time for a paint job....

[dj_u4ea]

nobut i can sum it up in a few words , if you want nice it all has to go, you never know what has gone on under the current paint. not to mention all the factors when painting , some paints like r& m are "hot" which means solvents will cause the old paint to crinkle, paint r&m diamont ontop of dupont and your asking for trouble.first i start with disaseembly, i like to paint in all nooks and crannies, if it comes off take it off that way when you put it back it is a cleaner jub and no tape lines,then wetsand the whole freakin thing with 220 grit, till your satisfied that you are far enough down, (if it has too much paint you must remove, to much promotes chip and also lots of drying problems.)seeing spots of primer here and there is far enough. all dents to be fixed must be grindedd to metal to ensure proper adheasion of plastic filler and if large you should remove dent as well as you can b 4 you putty(dent puller or have a paintless dent remover work it over.do your body work and stop at about 80 gritt, a good high build primer will cover within two coats and allow for blocking,prime car or atleast any spot you busted thru,sealer is also recomendedafter you wetsand, block and wetsand with 400 gritt. you should be really close, i dont like to use more than that to ensure the paint adheres, clean surface with prep sol and tack rag then spray paint, clear, and then wetsand with 1000 gritt and buff if you have trash runs etc etc,,, remember if it didnt run chances are it isnt wet enough old painters theroy. then reasemble. not to bad, but for all the work painters do not get paid enough !! i promise...

 

[tylerdurden801]

I got my CRX painted at In'N'Out paint in Cali (similar chain type volume painting center) and got the midlevel package (with a $150 discount for looking online) and the paintjob ended up costing me $350 and it was really fantastic. As good as most stock paint jobs, but not show quality. I got a lot of complements and they couldn't believe it was only $350! Some of the best money I ever spent on the car. I did prep work myself though. I only wish I had taken the car apart more (taken out windows and shit).

 

[2GeNTSi]

my cars there right now

Originally posted by Rick@AP
Just wanted to give an update on my recent Maaco experience.

I took my wifes car to the Maaco in College Park MD. The car had multiple dings, bent drivers side door, a bumper that was coming off, and a few other things. On the the recommendation of JDMAWD I let them have the car for one of there $799 paint jobs. I figured that it would turn out ok at best but probably still have some problem areas. When everyone else is quoting you $1400-$2500 to fix and paint the car what can you expect?

I picked the car up this past Sat. It looked like it just rolled off the showroom floor. I couldn't believe it was the same car. I walked around the car for about 25 mins checking to see if they got out all the dings, if there was any overspray, etc. All I could find was a piece of masking tape still attached to the very bottom and a slight clearcoat scratch on the trunk which they volunteered to take care of.

To say that I'm happy with the work they did would be an understatement at best. It was the best $800 I think I could have spent. In a week or two I'm taking my Laser in to the same place for another $800 paint job.

Thanks JDMAWD.

Going to cost me $1k. It's getting the highest preparation package (prep-plus), and getting the mid-level paint job called Supreme. Comes with a 4 year gloss warranty. It was supposed to cost me $700 but I decided to have them fill a long scrape along the sideskirt that was the work of the previous owner driving too close to the sidewalk, and take out all the dings for an extra $250. I'm supposed to get it either tomorrow or thurs so I'm pretty excited to see what it looks like. I took some before pics so I'll post some pics soon.

 

[bottledbird68]

Originally posted by dj_u4ea
nobut i can sum it up in a few words , if you want nice it all has to go, you never know what has gone on under the current paint. not to mention all the factors when painting , some paints like r& m are "hot" which means solvents will cause the old paint to crinkle, paint r&m diamont ontop of dupont and your asking for trouble.first i start with disaseembly, i like to paint in all nooks and crannies, if it comes off take it off that way when you put it back it is a cleaner jub and no tape lines,then wetsand the whole freakin thing with 220 grit, till your satisfied that you are far enough down, (if it has too much paint you must remove, to much promotes chip and also lots of drying problems.)seeing spots of primer here and there is far enough. all dents to be fixed must be grindedd to metal to ensure proper adheasion of plastic filler and if large you should remove dent as well as you can b 4 you putty(dent puller or have a paintless dent remover work it over.do your body work and stop at about 80 gritt, a good high build primer will cover within two coats and allow for blocking,prime car or atleast any spot you busted thru,sealer is also recomendedafter you wetsand, block and wetsand with 400 gritt. you should be really close, i dont like to use more than that to ensure the paint adheres, clean surface with prep sol and tack rag then spray paint, clear, and then wetsand with 1000 gritt and buff if you have trash runs etc etc,,, remember if it didnt run chances are it isnt wet enough old painters theroy. then reasemble. not to bad, but for all the work painters do not get paid enough !! i promise...

Yup, I really don't have anything to add to that. You pretty much covered it and I agree, except I usually finish my bodywork with 180. Had issues with it shrinking down the road finishing with 80 . Nice car in your sig btw. I recently did an 83 camaro the exact oppisite colors for a friend of mine

 

[volrath]

I see there are some experienced painters in this thread. For you, I have a question: With good preparation (done by myself or from a high level prep package at maaco?) will a maaco paint job last more than a year? I have heard lots of disaster stories about maaco, yet I am seeing some good stories here. Is preparation really the key to a good paint job?

 

[dj_u4ea]

that camaro looks nice bb. i like that . i really like the idea of body color flames ontop of another color. it looks good and in the case of front end dammage can be repaired without extensive brush work. nice, as far as macco...man i dont know, what are your intentions with the car, to get you buy till you save enough? preperation is 99% of the paint job, a monkey could spray one. (not talking about graphics just 1 color) i have seen lots of hot rodders do all the prep and take it to have it sprayed at a earl shives or macco, try this go to a local body shop, (some will help you) explain the situation to them, tell them it is a project and your on a budget. ask if you do all the prep and only want them to spray it and sign a relase that there not responsible for peeling or prep problems, i bet they will work with you on the price, like i said most painters love to paint hate to prep, so i would try that route, and take your time in the prep. work 1 area at a time. like start on one fender and finish it b 4 you move on. i have seen so many people start in one area and jump around move here move there...etc and end up with a huge mess. i highly recomend having a window installer come and remove your windows. i hate pulling rubber back and seeing the original body color. well this is my opinion only, mabee check with macco and see what brand paint they use, ask if you supply the paint if they could use another product if you dont like what they have. I AM NOT A BIG FAN OF SHERWIN WILLIAMS paint. i use diamont, ppg, and house of color, although there are many good paint compainies out there i like the ease of use of these brands. not an endorsement and opinion only.

 

[dj_u4ea]

oh bb i see the ghost flames in that red clipse, and a hint of gold flake? looks nice real nice work.

 

[volrath]

All I want is a good shiny black (but my car is dark green). I don't have a lot of money to spend on it. I mean come on, it's not turbo. No use spending lots on a beater.

As far as door jambs and engine bay... I would like them to be painted, but I know that will cost a lot more so... I don't know.

I also have one dent to be fixed and a few holes in the hatch to be filled from removing the spoiler. All together I wouldn't spend more than $1k on it. I would even be reluctant to spend that much. It's just a beater, I don't want to pour money into it. But, if I can get a really cheap paint job that will make the car suit my tastes a lot better, then yeah I would go for it.

Boy, I hijacked this thread well. That camaro looks great.

 

[Rick@AP]

Let me say this, I don't personally don't care what others think about Maaco. The Maaco in College Park ROCKS!

I saw a few cars roll out of there with very good looking paint jobs and my wifes car looks 1000x better than it did orginally so for me, I 'll be going back to that same Maaco anytime I need a paint job or until management or staff switch.

I suggest anyone that is contemplating using a chain like Maaco go down and see exactly the quality of the work they are producing before putting your money down.

 

[TSiGoesPsSsSst]

I would say if your car is in decent body condition with a few dings here and there,maybe around $1400 if you want something decent and the same color thats currently on the car..

 

[chriw21_2000]

I never use anything less than 180 on a car. If you do use a rougher paper the sand scratches will come back like stated before. My advice is to not sand too far with rough paper. Then you cant get the scratches out with our reapplying whatever you are using. It might be more work but comes out a lot better.

Laterz

 

[TSiGoesPsSsSst]

What brand sand paper you guys use?At the auction we use 3M.Our paper comes in 1200,1000,800,500,320,180,and 80.80 being the roughest grit and 1200 being the lightest.We dry sand with 800 grit,sand primer spots with 500,and remove small scratches with 320,then throw primer over them if we broke through the paint.80 is like the roughest grit paper we use and that would leave sand scratches like a bastard.anything below 500 grit would leave scratches really.I do prep/scatch & dent work,hoping to find myself in the spray booth one day though.Painters at the auction take home over a grand a week easy

 

[kenalustalon]

Put insurance on it and go out and night and key the hell out of your car Claim the $250 or so Deducatable and get a cheap paint job. ! Just don't tell anyone !

As for me, I got lucky and my car has perfect paint... there isn't a scratch or anything anywhere. The guy babied this car before me. I am happy I would cry if something happened to my paint.

Or you can do what I did to my old Nissan NX, buy some Paint in cans. I paid $100 for Orange Spray Paint with clear in it. I then sanded the car down and painted it. Turned out rather good! A couple small runs, and a little faded spots, but I got lazy and didn't feel like sanding some spots. But turned out decent for a $100 half ass job.

 

[95IndyTSi]

Originally posted by kenalustalon
Put insurance on it and go out and night and key the hell out of your car Claim the $250 or so Deducatable and get a cheap paint job. ! Just don't tell anyone !

Unfortunately, that is one of the many reasons insurance premiums are on the rise...

 

[ILLiCliPSE]

your not gonna find paint better then sikkens autobase+

 

[LightningGSX]

I've never tried sikkens or heard anything but bad stuff about it, so whats so good about it?

 

[IMMORTALSPYDER]

Ya I heard Sikkens is good too. We only use PPG products at my shop. My boss is expensive and an all over paint job that's not an insurance claim starts at 3K. And that's for the same color. I wish I made the money he did I've been thinking about painting my car 350Z blue pearl.

 

[2GeNTSi]

This is a late update but here are some before pics of my paint around Nov 2003. This is a picture taken without sunlight hitting it so it looks way better then it would if it were in direct sunlight, the texture of the surface was very rough and just ugly.

 

[2GeNTSi]

After

 

[2GeNTSi]

One more before

 

[2GeNTSi]

After

 

[chriw21_2000]

Looks good!

laterz

 

['96_Talon_TSi]

Wow, thats a big difference... where did you get it painted (i might have missed it after skipping a few posts) and how much did it run you?

 

[TurBoGs-T]

Originally posted by '96_Talon_TSi
Wow, thats a big difference... where did you get it painted (i might have missed it after skipping a few posts) and how much did it run you?

I would definately like to know also.

 

[2GeNTSi]

Thanks, I got it painted at Maaco. I had some second thoughts about going there before I got the job done because I heard from people that they are crap. But I went in to check some of their finished cars in the lot and I was suprised.

But anyways it cost me $1082 (Supreme package, prep-plus which includes sanding and primering, and dents popped out) if you don't have dents to worry about then it'll run you around $700. You can sand and primer yourself but if you don't do a good job then the paint might not adhere as well so you're probably better off leaving it for them to do.