I consider myself to be a painting novice still. I've painted a few...truck, motorcycles, golf cart.... but now is my largest project to date. My tow vehicle is a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 quad cab Inferno Red Crystal Pearl that i bought brand new. It's sat outside since day 1 and the OEM paint has finally given up. The clear is worn through on the hood, roof, top of bumper cover, etc..... The base coat has worn through in a couple of places as well. Currently the primer is intact. There are a few places that will need some body filler attention. I will be painting the whole exterior of the truck. No jambs. I have a couple of friends that can get me PPG products so that's what I intend to use. My question revolves around all of the various products they have and what I really need. Note that this post is what i "THINK" i know. I won't take offense to correction. First and foremost i'm 90% sure I need to take it down to the metal, but do I? Is it a "good" option to sand down to a suitable substrate so long as its not metal, seal, and paint?

If I need to go to metal, does this list look sufficient?
DPLF epoxy primer or sealer
body filler
K38 high build primer???
sealer???? If necessary, I don't know which one.
DBC base
DCU2021 clear

Also, with the primer and/or sealer, does anyone know what color needs to go under Inferno Red Crystal Pearl? I think my paint code is PRH. I know there's a lot of confusion with this paint code from Chrysler.

Hey Clemson726! I guess I'll be the first to welcome you to the forum and it looks like you and I will also share the same AutoBody101 DOB!

I consider myself a novice too and currently wondering about a lot of the same things you've asked about. I've just registered here myself looking for some BC/CC guidance on
one of my projects so I'm anxious to see any replies to your post.

Right now I'm wondering if you've already considered and perhaps ruled out PPG's Shop-Line of BC/CC products which is about half the cost of the Deltron DBC? And if so, why?

I'm getting ready to spray the tank and fenders of a vintage Sportster and trying to decide between PPG's Deltron and Shop-Line products with the latter being about half the cost of the former. I also haven't ruled out either of the Sherwin-Williams Ultra 7K or ATX line of BC/CC but at the cost of any of these products, I can easily understand your discount based preference for PPG.

Once again welcome to AB101 and best of luck on finding the answers to your questions!

If I need to go to metal, does this list look sufficient?
DPLF epoxy primer or sealer
body filler
K38 high build primer???
sealer???? If necessary, I don't know which one.
DBC base
DCU2021 clear

Also, with the primer and/or sealer, does anyone know what color needs to go under Inferno Red Crystal Pearl? I think my paint code is PRH. I know there's a lot of confusion with this paint code from Chrysler.

If you go all the way to bare metal, this list looks good. Another option you can go with instead of the K38 is the DPS 3055 high build primer. You can also use the DAS series sealers. The sealers and the DPS 3055 primer use the same hardener.

The PRH paint code calls for a G7 undercoat. That would be a dark gray sealer, You can use the DAS 3027 sealer for that.

Unless your friends can get you some great deals on pricing, I would be looking elsewhere for materials.

Not that PPG isn't good stuff (excepting Shopline IMHO) it's just that there are quality products available for much less money and you can get it shipped to your door for free.

Former PPG guy here. Used their products for almost 20 years. The 2021 clear was one of my favorites but honestly I just don't think their products are for the hobbyist/semi pro anymore. I can buy online from Tamco (and others) for about 1/2 the price and get upper level products at that pricing. Tamco even makes a 2021 clone finish.

Thank you for the replies. I have some pretty good connections. I should be able to get the PPG at cost. One other reason is to have experience with the paint as I have a 1962 C-10 that i'm building from the frame up that will hopefully be ready to paint in the next year or so. For that project i want it to be immaculate.

But for the Dodge, is it in agreement that I should go to bare metal with this paint condition ? Also, with the PRH color code requiring the dark gray sealer, is there a primer that is dark enough not to use the sealer or should i just go ahead and plan on the sealer coat?

Absolutely, head for metal. Leaving any of the old paint system is, well, at least in my opinion, building a questionable foundation. Honestly, if that is calling for a particular color sealer I'd do it. These newer topcoats, as pointed out by the pros on here that deal with them everyday, have some transparency to them so that "undercoater" color is a big deal....I'm not saying you couldn't figure it out but if you are wrong, it just doesn't look right.....

Understood. Thank you. This color does have some transparency, but I was really unsure how much seeing as the front bumper cover that I scratched paint off of years ago has a black base under it but the sheet metal has a light gray under it. Difference between paint brands might have something to do with it on the grays I suppose on the sheet metal, but apparently the color isn't THAT transparent for the bumper to have black under it.

Okay, so factories do bumpers in separate lines with different "variants" on the paint code. If you ever notice sometimes the bumpers on new cars are even somewhat "off" in their tint range. You are going to want the same color sealer all over this thing for your paint code.....

That's what I'm here for is that kind of knowledge. I've never noticed the bumper to be a different shade, but it could be the case since it doesn't have a large mating area to the fenders. So sand to metal, epoxy primer, body filler, high build primer, seal, bc, cc. For the bumper, i should be able to scuff, seal, paint correct?