent paint job on your custom or classic project. |
| 1970 Convertible GTO from blog post at AutoMedia.com |
Jim touched base on a very important point when he said to check with your shop to find out what type or brand of paint system they are planning to use when spraying the final finish. We can't stress this enough. Paint systems are all different and they don't mix well! Always stay with the same manufacturer throughout the project AND if you have any questions regarding which products to use durring the prep work, ask those questions before you start. There is no shame in not understanding what products to use. There is a seemingly endless list of products available for different uses and even products by the same manufacturer can cause problems depending on what system you are using. It's always better to clarify those questions prior to using any product in the paint prepping stages as an error here will not only require extra work, but, can be extremely costly depending on what needs to be done to correct the error. Ask first and be happy later!
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| Scan down the sides of the vehicle. Look for any highs or lows. |
When it's time to apply the color, the first thing to do is to "wash" the finish with a high quality wax and grease remover. Don't skimp on quality here. We recommend Prep Solvent-70 by 3M, but, any good prep solvent will work. Use two rags when performing this process. Wet the first rag with the solvent and wipe it onto the surface and then immediately use the second, dry rag, to wipe it off. Do NOT allow the solvent to air dry on the surface. This defeats the purpose and allows the grease and grime to stay where it was. This process is key to a good final finish in that it removes any substances that might cause blemishes or "fish-eye" in the final product. Do this process in small areas and ensure that you don't miss any areas. Don't forget to get into the small groves and areas that aren't as easy to get at as those areas are the very ones that will allow moisture and corrosion later on and give those things a starting place. Use this process to inspect the entire car for any items that need to be fixed, like edges where the primer might have been broken through. This is the perfect time to do your final inspection as you do have to go over the entire vehicle. Also, do this step right before you are ready to apply the paint. Don't wait for a long period after as airborne chemicals will have time to settle on the finish if you don't do it right away.
Jim's description of the spraying motion is very important here. Lay the paint evenly using your wrist with a snapping motion to avoid "lingering" in any spots. Slow and steady wins the race here. Start from the center of the hood, deck lid, and roof panels and work toward the edges. Watch the paint as it hits the surface and ensure that it is wet, but, not heavy enough to run. This is an art that you will perfect as you go and looking at the surface as you paint is the best indicator. Gravity fed guns do not require a lot of pressure, but, you must atomize the paint to ensure good adhesion and keep the solids, like metal flake or pearl from concentrating in one spot. Check for even color in between coats. Mentally make a note of anything you need to give attention to on the next coat. 
Lastly, I also concur with Jim McGowan on his last statement that "rubbing out" or buffing of the completed finish is best left to the pros until you have gained a good confidence in your abilities. On show paint, I wet-sand the entire vehilce "by hand" allowing me to see any imperfections that need attention. Tiny bugs, dust, or any other anomalies should be wet-sanded out. After wet-sanding the entire car, start the buffing process using a high quality machine buffing compound. Buffing compound is extremely abrasive. Be careful even when wiping the excess off with a rag as the compound will leave scratches where you wipe it! Keeping the buffing bonnet perfectly flat on the surface is the key here. Keep the bonnet clean! Remove any excess compound by running a screw driver or other sharp object against the bonnet as it spins. Watch for "caking" of the compound on the bonnet. I prefer a "foam" bonnet over the "wool". Wool was fine in the old days when foam wasn't available, however, it's much harder to burn the finish with foam than with wool, so it's a good idea to use foam, especially if you're just learning. I also prefer foam because it is a lot more flexible and offers better action on edges and "hard to get to" places. 
When the finish is complete, I like to give it a machine wax followed by hand rubbed wax for the final finish. Hand rubbing the final wax coat gives you a good basis for getting all the residual compounds out of the small crevises and corners and leaves a thicker coat of wax to protect that finish.  |
| 1970 Cutlass 442 Convertible painted by Larry Blackman Notice the mirror like finish down the sides of a completely straight quarter. Viewing the vehicle from this angle shows all imperfections. See more paint work by Larry at www.ldjautobody.com |
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First, decide what coverage is necessary for your situation. As we have discussed in previous articles you have to weigh really only three factors – what is your budget, what is your probability of your vehicle being damaged, and how much peace of mind are you comfortable paying for. The first factor is really the most important of the three because if you’d don’t have the money for any more than PLPD then it doesn’t really matter if you have a high chance of incurring damage to your vehicle or if you are a worry wart. The second factor may seem arbitrary but you could put together a rough estimate by Googling crime rates in your area. The third factor is much more subjective – how covered do you want to feel and how much are you willing to value the time you would be wasting with hassles in the future. If you have the money and are living in an area with high accident or vandalism rates then consider looking for more complete coverage.
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