New to the forum . . . and to bodywork. I've got a 62 pickup with a pretty rough body I'd like to make presentable (great little work truck, but not a looker) while using it as a learning platform. I've got a 64 t-bird with decent paint but a few soft spots. I'd like to have the skills to fix the bad spots and take it to the next level.

I own my own place, but space is tight. We have plans to move in a year or two--hopefully to a place with more space for a shop. I've searched through this forum and looked around the web. It appears that for a dedicated hobbyist, specs on a reasonably decent compressor starts out around 220volt/60 gallons and up--requiring bolting to the floor and wiring into a dedicated circuit.

I've starting stripping the hood of my truck while waiting for some engine parts to arrive and would like to find a portable plug-in compressor that would at least handle primer. Later, when I have the space, I could upgrade to something more robust and relegate the smaller unit to powering tools.

Flaws in this plan? Other ideas or options?

Here's a shot of the hood I'm dealing with:
Bondo, cracking and deep surface rust:

A bit of rust out at the front lip:

And a sea of filler hiding numerous small dents:

Thanks, in advance, for any advice you can offer.

~Steve

If you use a low-volume-low-pressure (LVLP) gun for primer you can get away with a smaller compressor. I'd research the gun first, then see which compressors would be able to handle the gun.

Where a small compressor is going to drive you nuts is when you want a gun for clear coat, or if you want to run a tool like a sander. Your small/portable compressor will not work for those applications.

Thanks, Chris. I can see how a sander would overload a small compressor in a hurry. Presumably spraying clear coat also requires a long, continuous drain on the tank.

I'd be happy to get a coat of primer down. Based on what I saw under the paint on the hood, there's a lot of bodywork to do. I plan to move from panel to panel around the truck and am not in a hurry.

I'll do some research on guns and compressors--and start a project thread!

~Steve