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  #31  
Old 04-04-2011, 06:26 PM
jmk jmk is offline
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That checking is one place where I would strip then try to sand smooth w/o upsetting the ecoat.

Your fender looks a lot nicer. You seem to be getting the hang of spraying. Just make sure you do not put too much basecoat on, or you will see some of the checking you saw before.

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  #32  
Old 04-06-2011, 11:28 PM
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Nice work so far!!! The hours spent keep getting longer as you go on, so don't get burnt out! Putting it all back together is another chore!

After this brown guide coats are you going to spray one last primer coat and block it out? I think that will provde a good final sand and straightness.

I saw in one of the pics the sanding block you were using... 5" or so. I'd recommend a longer block (8" or longer) for all the large surfaces. The criss cross pattern will make it straight as can be. A small sanding block can leave a wavy body more easily.

Yes - Painting outside in Spring is much better. I did mine in Fall, and while the temps were great the bugs were still around !!


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  #33  
Old 04-07-2011, 02:36 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 1stbenznc View Post
Nice work so far!!! The hours spent keep getting longer as you go on, so don't get burnt out! Putting it all back together is another chore!

After this brown guide coats are you going to spray one last primer coat and block it out? I think that will provde a good final sand and straightness.

I saw in one of the pics the sanding block you were using... 5" or so. I'd recommend a longer block (8" or longer) for all the large surfaces. The criss cross pattern will make it straight as can be. A small sanding block can leave a wavy body more easily.

Yes - Painting outside in Spring is much better. I did mine in Fall, and while the temps were great the bugs were still around !!


Thanks for the tips - I have been using my longer Eastwood true flat block as well!
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

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  #34  
Old 04-07-2011, 02:55 AM
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My tips so far

I thought I'd add some of my tips from the perspective of someone who has only ever painted wood and stone before! (I've only ever done house painting)

When you paint bare wood you sand it and lay down a primer. This is similar to what you do with car paint. However, with wood paint when you add another layer the first layer doesn't get disturbed. If you make a mistake with wood paint you can wipe it off with a rag. If you try this with car paint you'll find that the new layer of paint behaves more like paint stripper - you'll wipe back to bare metal.

The same can be said for decent quality filler. So my number one tip is:-

When painting with car paint don't touch it until it is dry.

Further, when you are planning to sand a surface make sure that it is really dry and hard. In temperatures below 15 degrees Celsius you will struggle to get a hard surface within a few days - so don't bother - wait until it gets warmer or move to a nice warm place.

Also when sanding - cleanliness is very important - start off with a clean surface, and whilst sanding remove as much sludge was possible from the surface you are sanding and the paper on your sanding block.

Don't forget that when you are sanding you are scratching the surface - the size / depth of the scratches that you will make will be proportional to the grit size of the sand paper and the chunks of gunk that you remove during the sanding process.

If like me you are normally sanding wood - forget about 80 grit! Start out with a really fine sand paper - say 800 grit - and then see if that removes enough of the surface for you or not. And don't forget, always use loads of water to clean as you go.

So far I have found that different light sources give different impressions of your finished product - LED lights and flashes on cameras seem to show up patchiness, whilst bright sunlight tends to show up scratches better if you move your line of vision about a bit.

When spraying you do indeed need to be a bit more like a robot than like an artist - spray in parallel overlapping lines. However, when spraying, spray like you are the stingiest meanest person on the planet. Use as little paint as possible. The plan is to use just enough paint to cover the surface and not a drop more.

I can see that a good sprayer could improve the look of a rough surface - but if the surface isn't as smooth as a baby's backside then you're unlikely to be able to correct the roughness with a spray gun. I therefore think that it is harder to sand than it is to spray.

My penultimate tip is to find a safe place to store drying panels if you have removed them from the car. Car paint spends an awful lot of the time being soft and weak - if you are not careful you'll be redoing a lot of your hard work because you've dropped something on it...

And my best tip of all? Be patient. If you are in a hurry - don't start to paint your car.
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!

Last edited by Stretch; 04-07-2011 at 02:06 PM. Reason: Added more information
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  #35  
Old 04-07-2011, 03:43 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Army View Post
I can see that a good sprayer could improve the look of a rough surface - but if the surface isn't as smooth as a baby's backside then you're unlikely to be able to correct the roughness with a spray gun. I therefore think that it is harder to sand than it is to spray.

And my best tip of all? Be patient. If you are in a hurry - don't start to paint your car.
Very true! Body work is 90% Preparation. Sweat, blood and sore muscles.

Sand, sand and sand some more. I don't know how many times I told my wife I will be done in a week or so. If I didn't have the help of my father-in-law for several weeks it would still not be finished.

I did find that a couple hundred dollars paid to a ding and dent guy to remove a bunch of the initial dings makes for a easier time during the body work and less chance for errors, misses, waves etc. I missed several dings and small dents on my tailgate for some reason. After all that work, it really pissed me off. I had a ding and dent guy fix them all after the fact in 30 minutes, for $100. That's when the thought came to do them in advance.
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  #36  
Old 04-08-2011, 01:56 PM
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Ahh dings and dents... yeah well we'll all see in the end if mine are still detectable... Oh to live in a country where you can get few little things fixed for a small fee - here everyone tries to take home a thousand euros a day, which makes even the smallest job seriously expensive.

Hey 1stbenznc I take it you went from white to blue? Have you any pictures of your work online?
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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  #37  
Old 04-08-2011, 11:39 PM
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With the guide coat you are doing and all the sanding, you should be in the clear and looking great! I rushed the rear tailgate and thats when the errors happened!!

I am just about done putting the interior back together and hope to do a final photo shoot and make a few posts about it. One will be of the body work.

I basically stripped the car down as much as possible. The only thing on the exterior that I didn't pull was the two roof racks.....and I should have. Painting behind them was a pain and came out a litlte thin. Otherwise, very pleased with a backyard paint job. I showed a couple painters and couldn't believe I did it. They said it was about a $5000-$6000 job with the detail put in and body upgrade to 1995.

I had to jam the whole car going from white to Blue so all weather stripping came off as well as bumpers, handles, grill, rear glass (3). The only white is behind the headlights and in the engine bay.

Believe me, nothing is free or cheap here either. Many shops wanting outrageous fees for work and time.

Keep it going!!!
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  #38  
Old 04-09-2011, 07:19 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 1stbenznc View Post
... I showed a couple painters and couldn't believe I did it. They said it was about a $5000-$6000 job ...
Now ya talking - nice!

(Go on post some pictures somewhere)
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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  #39  
Old 04-13-2011, 08:09 AM
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I'm still having fun - how are you doing today?

Attached Thumbnails
I've taken your advice and started to paint!-w123-rear-end-stripped.jpg  
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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  #40  
Old 04-13-2011, 10:11 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Army View Post
I now seem to be bursting out more air than paint - even though it does seem to be coming out at a steady rate.
I'm not sure if you figured this out, but in some cases the hole on the cap of the spray gun can get blocked and this creates a vacuum inside the paint cub which can cause this exact problem (ask me how I know).
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  #41  
Old 04-13-2011, 02:22 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alabbasi View Post
I'm not sure if you figured this out, but in some cases the hole on the cap of the spray gun can get blocked and this creates a vacuum inside the paint cub which can cause this exact problem (ask me how I know).
Oh right - I'll keep an eye on that - thanks
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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  #42  
Old 04-15-2011, 11:49 AM
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Nice job on the fenders...
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  #43  
Old 04-20-2011, 08:50 AM
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The madness continues?

Here's a picture some of you may enjoy.



And yes - I'm still having fun!
Attached Thumbnails
I've taken your advice and started to paint!-mad-max.jpg  
__________________
1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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  #44  
Old 05-23-2011, 03:19 AM
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An alternative method

I've been chatting (off topic) with tomscat1 on the subject of the paint on his W115 in this thread:-

Looking For Diesel Guidance

He's suggested I take a look at this =>

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

Now this looks like a super quick way to get a pretty decent finish. It is surprising what you can do with thick paint and a buffer!
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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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  #45  
Old 05-23-2011, 07:27 AM
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Update

After a bit of a POR15 tie coat primer panic => POR15 tie coat primer panic!

I've made some sort of progress. The sides and rear end of the car have been sanded clean of the tie coat primer and a new layer of POR15 self etch primer has been applied. Next a bit of fine surface filler and high build primer and finally another layer of primer over the top to seal all of that in...



And then as the weather is still OK a first coat of colour (drum roll)

Attached Thumbnails
I've taken your advice and started to paint!-back-primer-again.jpg   I've taken your advice and started to paint!-first-bit-colour.jpg  

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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!
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