Respraying front end...tips/advice please?

[mattsrea]

Hey guys, i'm planning on respraying my facelift front end and was wondering if you got any advice on what thinners i should use, how big should the nozzle be when spraying and how to achieve the factory shinyness as close as possible?
Some info that you may need
I've got
- Spray gun kit/air compressor from SCA (very cheap)
- Cutting Compound (no polish inside it)
- Clear Coat
- Primer Surfacer and Plastic Adhesion

I'm getting this weekend
- Paint
- Thinners (not sure which one)

Also for the guards is it necessary to strip it to bare metal? I've only sanded most of the paint off using 120gritt and its really smooth.

Thanks for the help.

[DriftKnightX]

for 2pak primer nozzle would be around 1.8mm or bigger since primer is pretty thick, base coat and clear coat is 1.4mm pretty sure
as for sanding aslong as the previous paint was in good nick you dont need to sand it back to bare metal
get protective gear too! 2pak is hazardous! mask goggles and overalls if possible!
you'll need an air pressure regulator and filter to get the moisture out of the air.
and for paints theres the 2pak primer, basecoat, clearcoat and reducers and hardeners
the tins should tell you what ratio to mix it to aswell
and try spray it in a closed off place, wet floor to prevent dust from flying up onto your job and keep it well ventilated, it gets really foggy haha
but yeah there is quite abit of information you'll need to consider!

LearnAutoBodyAndPaint.com
that website has some pretty good videos that should answer most of your questions too! and a free book (y)

please correct me if i say something wrong but thats from the top of my head haha

[mocchi]

A 37-year-old male, self-employed car painter was admitted to the hospital with asthma symptoms. These symptoms had first started five years earlier and even then were thought to be related to his occupation. Apparently shop conditions were poor and he was not trained and/or decided not to adopt safe working habits or use protective personal equipment. He had been working in the same work environment for more than 20 years.

The man was diagnosed by a doctor with occupational asthma “induced by Isocyanates”. Medical experts advised him to change his job or avoid the use of two part or catalyzed polyurethane paints. In spite of the advice, he continued to work. He used medications such as bronchodilators, cromolyn, and steroids to self medicate and treat his condition.

Six years later, and in spite of doctors’ recommendations, the painter was still working. While spraying a car with an isocyanate paint, he developed a more severe, prolonged asthma condition. Despite medication, he remained symptomatic, especially at night. When he returned to work and sprayed the polyurethane paint yet again, he suffered a severe asthma attack. He died in the ambulance enroute to the hospital.
http://www.sp2.org/newsletters/sp2vol1iss8/sp2vol1iss8topic.php

i wonder if i could get away by just spraying once lol

[EKVTIR-T]

http://www.sp2.org/newsletters/sp2vol1iss8/sp2vol1iss8topic.php

i wonder if i could get away by just spraying once lol
M8 dont play russian roulette,its not worth

[integraR]

Would recommend using acrylic rather than 2pac

2pac is toxic and you can't fix mistakes like you do with acrylic

[mattsrea]

Yeah i bought the acrylic rather then 2pac because i heard bad things about it if you don't have the right gear and especially when your a first timer.
I got 1L worth of acrylic (colour coded) from autobahn and 1L acrylic thinner. If i have time this weekend i'll respray the whole front end. Got all my prep done.
What nozle do you recommend for acrylic? I was thinking the bigger the more area you cover, the better but i'm not too sure.

[MACDOG]

Good choice on the acrylic, heard somewhere that 2pak was illegal unless you were in a properly ventilated booth. You can use the 1.8 nozzle, or even 2.0 - I prefer the 1.8, but give both a test if you want. Its important that your prep work is 100%, like that say.. its all in the preparation. Anything that is not 100% will be shown though the last coat, so don't spray unless you're happy with the way the base coat went down, etc.

[mattsrea]

Good choice on the acrylic, heard somewhere that 2pak was illegal unless you were in a properly ventilated booth. You can use the 1.8 nozzle, or even 2.0 - I prefer the 1.8, but give both a test if you want. Its important that your prep work is 100%, like that say.. its all in the preparation. Anything that is not 100% will be shown though the last coat, so don't spray unless you're happy with the way the base coat went down, etc.

Yep sure thanks alot for the advice.

Also about mixing the acrylic with thinner, in this type of weather (like 14-16 degrees) what ratio would be recommended? The guys at autobahn said 1-1 but i just want to clarify.

[chauster]

Hey guys, i'm planning on respraying my facelift front end and was wondering if you got any advice on what thinners i should use, how big should the nozzle be when spraying and how to achieve the factory shinyness as close as possible?
Some info that you may need
I've got
- Spray gun kit/air compressor from SCA (very cheap)
- Cutting Compound (no polish inside it)
- Clear Coat
- Primer Surfacer and Plastic Adhesion

I'm getting this weekend
- Paint
- Thinners (not sure which one)

Also for the guards is it necessary to strip it to bare metal? I've only sanded most of the paint off using 120gritt and its really smooth.

Thanks for the help.

- Spray gun kit/air compressor from SCA (very cheap)
LOL your tiny air comp isnt enough to spray a whole car. Have fun. Without a properly setup air cmop you'll get water in your lines and ends up in your paint and you'll end up with crap all over it. SCA guns are a joke also.

If you're rubbing your gaurds back to bare metal you need to use rust prevention aswell as etch primer for bare metals. Then rub it back and apply 2k Primer filler.

Don't buy cheap paint. Cheap paint is sheeittt and doesnt go on well. Whatever brand paint you buy you should buy the same thinners from them. Some brands of thinners dont mix with base/clear.

Only put plastic adhesion on base plastic. Not a bumper bar with paint on already. Any questions ask away.

[mattsrea]

- Spray gun kit/air compressor from SCA (very cheap)
LOL your tiny air comp isnt enough to spray a whole car. Have fun. Without a properly setup air cmop you'll get water in your lines and ends up in your paint and you'll end up with crap all over it. SCA guns are a joke also.

If you're rubbing your gaurds back to bare metal you need to use rust prevention aswell as etch primer for bare metals. Then rub it back and apply 2k Primer filler.

Don't buy cheap paint. Cheap paint is sheeittt and doesnt go on well. Whatever brand paint you buy you should buy the same thinners from them. Some brands of thinners dont mix with base/clear.

Only put plastic adhesion on base plastic. Not a bumper bar with paint on already. Any questions ask away.

Yeah i got some statements to add, um i'm not respraying my whole car i'm just doing my front bar and guards. And how you said "Whatever brand paint you buy you should buy the same thinners from them. Some brands of thinners dont mix with base/clear." i bought my acrylic and thinner from autobahn so is that good enough?

Also what you said last "Only put plastic adhesion on base plastic. Not a bumper bar with paint on already. Any questions ask away.", since my front bar was in good nik i gave it a soft (not hard) rub with 400 grtt sandpaper. Now i was going to put adhesion on it so it'll "stick" but now that you mentioned that, what do you suggest? Because i was planning on following an ej8 squad member.

[chauster]

plastic adhesion is got bare plastic. if its already painted just rub it wet 800 grit and paint. Get all those 400 grit marks out that will ruin you.

You bought acrylic paint? God be with you. autobahn is concept paint i think? tell me what you have already

[mattsrea]

plastic adhesion is got bare plastic. if its already painted just rub it wet 800 grit and paint. Get all those 400 grit marks out that will ruin you.

You bought acrylic paint? God be with you. autobahn is concept paint i think? tell me what you have already

Omg for real? At the moment the bar is like black with white marks from the sanding everywhere :\ Can i still fix it by sanding 800 then just painting ontop? Because i havent taken out any of the black paint yet.

And i dunno if autobahn is concept paint or not sorry.
Well at the moment i got colour coded paint mix (in a tin - 1L) and thinner to go along with it from autobahn, some 400, 800 and 1500 sandpaper, primer/clear coat (in can) and the spray gun/air comp.

[chauster]

autobahn is concept paint 100% lol. its cheap paint that i dont like. if you've got rough marks in your bar just 800 wet. make sure you give it a very good detailed rub.

[chauster]

write you details how to do it later. busy atm

[mattsrea]

autobahn is concept paint 100% lol. its cheap paint that i dont like. if you've got rough marks in your bar just 800 wet. make sure you give it a very good detailed rub.
Aww well i'll see how the paint goes after i do my guards. But yeah i'll also give my bar a wet sand back to 800. Should i primer or just spray the green paint ontop?
Thanks for your fast response too :)

[chauster]

What you should have done
Rub everything in 800 grit wet and paint.
No primer no extra adhesion promoter
nothing needed

What you need to do now
Assuming you have 2x guard in 120 grit and 1x bumper bar cover in 400 grit;
Sand the rest of the guards in 120grit until you think its even and not ripply.
Making sure you dont have any rough edges you can feel. The whole panel needs to be smooth edges.
Hit that with 3 coats of primer filler mixing at 4:1 10% ratio. That means 4 parts primer 1 part harder and 10% thinners
Let the paint flash off 10 minutes inbetween coats.
Assuming you dont have an oven to bake your guards you'll need to let that rest for a day to dry.
then rub it all back with 400 grit lightly then followed by a very detailed 800 grit rub.
Then you need to clean your guard with wax and grease remover to get rid of silicone and grease on your panel.
After that you can then paint!
2-4 coats of colour 1:1 mixing ratio letting 5-10 minutes inbetween coats.
then you got your clear 2 coats of it again 10 minutes inbetween coats. Leave that in a LOW dust area to dry.
Done


For your Bumper bar cover just do the same thing from where i mentions 400 grit

GL!

[mattsrea]

What you should have done
Rub everything in 800 grit wet and paint.
No primer no extra adhesion promoter
nothing needed

What you need to do now
Assuming you have 2x guard in 120 grit and 1x bumper bar cover in 400 grit;
Sand the rest of the guards in 120grit until you think its even and not ripply.
Making sure you dont have any rough edges you can feel. The whole panel needs to be smooth edges.
Hit that with 3 coats of primer filler mixing at 4:1 10% ratio. That means 4 parts primer 1 part harder and 10% thinners
Let the paint flash off 10 minutes inbetween coats.
Assuming you dont have an oven to bake your guards you'll need to let that rest for a day to dry.
then rub it all back with 400 grit lightly then followed by a very detailed 800 grit rub.
Then you need to clean your guard with wax and grease remover to get rid of silicone and grease on your panel.
After that you can then paint!
2-4 coats of colour 1:1 mixing ratio letting 5-10 minutes inbetween coats.
then you got your clear 2 coats of it again 10 minutes inbetween coats. Leave that in a LOW dust area to dry.
Done


For your Bumper bar cover just do the same thing from where i mentions 400 grit

GL!

Alright thanks for the detailed write up man, i'm gonna give this a go this weekend if i'm not too busy since i got uni. I'd rep you if i could but i dunno how to lol

[mocchi]

hes using acrylic chauwau, no hardener there

[chauster]

lol acrylic