Auto Painting

[james_bond_007]

Looking for someone that might be able to paint a bumper cover and front fender for a 97 Honda Accord.

It is my son's car. He is in college at CSU.

I USED to paint cars, but that was in the days of quick drying lacquer and no clear coat.

I checked into getting the materials to do this rather small job.
Seems I must buy most thinners, blenders, and such in gallons (as the smallest purchasable unit) and would have a lot left over.


So...if there is anyone that might be interested in a "side-job", let me know via PM and we can talk.

[spleify]

Seems I must buy most thinners, blenders, and such in gallons (as the smallest purchasable unit) and would have a lot left over.


I dont know who told you that but you can get quarts and pints at pretty much any paint store.

Go to Finishmaster in Westminster at the NE corner of 74th and Federal and they will hook you up.

[james_bond_007]

I dont know who told you that but you can get quarts and pints at pretty much any paint store.

Go to Finishmaster in Westminster at the NE corner of 74th and Federal and they will hook you up.

Thank you. It was Painter's Supply on Santa Fe (town of Sheridan) that told me that.

I will check out Finishmaster and continue researching the new "environmentally friendly" way to paint a car.

So far I've read that...

Bumper Cover
1) Sand and fill
2) Scuff and level filll with Scotch brite gray
3) De-grease & de-wax
4) sand 600- 1000 grit
5) tack off
4) 1-2 coats adhesion promoter like KleenStrip's Bulldog.
5) 1-2 coats color
6) 1-2 coats clear


I'd still be interested in seeing if someone on the forum was interested in doing a "side job" for my son.

[Wulf202]

Dont forget to get flex additive if you shoot it yourself.

[Great-Kazoo]

Looking for someone that might be able to paint a bumper cover and front fender for a 97 Honda Accord.

It is my son's car. He is in college at CSU.

I USED to paint cars, but that was in the days of quick drying lacquer and no clear coat.

I checked into getting the materials to do this rather small job.
Seems I must buy most thinners, blenders, and such in gallons (as the smallest purchasable unit) and would have a lot left over.


So...if there is anyone that might be interested in a "side-job", let me know via PM and we can talk.

I gotta gun friendly body guy 20 min from campus.

[spleify]

Bumper Cover
1) De-grease
2) Sand and scuff with Gray scotch brite sand 500-600 grit
3) De-grease & de-wax
4) tack off
5) 1 medium (less is more) coat adhesion promoter like KleenStrip's Bulldog. and this is if its a raw plastic bumper, if its primed then just sand and no adhesion promoter
6) 3-4 coats color
7) 2 coats clear

Yes flex additive is definitely a good idea.

If its a raw plastic bumper be very careful when sanding and scuffing it, go easy and sand lightly or you will scratch the plastic. Also if it is raw then a coat of sealer is DEFINITELY recommended.

[james_bond_007]

On the KleenStrip site, they said Bulldog Adhesion Promoter can also be used as a Flex Agent.
They suggest 3 mixed CC:1 Bulldog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LB9GhkA_j3A

Any experience with this ?

Any issues with using my old HP gun (other than wasted product and overspray) rather than an HVLP gun?
If there is, I'm OK with getting a gun.
I don't want to invest in time and materials, and have it come out badly because I used the wrong tool.

By the way...I appreciate your and others' advice.
As I said, last time I painted was with straight lacquer...HVLP was not yet invented .

[james_bond_007]

The bumper cover is primed black, from the factory.
But I've seen a number of discussions indicating that the factory prime should be removed and that the factory primer is not the "best" surface for good adhesion on plastic.

[NFATrustGuy]

I've used Choice City Auto Body in Fort Collins for a few big projects and some smaller piece work. Most of the big shops aren't interested in the little "paint a bumper" jobs, but Choice City is a small operation and they're willing. I'm capable of painting and I've done it in the past, but as you're seeing, by the time you go out and buy even minimal amounts of paint and other materials, it's cheaper to just pay a shop and have it done right.

I prepped and painted a fiberglass mirror for a motorcycle one time. The process required primer, coats of black, coats of color and then clear on top. Even though I already owned the primer and the black, I seem to remember spending another $150+ on the color and clear along with flex agent and the various hardener and reducer and all that. I'm betting Choice would've painted the darned thing for $50.

FWIW IMHO and all that...

[james_bond_007]

I've used Choice City Auto Body in Fort Collins ...
A great option for a CSU student.



Most of the big shops aren't interested in the little "paint a bumper" jobs,

Yes, I can tell they only want to do "insurance claims" by the prices they are quoting.



by the time you go out and buy even minimal amounts of paint and other materials, it's cheaper to just pay a shop and have it done right.

Yes, as I'm tallying things up, I'm coming to that conclusion.
Seems like the days of "a qt of lacquer, some reducer, and plenty of rubbing compound" are a thing of the past.
It just now occurred to me that there WERE no plastic parts to worry about painting. Everything that is now plastic was chrome (and taped off).

[james_bond_007]

Found this "tally" from 2006.

Although my quantities will be smaller (for those items that I can GET in a smaller quantity), the unit prices will have gone up.
http://carpaint.blogspot.com/2006/09/how-much-does-all-this-cost.html

[Tinelement]

I got a guy over in Windsor that does restoration stuff out of his house. He's always happy to pick up little stuff and does it really reasonable. Pm me if you want his info.

[james_bond_007]

STORY:
So I decided to paint the whole car myself.

Started in Mid-June...Ended in Mid-August.

Spent most of my time learning and teaching myself how to do it...or how it now differs from how I did it back in the days of lacquer and chrome.
Found some good videos on YouTube of a guy that teaches a paint and body class.


BACKGROUND:
Originally, I was going to paint the front bumper cover and right fender. The expense of all the materials needed to do this led me to seek out someone to just do the fender/bumper ('thank you' to the all the members who helped me find good sources to do this). When I saw the car first hand, I saw there was more work to do to 'make it right'. If I didn't fix them now, they would begin to rust the car to oblivion, and whatever time and money I put into the fender/bumper would be wasted. So I made the decision to repair and paint the whole thing.


SCOPE:

[*=1]EXTERIOR

[*=1]Hail Damage Dings : couple dozen spots
[*=1]Clear Coat peeling off : 2-to-3 spots (especially the roof between the windshield and Sunroof)
[*=1]RR Quarter panel : was caved in about 6" deep from the rear of the passenger door to the back of the wheel well
[*=1]Passenger Door: dent 3" deep x 1' x 8" , lower right corner (as facing the door)
[*=1]Rear Bumper Cover: Cuts, dents, 1" holes (2-3)
[*=1]General Small Dents and Dings : coupe dozen
[*=1]1/2" Dent on Roof, right next to Drivers Door
[*=1]Paint: Fading


[*=1]INTERIOR

[*=1]Replace: Headliner
[*=1]Replace: Missing Gas Cap Lever
[*=1]Replace: Damaged Glove Box Latch
[*=1]Sew Seats: Various rips and tears and splits
[*=1]Fill Dashboard: Hole on top where previous owner removed a GPS mount (and part of the dash)
[*=1]Carpets: Removed melted candy etc.






PROCESS (Short Version of "HOW I DID IT") :


Asked for some help from knowledgeable people, but could not get anyone to really take time to help
Watched a BUNCH of YOUTUBE videos
Called PPG (Paint company) and spoke to their technical service people - They were VERY helpful. Even though I was not 'professional', they spent several hours (overall on several calls) with me.
Built a paint booth in my garage
Did the Body Work - Pounded out dents, filled lightly with filler or glazing compound, using dry sanding guide and sanded/feathered (64 grit -to 400 grit)
Removed whatever I could (Lights, molding, bumper covers, mirrors etc.)
Masked off the car
Got the paint - changed color to metallic, as I wanted a bit of sparkle (used a color 'close' to the original so I did not have to paint the jams, under-hood, inside trunk, etc.)
Spot Primed what I needed to on the body (Saved the plastic stuff for a separate process)
Roughed the car up with wet sanding using 600 grit
Practice Painting : Found some Steel Bookcase shelves to practice on to determine how to set gun pressure/paint feed (Primed/Painted/Cleared)
NOTE: VERY helpful to prevent messing up all the body work with a bad paint job
Painted and Cleared Body: By the time I started this, it was mid-July. I had reducer for 70F, but it was never 70F except at night. So I did the painted from 9:00PM to 10:00AM, when the temp was 60F-75F. Waited 15-30 mins for flash time b/w coats
NOTE: Rally Stripes - I put these on for ME...just to see if I could still do it :Cool:
Primed the Plastic stuff with a primer with an Adhesive Promoter in it
Sanded the plastic (600 grit)
Painted and cleared the Plastic
NOTE: Did NOT use flex additive in the paint. Seems there are 3 camps regarding this (lots of opinions, with none clearly the 'RIGHT' way) ;
a) those that think it is necessary for the paint to remain flexible for the life of the car ;
b) those that think it is only useful to keep parts from spiderweb-ing when flexed during installation and
c) those that say if you are careful you don't need it.
(PPG and the guys at the paint store said that it pretty much evaporates after about a month and no longer serves any purpose)
So I was careful handing the stuff and did not use any.
Let Dry for 2-3 days
Removed Runs - used 400-2000 grit, lots of soapy water, and a very THIN/NARROW sanding block & razor blade to remove runs
NOTE: Only had 2-3 in the clear ; none in the paint (or I would have sanded them BEFORE clearing) This was due to the fact that for the Clear, I used disposable paint cups, so I didn't have to try cleaning out paint from my primary cup, that was hardening , due to a catalyst. I put the cap on the cover and prevented to cup from 'breathing'...so it drew a vacuum and spit and sputtered.
I didn't see this on the 'practice panels' because they were too small and the vacuum wasn't that strong; but when I cleared a 4-8 foot section, it showed up.
I resisted the temptation to try and fix it while it was wet, let it dry, and put a couple extra coats on those areas because I knew I was going to have to sand it a bit harder/more.
Color Sanded Car : 1000-2500 grit
NOTE: Although this is called color sanding, you are really sanding the clear, and trying to get out any orange-peel and 'flatten' the surfaces
Machine Polished Car: Used 2 to 3 different 'grits' of Maguire's polish to buff out the 2500 grit 'scratches'
Assembled the car (lights etc.) - do not put on any parts that need adhesive, like the "H" logo etc.
Wait 90 days
NOTE: Because the paint is an evaporative coating (Mix paint w/ reducer, apply, reducer evaporates and leaves thin film of paint), and I was not able to 'bake' out all the solvent like a body shop can, I needed to wait a while for it to evaporate out on its own before waxing. Otherwise, the wax could seal in the solvent and cause the finish to 'bubble'.
Wax car/apply sealant and put on any parts that need adhesive/double-faced tape, like the "H" logo, the "Civic", etc.
Do the INTERIOR work
Psych myself up to realize that when my son takes the car back ...it will never look this good again
Turn the car over to my son, to take back to CSU
Clean the garage....


(Didn't want to remove the Antenna cable from the whole dash, so I just pulled it out a bit and masked it.)
(Finding a centerline for each section of the Rally Stripes was a BI#CH, as a lot of areas were curved)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/Masked1.jpg

http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/Masked2.jpg


(USPS boxes were so I could set my bumper cover on them, have them be almost level with the final placement, and not flex the bumper cover too much)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/photo1-1.jpg

(SNIPER7, does the ladder in the background look familiar ? )
("Paint Booth" on the other side of the garage, in the background)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/photo3.jpg

http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/44384026-6439-4175-a1bc-2ff230774f94.jpg

(Still have to clean some of the polishing compounds out of the nooks and crannies in this shot.)
(Nice reflection of the tree off of the hood)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/IMG_1006.jpg

(All the striped sections line up pretty well)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/IMG_1005.jpg


(Didn't want the washer 'jets' to be 2 black spots on the hood, so I painted them to match.)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/IMG_1007-1.jpg


(Thought I'd change the side molding from RED to Silver and the Skirt from Black to Silver, to go with the Rally Stripes)
(This was the side that was really caved in about 6". I took the inside panels out and hammered it out, so I only had a thin layer of filler/glazing in the end)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/IMG_1008-1.jpg


(This bumper cover was beat up pretty bad. I filled some of the holes and melted in some plastic from some other parts I had to discard )
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/IMG_1009-1.jpg


(Just trying to show that the finish ended up pretty flat, so that you could read some reflected writing, and that it was not too wavy or blurry)
http://i1096.photobucket.com/albums/g332/ronsullivan_007/97%20Civic/IMG_1011-1.jpg


SUMMARY:
1) COST: $600-$800 (all materials, including the stuff for the interior, and some tools)
2) TIME: I did not keep track, but I spent more time watching videos and learning what TO and NOT TO do, than the actual work.
3) SATISFACTION: 110% - I was really pleased with how it came out, considering all the hurdles.



Thanks for taking time to look at this post.


IRONY:
While I had my son's car, he had my wife's car. When he returned it, the rear bumper cover was bashed in on one corner. He 'said' someone backed into him during the CSU student move in process (aka hit and run). [facepalm]

So now I have another paint and body project...(I get to learn about 'blending' this time)
[Coffee]



NOTES:

I didn't and don't intend this post to be a "HOW TO" guide.
I didn't chronicle and record all my steps or add up my time.
I just wanted to get it done.
So I posted the few intermediate pics I took to send to my son to show him how things were going.

As I think of things and get time, I'll post some 'tips' and 'lessons learned' that I feel are important; things I would have done differently, in retrospect.
I know that others may disagree, but these will be my opinions.
I wasn't an expert when I started
...and I'm not one now
...but I HAVE LEARNED A LOT.

[Robb]

From the photos, you did a damn fine job.

[sniper7]

Looks good!

[james_bond_007]

TIP #1 : Don't buy the paint and reducer/hardener until a few days before you are ready for it

I bought the materials at the beginning of the project, in Late May/Early June when the weather was still mid-60's/low 70's.
The reducer for the paint, and hardener for the clear, are sold in different temperature 'grades'.

The idea, when painting, is to be able to start painting in one place, like the trunk/deck, go all the way around the car, and finish up on the trunk/deck, but still have a wet edge where you started, to mate up with the new paint you are applying. (Note: there are other strategies, like going back to front, but that involves jumping back and forth from the left side to the right, and vice versa. I chose not to do this).

The ambient temperature influences the rate of evaporation and catalyzation for reducers and hardeners, respectively.
Warmer temps cause faster evaporation/catalyzation; cooler causes slower.

So reducers and hardeners are made to evaporate at various rates to compensate for ambient temp.

Since I didn't end up painting until July, I was stuck trying to find weather conditions that matched my reducer/hardeners 'grade'.

If I had waited to buy these, I could have matched the reducer/hardener to the ambient temp in July.

This would have allowed me to paint during the day, instead of at night.

[cstone]

Outstanding! I hope your son appreciates what you have done for his ride and takes pride in your workmanship.

I enjoyed reading your write up and the photographs.

Thank you.

[Great-Kazoo]

That's you garage at home?, very jealous.

[zteknik]

Nice work!!
Wish I had the time to do stuff like that.


That's you garage at home?, very jealous.
I didn't see any Dillons???[Dunno]

[Great-Kazoo]

Nice work!!
Wish I had the time to do stuff like that.


I didn't see any Dillons???[Dunno]

For that sq footage, who needs dillons?

[james_bond_007]

That's you garage at home?, very jealous.

I see what you mean. From the angle, it DOES look huge, but it is not.

The pictures make it look way bigger that what it is.
The "paint booth" was a 1-car slot. I only had 2' or so on each side of the car. (Remember it was a small Civic)
Not much room behind the car (I had a box fan taped into the rear piece of plastic) , and about 3' in front.
That's why I didn't want to paint it 'back to front', and keep jumping left/right.
The side where the car was being reassembled is a 2-slotter...but I have so much stuff, I only park 1 car there.
The area in between is about as wide (or a bit more) as a 10-speed bike is long.

PS
Thank's for taking time to call your buddy and get a 'very rough' estimate on doing the bumper/fender for me.
It was the best price I had gotten (yes, I understand it was only an estimate and not a guarantee, and may have changed once he saw the car).
But as I mentioned in my PM to you, after I saw the other issues, I needed to just 'do the right thing' and fix all the other things.
...I'm kind of funny that way.
Do it right, or don't do it at all.
(Blame my dad for teaching me that [Beer])

[james_bond_007]

Nice work!!
Wish I had the time to do stuff like that.


I don't have a lot of time either. That's why it took me 2-3 months.
Weekends and evenings, when one of the bands I'm in did not have a gig.

I hardly got out to the range this summer and did NO hiking.

As far as the Dillon's, I don't have any....just a single stage in the basement.
Let me know if you find a good deal on a Dillon...

[Great-Kazoo]

I see what you mean. From the angle, it DOES look huge, but it is not.

The pictures make it look way bigger that what it is.
The "paint booth" was a 1-car slot. I only had 2' or so on each side of the car. (Remember it was a small Civic)
Not much room behind the car (I had a box fan taped into the rear piece of plastic) , and about 3' in front.
That's why I didn't want to paint it 'back to front', and keep jumping left/right.
The side where the car was being reassembled is a 2-slotter...but I have so much stuff, I only park 1 car there.
The area in between is about as wide (or a bit more) as a 10-speed bike is long.

PS
Thank's for taking time to call your buddy and get a 'very rough' estimate on doing the bumper/fender for me.
It was the best price I had gotten (yes, I understand it was only an estimate and not a guarantee, and may have changed once he saw the car).
But as I mentioned in my PM to you, after I saw the other issues, I needed to just 'do the right thing' and fix all the other things.
...I'm kind of funny that way.
Do it right, or don't do it at all.
(Blame my dad for teaching me that [Beer])

Don't forget, you get what you pay for.. Those small projects can consume more time than one realizes, till it's done. The pride of workmanship and finished project negates everything else. Now hopefully the kid can keep this one intact.

[james_bond_007]

TIP #2 : When you use plastic to cover things from paint, use plastic sold as drop cloths

When I painted the car I covered the tires with clear plastic garbage bags, because the 33gal bags were just the right size.

For the first coat, everything worked great.

On the 2nd coat, all the overspray had dried on the bags from the first coat. When I hit it with paint and air on the 2nd coat, the paint came off of the bags and started flying around in flakes.

I stopped and removed the bags and used paper on the tires, tried to vacuum up all the loose flakes, re-tacked everything, and sprayed again.

Fortunately I caught it before I had dry paint flakes in my new paint.

I found that on the bumper covers (since I did them after the body) that using thin plastic painter's Drop Cloths to cover the saw horses worked well. The type of plastic they are made of seems to make paint adhere, so the second coat caused no undue 'flaking'.

I could have covered the tires with these if I knew about it ahead of time.

[zteknik]

Now did you use any circulating air through your paint booth? Meaning did you have an intake fan or /and exhaust fan?
I heard from a few guys that's what they did in their setups. I'm guessing that would keep unwanted particles from settling on the paint.
After seeing how yours came out I wouldn't mind trying on my own. I never got into the painting aspect-just the wrenching portion.

[james_bond_007]

Now did you use any circulating air through your paint booth? Meaning did you have an intake fan or /and exhaust fan?
I heard from a few guys that's what they did in their setups. I'm guessing that would keep unwanted particles from settling on the paint.
After seeing how yours came out I wouldn't mind trying on my own. I never got into the painting aspect-just the wrenching portion.

I did.

I bought 4 cheap furnace filters and installed them on the front end of the booth (by the hood), and put a box fax on the rear ( by the trunk), to pull air out and through.
I just taped the filters and fan onto the plastic from the outside of the booth, then cut the plastic off, from the inside. I had to make some 'wide feet' for the box fan to stabilize it from falling over when attached to the plastic. The booth 'moves' when the fan is turned on (gets sucked inward). With the fan directly attached, it had a tendency to fall over...so I added feet.

There are 2 camps: a) Fan on front, blowing in, and b) fan on rear, sucking out
(Probably could be a 3rd camp: fans on both ends, but I did not come across this- it was usually one end or the other)
This effects the booth. In (a) the booth will puff up, in (b) it will pull in, due to the partial vacuum.

I chose to to (b) as I felt the fan would be more efficient and under less load if it did not have to try and force air through a filter, directly on its output. Also If I did this, I would have needed one fan per filter, as it would make no sense to put a fan on one filter, and leave the other 3 open. The 3 would then be exhaust ports, not input ports, like the one with the fan. I would get NO airflow, front to back, then. By having the fan in the rear, sucking, I forced all 4 filters to be input ports, and at least defined the direction of airflow from front to back.

An issue with the booth was a 'door'. There are certainly better ways, but I just cut a slot in the side, so I could get in and out, overlapped the plastic, and re-taped it each time I got in an out. Not the easiest or most effective way. It needed to last for 12 in/outs, 1 in and 1 out for each coat of color and again for the clear. I had 3 coats color and 3 coats clear. Didthis for the body, and then repeated again for the plastic stuff (after the body was painted, I pulled the car out, and setup all the bumper covers and trim in the booth...and let in a batch of 'new' dirt).

I did not have a noticeable airflow (did not feel a breeze, but could see overspray being sucked slowly towards the fan), and probably should have used 1-2 more fans. But the booth DID suck in noticeably to where I had to re-tape some spots that came loose.
Likewise any places that were not taped well 'leaked' and brought in unfiltered air.

If you think that you can get a perfect dust-free environment like a real paint boot, you are sadly mistaken. IMHO it mostly provided an area to prevent overspray from getting all over the garage, and limited NEW dust from getting in. You never really got rid of the inherent dust that you 'trapped' into the booth or that you created from each coat's overspray.

The 'filtering' was minimal. In fact, the paint store and most online sources suggested to mist the whole booth down with water prior to painting. This was to try and keep the dirt and the over spray that had atomized, dried and settled on the booth to 'stick' in place, at least during spraying, until the new coat 'flashed'. This is another reason why you need to tack-off 'just' before painting the next coat. Most of what you tack-off is dried overspray that settled, from the last coat.

Another issue comes in on the next coats. Along with paint, you are blowing a lot of air around. The side effect is that you blow unwanted particles of dirt, dried paint, etc. around, as well. They have only one place to stick...onto the fresh paint. So try and minimize their ability to 'move around' by lightly wetting things down. Be careful not to wet (or lightly wet...I chose not to wet) the ceiling. You don't want drops forming and dripping onto your car's next coat.

The other BIG source of dirt is the car itself. You can wash and wet sand it, but as you often want paint to be spayed into edges, grooves, inside wheel well edges, and the bottom of rocker panels, the moving air is also going to loosen dirt particles from those areas, and blow them around....again landing in your wet paint.

This reminds me of another 'tip'

[james_bond_007]

TIP #3 : Sometimes you need to paper and tape areas to keep dirt down

Another source of dirt is the car itself. You can wash and wet sand it, but as you often want paint to be spayed into edges, grooves, inside wheel well edges, and the bottom of rocker panels, the moving air is also going to loosen dirt particles from those areas, and blow them around....again landing in your wet paint.

So sometime you need to do some papering and masking of areas, not to avoid overspray getting on them (you may not care if the inside of the wheel well gets painted or not), but rather to cover them and their dust/dirt, to prevent it from getting blown loose and getting in your paint.

If, when trying to tape off these areas, you have trouble getting paint to stick, it is because of the dirt that is present.

[james_bond_007]

...Now hopefully the kid can keep this one intact.

I'm more practical than that.
I drove it for a few weeks, because I thought it looked kind of 'cool' and to show it off to those that knew I was working on it.

During this time, I worked myself up to be comfortable that once I give it to him, it will NEVER be the same. He is not going to park in any distant spaces to avoid dings, like I did. Being on campus, it will probably get vandalized (keyed etc.) during someone's drunken stooper.

So, while I HOPE he will take care of it...I'm setting the bar low, for my own sanity.

Another thing that contributed to painting it was that he was on the "I need a new car" kick.
I made it clear that he wasn't getting one from me.
Tried to tell him his insurance would increase, he'd have bigger payments, etc.
But as he's in college, I would have gotten less frustrated talking to a 'potato'.

I told him I could spruce up this one (bumper/fender needed paint, headliner had dry-rotted and was hanging in pieces, seats were ripped/split).
That's all I was going to fix.
...until I saw the body damage (some was there when we bought the car new...but as I had not seen the car in a while, I had forgotten about it).
He really didn't do much damage to it since we bought it...so I've got more than 1/2 a chance he'll take care of it.

...and I got rid of his 'I need a new car' bug for well under a grand.
(I only wish I could do that as cheaply with my wife...)

[james_bond_007]

TIP #4 : Do some research online about what you should/should not get at Harbor Freight

Although Harbor Freight products are temptingly low-priced, be careful what you buy.

Some things are fine: Nitrile Gloves, Air Hose, Disposable Air Line Filters, paint suit, masking paper

Other Things are not : Sandpaper, some of the HVLP guns, tape, inline water/oil filter (leaked air)

I originally bought one of the Purple HVLP guns. I was unable to take it apart to clean the oil out of it (everything is oiled to prevent during transit) . When I took it back to the store, they exchanged it "No Questions Asked"; however, I asked the manager to 'test' it before I left. He was unable to disassemble it. He got a stocker (pretty good sized guy) to try...the guy bent the wrench trying to take off the fluid tip. We tried 3-4 others that were on the shelf...all the same. So the manager just gave me the best gun he had at the 'purple gun' price.

The 'chrome' HF gun I had worked pretty well. What I did not like was the fan-adjustment control. Although the pattern went from about 14/16" down to 1", it did so in only about 1/8 of a turn. Thus is wasn't very 'adjustment friendly'. The cup leaked (as attached to the gun) so I added some O-rings and teflon tape where the cup attached to the gun.

I tried to buy/rent/borrow a better gun, such as a Devilbis or SATA, but was not successful.

Sandpaper seemed a commodity item, and reasonable to buy at HF. The 64 grit paper-backed paper just crumbled when I tried it. The wet/dry paper lasted about 15 mins (wet) before turning to much. Contrast that with the 3M Wet/Dry (latex backed) paper that I left in a bucket of water for 2-3 weeks, and it still performed as if brand new.

Tape..tape is tape, right ? Wrong. The clear packing tape I used to seal the booth seemed to let go when the temp cooled off. The 'painting tape' just didn't stick well or prevent bleeding on the edges very well.
Likewise, the blue 3M tape (from Home depot) did a better job, but not as good as the Yellow 'automotive' tape from the paint store.

Also to mask off the rally stripes, I first used some vinyl FINELINE tape from 3M, for a crisp edge.

[james_bond_007]

Because I've gotten a few sarcastic messages from members about my "Self-Proclaiming to be an EXPERT after one job", I'd like to point readers to my statement at the bottom of POST #13 (https://www.ar-15.co/threads/132681-Auto-Painting?p=1737059&viewfull=1#post1737059)

I know that others may disagree, but these will be my opinions.
I wasn't an expert when I started
...and I'm not one now
...but I HAVE LEARNED A LOT.

I'm just trying to pass along some things that I would have done differently, or that I found made a helpful difference.
Maybe they can help you NOT make some of the mistakes I did .

Again, I am NOT an expert...

[buffalobo]

Because I've gotten a few sarcastic messages from members about my "Self-Proclaiming to be an EXPERT after one job", I'd like to point readers to my statement at the bottom of POST #13 (https://www.ar-15.co/threads/132681-Auto-Painting?p=1737059&viewfull=1#post1737059)


I'm just trying to pass along some things that I would have done differently, or that I found made a helpful difference.
Maybe they can help you NOT make some of the mistakes I did .

Again, I am NOT an expert...
Piss on them.

Project turned out great.[emoji106]