Hot Rods paint shine question for the pros

Vicky,
I am sure you are right,,,I remember my friend saying how his uncle had painted it.
And he didn’t use 600 grit for the primer,,,oh hell no !
If I told you ,,,you would fall out !
Still,,,it was awesome anytime,,, but in artificial light.

Tommy

 

The cutting compound I use says right on the bottle that it will take out 1200 grit scratches. I stopped at 1500 and went to buffing with the cutting compound with 2 steps of pads, then 2 steps of pads with a finish compound. You can read the newspaper in the reflection

 

Many people get amazing results with auto body and painting -and wet sanding and polishing - doing it many different ways. It’s just a matter of finding what works for you and getting at it . Someone on the H.A.M.B. said on another thread that’s why it’s called bodywork and not bodyfun.

 

Close but not the same i bet we have alot in common

 

I have a 32 roadster to sand and buff out i think i will do just that, stop at 2000 on a door take the cowl to 3 and the quarter to 4 or 5.

 

Thanks for all the replies guys, think i will buy some 2500 3 4 and 5 and see what happens. Just hope the customer doesn't freak when he see's the bill for the colorsanding and buffing

 

The clear i use i put 4 coats on and can sand it to death. I sart getting into urethane wave on the fourth coat so i like to stop thier. i have done 5 but didnt see much difference. I also start with 600 and cut it flat flat, and the work my way up

 

That's how I've done it 4 years.

 

I use the 3m system with foam pads. and have been getting great results. i used to use wool and the presta system but on darker colors i would fight swirl marks. A paint chemist friend of mine always said wool cuts/foam polishes thats why you could 800 or 1000 an enamel or single stage urethane and still buff it out with wool.

 

I actually did find a company that sells 7000 grit paper! that must be like rubbing over it with cloth

 

Good reply I rough in in 80 switch to 180 and then go over it with 320 on a interface pad. Some will argue if you want to waste paper and sand more so be it but its cheap insurance in my opinion, And you are dead on that if a scratch doesnt exsist it can not come back to bite you later

 

I have been hearing alot about that lately. Lots of people are dropping 100 to 150 to have thier windshields done. the individual that does it in my area says it has a 3 year life and puts Rain X to shame for water and bugs

 

3M Trizact 3000-5000 grade abrasive is removing minimal clear..the foam backing is made to minimize mil reduction...basically your refining the scratch and bringing up a shine..think of it as DA polishing..it will not level orange peel, remove a run or sag, it simply removes the previous sanding scratches provided they were 1500 or greater, and you make enough passes over those scratches with the 3000-5000 abrasive, very similar to what they do in stone polishing..
I used to take a panel to 3000, spit on my finger, rub it over the surface and you would get the surface to shine..

 

The old lacquer was knocked out with 600 grit. You broke each coat because lacquer gets hard on the surface and stays soft underneath the idea is to break the surface so that the two coats blend. I am sure that finer paper existed but not commonly available.

Now here is the rub (no pun intended) as much as I like a modern show car I still prefer the look of the older paint jobs. I guess in my case it is a matter of resisting change as much as anything else.

 

Depends on what I'm painting. But i agree with the others. The biggest issue is preparation. I final block filler with 180, don't ever try to bridge the gap with primer. It will bite you in the rear every time. As far as 2 stage goes, i don't think i read where anybody mentioned the clearcoat used. Those products that are "economically priced" follow the same rule as everything else... you get what you pay for. When it says $60 for the kit, you can forget about making it "show quality", more like car lot quality. My customers choose what quality they want, they're the one paying for the materials. Cheap, perfect, and fast. You can only choose 2 of those. And honestly, i tend to like the look of a slick single stage paint.