*KANDY SS*

I want to learn how to paint and was wondering what I need to get started.

http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?i...rID=240&KICKER

that is the guns i was going to get...i like the price and i guess there is one big one for primers/flakes, etc. and a smaller detail gun...

as for paint:

http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?i...RY&itemID=1373

i was just going to buy a bunch of 4oz and experiment...

what is good to practice on? IKEA has aluminum white signs that might be good but would be a lot of $...what else can i practice on? Do I need a base coat to get started, even if I do it on an aluminum sign? confused.

thanks,

mikie

ChevyChad

iTrader: (50)

Do they have any technical schools in your area? That'd probably be the best way to get into it before diving right off into the deep end...

ROCNDAV

iTrader: (100)

You can check out the schools in your area as well as read up on the web and talk to body people for tips (helps if they are friends )

Nothing will help you like practice and training (and more practice).




.

TheLSwon

It would be a great thing to learn. I have thought about it myself. I love good paint and it's an expensive thing to have done. You could make a pretty penny.

Reject

iTrader: (24)

just practice off of a junk yard body panel, perferable a front fender since they have curves and need to be straight at parts. that way you'll be able to learn how to hammer the little dints out and get to bondo alittle. when you start off with teh panel whip it clean with some water and get a good look at it with some light to see any low spots. mark the low spots with some tap and keep goin. after that try to push the ents out with your hands since the metal of todays cars are pretty easy to move. once you got that done its time to start sanding the lowspots and and additional 6 inches around the dent since you are goin to bondo taht area. when you got a thin layer ( about 1/8th of an inch, you dont want to go to deep with the bondo or else it'll flake and crack off) get that sanded down with some 40 grit and make sure you have it even with the rest of the panel (again practice is were you will begin to get the feel of the body panel and know how much or to much you did) once you got that done, you want to feather the surounded paint with some 800 grit, (this is just that when you are goin to prim, the primer has somewere to grab on to, that and you are taking the clear off making a even surface, or else you'll have uneven levals of paint.) let that cure and do about 3 more coats of primer, (you need those extra layers so taht when you begin the next step) after you let it cure, you want to get a spray can of flat black and spray a VERY FINE mist over the primer, maybe about foot and half away from the surface, all you want to do is just get alil on it, not cover it. then start with the wet sanding...
you'll want to have a sanding block MAKE SURE ITS EVEN WITH NO BUMPS OR ANYTHING LIKE TAHT. wrap a 1500 grit paper on that (the color black paper, dont remember if thats 1500 or not) and dunk that in a bucket of water to get is wet. start by sanding the surface VERY littley (time consuming) until you have no more guide coat left, thats when you know that you got all the low spots produced by the primer. do that to the whole surface making sure you dont just work in a little spot at a time cleaming the paper every 8 or so strocks. if you work on alittle spot for to long, you'll just sand right threw the primer and have to start over with the priming. once you have it all smoothed with no more guide coat left then you are ready to paint.

Reject

iTrader: (24)

whoo... didnt know i wrote taht much! sorry about that, but that will give you a VERY good idea on how to start painting, PRACTICE is your friend when it comes to paint. EVERYone is goin to look at the paint job and comment on how good/bad it is, so practice practice practice!!!

ROCNDAV

iTrader: (100)

good stuff. Keep it coming

parbreak

iTrader: (17)

Read as MUCH as you can to get a basic foundation on techniques and so forth. Learn as much as you can about what causes paint failures and defects in the finish, such as orange peel, solvent pop, blistering, mottling, etc. etc. Then take what you have learned and start practicing. Play close attention to gun pressure, distance from gun to surface, gun speed, etc. It's a lot to learn and nothing beats actually doing it. You will be successful after you've learned to correct all the mistakes you WILL make and eventually how to avoid them in the first place.

Reject

iTrader: (24)

yeah depending on the gun (SATA best in the bizz) you want to spray about 6 inchs away form the surface and you want to spray half ways into the spray you just layed down, kinda like layering the paint, also if you go to fast you get a dry finish to the paint, if you go to slow you have drip, ewww nasty, oh and spray the gun evenly, dont tilt the gun when you have a strait panel, or else you'll get to much paint on one end of the paint pattern and to little on the opisite side.

ROCNDAV

iTrader: (100)

when layering the paint, do you start at the bottom and go up or the other way around?
I mean, I know you spray sideways, but do you start at the top or bottom?

Reject

iTrader: (24)

you want to start from the edges like paint it from the side painting inwards, to get the edges covered first, then you want to start from the top and work your way down

ROCNDAV

iTrader: (100)

cool. Bitchen paint thread great question Kandy

I also see a lot of people painting panels (hoods, doors etc) on hangers. and the frame seperatley. Is this the norm? or is this only for primer?

Also, I've heard its best not to let primer completley dry? Is it best to spray a layer of paint once the primer is tacky?

Reject

iTrader: (24)

depends on how you are painting, if your restoring then its a good ting to do them all seperatly, you get teh paint in good in all the nooks and krannys.

the primer thing you want to have it sanded smooth completle (and in order for it to me smooth, it has to be dry..), so dont start spraying right after you primed, or else you'll have a rough paint job. If you for any chance leave the primer on the car, say its your only car and you are doing it one at a time, you want to scuff the paint up with the fine sand paper, just enough to have it scuffed...not down to the metal (this is if you have already sanded it smooth, if you havnt already then start wet sanding!) . so the paint has a surface to grab on to. You also want to blow it off with compressed air that has been filtered (for dust and water being collected in the air compresser coming out threw the lines, or else you'll have watery paint) once you have that done, you want to wipe it down with a lint free towel diped in some thinner, and anothr lint free towel to wipe it off to get any little dust out. after that you want to get a "cheese cloth" (thats what i call it becuase i cant remember its real name, if anyone remembers it please tell me!!) and LIGHTLY dabb it around the panel to get any little lint that may have gotten away.

EDawg

Reject

iTrader: (24)

hey hey its a rough begining, I KNOW i'm not the best at explaining so help me out on it, I dont clame to know EVERYthing, so help me out to give him an idea of were to start. Thanks!!

ROCNDAV

iTrader: (100)

Good stuff. I'm a firm believer in do it yourself. I know you make mistakes at first, everyone does. But I like the feeling you get when you do something yourself!

Thanks and feel free to add more if it comes to you later.

D

*KANDY SS*

awesome thread so far and good feedback, thanks! I'll check into some schools, but I'm more of a self-learner, and I love to read, so I'll swing over to barnes/noble...I think I'll just give it a shot and post up some pics