smnowell

I was looking into buying a spray gun so I could repaint parts of my car myself. I was wondering what kind of guns you guys are using. Also, which is better, gravity feed or suction feed? And to make this EG tech related...those of you who repainted your entire car, or parts of your car, was there anything difficult about painting EG's? (especially the roof and fenders)

gsl_05

I'd like some info. too since I've just bought a 92 EG and it badly need a facelift. I'm planning on painting the car in April when it get warmer here in Chi-Town.

smnowell

With the Duplicolor, is that just in a spray can or what? Spray painting stuff usually doesn't turn out all that well...atleast when trying to paint something to make it look presentable. Maybe I just suck at spray painting. Anyone else have some advice on spray guns/paint?

JD_B18CDX

If you are going to do it yourself and its your first time keep it simple.
Here some tips...
1. Stay with the original color. If you mess it up (likely u will the first time), it will t be easy to spray over. Different colors requires thicker coat and more chance to mess up.
2. Be very patient and dont rush spraying.
3. Make sure body is well prepared. A well preped body looks very smooth and no waves or scratch. If there is a slight (even a hairline) scratch, it will be magnified when you paint over it and will not look good.
4. If its starts to orange peel, stop right away... wait for it to dry and resurface by sanding. There is no other way and dont try to short cut it. You will end up resurfacing it anyway and do twice the work.
5. U need a big air compressor that can sustain 10cfm @ 90 psi. You can get by with a smaller compressor but only on the base coat. The clear coat is very thick and requires a good compressor. Or you can do it by portions and will be awkward.
6. Get an HVLP gun ( I like gravity feed better but it does not matter). Paint shop would know what point to use for the paint they are selling. Dont buy cheap HVLP guns because you will end up buying two of them. The wrong one plus the good branded one.
7. You have to be patient on covering stuff you dont want painted. It will be twice the effort cleaning this later on if you do get paint over it. Take as much parts off like headlights, corner lights, trims etc. The more you remove, the less are to tape.
8. Close the AC vents, cover your intake and PCV valve if you have CAI. Trust me paint dust will get into it.

Below is a link on the car I worked on.
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=373678

I am not a pro and it was my first time. Took several weeks because I screwed up several times. 80% of the time was spend sanding and making sure everything is even.

Have fun!!




[Modified by JD_B18CDX, 8:14 PM 1/5/2003]

smnowell

Hey thanks a lot! The parts I want to repaint are my fender and my roof. What kind of gun did you use when you painted that car? Also, where do you buy paint and guns from? What brand of paint/guns do you recommend? Also, I have an air compressor. It is 15gal 3hp and the tank can hold up to 150psi.

chillly

Mr. JD_B18C was right on the money. One thing I'd like to add is take your time doing prep work (bondo, wet sanding, etc) cuz you really do get out of it what you put into it.

Chris, who's learning by trial & error how to do body work & paint after hitting a deer a month or so ago.

smnowell

Well thanks for the advice guys....but I am still not getting an answer to my question about which paint/gun to purchase and where to purchase this stuff...

-Whitey-

you can find all of these parts online..look at tool maker/sellers for paint guns i dont know where you would get paint from i get mine from my boss ....im gonna paint my fenders soon also..it should be fun

JD_B18CDX

The HVLP gun was from a local paint store. I cant remember the brand and the markings have been stained by paint. It did cost $150 though.
Since I had no experience, they were the ones who recomended the nozzle size.

The actual paint brand also depends on what you have in your area. In my case, Dupont seems to be popular. Paint is Paint. It is just color. The key is getting the right amount of hardener, thinner and other chemicals so paint will stick well and have a strong shell.
Again, this info will be from the paint shop. They have tons of brochure on what ratio you mix chemicals. Each brand might be slightly different.

You can start by scouting for local paint shops in you area through the yellow pages. ( Thats how I started ). Ask for automotive paints.
If you know some body shops, ask them where they get supplies.

Hope this helps out.

Evs-One

go HVLP. It is gravity fed and uses less air to spray the paint. Because it uses less air, you will save $$$ on overspray and have a cleaner finish. I recommend the HVLP over siphon feed anyday. JUst don;t go cheap with the materiels, that's one thing to remember. Even cheap sandpaper is dumb. What I actually like is the econo body from Napa, or of course, 3M. Before painting, always use PPG grease and wax remover.

Do not use duplicolor cans. That's only good on little parts like door handles or trim pieces, but I would never recommend it for that even.

When painting panels adjacent to say the hood and door, you're going to have to blend it all in by painting more than just that one particular panel, unless you want to keep it cheap and janke. Let me know if you have any questions. I've painted a couple older cars and some newer stuff and taken some body classes. I'll be painting my hatch this spring.

slvrcivic97

bump..good topic. Anymore tips?

Evs-One

yes. If possible, get a color tint to your primer(if you're using any) close to the final finish. If your paint chips, you won't see white spots under red paint, but rather red chips under red paint.

Have a CLEAN work area with a wet floor-keeps dust down. Throw up plastic tarps as far away from car as possible. Use fans to PULL the air away, not bring it in. Paint your cor in the correct sequence of panels.

I like to pull the hood off and paint it vertically.

gsl_05

Thanks for your tips. Now if I can only sneak the hatch home for a couple of weeks to make a spray booth in the garage...

EKFerioHawaii

*applauds furiously* Couldn't have said it better myself

Also some tips on painting EG's, civic's, and vehicles of any kind.

-For civics and integras. The strip of black plastic trim on the roof is removable. Remove, clean the crevice because after the final rinse before painting, remaining dirt may seep out and ruin the paint job (ex. paint adhesion = crap in that area----happened to my brothers car)

-Make sure your taping/masking before painting is done precisely! Otherwise, you'll have overspray on parts you don't want it on. Also when masking the car windows, make sure there are NO creases sticking out in the mask paper. Reason is, paint overspray may build up in the folds and get on your uncured paint when the pressurized air from the paint gun kicks it up.

-For EG's, the front left and right windshield trimmings maybe removed before painting to catch under the trims, for a super clean paint job around the windshield. (Putting it back might be a bitch. But nevertheless it is possible.)

-EG's again. The front windshield middle window seal is a bitch to put back after the car is painted. Leave it on and paint. Or have a automotive glass shop re-do it for you.

-EG's again. Painting front air dam with bumper on the car = pain in the ****. Do it of the car on a stand. Much easier IMO. Also can be applied for the rear bumper.

-EG's and cars alike. After removing the front bumper for painting, mask off the remaining front end (ex. radiator, transmission cooler, basically everything forward of the radiator support) because you don't wanna drive with white overspray showing through your front bumper. Overspray on radiator = ghey. Also remove all lights from the car. Don't want your precious type R headlights to have overspray on them. Which from 2 sentences ago, will equal gh3yness.

-EG's and cars alike. If I could get 1 dollar for every person who resprayed their cars without removing their emblems--I would be only 5 dollars richer. Point is--don't ruin a perfectly good paint job by being lazy and not removing emblems. Otherwise, just shave'em off.

-I'm pretty sure most of the car being painted are lowered. When painting your/someone's car, put it on jack stands at a comfortable height for painting. You don't wanna become fatigued when painting because of bending over too many times to catch the lower portion of the car. Fatigue while painting = crap paint job.

-If your unsure about removing window trimmings, leave them on. What I do is tape the edges of the trim leaving about a 1-2mm's of it exposed for painting. Tape all edges first so as to leave a border of tape. Then you fill in the rest my roughly taping masking paper to the exposed area. Believe me, its much easier to do it this way than taping the edges with paper on the first try.

-Please use quality masking tape. Wal-Mart brand types do not cut it. It tears/leaves a rough edge on the paint edge. Trust me on this one, I've messed up one paint job because the owner was being a cheap ***. (You get what you paid for). Buy 3M.

-DO NOT get lazy with the preparation of the body prior to painting. Degrease it using an automotive body cleaner/degreaser and tack rag prior to painting. Condition bare metal areas with metal conditioner prior to priming/prime sealing. Minimize touching the car by you or anyone prior to entering the paint booth. Wear latex gloves when opening doors, then degrease the handles after if you have to. Five letters to remember before a paint job--CLEAN.

-If using a paint booth, visit it prior to painting. Is smick smack clean? Are the paint booth filters clean and reasonably new? Is the air hose clean and void of any leaks? Is the inline air regulators, filters, water evaporators clean and working properly? Are there stands to paint your bumpers on? A clean table or make shift work bench with proper accessories (ex. paint gun holder, mixing buckets, gloves) to work on? Enough space to walk freely around the car? Wheel covers? Enough lighting to work in? Do they offer further safety equipment other than yours? Can you leave the car overnight to cure? How much is the paint booth rental? Does the owner have a hot daughter(s)? You know, basic questions like these.

-If you're painting in a home garage. Drape the garage really good. Have fans to provide proper ventilation. Have a fridge in the garage, to store a few bottles of beer for those in-between-coats-refreshments... If you have stuck up neighbors like me, offer them a case of Bud light to keep them from complaining to the cops. LOL I learned this from experience.

-Also, what I really find helpful and time saving is painting under the hood, under the trunk lid, door jambs, and any other interior body panels at least a day before the actual spraying of the exterior of the car. Do it at home, saves time and money if your going to a paint booth the next day. Just tape under the hood and previously mentioned areas prior to painting the exterior.

-Make sure the hose(s) do not come in contact with the fresh paint. Also make sure articles of clothing are not swinging freely which could potentially touch the paint and ruining it. What I do is wrap masking tape around my wrists, elbows, knees, and waist to prevent my cloths from swinging freely. Also, wear some kinda hat or bandana to prevent falling hair from enter your paint. I've painted a car with Phoenix Gold paint only to find out that my hair got stuck in the clear coat. Talk about putting your mark on a paint job...muhahahah

-I don't know if this might work for you guys. Its more of a matter of preference. I found that moving comfortably in the paint booth is a must in order to achieve a good paint job. I don't wear underwear when painting mainly because it gets in the way at times..... Wear some busted up shoes also. Clear coat is super sticky and thick when the overspray settles on your shoes. Unless of course you wanna clear coat your adidas shell toes for the bling'in factor. Also, have a buddy help you paint by holding the hose(s) away from the car and giving you slack in the hose when you need it. The only drawback to this is, you need to have equipment for him/her and buy him lunch afterwards.

-This is my best tip of all when mixing paint...and automotive painters alike will agree. We all want that "glass" smooth and evenly applied paint job--or perhaps a show quality enough finish. Expect to buy at least 2 more quarts of reducer for the this next step.

When mixing paint, mix more reducer than usual, but not excessively. Doing this thins out the paint even more. For example, the mixing sequence is this:

[ 2 part base : 1 part reducer ]

go ahead an make it:

[ 2 parts base : 1.25- 1.5 parts reducer ]

This gives you the control of laying more super thin coats of paint to achieve that "deep" look to the base coat. Also, you minimize orange peel drastically in the paint because the paint has a longer time to settle flat, thus smoothening out the imperfections in paint applying techniques. It also gives you more flash time to apply in that time interval. This technique work really good to achieving that "smooth as glass" clear coat.

-Most important of all (aside from personal safety)!!! Keep the paint gun clean at all times. Between coats, run reducer/paint thinner thoroughly through the paint gun. Remove paint gun nozzle and swish it around in the paint canister for a good minute or two. Basically keep it clean. When in doubt, grab a toothbrush/rag with some reducer and use some elbow grease.

-Make sure you have proper safety equipment. Proper mask and new filters!! Eye protection. Wear old long sleeve shirts and long pants to cover your skin. If your ball'in out of control, consider one of these bad boys:

http://satausa.com/respire.htm

hehehhehe


-Imperfections in paint can be wet sanded and buffed. Wet sand the area with 2000 grit; to the point where it looks hazy. Do not sand too much, you might hit basecoat, or the unthinkable--bare metal, thus ruining your hard-worked paint job.
Then use a fine cutting buffing compound. Use 3m buffing compound if you can afford it (sorry, I forgot the product no. for this specific one I use.) I'm somewhat of a cheap *** and use "Optic Express" made by UPol. So far I've had no complaints from friends painted cars using this product! Follow up with a coat of glazing/polishing compound to bring that bling'in shine out. Then seal with a super lite coat of carnuba wax. Be careful, freshly painted cars may react with certain waxes. If unsure do not apply a layer of carnuba wax. Wait a month for the car's paint to fully cure.

-Bahhh...I'm tired. its 4am here in hawaii. Just some tips off the top of my head. Hope I could assist you guys to some degree with this write up!!!

BTW b16a ferio: to answer your ? about the paint guns. I would recommend a at least a sharpe HVLP gravity fed with 1.7oz can. Possibly a cobalt HVLP gun. Or if your ball'in out of control, get a SATA gun....precisely this one with digital LCD readouts:

http://www.satausa.com/HVLP/nr2000_hvlp.htm


It all depends your preferences. Certain guns behave differently in different hands. I've seen show quality paint jobs shot by a crap gun.

I do this on my spare time as a hobby, I'm not employed by body shops. Although the pay is sometimes tempting.
So far I've done about 15 cars during the past 5 years, 6 of which were show queens, by myself from bodywork to buffing. Its good having friends that work in body shops to help you out when your in deeepppp sh*t. Ever dropped a gallon of very expensive base coat on the ground? and the car's owner paid for it? muahahah...muahahahhahaha....mauahhahahahahah

Ask other people in the field who have been in longer than yourself about automotive painting and everything that comes along with it. You won't be dissappointed.

IM me if you guys have further questions.

Peace out.

For further paint applying tips visit:
http://www.scottgrundfor.com/ideas/paint3.html Somewhat of a good site.




[Modified by EKFerioHawaii, 4:41 AM 1/6/2003]

EKFerioHawaii

Sorry I'm lazy to edit. Concerning the what type/brand paint. Do not use one stage paint. One stage = gh3yness.

Use a clearcoat system. I preferably use the Napa TecBase or Crossfire system. Cheap and reliable paint. BTW, do you guys have Napa elsewhere besides hawaii?

If your on a low budget, go for OMNI. Super cheap. My bro got his complete system for $200 which included primer sealer, basecoat, clearcoat, 1.25 gallons of reducer, clearcoat hardener, 4 mixing buckets, 8 mixing sticks, 4 paint filters, and a partridge in a pear tree.

Some other brands you might consider would be Dupont, PPG, and House of Kolors. PPG is a bit pricey, but well worth your money. House of Kolor is for the ballers out there. Dupont is all right. Ask around and you'll eventually choose a paint brand and paint system that will suit your situation best.

I've heard that you can buy super crappy basecoat and apply a super expensive clearcoat over that to keep your wallets happy. Don't quote me on this, I just heard this from a handful of people. Also, use flex additives and paint adhesion promoters when painting flimsy plastic parts or interior parts mainly due to paint cracking dilemmas which give major headaches. Finally, if you can get a hold of epoxy primer, you are the man!! Imagine regular primer with its paint adhesion characteristics--now add the adhesion properties of epoxy. What you have there is a paint job that will not virtually chip, peel, or crack.

Good Nite.

92sleepR

I've gotten pretty good results with the 'cheap' Central Pnumatic paint guns from Harbor Freight, but most prefessional shops would recommend Satta or DeVilblis. I just couldn't see spending $250 on a spray gun that (at the time) I thought I would only use once. that was three paint jobs ago

P.S.

"I don't wear underwear when painting mainly because it gets in the way"
LOL. Ha! You think thats hard core? I just wear shoes and a respirator

P.P.S. I've gotten really good results on 'backyard specials' using the DuPont Chroma base/clear system. Its relatively cheap and the new Chroma Premier clear is very user freindly. It's not freindly to your lungs though so get a good respirator.

Mike


[Modified by 92sleepR, 3:06 PM 1/6/2003]


[Modified by 92sleepR, 3:09 PM 1/6/2003]

smnowell

wow...EKFerioHawaii I would just like to give you a very BIG thanks for the very detailed reply, I think your advice is more than enough to get me started!! Where do you guys usually buy your paints from online?

Archidictus

EKFerioHawaii

That was fantastic. From all of us, thank you sooooo much. The information you gave us is enough to embolden most of us to try painting on our own.

Truly inspirational

Edit: missed a colon


[Modified by Archidictus, 6:45 PM 1/6/2003]

vg30dett71510

just make sure you look closely for fish eyes.

Patrick

Wow, I wish I had the time and money to repaint my car but sadley I dont (door dings own my ***).

tnbigdawg

Make sure you use Wax and Grease Remover before and after sanding. And just before painting.

I bought me a Transtar HVLP 1.4mm tip Gravity feed and it works okay. I just hope it works with my Kandy paints. Pros use guns that costs up to $800. But you don't have to spend that much for a quality gun. Sata, and Iwata, Devilbliss, are popular name brands. Price range, about $300-600 i think. Also Check Harborfreight.com, they have some good deals but I'm not sure what type of guns they sell.

I prefer the gravity feeds over the syphon feed type guns, because of its easy maintenance. Remember that HVLP doesn't use that much air, But it does however require more CFM's to atomize the paints. In order to operate the gun at compliancy to HVLP VOC levels, you have to have less than 10psi's at the air cap. Meaning that you run about 0-30psi's at the inlet. But you can bump up the pressure a bit to around 40-45 for better atomization of the paints but it won't be compliant to low VOC levels meaning more overspray. Check out Sharpe1.com and click on the gundoctor link......they can help you out on your gun settings as it is complicated to set your own gun if you're a rookie. Buy some Cheap paint and practice on an extra fender until you're used to painting. I can go on forever to try and teach you all the "BASICS" but it's just too much, so please do research.





[Modified by tnbigdawg, 4:51 PM 1/6/2003]

EKFerioHawaii

tnbigdawg: hey nice draping job there!!! I like these pictures...yummy yummy

b16a ferio: np dood! If you need more help just ask me. I try my best to help
people paint their cars because, here in hawaii, there are soooo much crap paint job cars which could've been better. I hate seeing crap paint jobs.

Archidictus: np.

92sleepR: haha. I bet you use the full front zip uniforms to paint with just shoes and respirator huh? A while ago, my friend bought a see through painting suit. There was alot of people on the outside of the paint booth always peeking in through the windows. He would get irritated because every 5 mins, people would just keep looking in. So he got fed up and wore nothing under the see through suit to keep people away from the booth. hahahha it was funny because he's pretty hairy from head to toe.

Ivan

I have a sharpee. Its awesome . I think I spent 350 on it.

tnbigdawg

oh yeah, by the way....I got my Transtar for $108 it was $130 but they gave me a discount.

JaeOne3345

excuse my ignorance..

how far away do u hold the guns..

and what about painting the roof? seems like being over it would be a pain in the *** or something.

anyone have actual pics on masking of rubber weather stripping?

edit: you paint savs..what do u recommend for DAMNED COMMUTER FREEWAY PAINT CHIPS.

does that http://www.langka.com stuff work?

thanks..excellent thread. they need to make a body work forum on h-t.


[Modified by JaeOne3345, 6:28 PM 1/6/2003]