[dhutton]

Lucerne Blue is metallic.

Spot blast any lingering rust.

Don

[Skidmark]

Thanks Roger1 heading to your build thread now.

Dsutton, thanks I' be been wanting a small blaster.

[dhutton]

Spot blaster something like this for small spots.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/23393412001...0AAOSwmXJgDofT

One other note. Wire wheels will burnish the metal and lead to poor paint adhesion. Always sand those area to give a tooth after wire wheeling.

Don

[Scott Stoneburg]

You got this! I did my Firebird myself. I recommend taking all trim off, as much as you can so you dont tape around anything. I removed the hood and deck lid, painted the bottoms of them, then reinstalled to paint the car. All 4 corners on jack stands with tires removed.
And test paint something else first to get the spray pattern down before you hit the car with paint.

[400 4spd.]

Originally Posted by dhutton

Spot blaster something like this for small spots.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/23393412001...0AAOSwmXJgDofT

One other note. Wire wheels will burnish the metal and lead to poor paint adhesion. Always sand those area to give a tooth after wire wheeling.

Don

Fiber stripping wheels and Roloc style Bristle Discs will have the same effect. We always follow with 80 on a DA before anything else goes on the surface.

[unruhjonny]

if you're into watching videos to learn from others, there's a kid who restored his Fiero;
I would think that the specifiec videos pertaining to how he painted, and showing what he did wrong would really help.

Fiero restoration

Congrats to you for deciding to do this yourself - I will probably be doing the same... unless I can find someone willing to paint at a rate lower than insurance repairs - which is highly unlikely.

[Skidmark]

Thanks for all the tips.

Whenever I get a tip from one of you, I write it down. I'll refer back to them when I'm at that point of the process.

I had no idea that the wire wheels might somehow affect the adhesive qualities of the primer.

When and where possible I'll hit it with the 80 grit afterwards.

Definitely investing in a blaster.

[roger1]

Blasting also leaves a good texture for epoxy primer. No need to sand that. Just make sure all the metal is cleaned. SPI waterborne W&G remover is what you want to use.

[tjs72lemans]

Two more items of interest. When checking your body work. Don't use your bare hand. Use something like a piece of bedsheet as a buffer with your hand. It'll identify low spots easier.
Also, don't be afraid to spray metallic. It may be a bit tougher, but very doable for a newbie. I know. The biggest thing I found, was keeping the paint particles suspended by swirling/shaking the paint gun every so often to keep the heavier particles suspended. Mixing well before pouring into paint gun important here.

[MUSLCAH]

Paint tip #101….when you have a NEW mix of paint…and your opening it for the FIRST TIME…whether it’s a pint ,quart or Gallon…ALWAYS empty the unreduced paint into another another container….and put a splash of your reducer in the bottom of the can and stir well to get every trace of color off the bottom of the can…and dump that into your unreduced paint and stir well. You may have to do a few splashes ..to get it all. Then you can reduce your paint . This process assures you…that every tiny tint that made up your formula ..is now in your color and not stuck on the bottom of the can.

[Skidmark]

Originally Posted by MUSLCAH

Paint tip #101….when you have a NEW mix of paint…and your opening it for the FIRST TIME…whether it’s a pint ,quart or Gallon…ALWAYS empty the unreduced paint into another another container….and put a splash of your reducer in the bottom of the can and stir well to get every trace of color off the bottom of the can…and dump that into your unreduced paint and stir well. You may have to do a few splashes ..to get it all. Then you can reduce your paint . This process assures you…that every tiny tint that made up your formula ..is now in your color and not stuck on the bottom of the can.

Totally makes sense. Great tip. Thanks!

[Skidmark]

So it's been a year since I started this thread. Currently building the garage where I will paint my car. I was able to buy all materials for garage for the same price I was quoted for someone else to paint it. (20k).

I am building the garage myself so finish date will be late winter 2023.

I'll start prepping the car for paint early spring.

[roger1]

VERY NICE!
Beautiful property too.

Do you have a nice air compressor already? Put in large wires for where you are going to put it in case you upgrade later.

[dataway]

Wonderful ... so much fun building things. You are gonna love it when it's done.

[Skidmark]

Thanks guys.

Yeah Roger, I'm looking at a 60 gallon Ingersoll 230v. I have a bunch of 6 gauge I had left over on a hot tub I wired, I thought I might use that to wire it. I'm installing a 100 amp breaker box.

I framed the garage like the booth you have in your "gas station" (2 windows in back for fans and I'll make a frame for filters on lower half of garage door opening.)

I will use your thread on your GTO restoration as my guide for the painting process. No sense in reinventing the wheel. Lol.

[tjs72lemans]

Good for you. Rather than pay someone to paint, you get a free garage! Nice tradeoff.

[dataway]

Yep, compared to paying someone for paint you'll probably end up with an almost free garage. Which also adds to your property value ... so better than free.

[rtanner]

Originally Posted by Skidmark

here are a few more

Learn how to buff and leave it alone

[Skidmark]

First time out of the weather since 2014. Finally. Car covers caused more damage, all though minor, than the previous 40 + years combined. I think I actually slept better last night knowing my car has a roof over it again.

[dataway]

Very nice! Home at last.

Border Collie? Did he just help you build or did he draw up the prints