painting tips

[ChrisP]

I have put this in General discussion
because its the technique not the car that matters.
I am getting ready to paint my Jensen-Healey. I have never painted a car before
so i am looking for tips on selection of paint,paint mixing or thinning.
also spray pressure in fact any general advice from someone who has done it before.
I have a compressor and the car is stripped to the bone.
Anybody want to chip in would be appreciated
Many thanks
Chris

[Chris_R]

There are plenty of books on the subject and plenty of youtube videos to help you - those are probably the best places to start. There are many experienced Jensen folks on here who would not attempt this task themselves but having said that there are plenty of DIYers who have painted their own cars and achieved more than respectable results. Years ago I knew a guy who had a concours winning Rover P6 and who sprayed the car at home in the open air, the bonnet hanging from the washing line to be painted! Preparation is vitally important. The surface you work on must be smooth and clean and free from contaminents. A clean dustfree environment is also essential which includes dry air, you'll need a dryer in your air line.
Selection of paint depends on what is available to you, thinning and painting pressures can vary with paint and painting conditions.
Oh, and get a spare panel (or two) to practice on first. And then practice again. And again. And again!

[ChrisP]

Hi Chris
thanks for your post
I have been looking a lot on youtube its very good on prep work and stuff like that
but i get the impression that a lot of the film clips are sponsored by the product so not totally reliable.
I guess the main thrust of my enquiry is this.
My Jensen was a complete wreck when i bought it, not one piece was undamaged i think.
I have over the last couple of years stripped and re-built mending or replacing all the bad bits.
As the work progressed i would slap on a good coat of anti rust paint (not spray with a brush)
to protect each completed area.
now the whole of the central body structure (whatever its called) is done. and sitting on a rotating jig
The exterior panels are all off.
There is a guy with a white GT in a similar jig.
So my question where do i go next,water based oil based or maybe straight to underseal
Do i need to take off the protection coat i slapped on.
very little of this bit is ever seen except a bit of the engine bay and the bit where the soft top sits
anybody out there painted one give me a steer!

[Richie]

What about getting it wrapped instead?

[ChrisP]

with paint i think i can work toward a good finish.
if marks show up i can rub it down and re-paint
wrapping i guess needs a perfect surface to start
i am using wrapping on parts of the new dash but it shows every mark.
Thanks anyway
Chris

[JHV8]

Just make sure you use good quality horse hair brushes and all strokes should be in the same direction. Resist the urge to go up and down as well as side to side.
Always clean your brushes as soon as you've finished with quality turps.

[ChrisP]

Hi Rob
ever thought of trying stand up comedy
You clearly have talent

[Joe Schiavone]

For those of you that do not knot know it is not the paint gun you use so much it is the tip needle and nozzle size matched to the type of paint and the reducer and hardner matched to the temperature A 22 bullet does not shoot correctly in a 45. RacerJoe

[AH1951]

You guys make everything too complicated!
https://dannix.net/node/58" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"It adds up to well over $100 before you know it!"

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[ChrisP]

You guys make everything too complicated!!

Thanks for the link.i just read through it
He says 6 or 7 coats of white paint then 3 coats of green
then sand it down and apply another 3 coats green
then polish all the marks out,It took 6 months and
cost nearer 1500$.
He was doing the flat surfaces i am doing everything
inside and out.
I will stick to spray painting If you have any tips on that it would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Chris

[johnw]

One of the nicest CV8's I have seen was done at home by a first time painter. The car was a real stunner, and won the JOC Concourse CV8 cup, and the presidents cup, first time out. From memory it was a Mk3 CV8, Regal Red, and the owner was Dave I believe. This was back in the day when there was a lot of competition for the Presidents Cup. The car was spray painted in cellulose, at home, in the garage. No special paint booth, no fancy drying lights, just pick a nice day. The car may have been at Warrington International in 1998?

I asked about the paint process, and the advice was to do each step, only when you are completely happy, move on to the next. He said it wasn't a ridiculous amount of work either, once you got the hang of it. Any imperfections, let it dry, rub it back and respray. A JH is not that big in terms of area. Cellulose was the paint technology of the day for the CV8. If you go to the French motor museum in Mullhouse and look at the car painted in Cellulose there, the finish achievable on pre war stuff, just looks so correct. Modern finishes don't look right, just not as luxurious.

There are also JOC members who successfully respray their cars in 2 Pack at home in domestic garages, but that is highly dangerous, probably illegal at home, requires proper breathing equipment, can kill off neighbours, etc.

I used to do Nickel plating at home. I had some stunning results, but stopped due to the effort required in surface prep, which was far more critical than painting. I have had some amazing results with rattle cans. When I was 16, due to lack of funds for rattle cans, I resprayed a Suzuki AP50 frame with exterior woodwork oil based paint thinned with turps! It looked stunning, and unlike rattle cans didn't need cutting back! I was only keeping the bike for a year, and it did the job admirably.

I plan on settung up a paint booth at home, with drying lights, extractor, filter etc, in a few years time, and hope by then that either water based acrylic paints are up to the job, or that I can get cellulose!

[AH1951]

Chris,
The rollerbrush comment is a joke.
John,
Your comment reminded me of the time my father repainted a Sunbeam S7 motorcycle in about 1960 with Brushing Belco Cellulose and he achieved superb results.
In later years, he helped me re-spray my 1966 Humber Sceptre with rented equipment, over a week-end.
We removed bumpers, lights, all stainless-steel trim and did a good masking job.
Saturday we applied several coats of primer. Sunday morning, wet-sanded the primer and applied two coats of metallic green, wet-sanding very lightly between coats.
Beautiful results. On a calm day, outside on the driveway, having wetted down the ground to reduce dust.
It was a lot of fun, at age 23, but I wouldn't tackle such a job today. I'm too lazy now.

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[ChrisP]

Thanks Racer Joe
I will look into tip a nozzle
its a good point
Someone told me you don't need an expensive pistol to do a good job
if its set up right.
Thanks again
Chris

[rjhornby]

I painted my JH myself, I really enjoyed the experience and as long as you have realistic expectations I think you can get decent results. I've been pleased with the finish everywhere except for the bonnet - I discovered there are a thick layer of filler over the entire thing and wasn't brave enough to take it back to metal for fear of what I may find. Subsequently the filler has cracked so will need to respray it at some point, if you're back to bare metal you should be fine.

Some tips:

• Make sure you buy 2.5 times the paint you need - you will always use more than you think and you may want to respray a panel in the future if it gets scratched. Even ordering from the same supplier I've seen subtle differences in shade
  Prepare your spray area properly - cover everything with plastic sheeting to reduce dust.
  Get a panel to practice on - there is a knack to it that only comes with practice, worth practicing on something that doesn't matter first
  Before you start spraying do a trial walk around your car with all the safety gear on and air hose connected to your gun - you want to make sure your path is clear
  To start with I broke the car down into 4 sections and did one per day so that I wasn't rushing the job, for subsequent coats I felt more comfortable so did the whole car in one go.
  Put on extra coats - if your finish isn't great you can buff it out
  Buy a decent mask, goggles and disposable overalls - even cellulose isn't great for your lungs etc
  Regarding the gun - I only used a cheap one (Sealey 701G), the big thing is cleaning it well after each use as they gum up easliy

Remember - it's only paint, you can always start again if you f%£k it up (refer to my first point about buying lots of paint )

[Joe Schiavone]

Another important point. The finished product should be a one manufacture system. Company a does not test company b products. Often people get good reports on a product but unless you stay within a tested system you can have a failure and there is no way to really know incompatibility. RacerJoe