Refinishing SS Hood Questions
#1
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Refinishing SS Hood Questions
Hello All! I have an '01 SS. The clear coat on the hood has been peeling for a while and looks horrible, so bad that it is ruining me enjoying the car! From what I've been reading GM wasn't known for having the best clear coat and this is somewhat of a common problem.
I would like to repair the hood myself. I am not a body guy, but have done some painting in the past. I would like it to come out very nice so that's why I'm posting. I searched and tried to find a thread on redoing a SS or WS6 hood, but didn't see anything.
Not only is the clear peeling, but it's de-laminating on the front edge so I guess the gel coat would need to be fixed also- see photo.
Can anyone tell me or point me to a thread detailing how to repair one of these fiberglass hoods?
Any and all help is appreciated.
I would like to repair the hood myself. I am not a body guy, but have done some painting in the past. I would like it to come out very nice so that's why I'm posting. I searched and tried to find a thread on redoing a SS or WS6 hood, but didn't see anything.
Not only is the clear peeling, but it's de-laminating on the front edge so I guess the gel coat would need to be fixed also- see photo.
Can anyone tell me or point me to a thread detailing how to repair one of these fiberglass hoods?
Any and all help is appreciated.
#2
I would suggest getting a decent air compressor and a 6" palm sander. Sand the hood as even as possible with 180 grit sandpaper. Concentrate on just sanding the clear off and keeping the sander flat. The biggest problem is when you get through the clear, the basecoat, factory primer and even the gelcoat is gonna sand way faster then the clearcoat and you can easily make a wavy mess out of it. Once you get all the clear off, switch to 320 sand paper on the sander or you could even wetsand it with a block. Once again, do your best to keep the finish as even as possible. when the clear is all gone and you sand the 180 scratches out with 320 and the hood is smooth with no 180 scratches. Get a high quality primer dupont, ppg etc. cheaping out will definitely **** you in the end. Paint is not cheap and your top coat is only as good as your bottom coat. Put 3 medium heavy coats of primer on the hood as even as possible letting the primer flash between coats. After that dries being that you are not a "body guy" I would wet sand the primer with a block with 320. After that paint it. personally i like to use a sander with a foam interface pad to finish sand cuz i dont like the risk of straighht line blocking scratches shrinking up later.