Alright i have a few questions about painting a car. Im going to be painting my crx soon, and im hoping that it will come out good.

1. How many layers should i have to do of the actual paint.

2. How much of the "origional" paint should i sand off, and what kinda of sander/sand paper should i use.

3. What kind of primer should i use?

4. For painting urethane bumpers, i need something with a "flex" addative. Can i use the same paint with the flex addative on my car so that i will not need to buy 2 diff paints and hope they match, or is the flex addative really and "addative" as in, comes in another bottle and you add it to the paint?

5. Should i paint the front and rear bumper's before putting them on the car?

6. When i do a clearcoat, how many coats should i do? And are all clearcoats the same?

7. When using a spray gun, how does one avoid dripping, etc? Is it kind of like spray paint where you have to do multiple slow layers, or what?

Also, my final question, does anyone have any links online where i can get PPG paint? Im going to be painting my car silver, if anyone has any suggestions, throw up a pic, or a suggestion! Thank you.

 

hey now! someones gotta answer my questions!

 

Here's my .02 (and I've painted my car)

http://www.eu4ik.com/b_U/slatelude/index.htm

1) One to two layers of color, depending on "under/primer" color and what color you are going to paint it.
2) Just need to "scuff" the paint with 400wet/dry sandpaper, then do your body work/primer, then come back with 600wet/dry over the whole thing
3) Use a "sealer" primer, if you have access to a gun use it, if not auto shops sell it in a rattle can, just make sure its the "sealer" type
4) "flex additive" is only so the paint stays flexible longer, if you are going to reinstal the bumpers, sideskirts, etc. within say 4hrs, dont waste the $30
5) I painted the bumpers off my car so I could get in all the "nooks and crannies" easier (gives a more professional look)
6) Two coats of clear will do you, just watch for runs (the more clear, the more chance for runs) And YES clears are different, this is usually where your pearl, flakes, and sometimes your "tint" come into play (RESEARCH)
7) Multiple, slow, coating layers (much like a can....but different feel), thin layers will result in "orangepeel", and thick will result in runs (remember, the easiest way to fix a run....is not to have one in the first place)
- side note on this, get a fender or something from a body shop (give aways) and practice first, until you get the hand of it

Final- I just went to a auto paint place, told them what I wanted, what my expectations were, etc. Silver will cost you a little more, but good choice, persoally I went with Dark Slate ('98 Grand Cherokee 5.9litre Limited)
LAST BUT NOT LEAST!!!!! IF YOU WANT A PROFESSIONAL JOB, TAKE IT TO A PROFESSIONAL!!!!!! -mine is a $300 paint job, and it is not perfect, but until I'm out of college, IT ROCKS!!! Remember, 90% of a good paint job, is in the prep work, so take your time. Good Luck

Kevin

 

same here all my supplies cost me 330 in paint and other stuff....im paint my car Champwhite with a pearl.........will have pics posted soon..goto a local paint store and ask them to give u a paint package

 

So why do you not sand most of the paint down first? I thought it was bad to keep adding layers and chit because it would start to chip. THanks..

 

I paint my car yesterday in my workplace booth. Btw, they use PPG but i when with Dupont instead. Paint for my car costed about 450. I had alot left to do some other stuff too. TO anwswer you question, the reason why you dont need to sand all the way down is because it is just a hassal. With having to priming again you have to use a small grit sand paper. Maybe like 320 and above. If you want to keep sanding till the paint is gone more power to you. Just don't go all the way down the the metal. You will then if exposing it to rust. Iwould recommended using a DA with a soft pad with some 320 and sand away. Don't have to get carry away.

If you paint is crack, or if going to do some body filler work, then you have to sand it complete down and go from there. Will post a pic of my car for you later.

 

Like i said, i work with PPG everyday, but i preferred Dupont. I recommend Dupont Chromabase over Dupont Chroma Premeire for you. Anyway here is one of my car. The color is Laguna Seca Blue off of 2000+ BMW M3. I took the pic in the evening and the red for the sun came into play. It is baby blue w/ a little bit of green. BTW i took almost everything off the car before i spray it. Bumper, mirror, Light, panal piece, you get the idea. Good luck to You. Post some pic when you are done.

 

The hood is for sale or trade if anyone want too. Its from ground design. Will trade for a CF or OEM hood. Sorry for hogging your post

 

A for the flex additive, I would get it put in all the paint so you at least have it on the bumpers. You should use it on all your plastic parts so that the paint doesnt crack on small impacts or flexing. You never want to sand all layers off unless you have damage in that area. It will only cause problems. You just need to scuff the surface with 400 wet paper so that the paint has a good surface to stick to. I personally prefer dupont over all others but it really comes down to personal preference. And yes you want to paint all pieces off the car so that you can get into all the cracks and stuff. Remember prep is the most important phase of a paint job. Take your time prepping and you cant go wrong.

 

umm..dam pic won't show up now.