How To: Paint and Prep OEM and Aftermarket Lips/Skirts
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
From: Norwalk CA
hey all.. i was cruising along on Yahoo looking for a cheap place to buy some Clearcoat online when i was brought to this site through a link. anyways... a little background about me. first and foremost im a domestic car guy. take that how you will because i know this is a Honda forum but hey... if a car is nice a car is nice it doesnt matter where it was built. i currently go to school at the local JC and have taken auto body and refinishing courses for about 3 years now ( yes its a JC but i keep taking auto body classes there.... hey its a place to work on stuff for the price of a few units ). i currently have done about 20 or so cars and spot jobs. i lost count actually but thats my best estimated guess. i have also worked at an automotive paint store for about a year and i believe i am familiar with most products out there and techniques for them. ok... i think thats enough for now 
just to comment on a few things here... yes.. 600 grit is fine enough to paint over when spraying parts on a car. in fact silver and black ( 2 of the most unforgiving colors when it comes to showing scratches ) covers silver and black fine. i finish silver and black cars with 600 grit wet before i paint it. in fact im working on a 70 Nova right now and it will be finished off with 600 before its painted black with white stripes.
there is a brand called Bulldog that makes an adhesion promotor that is also a flex agent. after i spray it on the bare part ill mix in up to 10% into the basecoat itself.
i do not reccomend using spray can clear. it really does not offer the same protection as a real true automotive urethane clear. the spray can ones are all laquer clears and are NOT the same ones that auto body shops used. real automotive clearcoats are nowadays urethane and require a seperate catalyst to be mixed in them as well before they dry. obviously thats difficult to do with a spray can
. there are some automotive grade spray can clears out there but i dont reccomend them for anything other than doorjambs or areas that will not see much sunlight.
wet sandpaper - essentially waterproof sandpaper. its usually black colored.. not the brownish one you usually get at Home Depot.
prepping a car with soap is reccomended. in fact i use uscented Wisk when washing a car down before i paint it. yes... WISK.. the laundry detergent. ( liquid one.. ) it takes all of the contamination off of the surface. you want absolutely no trace of wax... armor all... or any other oil or silicone products on the part you are about to paint. on parts like skirts or other Urethane/ABS plastic parts its reccomended to use a high detergent to clean them before paint. ( they naturally seep oils.. an adhesion promotor must be used before painting them )
Fiberglass parts should be washed off and thoroughly allowed to dry before painting or even primering them. the #1 cause for paint and primer not sticking to fiberglass is that dust is on the parts and will not allow the product to stick. ( especially the primer --- primer wont stick... itll take the paint with it when it finally peels. )
to repaint the parts back to a stock flat black i reccomend a product by a company called SEM. its called simply Trim Paint or Bumper Coater. its meant for plastic parts and is a semigloss black. its also available in other colors if thats your thing.
ummm.. thats all i can think of now... if you have any other questions dont be afraid to ask.. ill check back here to see whats up.
Steve
just to comment on a few things here... yes.. 600 grit is fine enough to paint over when spraying parts on a car. in fact silver and black ( 2 of the most unforgiving colors when it comes to showing scratches ) covers silver and black fine. i finish silver and black cars with 600 grit wet before i paint it. in fact im working on a 70 Nova right now and it will be finished off with 600 before its painted black with white stripes.
there is a brand called Bulldog that makes an adhesion promotor that is also a flex agent. after i spray it on the bare part ill mix in up to 10% into the basecoat itself.
i do not reccomend using spray can clear. it really does not offer the same protection as a real true automotive urethane clear. the spray can ones are all laquer clears and are NOT the same ones that auto body shops used. real automotive clearcoats are nowadays urethane and require a seperate catalyst to be mixed in them as well before they dry. obviously thats difficult to do with a spray can
. there are some automotive grade spray can clears out there but i dont reccomend them for anything other than doorjambs or areas that will not see much sunlight. wet sandpaper - essentially waterproof sandpaper. its usually black colored.. not the brownish one you usually get at Home Depot.
prepping a car with soap is reccomended. in fact i use uscented Wisk when washing a car down before i paint it. yes... WISK.. the laundry detergent. ( liquid one.. ) it takes all of the contamination off of the surface. you want absolutely no trace of wax... armor all... or any other oil or silicone products on the part you are about to paint. on parts like skirts or other Urethane/ABS plastic parts its reccomended to use a high detergent to clean them before paint. ( they naturally seep oils.. an adhesion promotor must be used before painting them )
Fiberglass parts should be washed off and thoroughly allowed to dry before painting or even primering them. the #1 cause for paint and primer not sticking to fiberglass is that dust is on the parts and will not allow the product to stick. ( especially the primer --- primer wont stick... itll take the paint with it when it finally peels. )
to repaint the parts back to a stock flat black i reccomend a product by a company called SEM. its called simply Trim Paint or Bumper Coater. its meant for plastic parts and is a semigloss black. its also available in other colors if thats your thing.
ummm.. thats all i can think of now... if you have any other questions dont be afraid to ask.. ill check back here to see whats up.
Steve
h:
Sleeper...Creeper...
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 611
Likes: 0
From: East TN
Originally Posted by Sixt9coug
hey all.. i was cruising along...
...ummm.. thats all i can think of now... if you have any other questions dont be afraid to ask.. ill check back here to see whats up.
Steve
...ummm.. thats all i can think of now... if you have any other questions dont be afraid to ask.. ill check back here to see whats up.
Steve
Good Tips, Thanks! :cheers:
Senior Member
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 228
Likes: 0
From: SoCal
How much paint will I need?
I too have an OEM style lip on the way. I want to paint the new lip and the two stock side skirts/rocker panels.
How many (16oz) spray cans from TowerPaint.com will I need to get the job done? Also, which type of paint spray do I need? Enamel or Laquer?
Thanks,
Eric
How many (16oz) spray cans from TowerPaint.com will I need to get the job done? Also, which type of paint spray do I need? Enamel or Laquer?
Thanks,
Eric
