| Paint |
Subject: Paint by corvetteronw on 2010/3/14 6:12:16 Since I am due to retire in a couple of years I am trying to get out of debt and for sure not trying to rack up any more. I got this 91 Steel Blue Metallic 91 coupe in December. The pics from the seller looked like they were taken in bright sunlight as the color was kinda washed out. I was somewhat let down when I saw it in person. The color was quite faded. The mirrors were sunburned to a flat gray as was the tail section. The nose was too but it also suffered from the bra that had been on it beating it to death. I have buffed out the tail section so it is quite shiny and repainted the mirrors with matching Duplicolor rattle can paint. I have sanded off the paint from the nose section and am in the process of painting it now. The first coat turned out kind of dark. So here I sit with a car of many colors. The nose looks like it is going to turn out darker than the body. The body from the nose back to the rear clip is shiny but faded. I buffed it out and it looks real good. The rear clip is shiny but much, much lighter than the body. I found a recent book with some great "home garage" painting tips. I already have the compressor and I just picked up a Harbor Freight gun. I am shopping around for paint and supplies. Looks like I can get enough of the base coat/clear coat and all the supplies in a kit for around $300 online. In the next couple of days I will stop by the local Finishmaster shop to see what they charge. Probably more than the online deals but at least I will have someone to go to for advice when I screw up. I just cannot afford to pay thousands of dollars to get it repainted right now. I did get a hell of a good deal on an original owner car that has all the receipts for the work that was done over the years. I am still not unhappy with the car but I think I am going to try and paint it myself. I will post the steps and take plenty of pics along the way for those of you who might think of trying it. Basically I am going to do a "scuff and squirt". The only thing I am removing are the front license plate cover, tail light lenses and the emblems. The concept is to not make a color change. Do some spot putty repair to a few nicks. Sand those smooth and spray a high fill primer on these spots. Then rough it up with a wet sanding of the entire body by hand. Tape and mask carefully. Use wax and silicone remover before and after the sanding. Tack it off good. Spray a base coat. Let it dry and apply the clear coat. Buff it out. Sit back and admire the work (hopefully). I can hire a college student that I know who works at a local Pontiac, Buick, GMC dealer where his Dad is a buyer. His Dad says he is the best "wheel man" in town. Probably give him a hundred dead presidents for his trouble. I will post up as I go along with before, during and after pics. Damn but I hate living on a budget. :tongue: |
