What are the steps to a half decent home paint job?

[google]

I want to give it at least a good 10 foot job if not a 6 foot job.

I would like to stay away from rattle cans unless there is one that is really good.

what I really need to know are the steps to painting

1. sand it down (what do I use to sand it down with toolwise and paperwise?)
2. primer (how many coats and is there a difference between rattle can primer and the other stuff if you're going to sand it for the paint?)
3. i've heared of guidecoat... (what is that exactly and is it necessary?)
4. paint (just enough to cover without any dark spots right?)
5. clearcoat (how much and do you sand down the paint a little first or am I loco?)

is there anything i'm missing besides a tarp tent around it? I'm in AZ and my carport is always in the sun so I'm not to worried about having a place for it to cook up a bit. I intend on using a cheapo paint sprayer that I can toss after i'm done and I do have a compressor .

 

[BIG*RED]

That's my point. Next subject now

What is the best thing to use if I want to paint my own truck? I want to give it at least a good 10 foot job if not a 6 foot job.

I would like to stay away from spray paint unless there is one that is really good.

what I really need to know are the steps to painting

1. sand it down (what do I use to sand it down with?)
2. primer (how many coats?)
3. i've heared of guidcoat... (what is that exactly and is it necessary?)
4. paint (just enough to cover without any dark spots right?)
5. clearcoat (how much and do you sand down the paint a little first?)

is there anything i'm missing?

well without seeing the paint first hand i'll try to answer as best as possible..sand the paint with some 400 grit..da works great for this..at this point if you have small dents/dings fill them with glazeing putty and then dry block sand with 400 grit..wash truck...next go over entire paint with "final sand" and red scotch brites..wash truck...air dry...next go over paint with "wax/grease" remover..next remove/mask off all areas and items you don't want painted...next wet down the ground of area where you are gonna paint, this keeps dust down..next blow off truck with air nozzle to remove any dust..next wipe truck with a "tack" cloth...now primer, with a quality primer two coats should be fine..let dry..apply guide coat if you want..if your new at this i recommend it..i can do it by "touch" but i have done it for years..block sand guide guide coat..reprimer spots if needed and sand again..repeat wash and "final sand" and masking steps..
paint truck..if you want to after paint dries wet sand with 1000grit to knock down orange peel, but not necessary...apply clearcoat..two coats should be fine..let dry..and once again if you want to make it look nice color sand after dry (1500 wet, 1800 wet,) buff paint..glaze paint..wax paint..wash paint to remove buffing, glazzing, wax compund.....ta da!

 

[BIG*RED]

oh and a guide coat is just somthing to use to make sure you sand all areas and sand flat..it can be bought in a rattle can..basically black paint that "splatters" or a powder form theat you rub on..i prefer the powdered type...sand truck until guide coat is gone...then spot primer if needed

 

[BIG*RED]

oh yeah and about the primer..becarefull of what you get..alot..not all..but a lot of rattle can primers are NOT water proof..and if left exposed to the weather the metal will rust even tho its primered...

 

[google]

Fantastic job dude. Perfect answer for what I know. That makes me a lot more confident about doing this myself.

 

[google]

the guide coat helps ensure you sand all areas..if its still black , then you didn't sand that area...for beginners sand guide coat with a long block..that way you won't get "ripples" or "waves"..these show up in the paint..most people always recommend block sanding the guide coat..for beginners the longer the block the better..after you have done a few hundred like me..you can get to where you can sand the primer with a da and do it by "touch" and don't need the guide coat..then block sand areas where da can't reach.

what's a da and what do I look for in the parts store when going to buy a "long block"

 

[BIG*RED]

ok man, ya gotta stop asking the same questions in more than one post..all this copy and pasting i'm doing is getting tireing..lol

a da is a air sander..now your gonna make me look stupid..i beleave it stands for dual action?...maybe..anyways an air sander it has a round sanding pad on it..and its a "dual" thing a ma jig becasue not only does it spin in circles but it also moves in some what of a up and down motion..or more of and egg shape motion..but when its running you really wont be able to notice this..at low rpms you can see it moving all over..a long block is just a longer sanding block..in a pinch you can make a small block out of a deck of cards or a 2x4..and the same for long blocks..just get a longer block of wood..this is for "in a pinch" situations..becaue odds are a block of wood isn't gonna be pefectly straight..some parts stores might have these, but i get all my supplies from a paint store. here in my town i use knights paint..look in the yellow pages..most, not all, paint stores carry home paint and supplies and auto paint and supplies.

 

[google]

a da is a air sander..now your gonna make me look stupid..i beleave it stands for dual action?...maybe..anyways an air sander it has a round sanding pad on it..and its a "dual" thing a ma jig becasue not only does it spin in circles but it also moves in some what of a up and down motion..or more of and egg shape motion..but when its running you really wont be able to notice this..at low rpms you can see it moving all over..a long block is just a longer sanding block..in a pinch you can make a small block out of a deck of cards or a 2x4..and the same for long blocks..just get a longer block of wood..this is for "in a pinch" situations..becaue odds are a block of wood isn't gonna be pefectly straight..some parts stores might have these, but i get all my supplies from a paint store. here in my town i use knights paint..look in the yellow pages..most, not all, paint stores carry home paint and supplies and auto paint and supplies.

So, is it necessary to sand it down to the metal before painting the primer? AND VERY IMPORTANTLY... what do I do different around my back wheel well where it was cut out and replaced with fiberglass. there is a part of it that isn't at all even and I don't think sanding by hand will get it to a usable surface.

 

[BIG*RED]

no it is not necessary to sand down to bare metal..unless your going for a show car paint job..or have a lot of rust or bondo..if rust and bondo is the case..yes sand the rust down to metal, then put a rust prohibator on it..if you have a lot of bondo..well depending on the damage..work the sheet metal some so that you use as little bondoo as possible..or cut and repair the pannel..all depends on how nice of a paint job your after..but you mention 6 to 10 footer..so i would not worry about the bondo..just the rust if there is any..
as for the fiberglass area not sure what you mean..you can sand it with some 400groit..then go over the area with "glazing putty" then sand that..and it will give you a smooth surface..or you can "gel coat" it..

oh yeah, and on the bondo...DON'T use bondo!...i recommend a filler that has metal shavings in it..holds better, and "hides" better..when people test for bondo they use a magnet..if the magnet falls there is bondo..but the filler with metal shavings hold the magnet (just a little insiders trick/tip)

 

[google]

Okey, it's time for me to go home for the night. If you come up with any other tips, let me know. I'll check again when I get back to work.

 

[ryoken]

well without seeing the paint first hand i'll try to answer as best as possible..sand the paint with some 400 grit..da works great for this..at this point if you have small dents/dings fill them with glazeing putty and then dry block sand with 400 grit..wash truck...next go over entire paint with "final sand" and red scotch brites..wash truck...air dry...next go over paint with "wax/grease" remover..next remove/mask off all areas and items you don't want painted...next wet down the ground of area where you are gonna paint, this keeps dust down..next blow off truck with air nozzle to remove any dust..next wipe truck with a "tack" cloth...now primer, with a quality primer two coats should be fine..let dry..apply guide coat if you want..if your new at this i recommend it..i can do it by "touch" but i have done it for years..block sand guide guide coat..reprimer spots if needed and sand again..repeat wash and "final sand" and masking steps..
paint truck..if you want to after paint dries wet sand with 1000grit to knock down orange peel, but not necessary...apply clearcoat..two coats should be fine..let dry..and once again if you want to make it look nice color sand after dry (1500 wet, 1800 wet,) buff paint..glaze paint..wax paint..wash paint to remove buffing, glazzing, wax compund.....ta da!

you guys are some good comic relief this morn...

he's gonna need hella more than "400 for primer" on that rig...

 

[BIG*RED]

you guys are some good comic relief this morn...

he's gonna need hella more than "400 for primer" on that rig...

well first off..he didn't post the pic untill oh i say at least an hour or so after i responded..and if you noticed..i said "without seeing your paint...."

second...he is not going for a show car paint job..400 will work..he didn't say he wanted it perfect..yes after looking at the pic he finally posted..it will take some time witgh 400..but it will work.

 

[ryoken]

well, he posted pics of it yesterday so i figured you knew what he had...

my point really was, who preps for primer with 400? paint, yeah... 320 to 600, depending on what paint.

primer, rip it with 180 to 220 and blast away...

 

[BIG*RED]

no sorry, i don't recall seeing the pics that he posted yesterday...

and yes i agree 180 to 220 would be better on that paint job.
but to my defense he stated he was wanting a "6 to 10 footer" paint job nothing fancy...

if his paint was in better shape id go 400..for instance my paint is decent..so i would basically "scuff" it with 400 then shoot it with primer, if i was after a quicky 6 footer paint job.

thats the one down side to giving advice over the net..when your not there to see it first hand..or didn't see the earlier posting of pics..you give the best advice on what was asked....

 

[ryoken]

props to you for helping him out...

now i just need to figure out wth "6 to 10 footer" means...

 

[BIG*RED]

props to you for helping him out...

now i just need to figure out wth "6 to 10 footer" means...

lol ever heard of a 50 footer?...paint looks great from 50 feet away..any closer it looks like crap...

even tho he said 6 to 10 footer..which would mean it looks great from 6 to 10 feet away and crappy when closer..i was under the impression he really means 100 to 150 footer..lol..the father away you are the better it looks..

 

[4xcrazy]

Wash truck,,,,,,,,shake can a bunch,,,,,breath deep while spraying

 

[diesel4me]

Crude but effective...

My "paint" jobs usually consist of ..
1.sand truck-

2.fix rotted spots and rust

3.sand it again

4.Go to Home Depot--buy 1 gallon of Rustoleum "Rusty Metal Primer,and 1 gallon of Rustoleum in the color of choice,and the reducer for it..(Or Tractor Supply has good farm tractor enamel cheep in factory colors!)..

5.Fire up the compressor...

6.wash truck with enamel reducer(dont use "Prep Sol", and then not wash it off with reducer!!--it will make paint peel off like Saran wrap!..."Prep Sol" needs to be removed with reducer--it has all the wax and crud it dissolved in it,you cant leave that on the vehicle and paint over it...many do,and regret it!

7."Thin" the paint as needed,put in spray gun--I do most of my paint jobs in august when its 90+ degrees,so I dont have to thin the paint very much--and it dries quickly in the higher temps(Rustoleum,and farm enamels can stay tacky for days in high humidity or cooler weather,so wait for a good warm dry spell!)

8.Paint truck until paint runs out! --(usually 3ft from the "end" of the job! )..now its in primer...

9.Resist temptation to leave truck in primer for the rest of its days!--then sand it lightly and get ready for the "finish" coat..

10. Apply finish color,and wait several days before attempting to use the truck or play with the paint..it will be "soft" for quite a while!--but it will be well protected from rust,it will look great! --
IF you do a good prep job!--and the paint holds up pretty well if you ask me--did my van 10 years ago,it still looks decent.. --wont win any trophies by any means--I'm not a very good painter,,,but at least its still here and not rotted away to nothing,like most others like it have..

I cant see spending a thousand bucks for a paint job on a truck your going to scratch up offroad,or beat up as a work truck anyway!..my main objective is to get it all one color again instead of looking like a leapord,and keeping rust and rot to a minimum--not show car quality...I dont want it so 'pretty" I wont want to use it,or be all anal about it if it gets dinged....rather have it "decent" than "Mint".. --my next attempt might be a "Cammo" paint job on my 82 Diesel stepside K20,its already rusting the new metal I just welded in 6 months ago--left it in "primer" too long,and it got salty last winter..time to start over again..sigh..

 

[tRustyK5]

Knock the big chunks of dirt off, shake can and spray.

Rene

 

[bugspray]

Back in the day, when I did my 79' Malibu in High school, I bought all of the supplies at some place for automotive paints on 19th ave and about Osborn. I sanded it down to metal, don't know what grit, then primered it- rattle can. When I was ready to paint, I wiped it down with a paint thinner. We painted it early in the morning (no wind, and the dew settles most of the particulates). I got paint that didn't need a clear coat. Didn't have to do anything after that. That store on 19th was pretty helpful. Personally though, you'll get too many pinstipes and deep scratches at the least to put that much time and effort into painting it. Just leave it or rattle can it. Otherwise you'll have to crawl it onto a parking curb at the mall to get any satisfaction from it .