Honda / Acura Appearance related discussion for Honda / Acura vehicles

DIY painted side skirts

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 02:01 PM
  #1  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default DIY painted side skirts

ok... this is for all those people who have a nice color car... but then the side moldings or skirts mess it up b/c its black. This also greatly applies to teg owners who have black skirts but want that type r looking skirt... not the oem kit, but how the type r's come with the original sides painted.

first off here are the materials used.

1. screw driver and maybe some pliers
2. plastic or cardboard to lay the skirts on when painting. do not use news papers.
3. some 400-600 grit sand paper. prefferably(SP) wet sand paper.
4. some primer spray
5. spray paint to match your car. check on the door sill where the lock thingi is.
6. a lot of clear coat.

instructions:

1. get under neath the car and remove those PITA plastic screws. there like 6 of em. put them somewhere safe so you dont loose them.

2. once you have all the screws out, go to the front wheels. right behind the wheel, and in front of the skirt should be 2 screws. you will need to remove those. It also holds in place the fender lining so be careful not to rip up anything.

3. once you remove the two screws set them aside somewhere safe along with the other screws that came from underneath the skirt so you wont loose them later.

4. give the skirts a gentle push twards the front wheel. if they don't come loose, give it a little harder push. just don't do some hulk force and rip em off.

5. once you have done this to both sides, its time for cleaning. get a bucket of warm water and a brush. I used the same brush I use on my wheels. poor some water on there and scrub like hell. (I used simple green to speed the process)

6.once they are clean, take the sand paper and some water and start to gently clean the surface for any bumps or imperfections.

7. once you have cleaned them, place some card board or plastic bags on the floor to begin the painting process. the reason you shouldn't use news paper is b/c it is very easy for them to stick to the paint and smudge or peel the paint. It also helps to use something to prop up the skirts. I just used 2 plastic thingies.. I have no idea what they are, but I use them everytime I paint something.

8. now, onto the fun part. Get your primer. shake the can of primer for a good minute or two. or just read directions. remember when using primer and paint, its best to use VERY light coats. don't try to go all at once. Patience is virtue. lightly spray about 3 coats of primer until it is pretty much a light grey tone.

9. depending on how fast your primer takes to dry, you should let it sit. I let mine sit for 20 min just to be cautious although the label said 2 minutes.

10. NOW, onto the paint. use the same technique as the primer. LIGHT COATS. do not get too close b/c it will start to drip and look nasty. if primer drips its understandable b/c you can sand it. but painting is totally different. also make sure to use even strokes. if you have blotches(SP) of paint, it will look kinda wierd. I would say do about 3-4 coats of paint. you don't really have to paint the bottom of the skirts b/c no one will see them really. so save your paint for the important parts. I would give about 2 hours for the paint to dry until the next step.

11. now, were in the home stretch... take your clearcoat and go over the skirts. unlike the primer and paint, clear coat will not really drip unless you hold it in one spot for a long time. so dont get TOO close, but just get a little closer than before. apply LOTS of clear coat. if you apply too little, it will leave the paint looking dull and kinda faded. so lots of clear coat=
Let the clear coat dry for another hour or two just to be safe.

12. THERE YOU'RE DONE!!!! well, at least with the painting. now install the skirts exactly how you took them off. their a little tricky but you'll eventually get it. took me almost an hour.

well, hope you like your newly painted skirts/molding. here are some pictures to help with the process. I forgot to take pics of removing the screws and clear coat. but those are pretty much self explanitory. ENJOY!

















BEFORE:







Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 02:07 PM
  #2  
Daniel's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 3,365
Likes: 0
From: Botswana
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

wow, that's an awesome how-to. and the sides turned out great!
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 03:05 PM
  #3  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (Daniel)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Daniel &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">wow, that's an awesome how-to. and the sides turned out great! </TD></TR></TABLE>

Thanks, if anyone has any questions about this, feel free to PM me.
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 03:10 PM
  #4  
hagrid's Avatar
 
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,351
Likes: 0
From: i lost avatar rights
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

good write up stan
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 03:27 PM
  #5  
PSU's Avatar
PSU
formerly DxHatchback
20 Year Member
Liked
iTrader: (2)
 
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 31,511
Likes: 10
From: Pennsylvania
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

your car owns

good writeup
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 08:50 PM
  #6  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (DxHatchback)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DxHatchback &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">your car owns

good writeup</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thank you.

Some people have been PM'ing me asking where to get the paint. You can find the paint at any autostore. If you go ask for the paint. They should have a chart that has all the factory paint codes. Milano red was a little harder to find than others b/c it wasnt in the book. I saw a few other colors however such as frost white, night hawk black pearl or whatever, electron blue pearl, and some more. some places will even have the paint name right on the label. like mine says Milano Red right on the label on top of the cap. I'm guess you can find some others just like this as well. I don't think honda sells paint in a spray can. I'm pretty sure they sell the touch up paint though. if you have your own compressor and spray gun, you can try mixing it with some solution or something i guess and have it come out just as good. hope that answered some of your questions.
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 09:19 PM
  #7  
SiK AcC0rD's Avatar
 
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 1,001
Likes: 0
From: 804, VA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

that looks VERY nice, good job
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 09:27 PM
  #8  
silvercivicgrl's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 4,996
Likes: 0
From: NoVA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (SiK AcC0rD)

http://www.paintscratch.com/ has all the codes. Good write up.....too bad I wouldnt have the time or patience to do that myself
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 09:53 PM
  #9  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (SiK AcC0rD)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SiK AcC0rD &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">that looks VERY nice, good job </TD></TR></TABLE>

thank you.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by silvercivicgrl &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">too bad I wouldnt have the time or patience to do that myself : </TD></TR></TABLE>

lol, just take some time out from a weekend to do it. if you have a garage, you can do one step at a time. in between each step you can come inside and relax and go on HT. Too bad I wasn't still living in MD, I would have helped ya out!
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 09:55 PM
  #10  
This One's Avatar
 
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 2,976
Likes: 0
From: ATX/HTX
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

holy **** thats ghetto as ****, but doesn't look to bad....
a friend used that Milano red rattle can to spray his valve cover and it came as close as it was gonna get to mathcing
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 09:59 PM
  #11  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shipsaeki &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> Too bad I wasn't still living in MD, I would have helped ya out! </TD></TR></TABLE>

NY people... If I have time I can help you guys out too!
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 10:13 PM
  #12  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (tHE oNE)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tHE oNE &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">holy **** thats ghetto as ****, but doesn't look to bad....
a friend used that Milano red rattle can to spray his valve cover and it came as close as it was gonna get to mathcing</TD></TR></TABLE>

I wouldnt really call it ghetto. Think about it. If you had the chance to make 100+hp easily same quality for 10 bux SOME HOW compared to a $2000-$4000 supercharger would you not go for the $10 DIY project? ghetto is when you duct tape your engine to your engine bay whereas you have some shitty quality
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 10:23 PM
  #13  
Neptune's Avatar
Member
 
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 1,251
Likes: 0
From: Verdesboro, NC, USA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

Looks great, gonna be doing this soon to my Civic. Great how to, thanks!
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 10:27 PM
  #14  
Broken Gearbox's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 3,789
Likes: 0
From: Northern California
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (Neptune)

looks good man...nice work..also good write-up
Reply
Old Jun 28, 2003 | 11:08 PM
  #15  
slowman's Avatar
I took way too long
20 Year Member
iTrader: (3)
 
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 10,293
Likes: 3
From: FL
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (DxHatchback)

excellent write up and good results.
Reply
Old Jun 30, 2003 | 08:21 PM
  #16  
rocket3004's Avatar
 
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 261
Likes: 0
From: da burbs y0, mi, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (slowman_hatch)

good how-to, easy to read, good stpes, before and after pictures


just 1 question, I thought you had to use a flex-addative to let the paint adhere to the plastic sideskirt..? any info on this?
Reply
Old Jun 30, 2003 | 08:53 PM
  #17  
Hairy Gorilla's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 1,773
Likes: 0
From: ATL
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (rocket3004)

Wondering if he should use nighthawk black pearl on his flamenco black pearl car. (don't make it in fbp)
Reply
Old Jun 30, 2003 | 08:58 PM
  #18  
BLUTO's Avatar
Junior Member
 
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 548
Likes: 0
From: Wooster, OH, USA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (shipsaeki)

NOW this is what I like to see. A great write-up with pictures and an excellent well-written summary. I'll be doing one as well next week.

I wish more people on H-T would do some of these how-to's as well.
Reply
Old Jul 1, 2003 | 09:49 AM
  #19  
shipsaeki's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
 
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 850
Likes: 0
From: NYC, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (rocket3004)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rocket3004 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
just 1 question, I thought you had to use a flex-addative to let the paint adhere to the plastic sideskirt..? any info on this?</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm not too sure on this. I havent been having any problems yet with the paint. Its been a few days now and still holding pretty well. i'll update again maybe next week to let everyone know how its holding up.
Reply
Old Jul 1, 2003 | 09:52 AM
  #20  
silvercivicgrl's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 4,996
Likes: 0
From: NoVA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (Tim Maryak)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tim Maryak &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> Wondering if he should use nighthawk black pearl on his flamenco black pearl car. (don't make it in fbp)</TD></TR></TABLE>

Well here is the diff.....FBP is really black. NHBP has a bit of blue in it. My bf has this on his lude and it looks a dark navy blue in the light sometimes.

Take a look at it in person b4 you make a decision
Reply
Old Jul 1, 2003 | 09:53 AM
  #21  
redlinegsr's Avatar
Junior Member
 
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 939
Likes: 0
From: Jangalang, TX, USA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (rocket3004)

looks good. so is your car milano red? I havn't been able to find that color in duplicolors paint selection???
Reply
Old Jul 1, 2003 | 10:40 AM
  #22  
jonoknut's Avatar
Junior Member
 
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 858
Likes: 0
From: Hollywood, CA, USA
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (redlinegsr)

sams here. i have a milano red teg, and i cant find it in a spray. where did you get yor spray that had milano red right on the can?
Reply
Old Jul 1, 2003 | 08:58 PM
  #23  
Hairy Gorilla's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 1,773
Likes: 0
From: ATL
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (silvercivicgrl)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by silvercivicgrl &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Well here is the diff.....FBP is really black. NHBP has a bit of blue in it. My bf has this on his lude and it looks a dark navy blue in the light sometimes.

Take a look at it in person b4 you make a decision </TD></TR></TABLE>

Thank you ma'am. I know for a fact that my FBP has blue specs in it. Just look at it in the light and you can see. I trust you though that they will be different. Maybe i'll buy a can and test paint something. I have primer and clear coat already
Reply
Old Jul 2, 2003 | 11:34 AM
  #24  
Vtecfool's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 2,301
Likes: 0
From: Rain City, Pacific Ocean
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (Tim Maryak)

how much do the paint, primer, and etc go for???
Reply
Old Jul 2, 2003 | 12:03 PM
  #25  
GoT HaTcH's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 1,448
Likes: 0
From: Bay Area, CA, usa
Default Re: DIY painted side skirts (Vtecfool)

nice write up.. did the paint match exactly with your car?
Reply



All times are GMT -8. The time now is 06:29 PM.