When i'm getting ready to paint, should i sand ALL the old paint off? Just wondering, never painted a car before...... thanks
I believe it is better to go to bare metal. You don't know what is under paint. It can hide a lot. Mainly rust and massive amounts of body filler. If your old paint is cracking or bubbling, then definitely remove it or it will destroy your new paint eventually. I don't use chemical strippers because it's next to impossible to get it all off without leaving residue, especially in little cracks and crevices. This stuff will also screw up a good paint job.
m&m, if you go to bare metal you will need to use a good rust prep. before the primer. some say you can use it for primer. i am a high build primer guy myself. j.m.o....frank...:bananaman :bananaman
If it is the factory original paint and it is structually sound on the car...you can probably paint over it. If it has ever been repainted....no matter how good the repaint, I would take all the paint off.
cool, thanks guys anlong with that, how long can I let it sit once it has been depainted. I'm sure it is more likely to rust like that so I didnt do it in the winter, but is it bad to let it sit a long time as just bare metal? I have it in a garage and everything, nothing fancy, but it keeps the wind and rain off it............ thanks again!
The sooner you get some primer on the bare metal the better. Just the moisture in the air can cause surface rust to start to form.
I'm in the process of doing the same thing to my Comet. After the initial sanding I immediately cleaned and primed any bare spots. We then went down the car with a marker circling any imperfections, took those areas down to bare metal and then filled them, sanded and applied etching primer. After we think we have all the imperfections taken care of we will then apply a solid coat of the etching primer and check it again. This is probably overkill and I'm probably goin around my elbow to scratch my behind, but the body is gonna be Gloss Black and will show EVERY imperfection. Progress is slow at this point.
Looks like it's coming your way now Riporter! Seems as if we've been here before.......hmmm....... I still can't believe the progress you made on that other car! Still amazes me. Well, ya'll take care..........Country
I'm wondering about the problem of protecting bare metal too. I plan to stip my car to the bare surface, but this and other jobs will take a couple of years. It's in a dry attached garage, but I don't have the space for a big compressor and lots of spray booth equipment. Will rattle can primer suffice to keep the metal rust free under these conditions? What are your thoughts? John B.
primer I've used rattle can primer before with no problems, just be sure to get a nice even coat on it.
Didn't I read on this board a few weeks ago that primer still lets moisture in? I can't ever find the threads for reference but I'm sure I saw it here. Sam
sam, you are correct. that is why i had my top painted a color.i didn't care what color, just something to seal the primer. it acts as a base for the final color. j.m.o. ...frank...:bananaman :bananaman
