I'm getting ready to rip out my little D16 and while it's out, I'm going to prep/paint the car. I've never done any body work, or painting so I need as much info as possible. So, to those who've done bodywork/painting before...

1) What tools should I look forward to purchasing/renting for prepping of the car
2) What is involved in prepping the car's body (metal)
3) Same as above, but for plastic parts...(bumpers need replacing)
4) where can I rent a paint gun to start learning with?

Any other info would be greatly appreciated as well.

Who knows, it might end up looking really shitty, but, I want to learn. I mean it's the 2nd reason for buying this car. First, being a cheap track project...

Thanks for the help!

 

LOTS of sandpaper and primer....... some bondo for those small easy to fix dings and dents..... a bucket of water for your wet sanding..... (wet sanding turns out nicer and alot cleaner and your sandpaper lasts longer.) dont practice on your car go find a spare fender to practice on . Use lots of light coats instead of 1 or 2 really thick ones... Sand --> Primer --> Paint

 

Thanks for the reply.

Anyone else?

 

First off- I take no responsibility for shitty paint jobs
Ok- there is really are tons of ways to prep. First off I agree with DelSol808- practice on something other then your car first, it will help tremendously. This is how I was taught and how did mine summarized.
First- get all the supplies you need. Body filler or body filler glaze depending on size of dents and dings, primer, various sand paper- something like 180,220,320,500 and 2000 grit. Get the paint and clear (assuming its a basecoat clearcoat as most Hondas are). and there are other various small things. Go to a shop that sells auto paint and they will give you everything you need for your project, just try to get everything you think will need to complete it the first time- having to go back and get little by little will nickel and dime you to death. Trust me!
Just to let you know most of the things you spray on will have an activator and reducer, make sure they get you all of that. Also pick up some laquer thinner (to clean paint gun) and wax and grease remover. You can find a decent paint gun at reasonable price at Sears or even at a pawn shop. Get a high volume, low pressure gun. Not an older syphon feed.
The easiest way to learn to do bodywork is to have someone who knows show you and hope that they learned the right way. It is simply too difficult to explain IMO. Basically- you sand to the metal the dent and a small area around it. Clean it, mix the body filler (dont be cheap make sure you get good lightweight bodyfiller), get a plastic spreading device (they sell them at the paint store) and try to use the body lines to spread the filler over the dent. Let it dry and come back with sand paper (say 180 grit) on a block and sand down evenly. Bodywork may take a long, long, time and may take several attempts to get one spot pretty close to perfect, but have patience- it pays off.
Once you complete all the body work it would be best for a good paint job to block sand the whole car- yes I know its time consuming but Civics are not too large. Sanding may take some practice, just remember dont push hard on the block when sanding. You dont want to dig into the body, try to use the body lines to sand evenly. And also when sanding and block sanding dont sand in just one direction, go from all different angles- especially when using a block.
After the car is sanded, wipe it down to clean it with Wax and grease remover. Do this before every step of spraying. Now after mixing the primer comes the hard part. Spraying just takes practice, its good to have someone who knows show you. Primer is something you want to spray pretty wet, you will know this while spraying by being able to see it glisten in light, not look dull. If it sprays dry, you will get rough primer.
Once you have primered the car, you need to wet sand with a block again with 320 until smooth. Dont sand too hard- you might sand through the primer. If you want a really good paint job- primer it again and wet sand with 500 until it is incredibly smooth.
Now you are ready to paint. Set up a booth large enough to for you to spray the whole car and keep dust out. Once again spraying the car is easiest learned from observation. Just to let you know, base coat should be sprayed on more lightly than the primer, same with clearcoat.
There are many little steps involved in between each process and it may be easier for you to buy a book. This post is almost as freakin long as a book though . At all times of spraying primer, paint and clearcoat make sure you wear a mask and have proper airflow. Also try paint in an area that is as dust free as possible. I hope this helped some.
-Brent


[Modified by ill phil, 10:42 AM 8/14/2002]

 

Sorry for the last post being so long - its just a lot of stuff that would have helped me before I learned on my car .

 

Good stuff.

 

Couple of things I forgot-
When painting the bumpers you may need an adhesion promotor for the primer to stick properly otherwise you may have peeling bumper paint. You may also want to ask the paint people if there is enough flex in the clearcoat- you may need some flex additive as well.
As far as buffing goes- still learning that one, only some paint guys can buff really well. I should be learning a new technique soon, I'll let you know.


[Modified by ill phil, 10:42 AM 8/14/2002]

 

Werd. Thanks a ton for the great post. I plan to practice on a spare fender, then after I feel confident I'll do things like the underside of the hood, inside the car, etc.

Thanks again.

Oh yeah, anyone else?

 

wow...seems like he about covered it...I would go with a 400 grit before priming...then at least a 1200 before the basecoat and a 1500 or better to wetsand the clear

 

Moblack, wow, I didn't know you posted here.

 

Yeah I agree, it just depends on how much work you want to put into it. Right now I'm sanding the clear coat with a 1500 grit to break down any orange peel or dust int he clear and finish with 2000 grit before it gets buffed.

 

also.. try to get good paint.. like PPG, do not go cheap and buy sherwin williams paint or other paint.. or it will show over time.
One question though.. my body shop told me not to wetsand it.. as it takes a little bit of the clearcoat off.. and will not last as long. How much clearcoat can it possibly take out??

 

isn't there a place where you can take your car to get the dents removed without bonda, I think its called dentology in fontana. I have had bonda put on my car and it comes out noticable. I heard its not too expensive.


[Modified by jdmtypeRhb, 6:34 PM 8/17/2002]

 

As far as sanding the clearcoat- I'm using 2000 grit to wetsand the clear. The body guy who painted my car and everything said that at the most IF i sand REALLY hard it could sand down at most 1 coat of clear. Which he recommended to make sure that there were no imperfections in the clear coat before being buffed. That is why many body shops spray the clear coat really thick, that way they can work down any orange peel or imperfections without having to worry about ruining the paint.

 

Yeah, it won't seem like its worth it until you finish- trust me Then its definitely wort it.
Oh yeah and mingchi- by the way it really depends on who painted your car and how much clear they sprayed as to whether you can wetsand it. Think of it this way- yes it would be bad to sand down a factory clear- since its usually only one coat. but most body shops apply 2-3 clear coats so even if you sand down a whole coat, its still better than factory. Or at least most the time