Before or After?

[NEK5]

Should I have my front clip, doors, and bed painted before I have it all together, or do it after I get the rig all together?

Would it likely cost me more if I waited? ie, because of disassembly/reassembly?

 

[JK5]

Should I have my front clip, doors, and bed painted before I have it all together, or do it after I get the rig all together?

Would it likely cost me more if I waited? ie, because of disassembly/reassembly?

I test fit my parts, especially if they're aftermarket, then edge them in. After some dry time, I install the parts. Sometimes prybars are needed to get parts to line up.

 

[NEK5]

I test fit my parts, especially if they're aftermarket, then edge them in. After some dry time, I install the parts. Sometimes prybars are needed to get parts to line up.

Hint of sarcasm?

I plan on having my buddys dads friend paint it at a body shop, well, the rest of it, the cab has fresh paint on it

 

[JK5]

Hint of sarcasm?

I plan on having my buddys dads friend paint it at a body shop, well, the rest of it, the cab has fresh paint on it

No sarcasm.

I've painted aftermarket panels to later find they don't fit..
once painted they're impossible to return...I'm just going by experiance that's all.

 

[muddermilitia]

Cut in the parts then paint the entire truck once its all assembled. Leave off all trim, headlight buckets, door handles, ect. Mask all glass and wheel well openings. also cover tires or throw on some spares. Its ok to prime everything before you install it. If you are getting new (aftermarket) sheetmetal make sure you scuff and prime the parts. That black paint they come shipped in is not enough and will rust.

 

[dbabicky]

I prefer to *remove* all the glass and seals, but that's just my picky a$$.

 

[NEK5]

To clarify, only aftermarket piece is the hood, the rest is off my 90 Blazer,

 

[supersize75k5]

like said already, trim out or cut in all the parts, like the back sides of the fenders, jams, underside of the hood.

install them and line them up. then shoot it.

pull or have the winshild, noor weather stripping, moldings, head lights, tail lights, grill, windshileld wippers,turn lights, ..


things i do like to paint off the truck is the winshild cowl, it "can" be hard to get it covered real clean and smooth, also its a nasty spot for dirt or dust to get kicked up while painting.


the guy painting should know how to tape off, but for extra prep tape off the engine bay and the entire chassis..the wiring near the tail lights..everything!

 

[NEK5]

like said already, trim out or cut in all the parts, like the back sides of the fenders, jams, underside of the hood.

install them and line them up. then shoot it.

I was just wondering about things like the fenders, how will they paint the inners of them if they`re assembled, or do they usually just paint what you see when the hood is closed?

 

[supersize75k5]

thats what difines if a car was painted cheap or done right. if you want to leave the front clip on and not take it off to paint the jams you can paint the inside of the fenders, firewall and such now. use a flat or trim black or even satin spray paint, something of decent quality. Paint it before though so you dont overspray onto your new paint job! I personally like a black enine compartment, unless you do a frame off or some serious effort painting the firewall and fenders and getting the paint to stay on can be a challange..I hate looking at painted engine bays and look at all the flaked of chipped off paint and you see the original color behind it..same goes for door and fender jams. Do it right and you will be happy you did.

When he paints it, you open the hood and tape it off on the flat inside enge of the fender. Tape and plastic off the rest then shoot. He should also know to shoot the jams and such 1st.


for the interior pull the carpet and pin it back and paint up to the door sills or the lip the weatherstripping is sitting on. pull the weather strip too! tape off the interior really well with the right tape. using the right tape will make untaping the truck a breeze and leave no residue or try to lift the paint. Every edge you tape off, say around the windshield is one more area for dirt, or junk to get under or the paint to not stick..it would suck to have the paint lift after 6 months!

just spend alot of time on prep, he should know the paint part, but alot of the finsished results rely soly on the prep!

 

[Chevy305]

Ben, the body shop that did my truck dissasembled the front clip, doors, and removed the bed. They painted the bed separately from the cab. They fit everything, then dissasembled and primed, then painted the inside of the doors and fenders. Then re-assembled and painted all the exterior as one whole piece.

 

[noJeepshere]

If you want a really clean and professional looking job, put it all together to test fit the parts, then disassemble it all and paint away. My general theory with finishing work is 75% prep and final touch, 25% painting.