Q&a

[Faynt11]

hey guys,
so i have no apprentices at work to impart my knowledge on, so if you have any questions regarding paint prep/application, ask away!

[ari666]

ok. can i use 2k etch primer as primer?

[jujibelly]

Even better you can show your knowledge when you re-spray my car for free lmao.

Any water filter do? Or you get what you pay for?
Best way to touch up?

[Faynt11]

never use 2k etch as a primer! ever! it's only designed to go underneath a 2k primer, or a 2k non sanding primer.
i wouldn't recommend using a non sanding primer for a respray though, it will sink back. just buy a decent quality primer that self etches and leave your car sitting in primer for around a month for best results. i would apply 4-5 wet coats this should give you more than enough material to play with.

as for water filters, i've never needed one, my shop uses screw type compressors with inline water filters. i wouldn't cheap out though, as water in your job is a massive headache.

what do you want to touch up?
i would suggest doing a spot in if its on the edge of a bar or something, if its in the middle of a panel you'll need to paint the whole thing other wise it'll get messy.

spot ins are difficult, if you wanna try id get an old panel to practice on. here are the steps

1. using soft filler (also known as 2pack filler) lightly apply a skin over the scratch and allow to dry. it should only just cover it, if you put too much in you will leave ripples around the area.
2. using p400 dry block the filler flat making sure the the filled area is visible, but with the filler just covering the area.
3. prime with 2 thinned out coats of primer.
4. wet rub the primer with p600 for a solid or p800 for metallic.
5.rub the surrounding area ( around 15cm) with p1200 or 1500.
6. blow of the area and clean with wax and grease remover
7. mask up any area you dont want painted clean again.
8. wipe the area down with a tack cloth. (i recommend a gerson blue)
9. solid colour: apply 2 coats over the primer allowing 15mins for flash off in between coats with the second coats covering a larger area.
metallic: this is tricky, cover the primed area usually will take 2-3 wet coats. if you want to check it's covered properly turn off your lights and shine a torch on the painted area, it will show the primer if its not. next you will need to flick the colour out, this will take some practice. just flick your wrist out and only dust the colour on.
10. tack rag again. (metallic ONLY)
11. apply 2 coats of clear (metallic only) allowing 15mins in between. the 2nd coat should cover the entire rubbed area.
12. using a high quality thinner, or even better a blending thinner, apply a medium wet coat of thinner to the edge of the clear. be careful here as you will get runs if you over do it. which means a repaint.
13. drink a beer and admire what you have accomplished.

hope this helps guys!

[ari666]

hope this helps guys!

only if helping means letting me know i bought the wrong stuff

lol, thanks mate. looks like im off to go get some good primer.

[jujibelly]

That's pretty good advice, very comprehensive. Thanks.

[RvtRvx]

Ive got a question for you. I just bought a set of side skirts, a rear bumper and boot spoiler from a VX SS. They are all painted beige at the moment and I obviously want to get them painted to match my car (metallic blue VX). My question is how would i go about sanding back the old paint to the bare plastic (this saves alot of $$ the panel beaters) Im pretty handy with sandpaper and am confident that I can do it I just need to know where to start.

Cheers mate

[Zarconia]

Im looking to paint my interior soon with vinyl dye. What should i do to prep it? Should i use a primer? Sand it back?

Cheers

[Faynt11]

i wouldn't sand it back to plastic, this will require it to be primed, if you wanna just rub it for painting, use p400 on a whizzer or p800 wet by hand. but only if they are in good condition, if they're a little worse for wear they'll need to be primed and rubbed again.

as for vinyl dye i have no idea. it's not an area i have dealt with. sounds like something a trimmer would do. but if you want to paint plastic parts rub with p800 wet or p500 dry by hand then use a plastic primer. protec make one at a reasonable price, then paint away.

[ari666]

dear faynt11:
i was wondering what the best way to prepare a surface for bog would be. is it ok to bog over old paint, or does it all have to be sanded back to metal? can you bog over hi-fill. and what is the best way of stopping pin holes from happening.

also, on the pin holes point, why is it when i run fine filler over pin holes. it seems like they fill up then the filler lifts out of the holes once the applicator goes past them.

thanks

[Faynt11]

you can use fine filler over paint, that's its intended purpose, the other bog should only be used on bare metal. however i've used it on paint before and didn't run into problems. if you're putting bog over paint a quick buzz with p240 will do the trick and a hand sand in the dent for good measure. getting pinholes is mostly from the way you're mixing it up. try not to fold the bog over itself to much when mixing if you know what i mean. also it could be the way its being applied to the panel. filling pinholes can be annoying, try blowing the area of first the 'pulling' the fine filler in from at least 2 different directions, this should help push the air out that's trapped inside. even try applying it with a single sided razor blade one at a time. oh and yes bogging over hifill is fine provided it's fine filler.

[ari666]

dear faynt11:

is there a certain period i should wait inbetween laying down bog and then laying down fine filler? i noticed that bog can get very warm in the curing process, and was wondering if it would mess up anything that went over the top, if applied too quickly.

cheers

[Faynt11]

i don't think so, i've never heard of anything like that before. it would say something on the tin if it did.

[ari666]

it would say something on the tin if it did.

yeah true. was just a passing though. cos i sometimes apply one coat of bog, then slap another coat right on top of it.

[ari666]

dear faynt11:

i have been told elsewhere that hi-fill is hydroscopic and if a car is in hi-fill it should never be driven around due to it absorning water.

now based on that, have i totally stuffed up by wet sanding the hi-fill back before painting? i mean, it wasnt dripping wet, and by the time i got to actually laying paint on it was dry to the touch, but could it have absorbed the water from blocking back and eventually rust from underneath?

cheers again.

[Faynt11]

it is, however, this only means you shouldn't leave it exposed to water for extended periods. there's no harm in wet rubbing! its the best way to rub. if you're really worried though, try dry blocking with p180 then buzzing with p320 using a soft pad (or interface pd if your paint supplier is a douchebag) then finish with p800 wet, it's quicker and gives the wet rub finish.

[Faynt11]

* interface pad

[ari666]

dear faynt11

crazy idea number 56438789

1. what brand of clear would you recommend to go over white so it doesnt make it yellowy, where would i get it from and how much would it be?

2. i have some coarse fleck silver, which is largely fleck, and a little bit of silver paint, and i noticed when i was playing with a model car, that if i mixed the silver with clear, it didnt change the colour, just added some really nice sparkles to it. so was thinking i could get some clear, mix in some silver paint and go over the high opacity white i just painted the VK.

would it look crap? lol. is there a fleck you can add to clear? what is it worth roughly? i have glitter but its wayyyyy too coarse and makes the clear all lumpy (i sprayed my bar fridge) plus it generally sits in the bottom of the cup and doesnt come out even, so have given up on the idea of using it.

thanks again

[mint]

A mate of mine has been given an old van (which is OK body & mechanically) which has been used by someone to unsuccessfully learn to spraypaint. I mean this van puts the definition of orange peel into a new league. There must be at least 2mm of paint on the thing. Apparently it was done with a proper auto lacquer. He doesn't know where to start.

Question: What would you do? PS - the colour itself isn't too foul, can you possibly just cut it back somehow? OR what';s involved in the prep for a new finish coat/s?

Appreciate your help in saving this nice old van!

[ari666]

if the paint is thick enough, you can just block it back. spray on some cheap arse black spray paint, then once its dry get a bucket of water and some 800 on a sanding block and rub it till the little low spots are all gone, then finish it with 1000, then 2000 then buff it.

[Faynt11]

ari,
sorry for the late reply.
1. if you've got the coin i'd recommend glasurit 2k hs clear 923-255 it's pricey but worth every penny
2. i've never used the silver fleck and hopefully will never have to as i'm very very against it. just my opinion though.
i think you should be able to buy it from just about any paint shop. adding basecoat to the clear is a bit of a no-no as it doesn't sit evenly and can 'pull' on the clear when you're spraying. if you get a run its re-paint time. what you could do though is add a little powder pearl to the clear (about 5%) and spray it on. this will work well but you'll have to walk the sides when painting to get the pearl on evenly.

hope this helps.
-dean

[Faynt11]

-mint

i would buzz it back with p400 then give it a p800 wet rub mask it up and paint away.

[Boostedn14]

mmmmmmmm glasurit.....

[ari666]

yeah i have only heard good things about it, but where would i get it and realistically, how much would i be looking at for an "off the street" sale?

[Boostedn14]

dear faynt11

crazy idea number 56438789

1. what brand of clear would you recommend to go over white so it doesnt make it yellowy, where would i get it from and how much would it be?

2. i have some coarse fleck silver, which is largely fleck, and a little bit of silver paint, and i noticed when i was playing with a model car, that if i mixed the silver with clear, it didnt change the colour, just added some really nice sparkles to it. so was thinking i could get some clear, mix in some silver paint and go over the high opacity white i just painted the VK.

would it look crap? lol. is there a fleck you can add to clear? what is it worth roughly? i have glitter but its wayyyyy too coarse and makes the clear all lumpy (i sprayed my bar fridge) plus it generally sits in the bottom of the cup and doesnt come out even, so have given up on the idea of using it.

thanks again

Sounds as though you weren't using a stabilising clear to keep the glitter suspended whilst spraying, all glitter will cause lumps, you just have to sand and buff (check my members ride with my VN) But once its chopped and buffed, it looks good.