[1bad65]

Originally Posted by Rachelsdad

You always want to follow up your preferred degreaser (brake clean, in this case) with a good wax & grease remover (personally, I always preferred R-M 900 Pre-Kleano to Ditzler or DuPont, but YMMV). Then tack cloth, prime (always; at least one coat), and then color (at least two coats, depending upon what you're painting, the color, the depth, 1-stage or multiple, etc.).

For high temp applications, try the Eastwood High-Temp Engine Primer. (I knew a guy at the shop which did the original work on my '63 Bonneville in '76 and '77, and later, in '86 who used epoxy primer on his '67 GTO engine. Epoxy primer is nasty stuff, and at the time required a forced air respirator. I have no idea if such precautions are needed now, but I've never used the stuff.)

In short, the rule of thumb is always that painting is 90% preparation and 10% application. If the surface isn't ready to accept the paint, that's a preparation issue (unless you've got issues with your water separator at the compressor or some other application failure - but water or oil in the paint is easy to spot when you throw it).

Anyway, you figured it out.

Thanks Lewis. Appreciate the valuable information.