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Midget Paint Job

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Blueghost

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'78 Midget that I have had for 9 years. Paint is very worn out. No dents, no rust, mechanical condition very good, interior very good. Been looking at craigslist for some time and it looks like current value in Portland, Oregon area is $3,500-$4,000, maybe a little more. If I pay for a $4,000 paint job it will be worth $4,000-$4,500, maybe a little more. It is clear that paint is not a financial winner on a rubber bumper car.

I am a good mechanic, but not a body man. I worked in a body shop in the late 60's and painted a few motorcycles in the 70's. Does anyone have suggestions for a do-it-yourself paint job? Anything special about LBC paint jobs? I know the old enamel and acrylic lacquer are no longer available. Everything seems to be a base coat with a top/sealer coat (2 part) and nearly all is done with a HVLP gun.

I am not changing the color. Will do door jams and inside of bonnet and boot, but not complete engine area. Can you sand with DA and prime only any areas that went to bare metal? Should you prime everything even if not bare metal?

What I would like is a well done paper or article that covers a good deal of this info. Typical magazine articles usually hit the high spots, but not any details. A phone number of someone that does this, and is willing to spread free info would be great. Suggestions? Also good to hear about failures - better to learn from others' mistakes.

Thanks, Blueghost
 
MAACO? They might be all you need for a job like this?

There is the $100 ($300?) paint job all over the internet. This started with Rustoleum Paint, but, seems to have moved to Interlux as it seems to be harder paint

(part 1) https://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=2331682&page=0&fpart=1&vc=1

(part 2) https://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=2655425&page=0&fpart=3&vc=1

There are a number of inexpensive sources of paint - Eastwood springs to mind, though with stock colours, getting a match would not likely be possible.

Another option would be to look around the community, is there a college with an auto body program? a prison? a person with a booth who might trade services?

Some places will allow you to do the prep and they just paint. My actual paint job for Ms Triss was only about $1000 - the which included final sanding. The bodywork was what cost.

Finally, if you are going to keep the car, it may still be worth a decent paint job - for your own enjoyment. I have more into Ms Triss than I will ever get back but, I am using the car and it is worth it.
 
A friend of mine had his TR6 done by a MAACO-like shop (not sure which brand, but one of the big chains). Was in the $1500 range and looks great for a driver car. If you're using automotive paint it will be expensive, the materials alone are pricey no matter what.
 
JP has some good suggestions. I signed up for a body shop class at a local vocational school and did all the bodywork, priming and block sanding before paying a local guy $350 to shoot the basecoat/topcoat. Even still, I probably had $2,000 in the paint job by the time I paid for all the materials. If you can do all the priming and blocking on your own, you can put it on with just about any gun as you're going to be sanding most of it off anyway. If you choose one of the modern bc/cc systems, you really have to spray this in a pro booth with a dedicated air supply to the painter due to the risk of isocyanate lung damage. Maaco can be hit or miss. Some are good, others not. They also save money by not using the top grade paint, which may cause durability problems. This is a really good forum where I've always found good advice: https://autobodystore.com/forum/index.php Ask your question there and I'm sure you'll get some good answers.
 
I reread your post, but I'm still not sure. Are you wanting to repaint it in order to sell it?
 
No, I'm not selling. Just wanting to improve. I have checked with several local body shops. Most won't do the job because they are into insurance money. I found 2 that do custom work, and both want about $4,000. That's crazy for a $4,000 car. I intend on removing bumpers, lights, chrome, windscreen. I would do the putty work on the few minor dings, and prime as needed.

The custom body shops both said that if I did the prime they would re-do it (and it would take longer) because they can't guarantee my quality. They don't want their name on a bad job, and they are in business to make money.

Back to the details. I know there are differences in primer - high build 2K primer surfacer, epoxy primers, and sealers. I believe it is also important to use proper sand paper grit so as to not induce sanding marks into primer that will show through top coat. Application timing between coats and cleaners/chemicals may be important. With all that in mind, I'm looking for a detailed step-by-step process that I can follow. I understand painting is a mixture of science and art. The science is the step-by-step process. The art comes from experience (mistakes). I am hoping that a good step-by-step process will reduce the need for experience.

Thanks again, Blueghost
 
I have nearly zilch experience in auto painting, limited mainly to some repairs, but I've done some research and can tell you this much.

You might want to consider a simple, single-stage job. After all, that's how the cars were originally painted. Some of the polyurethane paints can be used for either one- or two stage painting. There are also some not-too-expensive paints for single-stage only. Just as an example, take a look at the acrylic enamels from TCP Global (https://www.tcpglobal.com). They're not too expensive and available in all kinds of colors. Most important, you can download the data sheet for each product and it will tell you what kind of primer to use, whether you can apply it over old paint, whether (and how) you can use it for single-stage painting, how to sand/buff it (or not), and so on. That will answer a lot of questions.

But I still have many of the same questions you do. I'd love to hear more from people who do this regularly, and can give me a procedure for getting a good, if not concours-winning, result. For one thing, I (like you) and totally puzzled about primers. Some people say to use two or even three different ones, which strikes me as more than necessary for a respectable finish. I also am puzzled about sanding and buffing the final coat; not sure what the best procedure is, or when it's best to leave it alone.
 
Another process thought -- a friend of mine enrolls in the local community education bodywork class. The facility has a paint booth he can use, and they get a small discount on some paint supplies. Check your local highschool or community college, might be a good way to get into a booth to give it a go.
 
"Paint Your Own Car" DVD by Kevin Tetz reference by Tomshobby above looks good. Really hard to know how applicable a DVD is to your needs until after you spend the money. I found several reviews (from different sources) online and sounds pretty close to what I need. I'll let you know how I liked it.

I'll also be looking for a booth to rent and probably somebody else with good experience to shoot color and clear. I'll be quite happy if I can complete it through primer. Trying to make sure metal prep/putty/primer work I do is a good base for final job. These are bigger and more detailed questions than what can get answered easily on this forum. I'm hoping a good DVD will be the step-by-step process I need.

Thanks all, Blueghost
 
I've been in the same boat with my Midget; I wanted to not be embarrassed by the old fading paint, but not spend a mint. Most importantly, I wanted to enjoy the process and end up with an enjoyable car.

I've painted several cars before (gosh, twenty years ago -- where did the time go?) and if you want even a basic job, it's a chunk of change to do it yourself. Between the price of paint and related volatile media, guns, hoses, etc., etc., it's a lot of work for something you'll use for an hour at a time every couple of years, especially when the big paint shops can do it for the same amount of money without all the hassle.

Most of the time (as you know) goes into the prep, and after all that time spent bumping, leveling, smoothing, sanding, sanding, and sanding, the actual painting goes by in a flash. And then more sanding, sanding, cutting, and polishing. And then if there's so much as a microscratch in the primer, you'll still see it in the topcoat.

All that to say this: for my Midget, I thought I'd try a Rustoleum roller job last year. The results are spectacular for the price and effort involved. Not only really inexpensive, I found it easier and more enjoyable than spraying. Because it rolls on relatively thick, then self-levels and dries overnight, it's much more forgiving than priming for a spray. You can do one panel at a time, or the whole thing at once, one coat per day. The following day, you can see the imperfections, sand them out, then do the next coat. Instead of months in primer and endless sanding, you do a bit every day, see instant results, and can end up with a deep gloss, and the process is much more relaxing, fun, and rewarding.

Just my $0.02!
 
Just finished watching "Paint Your Own Car" and "Metal Base Preperation and Rust Removal" by Kevin Tetz. They are wonderful. Full of details, tips, reasons why to and not to do something. Presented in a logical way that flows. It appears that they were produced about 2000. Some of the product line may have changed, but the paint store will have those answers. This is the type of video that you will stop, take notes, go back, take more notes, and watch several more times.

Best of all, both of these videos are posted on You Tube. They can be viewed for free, but not copied.

Even if you are not planning a paint job, this is good info for anyone who deals with old cars. Next time you look at a car for sale it is at least a bargaining chip to point out hidden rust and or a repaired panel that may not have been repaired properly. Lots of stuff to look for.

Bill's comment above (second paragraph) is very true. There is a lot of special equipment required for today's paint; environmental and protective. At this point I think I will try to do all work up through the final primer. I won't actually start for a several weeks, but wanted to get as prepared as possible.

Thanks all for your input. Blueghost.
 
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