I am a noob and I am sure this has been asked/answered 1,000 times, but I keep seeing different answers. I have a 95' Jeep, dark green, that I want to paint Sand Beige with red striping (Jurassic Jeep conversion project). I want a good paint job but do not need some kind of show room perfection quality job. My intention was to take my electric DA and sand all or most of the dark green off down to the primer, sand in steps back up to a wet 400, prime it, paint it beige 1-2 coats, paint 1 coat of red stripe, then clear.

Is this a good approach? I ask because I have read online to take it to bare metal which seems a bit extreme.

In addition, I thought it was odd, but I had a professional body work guy tell me that it is near impossible to get a better quality coating then what is put on at the factory, for this reason, do not bother trying to take the green paint off, simply paint ontop of the factory coating after a light sanding on the car. He said that new paint will stick better to old paint/clear compared to bare metal. He did not recommend going past the primer/base coat. He mentioned he did a full restore project that did not turn out as well as simpler overcoat projects because the bare metal would warp, etc. and the primer did not stay as well as factory.

I am sorry if this is a dumb question, I just wanted to make sure I had a good plan before I start sanding next week.

Well, first, welcome......and yes, it's pretty confusing as just what to do for most newbie paint job people. The pro guy sort of has some valid points although it doesn't sound like he has much experience in working off metal with a paint job if he is experiencing problems/failures with a "from bare metal paint job". Can you work over top of an existing paint job??? Well, yes, as long as you are meeting certain conditions with that existing paint. Personally, I never like to see more than 1 further paint job over that factory paint work. Next, what's the condition of the existing paint? Any peeling, flaking, excessive fading of that factory paint? I also consider age of paint.....If you know this car was garaged daily then a paint job that is 25 years old "could" indeed be in good enough shape to act as a base for your new paint. If it was outside in the weather I kind of worry about contamination "soaking" into that clear. Remember, too that if you would go further and sand off that green you aren't just sanding green....you are sanding clear coat and base color coat to get to the primer. Newbies don't tend to do the best job of sanding evenly to just hit that primer.
So, yeah, there are options here. How about posting up some pic.s of the Jeep so we can get an idea of what you are starting with........

Thanks for the reply. The advice given to me regarding the overcoat was probably tailored specifically to me since I am a newbie. See attached photos of the jeep. The green paint does appear to be in decent shape with the obvious scratches and buff marks over time. There is some damage on the back fender I need to take a photo of that I hopefully plan to fix.

The good news about a Jeep Wrangler is there really is not very much surface area to paint compared to a car, SUV, or truck!

Here is a video of what I am trying to do. It looks like he sanded down to the primer and maybe even bare metal in some spots.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNBiLlps2JY

Are you sure that is the OEM factory paint on that Jeep? I threw some filters over your pic.s and maybe it's just the lateness of the day but I swear I see red poking through here and there. If it is a repaint over the factory paint I would be inclined to sand it down. As for that video, that guy hit a lot of bare metal when he was sanding. And, don't let that lesser amount of painting throw you on this. There is a lot of nooks, crannies, things that need to come apart, etc., on this Jeep. Are you really set up to do all this work? An electric sander, for instance would not be my first choice for doing this much sander. A decent size compressor with a good DA would be a lot better.....

It is original paint, it must be the lighting if your seeing red. The hood has some slight peeling with a white primer beneath. Some slight damage as well on back fender where you can see the paint cracked, I will snap a picture of it. I do not have a high powered compressor with DA but I do have an electric DA. Would this not work for sanding? I have a large shop that I plan to set up a quick make shift paint booth in the corner for painting the jeep. I do not have a sprayer yet but plan on buying a mid level airless soon.

I have started disassembling the jeep now and will take a few pictures when pulled apart. Right now, my inclination is to sand off all existing clear coat, the majority of all the green, and stop when I hit primer or metal.... similarly to the video I posted. There are a few dings I will need to fill as well. Does this sound like a good approach or do people on this forum typically recommend something different?

Maybe I should post a walk around video of the Jeep before you guys can recommend how far to sand?

Most electric sanders are more like just an R.O or random orbit sanding pattern which not only doesn't remove much but can pretty quickly burn up their motors. Air sanders remove paint quickly in comparison, and obviously no motor to burn up.....

And did I see you say you are buying a mid level "airless" paint sprayer for this job......Can you clarify just what you are looking at?

Oops, I miss spoke. I was thinking of my airless sprayer I used to paint trim in my house. I meant to reference a LVLP sprayer.... something compatible with my Makita air compressor that puts out roughly 4.5 CFM. However, it sounds like you are not recommending sanding with an electric DA? Ugh, I am starting to get convinced to finally purchase a large air compressor for the shop. That would allow me to get a HVLP which I image are "better"?

There is kind of a "misconception" about LVLP sprayers in general when it comes to cfm consumption. Even though some state cfm usage down in that magical 4 to 7 range rarely is that the case in reality. Those numbers are more like 8 to 10 cfm. It's the same old story around here. The gun and tool spec.s are minimized in advertising and the compressor cfm outputs are overstated.
You'd just be better off biting the bullet right now and getting properly set up for both the sanding and finishing. I'd be looking for, at minimum, a 5 h.p. (240v) 60 gallon 2 stage unit and even better would be 7.5 h.p. 80 gallon 2 stage. There is a ton of good used compressors, guns, and sanders moving on Craigslist, Offer Up, Neighborhood sites, etc. If looking at used compressors make them turn it on and make sure it hits it's shut off in a reasonable amount of time. Inspect for rust especially around the bottom of the tank.....

People on FB and Craigslist seem to be quite proud of their used compressors. Looking at cheaper new ones right now:

Harbor Freight 16 scfm, 60 gal, 5 HP for $620 after 20% off coupon.

Lowes Kobalt 11 SCFM, 60 gal, 3.7 HP for $500

Lowes Kobalt 16 scfm, 80 gal, 5 HP for $900


Leaning toward Harbor Freight bang for the buck. Seems like decent reviews online.