one of my first rides

427carl wrote:

---

Hardtail wrote:

---

Dan,

That looks great. How long can you expect it to last if I do the same for my car?

Also.. I am thinking. Is it better to scuff the car down again and shoot the clear with a new gun?

Thanks!

---

         Once you buff it to a nice shine..   it should last the life of the paint?   We have had trucks painted and buffed and never touched them again  

         I suppose it depends on how much outdoors use it gets...    if you can teach yourself to buff, it will save you a lot of bucks    

         I had a friend offer to buff the white Pontiac I had for $1200.00   (and he was serious)  

---

 Thanks for the info Carl. I was told by a friend that it only lasts a year so that is why I asked. 

Your cars look great guys. I will buff mine in the near future when I can get it out of the shop, need to replace the dirt with some gravel.

My driveshaft is all mocked up, so I am getting that taken care of. Then I can start putting the interior in and building the exhaust! Can't wait to fire it up.

Nice progress and looking great! Just finished wet sanding and buffing mine. Shouldn't break through clear if you have a couple of good coats on. I used 2000 grit and did small sections at a time(top of fender then topside of fender then bottom of fender) Wetsand each section then buff,can use a spray bottle(water) to keep moist while polishing. Also make sure your paper is kept clean by dipping in soapy water, if it gets plugged up you'll leave scratches in clear and will have to resand. It's alot of work to do a whole car, into mine for about 12 hrs and still have a few more to go. Hope this helps a bit.

hawkeye5766 wrote:

---

Nice progress and looking great! Just finished wet sanding and buffing mine. Shouldn't break through clear if you have a couple of good coats on. I used 2000 grit and did small sections at a time(top of fender then topside of fender then bottom of fender) Wetsand each section then buff,can use a spray bottle(water) to keep moist while polishing. Also make sure your paper is kept clean by dipping in soapy water, if it gets plugged up you'll leave scratches in clear and will have to resand. It's alot of work to do a whole car, into mine for about 12 hrs and still have a few more to go. Hope this helps a bit.

 

 

---

 Your car looks amazing! Thanks for the lesson on how to buff it. I hope mine turns out half as good as yours. 

I agree Dan. I might drive it for a bit though before buffing it! The anticipation is real, lol.

hawkeye5766 wrote:

---

Thanks! Went back and looked at your paint again, as you stated drive and enjoy for the summer. Just a back yarder and I'm sure someone will have better advise than me but this is just my opinion. Looks like your clear isn't on heavy enough. Orange peel is caused by the paint/clear not flowing out. You can get med/fast/slow dry reduce or use no reducer at all in clear. Always found that med was the best,painted my buddies Firebird and it sagged like crazzy on the quarter(he bought slow) once I used med not a run. Will be hard to wetsand and not break through on that amount of orange peel, but can't see it in person. Before and if you respray use a test piece of sheet metal. Spray a tack coat(light) wait 20 min and spray a heavy coat, you'd be amazed at how much clear you can put on without it running, you need enough to make it flow but not too much to make it run. Have always used the same gun/tip for base and clear so I don't think it's the gun. Just might have to turn up your air pressure to atomize the clear a bit more. Pic of my 57 painted 25 years ago after it sat under cedar trees for 10 years in bare steel! Didn`t know anything at the time and body guys told me it couldnt be fixed. Anything can be done and turn out great in the back yard, just takes a bit more time and work. Good luck and Luving the build.    Jim

 

 

---

 Jim,

I used a medium hardener in the clear. It got lots, what happened was, my supplier sold me a new gun and I took his word for it when he said it can be used for clear and paint like my old gun. I didn't look any further. After I shot the paint...I looked at the clear and it requires a 1.3-1.6mm tip, and the gun is less than 1.3. Really a PITA and my fault. Oh well, live and learn I guess. I have thought about re shooting the clear but I really want to drive it. As I am sure you guys can understand after spending 3 years trying to put this baby on the road, lol! If someone has something bad to say, they can F off =)

Thanks a lot for your advice though! The first time I painted this car my shop heat dropped crazy and the paint sank, plus the base was the wrong color. Glad I reshot it. 

It doesn't look that bad outside in the light. I will try to buff it this year I think, we will see. My fan is arriving from summit tomorrow, currently in Mississauga fedex warehouse. 

I hear you on the backyard stuff. I have a hard time keeping the shop clean because I am constantly grinding old metal and it gets everywhere. I have too many tools in there for the size of it.

Your '57 looks amazing !! 

We use Car Quest brake fluid for all vehicles   Its in a black  container      we use 3-4 a week