The Steps To Body Work and Paint Prep
- Thread starter 85 Cutlass Brougham
- Start date
These days, the preferred way is after stripping the car is to coat it with epoxy primer, then bondo work, then more epoxy primer over the bodo to seal it since epoxy primer is the only waterproof primer. They do sell it it in special 2 part areosol cans but they are hard to find. Also don't forget to remove any bad seam sealer and reseal the seams with epoxy seam sealer.
My Camino had the original paint, which was worn out. In one day my Camino was transformed into a full gloss black beauty by one coat of, as I remember, Benjamin Moore 'Impervo' Enamel with Penetrol (additive) mixed in. No rubbing compound, polish, clear coat, or wax were required, and it was all done outside in my backyard. I do not remember exactly the ratio of the Penetrol to enamel I used, or roller cover, unfortunately. I did not use a 'regular' size roller , but rather a shorter length roller frame and cover from Pittsburg Paint. It was not what they used to call a 'radiator roller'--so thin they could roll behind a home radiator--but had a wider roller cover inside diameter, and I 'think' I used a mohair cover--I did pick the thin nap length, of course. It took 1 1/2 to 2 gal. of paint--I did the bed as well. Used kitchen dish liquid with water and a rough towel, hosed it off and scuffed it with a fine enough grit of wet sand wet or dry paper, so as not to sand to bare metal . Blew water from moldings , etc. and let car dry in the sun. Then taped and masked--the tape I would use today would be 3M blue medium stick masking tape , from Lowes or elsewhere. Pick a day that will be in the 70s' ,with no wind or rain for 24 hours. Also finish early enough so paint will be dew resistant. Wet down the entire area car will be painted- grass, dirt, whatever-and no shade trees or overhead bird club wires. Add Penetrol until the paint is self-leveling. If too much is required, you need a different brand or nap roller cover. The reason for using these small short rollers is that they accommodate curved surfaces better than regular size rollers, which were designed for mainly flat surfaces. No brush marks, roller stipple, runs, or uneven gloss problems, and after about nine years, the paint is still holding up. Not a show quality job, but looks as good as the cheapo grade job from some body shops, and has held up better than some of them, I would venture to say.
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