diy car spraying
Discussion
I'm restoring my classic and would like to spray it myself. I have a compressor and a good spray gun and have done a small amount of spraying with cellulose, although it was many years ago. Has anyone done this? My main question is what is the current thinking on the best paint to use, bearing in mind I'' probably only have a p3 respirator?
Caddyshack said:
Doofus said:
Do you have a dust free environment? A tent or a booth? A oven?
I've done small panels, but wouldn't consider a whole car unless I could control hungry and dust.
If you eat a balanced meal you should be able to control the “hungry”I've done small panels, but wouldn't consider a whole car unless I could control hungry and dust.
king autocorrect. Some tt Hungry = humidity.
What car is it?
Some classic cars are so small that you can break the painting down into small areas. That makes it a lot easier to control dust and contamination.
Humidity as someone else pointed out though is a real issue and you have to pick your days carefully if trying to do it just in a shed at home.
With regards to paint - I've always found this firm to be very useful. https://nuagane.co.uk/?srsltid=AfmBOopBikJA40x_rvV...
Some classic cars are so small that you can break the painting down into small areas. That makes it a lot easier to control dust and contamination.
Humidity as someone else pointed out though is a real issue and you have to pick your days carefully if trying to do it just in a shed at home.
With regards to paint - I've always found this firm to be very useful. https://nuagane.co.uk/?srsltid=AfmBOopBikJA40x_rvV...
I've done it a few times. Prepping the paint, properly masking and a clean enviroment is key. Get a good resporator. The gun will dictate the CFM needed from your compressor. Some guns are designed for the hobbiest and don't require a big compressor. Some like the supernova shoot paint like it's coming out of a fire hose. My 60 gallon , 5hp compressor struggles to keep up. The more the compressor runs, the more heat, the more water in the tank which could overcome your water seperator (you need a water seperator). Size matters in this case and just because your compressor can keep up with painting a bumper, it does not mean it can keep up with painting a whole car.
If you're painting in a home made booth, have good ventelation as the overspray in the air will come down and add texture to your paint. The less you have, the less buffing you need. This stuff is flamible so don't paint anywhere near your water heater if it's gas or turn it off.
Read the instructions on the label and use the appropriate reducer and hardener for the temps you're painting in. Pick a dry day , early morning is good as there are less bugs and less humidity. Also less people around because you'll fume out your neighborhood.
There's a billion videos on youtube on DIY paint jobs. Ignore any of those that suggest using paint that's not designed for painting cars but watch the rest.
Cover everything up in your garage that you don't want paint dust on.
I only paint base coat and clear (solvent , not the water based stuff).. There's a Spanish brand clear coat by a company called Roberlo which I like. It's high solid and I get i for around $130 (USD) for a 5L of clear plus 2.5L of hardener. It mixes 2.1 with about 20% reducer.
If you're painting in a home made booth, have good ventelation as the overspray in the air will come down and add texture to your paint. The less you have, the less buffing you need. This stuff is flamible so don't paint anywhere near your water heater if it's gas or turn it off.
Read the instructions on the label and use the appropriate reducer and hardener for the temps you're painting in. Pick a dry day , early morning is good as there are less bugs and less humidity. Also less people around because you'll fume out your neighborhood.
There's a billion videos on youtube on DIY paint jobs. Ignore any of those that suggest using paint that's not designed for painting cars but watch the rest.
Cover everything up in your garage that you don't want paint dust on.
I only paint base coat and clear (solvent , not the water based stuff).. There's a Spanish brand clear coat by a company called Roberlo which I like. It's high solid and I get i for around $130 (USD) for a 5L of clear plus 2.5L of hardener. It mixes 2.1 with about 20% reducer.
Edited by alabbasi on Monday 6th January 06:33
Saleen836 said:
Spraying a whole car I personally would look for a local spray booth rental, plenty of them about for around £2-300 for the day, that way for a small outlay you can do a much cleaner job and most places include use of compressor and spray gun etc
Interesting thought, I wonder if there is any around me.I have done a whole car in a reasonably clean double garage, the results are good enough for what I needed ( it’s a rally car). I think if I was to do it again ( and I may well do) hiring a booth is probably the best approach.
Cleanliness is everything and getting some heat onto the panels is important. I used to have a stand with halogen lights shining at the areas I was doing to heat the surface and dry the paint as it landed. I tried a heat gun from a distance away, but it blew too much dust. My car is very good in parts, less good in others. But it cost me about £500 instead of £5000 which a professional job would have done.
I painted this outside my garage in a 20x 10 party tent with 2 fans at each back corner on full blast to keep insects etc out. It was in June i recall outside temp around 21, no wind so almost perfect conditions. The sheet on the floor is essential.
I used sikkens commercial 2 pack which goes on REALLY well, 2 coats. I have painted cars/trucks before but always inside an industrial unit, not an oven, and TBH the Escort came out Very well, no runs, and virtually no debris in the paint, very presentable IMO.
I used sikkens commercial 2 pack which goes on REALLY well, 2 coats. I have painted cars/trucks before but always inside an industrial unit, not an oven, and TBH the Escort came out Very well, no runs, and virtually no debris in the paint, very presentable IMO.
Mark A S said:
I painted this outside my garage in a 20x 10 party tent with 2 fans at each back corner on full blast to keep insects etc out. It was in June i recall outside temp around 21, no wind so almost perfect conditions. The sheet on the floor is essential.
I used sikkens commercial 2 pack which goes on REALLY well, 2 coats. I have painted cars/trucks before but always inside an industrial unit, not an oven, and TBH the Escort came out Very well, no runs, and virtually no debris in the paint, very presentable IMO.
Were they there for moral support, to cheer you on?I used sikkens commercial 2 pack which goes on REALLY well, 2 coats. I have painted cars/trucks before but always inside an industrial unit, not an oven, and TBH the Escort came out Very well, no runs, and virtually no debris in the paint, very presentable IMO.
Although not doing this myself, my son is taking the lead, we decided on taking on the painting of our latest project, because of poor results from previous experience.
We’ve only completed the chassis so far, but the results are favourable.
One point was to achieve good results was ensuring the air was dry.
So we read about this diy air dryer and made one.
We also invested in an air mover, not that expensive on line, but was a definite must have.
Good luck.
We’ve only completed the chassis so far, but the results are favourable.
One point was to achieve good results was ensuring the air was dry.
So we read about this diy air dryer and made one.
We also invested in an air mover, not that expensive on line, but was a definite must have.
Good luck.
I'm still interested in what the car is - a TVR?
I was assuming it would be steel.
If GRP - you're in for a lot more pain.
Give consideration to colour too. Solids obviously easier and more forgiving than metallic or anything with a clear coat.
It would be great to see you do a thread on it.
Best of luck in any case.
I was assuming it would be steel.
If GRP - you're in for a lot more pain.
Give consideration to colour too. Solids obviously easier and more forgiving than metallic or anything with a clear coat.
It would be great to see you do a thread on it.
Best of luck in any case.
Used to do a few in celly back in the 80's and 90's
Mini's Metro, Marina, Sunbeam and a Lotus 7. All in a slightly larger than single garage.
Silly I know but didn't use a mask as it used to steam up my specs!
Used to clean up as best I could before hand and accept there's be a bit of paint dust on the stuff exposed on the bench etc.
Got a decent finish, if a little flat but a good 2000 grit and polish improved stuff.
Hardest part was reaching across the roof (Lotus was easier!)
Just bought a 1980's car that the restorer DIY painted in base/clear coat. In daylight it looks fine, some orange peel, and in LED strip lights you can see dust specks. He's done quite a few apparently. Will give it a good polish, any recommendations for a DA?
The cost of a professional repaint is often outside the realms of a restore, when the finished article will not be worth the cost of the repaint, if I thought I could do a full repaint using modern materials I'd more likely take on another project.
You can still buy Cellulose if you prefer.
Mini's Metro, Marina, Sunbeam and a Lotus 7. All in a slightly larger than single garage.
Silly I know but didn't use a mask as it used to steam up my specs!
Used to clean up as best I could before hand and accept there's be a bit of paint dust on the stuff exposed on the bench etc.
Got a decent finish, if a little flat but a good 2000 grit and polish improved stuff.
Hardest part was reaching across the roof (Lotus was easier!)
Just bought a 1980's car that the restorer DIY painted in base/clear coat. In daylight it looks fine, some orange peel, and in LED strip lights you can see dust specks. He's done quite a few apparently. Will give it a good polish, any recommendations for a DA?
The cost of a professional repaint is often outside the realms of a restore, when the finished article will not be worth the cost of the repaint, if I thought I could do a full repaint using modern materials I'd more likely take on another project.
You can still buy Cellulose if you prefer.
Pistom said:
I'm still interested in what the car is - a TVR?
I was assuming it would be steel.
If GRP - you're in for a lot more pain.
Give consideration to colour too. Solids obviously easier and more forgiving than metallic or anything with a clear coat.
It would be great to see you do a thread on it.
Best of luck in any case.
It's a Lancia FlaviaI was assuming it would be steel.
If GRP - you're in for a lot more pain.
Give consideration to colour too. Solids obviously easier and more forgiving than metallic or anything with a clear coat.
It would be great to see you do a thread on it.
Best of luck in any case.
It's easy to spray - just be careful - you have a classsic car so use Cellulose paint modern 2 pak or similar Water based paint - look crap on any era with a classic car that would have originally have been sprayed with Celulose IMO - Far too shiny. celly when applied well suits classics and is nowhere near as nasty to use as the modern stuff.
I've sprayed 4 cars inn my garage with celly without probs - all have looked great when polished up.
Good luck
Rene
I've sprayed 4 cars inn my garage with celly without probs - all have looked great when polished up.
Good luck
Rene
rene7 said:
It's easy to spray - just be careful - you have a classsic car so use Cellulose paint modern 2 pak or similar Water based paint - look crap on any era with a classic car that would have originally have been sprayed with Celulose IMO - Far too shiny. celly when applied well suits classics and is nowhere near as nasty to use as the modern stuff.
I've sprayed 4 cars inn my garage with celly without probs - all have looked great when polished up.
Good luck
Rene
It's a 1975 car and I take your point. I have only ever sprayed my daughter's wing using cellulose ( along time ago), in bright yellow and modesty aside, the result was perfect. There's been a lot of good advice in the responses about dust, ventilation etc.I've sprayed 4 cars inn my garage with celly without probs - all have looked great when polished up.
Good luck
Rene
Forums | Classic Cars and Yesterday's Heroes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff