First paint job....

Anything goes in the world of fiberglass and plastic

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PostPosted: Tue Apr 07, 2015 6:33 pm
Hello to all....purchased a classic 76 stingray and after estimates in and above the 10 grand range to paint it decided to try the job myself. Getting it soda blasted on Friday, have L88 wide fender flares for the rear to install and minor body work. Have tried to educate myself on paints and frankly, my head hurts and now must humbly seek help and advice. I believe that I have to choose a paint system before the primer job so I can try to stick to the same products. I have been leaning towards the Eastwood base/clear coat system due to the fact that it is geared to the novice. This I am pretty sure I can pull off but have to admit their choice of colors are a bit limited. I have also been looking into the House of Kolor Shimrin 2 Kandy Base Coats which are not a real candy but darn close to it. I mean everyone wants a kandy coat, why should I be the odd ball? My biggest fear.....a run. With the Eastwood system I could stop, fix the run, and keep going....not sure if I can do this with the Shimrin 2. Has anyone ever used the HOK system? Could a novice pull it off? Don't get me wrong....I know nothing is cheap and I don't cut corners. Just installed a $1000 compressor setup in my shop and will buy quality tools to do the job. I have patience and an eye for detail but what I do not have is......experience. Any advice would be appreciated.
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PostPosted: Wed Apr 08, 2015 5:33 am
Start with the Sticky's at top of this page my god there is a lot of experienced professionals there in a few threads all trying to help the novice with there advice.

You can do this if you take the time to buy the right equipment study a bit more than you'd like and Practice a bit on some old fender or hood & buy some quality materials as you get what you pay for Its not rocket science to do a nice job just A LOT OF SANDING!

Get the idea out of your head now that sanding wont be bad or how you can cheat with a DA, a pro can pull it off he knows how to fix his mistakes, your no pro! Your a beginner and theirs gonna be mistakes and spots that need redoing.

Corvettes do bring certain problems though especially if your stripping it not a good call.
Just my opinion though others here have done it, media blasting is the least offensive to the fiber glass if the operator is good if not well they can do a lot of damage fast!

There has been a few Vetts done in Project the section try the search feature.
In the end your gonna find out $10k for a nice too show quality paint job is a fair price.
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.

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PostPosted: Wed Apr 08, 2015 6:18 am
Thank you for the advice....I have already bought the sanding blocks and realize that all the sanding will be by hand....and a lot of it. I do not need show car results ( although it would be nice) just a decent job. I have browsed threw the stickys and will continue to do so. There will be no pinstripping just a solid shoot....after all it is a classic muscle car and I want it to look solid. I already have an old car hood to practice on. I am also interested if anyone has used the HOK Kandy basecoat system and their reviews. In candy painting I have read of blotches and tiger stripes but the manufacturer states these are ALMOST eliminated with the new Shimrin2 system which I am leaning towards. If I do go with it I will be using the HOK primer on up rather than the Slicksand from Eastwood. I figure I have about 30-45 days to make up my mind. I am posting this project on another forum and will also post under projects in this forum.
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PostPosted: Wed Apr 08, 2015 11:03 pm
Hi 76Vette and welcome.... I've noticed in the last year or so more and more guys are doing media blasting on Vettes which includes deformable plastic pellet blasting and soda blasting. Just curious.... Did the company that is doing your soda blasting give you any references on other Vettes they have done? Is there process wet or dry? Do they do soap and water neutralize, Holdtight 102, etc? Sorry for the questions but I''ll trade you those for some info. on the original Shimrin system as well as improvements made in the new one. First, and you probably already realize this.... Shimrin is a "candy look" process and was created to get that candy look without the hassle of a true candy process. It was also designed to better "touched-up" as well. Even the original Shimrin lays down pretty good and your average joe would think it was a candy just looking at it. Honestly, I never had blotches, tiger stripe, etc., with the original. One thing that original candy paints still share with Shimrin is that bondo style fillers can still "bleed" up through it if not sealed properly. I have not had an opportunity to use the new 2 system but if it's even a little better than the original stuff it should lay down great if you practice with it. Just keep in mind that the color of your underlying base coat is going to determine the final effect which can be lighter/darker/ just different.
So if you are not going Slicksand, I assume you are going to still be using a high build primer to get that fiberglass cherried out?
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 09, 2015 7:27 pm
I had considered the media blast but finding a company in this part of the country that blasts at all is a challenge. I am getting this done tomorrow by Delmarva soda blasting and they still are willing to travel 2 1/2 hours to come to my place to do it at a reasonable price. They did send me pics of other vettes that they have done and it looks like they do a good job. They dry blast. If it was a marketing ploy or not I do not know but they advised me against media on fiberglass. I was told that fractional pieces of the media could lodge in the fibeglass pores and be almost imposible to get out where soda will be netrualized with Dawn soap, water, and a hell of a lot of elbow grease....soda is water soluable. After giving it much thought I have decided to go with the House of Kolor Shimrin2 paint system. Slicksand is the Eastwood high build primer and the KD3000 is the HOK equal. HOK also offers a sealer system to help prevent the bleed threw. Like I stated I am getting the blast done tomorrow and will post pics. I can't wait to try my hand at installing those L88 flares....will also be my first try at fiberglass bonding. Will be using Evercoat Tigerhair with mat for the rough in and Rage Ultra for the final touch. Will have to work up the nerve to saw the old flares out but know it needs to be done....seems like an awful big chunk will come out with the rear of the flare....have to eyeball it again.
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 09, 2015 9:36 pm
I own a large wood restoration shop and we also do production metal stripping of smaller items. When dry blasting with soda the crystals get everywhere.... I would take a high pressure blow off and a vacuum cleaner and make sure the stuff is really out of there. Buddy of mine did a VW bus and says that he still has crystals coming out inside his engine bay. Soda is water soluble however just soap and water does not completely neutralize it especially on fiberglass. Even after the Dawn wipe down I would still make up a dilute vinegar solution to go over the car. Any type of media blasting on fiberglass really is more about the operator than the media in my opinion and soda is all about making sure the surface is squeaky clean after the blast and before anything goes down on that surface.
Fender flares are definitely a project by themselves but shouldn't be too bad. If they are just straight fiberglass shells I'd consider forming some metal conduit into the inside of them for strength and anti-vibration properties. Flares have a bad habit of stress cracking both at the outer lip and where you join them. Don't depend on the Tigerhair alone to hold them, do a couple of layers of mat/glass from both sides extending out well beyond the attachment points.
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 09, 2015 11:27 pm
To section vette pieces together. There needs to be a piece bonded to the back of the part on the car. Then bond new piece to the piece you put on the back. (Use vette patch to bond pieces together. Then use tiger hair to finish outside. Then fill any pinholes with a quality filler. If you look on the back side where any of the factory body panels are put together. You'll see what I mean
Putting a vette together is a time consuming and itchy process. By the time your done. You'll understand why people want so much to do them.
If it ain't BROKE fix it till it is!!

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PostPosted: Thu Apr 16, 2015 6:51 pm
Well a week late due to the rain but finally got her blasted thanks to Delmarva Soda Blasting.....good people. Traveled 2 hours to come to my home and did a great job, jams and all. I packed the inside of the vette as full as I could with blankets and tarps in an attempt to keep some of the soda out. In the end I had minimal intrusion, nothing that a good wipe down and vacuum can't fix. Upon inspection the body was in amazing shape for the year with little after factory repair. Next week I will give it a good scrub with Dawn and warm water followed by the vinegar wipe down as suggested. After that it is back in the shop for the L88 fender flare fitting.
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 16, 2015 7:04 pm
Where's the Beef?.....here it is baby.....Arrived today one set of Hoosier 29x15.5-15 Pro Street Radials for the back to be mounted on old school classic set of Cragar S/S 12 inch wide rims. This ought to add some meat to the street. Did not expect to order them this early in the project but was told the wheels were needed to line up the fender flares properly. Saw some pics of other C3s with the flares that were put on prior ....the wheels failed to be centered in the wells and basically looked like hell. Will continue to post the flare installation and would be appreciative of any advice. Have choosen Evercoat products for the job.....Tigerhair with mat for the rough in and Rage Ultra for the finish.
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PostPosted: Tue Apr 21, 2015 7:28 pm
Well finally got the wheels in place and can see my vision starting to take place. Getting those fat tires spaced right was a challenge. Began with a 1.25 inch spacer which made it stick out past the aftermarket flares. Ended up going with a .625 spacer and relocating the emergency brake brackets to give me an extra 1.00 inch of back space. Now the edge of the tread comes even with the edge of the flare with the tire bulge sticking out just slightly...perfect. Have one fender flare almost secured in place. Only one company makes the L88 flares for a C3 and they are ill fitting at best. Had to cut the old flare out and massage it to make it look right. Took me an hour to work up the nerve to take a cutting wheel to it but after that things started to fall into place.. Will post more pics as I progress with the flares.
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Last edited by 76vette on Tue Apr 21, 2015 7:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Give a man a brush, and he will paint a Picasso.
Give a man a spray gun, and the wife better hide the car.
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