12/7/2001 - Body Prep & Paint!

Spent the last month assembling the body and prepping the car for painting. I've welded on the wings and finished the front panel welding. It took a whole week to get the household gloss emulsion off the doors I bought, but the condition they were in underneath meant that this was well worth it. I also took the boot off the donor car as this is in better nick than the original off this car. I have applied seam sealer to all joints on the car as I think this gives a better finish

Flatting off the car by had is not something I would like to do again. I've used loads of wet and dry paper and have the blisters to prove it. Once flat I gave the body a coat of spray putty (primer filler) followed by about five coats of high build primer. I primed the doors, boot and bonnet separately so that they did not get in the way. This is the first time I've painted a car although I have seen someone do it before so I am following their example.

I used a couple of old cans of black spray to put a ghost coat over the top of the primer which I then used as a guide for flatting the primer in preparation for the topcoat. This flatting was done using a block with 800 grit paper and took ages to do (you have to remove all traces of the ghost coat to ensure the primer is flat). I also coated inside the wheel arches and under the front/inner wings with stone guard as these were to be body colour. I have also run this round the base of the sills/front and rear panel/rear quarters for added protection.

After taking advice from a friend I bought 5 litres of cellulose Daytona Yellow together with the same amount of premium quality thinners. I ended up having to get more thinners as the recommended mix of 50:50 was too strong for my gun/compressor! I've given the car about three coats up to yet and it looks OK except for the roof where it's a bit dry. I also got some really nasty runs on the doors and boot which I had to wait to harden before I could flat these off with 1000 grit paper. Also a mate tells me I've got 'silicon spots' in the paint and recommended using something called Flowright with the last coat.

An 'experienced' friend is coming round next week to help me apply the last two coats. In preparation for this I've flatted off the car with 1000 and 1200 grit wet and dry and hung the doors, bonnet and boot as the shuts and engine bay are finished.

I've ended up buying another 3 litres of paint, more premium thinners and other consumables so I reckon the toal cost of the paint etc runs to about £280 up to yet. (that £500 quote for someone else to do it seems quite realistic now I think about it!).

For those of you who are interested here's what the spray job needed:

8 litres Daytona Yellow Cellulose Top Coat
5 litres High Build Primer
2.5 litres Spray Putty
25 litres Standard Thinners
10 litres Premium Thinners
1 tube (for caulking gun) of Seam Sealer
2 1kg Tins Seam Sealer
2 Bottles Stone Guard
1 litre Panel Wipe
1 Box (of 10) Tack Rags
8 Sheets 40 Grit Production Paper
16 Sheets 80 Grit Production Paper
6 Sheets 120 Grit Wet and Dry
6 Sheets 180 Grit Wet and Dry
6 Sheets 240 Grit Wet and Dry
4 Sheets 400 Grit Wet and Dry
10 Sheets 800 Grit Wet and Dryt
12 Sheets 1000 Grit Wet and Dry
6 Sheets 1200 Grit Wet and Dry
3 1kg Tins Filler
1 500g Tin Rubbing Compound

I'm still toying with the idea of stone guarding underneath the car and painting this body colour. I really want to do it as I know it will make the car but it's a case of whether funds and time will allow this.

It is quite satisfying painting a car but my advice is don't under-estimate the amount of work involved especially if you are doing it by hand, like me, and you should consider whether or not it would be less risky and cheaper for someone else to do it if you can afford it.