tried my hand at auto painting
    15 years
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A couple weeks ago I noticed a plastic piece gone from my garage queen.
It covers where the tow eye would screw into the bumper, a plastic piece.
It only comes primed, so I had to pay $24 for the piece and $54 for paint on eBay, base and clear.
What I suspected is the case.
I always wondered why you can see a nice car on a sunny day, and the repaint/respray/body work is so obvious. I'm talking brand new like a Mercedes S class etc.
At any rate I sprayed this tiny plastic pre-primed piece and put 3 coats on it. It looked really good even in an iPhone pic.
Then I got to the clear coat. It looked like I applied a coat of milk to the piece. Jumped on google and it said clear should not be applied when raining as humidity turns the clear to a milky appearance.
Solutions were to resand it off (oh no) or attempt to use a heat gun to heat it up.
I heated the piece up with a hair dryer and amazingly it cleared.
Once all was said and done? It's about as good as those cars I mentioned above where you can spot the body work. But since it's a small object on the bumper, probably only I will truly know it was resprayed. But I can see painting is an art. Those restos on Graveyard Carz are something.
The name of the game I think is multiple very thin coats, time between drying, and tons of waste to be able to get that thin coat...
Also, I know this spray paint was created with a computer at a body shop. It is in theory perfectly matched. But it is not on a car that was produced 15 1/2 years ago.
Add sanding to the mix
To get a really good paint job, you need to wet sand between coats. This takes a long time to do and is one of the reasons that body shop work is so expensive. But, if you want a good job, you have to take the time to do it right.
With God, all things are possible. ——State motto of the Great State of Ohio
well
Painting a car is easy. As a kid (20) I painted my 56 Chev with spray paint cans. Did it look good? Well maybe not to some people, but it was good enough for me living on a military paycheck, and it covered the bondo where the dents were....
With today's car paints it takes skill to apply the coats, and prep work is what makes it happen.
I never get lost, but I do explore new territory every now and then.
I agree....
wet sanding is key.
RKF (Brookeville, MD) Garmin Nuvi 660, 360 & Street Pilot
Back In The Day..
Earl Sheib would paint an entire car for $29.95:
https://www.nwfdailynews.com/story/special/2017/01/17/cars-w...
hahaha
Painting a car is easy. As a kid (20) I painted my 56 Chev with spray paint cans. Did it look good? Well maybe not to some people, but it was good enough for me living on a military paycheck, and it covered the bondo where the dents were....
With today's car paints it takes skill to apply the coats, and prep work is what makes it happen.
I have a buddy that painted his impala with house paint and a roller, wouldn't win any contests, but it worked.
. 2 Garmin DriveSmart 61 LMT-S, Nuvi 2689, 2 Nuvi 2460, Zumo 550, Zumo 450, Uniden R3 radar detector with GPS built in, includes RLC info. Uconnect 430N Garmin based, built into my Jeep. .
when I
Earl Sheib would paint an entire car for $29.95:
https://www.nwfdailynews.com/story/special/2017/01/17/cars-we-remember-reader-recalls-earl-scheib-paint-centers-and-seeks-recommendation-on-touch-up-paint/22653672007/
Was a kid it was Maaco. My understanding is they didn't do a very good job and it was a franchise.
So when the lower radiator support on my Nissan collapsed (imho Japanese cars are not that great when it comes to corrosion), I called Maaco. Guy said from what you describe you're likely looking at $700 to $900. Since the car was only 10 years old (go figure the engine will last 50 but the body 10), I thought definitely worth it. I go down and he says whoa, that's at least $1800 and to be honest if my car I would just let the engine fall out, I wouldn't spend it.
Good thing a forum member fixed it for $130 (they cut out the corroded part, installed an angle iron sleeve, welded it, then reattached the subframe, all for $130 lol), but that's the last time I thought Maaco was cheap. Maaco, Aamco, all those franchises imho are not as good as indies.
Don't spray outside at night
Years ago my husband spray painted a truck at night. All was going well till he brought the light up next to the door to see how it was coming along. The bugs followed the light and landed in the wet paint. It kept us laughing for many a year when we talked about it!
Mary, Nuvi 2450, Garmin Viago, Honda Navigation, Nuvi 750 (gave to son)
haha
Years ago my husband spray painted a truck at night. All was going well till he brought the light up next to the door to see how it was coming along. The bugs followed the light and landed in the wet paint. It kept us laughing for many a year when we talked about it!
That is classic!
OK, I'm now convinced, you are truly not going to get the results desired, from a spray can, but there is nothing else that can be done.
In my case, a $23 piece of plastic was gone. It would be outlandish to have the entire car repainted with a new plastic piece lol
But now I see the shade is in fact darker (the instructions with the paint warn of this, really), and, it's super difficult to not have that effect when looked at closely, that it's thicker than it should be and the reflection is not like a mirror. Sorta like normal body work that is seen on repaired cars. If a body shop can't do it, why would I, from a spray can? But there is no alternative so I accept it.
painted his VW with a brush
...
OK, I'm now convinced, you are truly not going to get the results desired, from a spray can, but there is nothing else that can be done.
...
A buddy who is expert at wooden boat maintenance painted his VW with a brush. It looked sprayed.
I saw
...
OK, I'm now convinced, you are truly not going to get the results desired, from a spray can, but there is nothing else that can be done.
...
A buddy who is expert at wooden boat maintenance painted his VW with a brush. It looked sprayed.
A Chevy 3100 in a parade yesterday, and the paint job looked like a new car. No unevenness, thickness, change in reflection. Seems to be totally a function of time and cost I guess.
Again, people who work in body shops know the secret....
I saw a Lincoln on display at a mall, brand new with window sticker, and it clearly has had body work and the paint looks bad (to me in a reflection). Imagine the person who gets that car...