The thing is.......after you spend all the money to get it painted.....it will look the same from 20' feet away.
maybe it's just me here.. but if you'll need to be taking parts off your car just for the sake of saving some cash anyways?.. it's not a huge canyon sized jump in effort to use a 7" sander/polisher to remove the paint on sawhorses. Also plenty of good paint strippers if dust control and initial tool cost is a concern. I and several buddies(how I got the idea) who've successfully used 2" x 2" lumber to build cheap wall frames using plastic sheeting for either full booths or simple partitions. Typical booth builds run about $100-150 bucks in materials. For basic divider style room prep all you need is more plastic, floor included. You'll then run 2 or 3 cheap 20" box fans and use cheapo furnace filters to keep all those dusty little bugs out. Friggin' beatles are tougher than you'd think and can crawl several inches through curing paint and it seems that murphy's law specifically states that death trail must be located right smack in the middle of a larger more visible panel.. much tougher touch ups.. filter well and avoid buggy weather like the plague especially during color. Could even bomb the booth prior to the money shots for added protection. Like I and others have said above.. there are some really nice show quality garage paint jobs being done out there. Years ago I invested in these for my painting business and customers really love them because they're so effective. Lots of referrals from all the extra care and concern for peoples belongings and personal health. A bit of an initial investment but well worth it for quick and easy setup to keep your garage cleaner and looking nice despite being used for the occasional dusty project. I believe there are probably several other versions made nowadays too.. haven't looked for a while and they may be cheaper. Little video link on here to get an idea of how they work. http://www.amazon.com/ZipWall-ZP4-ZipPole-Spring-Loaded-Barriers/dp/B002RL8ODK If I were trying to reduce overall cost yet still end up with higher quality materials?.. at the very least, I'd be stripping any removable body part down to bare metal and shooting some cheap sealer on it. Then temp bolt them back on for easier transport if need be. That alone could easily save you 25 - 30% on the final cost and you'll still end up with a killer paint job worthy of showing off. The real beauty of this plan is the ability to remove and redo smaller sections at a time and keep picking away at it. Biggest problem is the potential for burnout as work and personal life can get in the way enough to completely snuff out the fire. But by the time that happens, at least you probably checked a few more things off any potential body shops checklist and should be cheaper with built in sweat equity.
if you use 600-1000 grit on primer it will make it too slick the polyester primer i have been using i sanded with 220 first to level out then used 320 to finish which is just about as fine as they say to use if you mix different paints and primers you will have problems it is best to use one brand start to finish primer sealer base and clear if going over old paint use primer compatible with the old paint and sealer i always wipe the primer down with a cleaner first then a tack rag right before i shoot and use latex gloves the oil on your hands will show up in a lot of clears as a fingerprint or smudge
10-4 on the plastic and cheap fans that is what i do plus i always paint between 9.30 to eleven in the morning when it is 75 degrees at that time of day bugs are at a minimum the more you do the less it will cost but do one panel at a time trying to do the whole car at once it is easy to get overwhelmed
also remember...paint jail...even with you doing a lot of the prep you have to count that as down time. also it won't count as...time served...LOL
I have a friend who does paint and body work part time. He has another full time job. He has a booth in his shop behind his house. He finished my '71 Bronco last fall and he sprayed my Mav today. He told me he figures 20 hours per panel to do the body work, prime, seal and paint. If you figure 2 doors, 2 fenders, 2 quarters, a trunk lid, a top, a hood, plus back panel, and both valances you're at about 200 hours. I've watched him do his work and he spends that much time per panel to do it right, and that's without any rust repair. The rust repair I can do myself and I do it to save some money. Multiply that by $50/hr and you're at $10k. Paint and supplies will run at least $700. My Bronco paint (UNO brand) and materials went $1500. Lucky for me he can't tell a 9/16ths wrench from a socket and we swap off labor. I just put a 5.0 and AOD in his '72 shortbox to pay for his labor on my Bronco. I have another friend who paid a shop here $6K to paint his Mustang. It looked great when done, but six months later it paint was falling off in big pieces. Oh, and it was in Paint Jail for a year! Shopping for a paint job isn't for the faint of heart. I recommend going to car shows and cruises and asking who did the paint on the cars and comparing notes with other owners. You'll at least find out who to steer clear of.
