elis94camaro

Ok everyone so I'm finally getting a paint job and itll be for free.I only have to buy the paint and materials? So my question to you all with experience is what exactly do I buy like the paint, reducer, and things like that because I have no idea what to buy or how much paint to buy.Keep in mind that this is my daily driver and would like to keep the paint recommendations not so expensive. So please share what paint and what else i need to buy and where I can get it for a good price. Thanks

93LS1S10

iTrader: (19)

Not sure if there are any NAPA part stores around your area, but we use their Crossfire brand. It is affordable and we have had good luck with it.

Dudge

I've used Crossfire a couple of times recently and it is a decent paint for the very cheap price. It doesn't cover as well as DBU or DBC from PPG, however. Are you spraying the entire car? If so, are there very many primered places on the car? If you have primered spots or you're doing a color change, it may pay you to seal it before you put on base. A gallon of base should cover the car, even if you do the jambs. Same goes for clear.

ls1curt

iTrader: (31)

If you are getting a complete repaint I would suggest getting a decent quality basecoat such as BASF Diamont or even PPG Omni. In my years of painting I have come to realize that using a good quality base, covers so much quicker and easier. I have used cheap basecoats such as PPG DBC and had to put 6-7 coats to cover where with a good basecoat it usually only takes 3 coats.
How base covers also depends on the color alot.

I would buy a gallon of base which will actually equal a gallon and a half or 2 gallons sprayable depending on which base coat you go with. Some are 2:1 ratios and some 1:1
If you're not going to respray all the jambs I'm sure you could get away with buying only 3 quarts of base.
So you will also need a gallon of urethane grade reducer.

A gallon of clear should be enough. I have had good success with Limco clear which is made by BASF which is also quite affordable. It lays on really nice and doesn't die back like some of the cheaper brands.

Don't for get about the tape and paper for masking. a couple rolls of 3/4" and a roll 1.5" or 2" should get the job done.

Depending on the color it is going I would recommend a good sealer which will help the base cover easier.

98camaro28

iTrader: (21)

Omni is the economy line from PPG, not DBC which is one of the higher lines. DBC is 3-5X the price of Onmi, but has a lot more solids than Omni to cover a lot better. You got that mixed up.

OP, Just get the color you want in Omni. Most Omni I spray only takes 3 coats to cover and is a very good economy paint.

You usually want to get a nicer clear. If I were you I would look into Southern Polyurethanes. Great stuff for a good price. If it's too expensive for you, just go with the "Advantage" clear from English color. Anytime I do a budget paint job, I spray Omni base and Advantage clear. Lays down very nice and I have had great success. Still looks like new years later. Also, Omni reducer is just fine aswell.

Are you personally going to be doing the spraying?

elis94camaro

No I won't be spraying it myself, my uncle will. I am just getting some opinions on paint before I take the car to him. My car has about 4 primer spots on it.I'm really have no knowledge about paint I'm more of a motor junkie, so if you all could be nice and explain what is a sealer and base and reducer and all of that good stuff? I'm just trying to get a good understanding of how all of this paint works.

98camaro28

iTrader: (21)

Primer: Use a good 2K primer. It works as a sealer and "builds" on the painting surface. I would prime the whole thing, wet sand with 600, and prime/sand again before paint. When you use a primer/sealer, it takes less coats to cover depending on what color is underneath and what color your base is. It produces a more even paint job. Buy catalyst to go with it.

Base coat: It's your color. This is 100% what gives the car it's color in a base/clear paintjob. It can be just a pure color or have pearl, flakes, etc in it. I would spray 3 coats of base over primer.

Reducer: Think of the base as being "concentrated". This "waters" down the base, usually mixed 1:1. You can get it in different speeds for different temps. Use "slow" when it's hot, medium during normal temps, and fast when it's cold.

Clear: It's a clear coat. Pretty simple. Spray 3 coats and wet sand the entire car with 2000 with a GOOD quality sandpaper. 3M, Meguires, and Klingspore are all good. I use Klingspore for budget jobs - it's cheap and very good paper. Buy activator to go with it.

Use a buffer and a cheap foam pad to buff the car with Meguires 105. Then use a high quality pad with Meguires 205.

SinisterZ28

iTrader: (4)

^adding to what 98camaro28 said use slow when doing an allover,lays down better so u need a good sealer,base coat(1gal is more than enough usually)slow reducer fir the base.1gal of clear with slow or very slow hardner. I like Matrix MS-42 with very slow hardner it's fairly cheap n easy to use n buffs easy.this all assuming your using a base/clear n not a single stage,I also use spies hecker base coat it's really good base that covers good n lays down nice.

98camaro28

iTrader: (21)

^^ X2, agree.

Here are a few pics of an OMNI base with the Advantage HS clear I sprayed last week. All this is raw and before ANY colorsanding/buffing. This is just after about 24 hours of curing.: This is a Kia Rio color, btw. Very cheap and a very nice blue. 3 coats base, 3 coats clear.

elis94camaro

Hey guys I was talking to this painter guy and he told me that I dont have to primer the whole car if I want to save time and money and that I could paint over the existing paint. What's the deal with that? I am looking for a budget paint job so what method would be better? I also wanted to know what I could start doing to the car ( sanding wise) and prepping before my uncle comes from out of town to paint it?One of the quarter panels clear is peeling so how would I go about prepping that? As for the rest of the car I just bought a new fiberglass hood and most of the body panels don't have peeling paint besides the quarter panel. So if you would be so nice as to tell me how I could go about doing this. If you'd like I could post pictures of the peeling paint and the repaired dents?I'm sorry for all of these questions but I am so excited about finally painting my car.

elis94camaro

Man that paint looks amazing!!!! If you don't mind about how much did all the paint materials cost? I'm planning on doing black, so any specific recomendations?

Dudge

The painter was right, you don't have to primer the whole car. I wouldn't recommend it in your situation, being on a budget and it being unnecessary. I do recommend, however, that you're uncle look it over well when he gets there to ensure that the previous bodywork was done correctly and that the body is straight. If you're painting it black, then EVERYTHING is going to show.
As for the peeling clear coat issue, the solution depends on the severity of the problem. If it's not that bad, then you can wet block it out with 400-600 grit until everything is feathered out. As far as prep work goes, you can start wet sanding the car to get ready for paint, if he's coming soon. Go to your local auto paint supply and pick up some decent quality(3M and Bulldog around here) 400-600 grit paper to wet sand with. It would be beneficial to get a flexible sanding block/sponge to use as well, it really helps you obtain an even pattern and takes away the "finger marks" that many people cause by digging out the material while sanding. 8-10 full sheets of quality paper would probably do the car. If you plan on polishing the paint, I would also pick up 8-10 sheets of 2000 grit paper for color sanding.
The cost of all of the supplies needed to paint your car (base, reducer, clear, hardener, sandpaper, tape, wax and grease remover, tack cloth) around here would be about $300 for cheap materials. If you wanted quality materials (all PPG), it would be well over twice that. I didn't factor in sealer or masking paper. I've heard masking paper has really taken a hike in the price department here lately, costing as much as $50 a roll for some stuff. I would imagine you could find a better price if you shopped around a little bit, but seeing as how I do not actually know the current price, I didn't include it. I also haven't priced a cheap sealer lately, but I would imagine you could get enough to do your car (with hardener/reducer) for under $50.

elis94camaro

So I would go over the whole car with 400-600 wet sand to prep it? The body is very straight other than that that little peeling paint, it's not that bad but I just wanted to make sure.

Dudge

Yes. I would finish sand with 600 since you're spraying it black (it shows sand scratches easier). You can go over the whole thing with 400, then with 600, or you can start out with 600. Depending on how hard it is, the 400 and 600 route could be faster. You want to sand evenly until there's no shine left in the paint. Just make sure to keep the area wet and your paper clean.

98camaro28

iTrader: (21)

Agree, finish prep with 600. And I would HIGHLY recommend priming the paint. It will be a little more time and a little more money, but WELL worth it. It will be easier to see and low spots and repair them and provide an even "seal" for the base coat. It can pay for itself in the fact that it will require less base to get an even color on the car. I wouldn't skip primer. If you in that much of a bind I would just get a quart of 2K primer and thin it out and spray 1 coat. That's the minimum.

The above job was just a repair job. Materials were about $100, give or take $15.

Dudge

"Priming the paint" is not necessary in this situation. I can understand priming the entire car, if he stripped the old paint down or the body wasn't very straight. It's also not going to provide better base coverage if he's spraying black base over a black car. I would understand and agree with that statement if this was a wavy body white to black or other drastic color change or something of that nature. Not trying to start a ruckus or anything, just respectfully disagreeing. Priming and blocking a car has it's time and place, and is the best way to really get a car straight. However, considering the information that has been given here, it's not necessary.

SinisterZ28

iTrader: (4)

The body work and pealling clear should be feathered with 320 and primed then wet sand with a sanding block with 500 on the whole car then use a red scuff pad for all the edges,till all the shiny is gone.if you have a compressor n a DA use 600 on the whole car with a soft interface pad(except where the the body work is,should be blocked)of coarse you can do somemore steps but will cost more,and not really nessasary.then it should be ready to paint.
- before and after sanding wipe down with wax n grease remover,do a good job prepping the car n don't get lazy because a good prep job is what makes a good paint job

elis94camaro

The body work already has primer on it and is sanded smooth it was done by a body shop.I'm sorry to sound ldumb but is feathering out the pealing clear coat like blending it in with the surrounding paint?

98camaro28

iTrader: (21)

I did not see that he was spraying black over a black car. In that case, it would be acceptable for coverage reasons.

OP, you said it's already primered and sanded smooth but that you have peeling clear? Please elaborate because that sort of contradicts itself. If you have peeling clear, it needs to be feathered out and primered.

Like SinisterZ28 said, prep is EVERYTHING. You can use the best products in the world and have it sprayed by the best painter in the world, but if the prep is lacking it WILL look like ***. Cheap paint can look fantastic with the right prep, longevity is a different story, but you get the point. Spend your money on the prep and THEN paint.

Since it is being sprayed black, I want you to be aware that OMNI black has a slight shade of brown in the sun. 99% of people will NEVER notice. Just get a fleet black in OMNI, and the "Universal Clear" from SPI (Southern Polyurethanes). You will be very happy with it, and that clear is the best clear on the market for the price. It's about $10 more a gallon than Advantage, including activator.

If you want a "blacker" black, get PPG DBC. Or for the blackest, Sikkens. But those are quite costly. Probably at least 5X the price of Omni. If certain you'll be happy with the OMNI though.

elis94camaro

I'm sorry I didn't explain myself. What I meant to say was that the only the body work is primered and sanded while the clearcoat on the quarter panel is peeling.So my only real problem is that peeling clearcoat, which has to be feathered out. I really don't know how to feather edge and am wondering if I could just sand away the clear because it's not that big of a piece, but what grit would I use,or would it get sanded with the 400 grit? I also wanted to ask about putty?what exactly can I use it for because today I saw a very small ding and wanted to know could I use that. The ding is super small and I was wondering what I could do.Please have patience with me asking all these kindergarten question, but I'm trying to learn.