Painting Interior Panels

Just the usual painting things.

Take them out, clean them up. Scuff em up. I haven't tried that new krylon paint for plastics yet but you could try that. Make sure to let it dry very hard before re-installing. I'd tape the edges so when you put it in your less likely to damage the paint. As for taking it out, the only thing I've ever had problems with is the dash, and I haven't gotten that out yet... The rest is/should be easy.

~KJ~

Everything you mention is either a vinyl material or plastic. It's best not to wander from the original color. If you are changing color, you should paint everything either black or grey, depending on initial and final color, to get good results.

For the plastic, you need to clean it very well to get rid of all the oils. Hopefully, you haven't used Armor All on it anytime soon (see below). Go to an auto body store or O'Reily's or NAPA, and get Paint Prep or a similar product. It's a wax and grease remover, usually sold by the gallon and stocked near the thinner. Any brand will do. Wash everything down good with it. Use a scothbrite pad or similar to do a good job. Next, you are going to mask off everything you don't want to paint, or remove that part from the vehicle. Obviously removing them is best, but may be hard to get out. Door panels and the dash come to mind here. Trim and stuff on the door is usually pretty easy to get off. Paint the parts with Bulldog or some other adhesion promoter. Sold at same places above. Last, shoot with paint. Note that you want to shoot the paint not long after the promoter. If you let it dry too much, it wont work, and the paint will peel. Yes, you should read the directions in this case. I wont tell.

For vinyl, same thing, except use vinyl paint. Sold at Pep Boys, AZ, etc. No scotchbrite, just paper towels. If you are color matching and using a spray gun, get a plasiticizer (flex additive) for the paint you are spraying.

As for Armor All, you may have serious fish eye problems, even if you clean it fairly well. Clean adjacent areas good. If you've used it anywhere, I'd start cleaning now, and every week or so, then paint in about a month. I saw this stuff sprayed in the parking lot where I used to work and cause fisheye's in the paint booth over 100 yards away. The effects last up to 6 months, I've been told. Use Son of a Gun or some other brand in the future, anything but Armor All.

. . . BM, the best recomendation would be to start with a couple estimates from some reputable body shops, so you will know exactly what your savings will be, and if it is actually worth your time to do it yourself.

If you do the complete job, you will likely save around $250. If you do all the prep work and let a body shop do the painting, you will likely save around $200 if you supply all the materials. If you do all the prep work and let a shop buy the materials and do the spraying, you will likely save around $100.

In order to rule out the sense of a sub-let repair, you have to know all your costs. So go get you some estimates.

untill then.......questions 4-U

New or old panels?

Surface areas look real good? or........ Paint and vinyl on panels brittle and coming off, leaving a rough looking surface?

Are you looking for an OEM finish?

Are you dead set on doing it all yourself?

marsh monster

~:~ Painting Interior Panels Group: alt.trucks.chevy Date: Thu, Oct 30, 2003, 2:51am (CST+6) From: snipped-for-privacy@woh.rr.com (BM)

what are the best recomendations for painting the interior panels for a S-10?..... ( Dash, Door, Mid counsel panels ) ??? Thanx ======= =======

The new Krylon for plastic covers very very well. The finish looks just like plastic, not a painted surface. However, I would not recommend it for the interior. It would look very fake and make it look like the inside of a Rubbermaid container. I did repaint door panels on an S-10 with the Duplicolor brand plastic/vinyl paint, and it came out very very nice. It was a PITA to get the surfaces cleaned and prepped well, but the end result looked just like new panels.

plastic/vinyl

How hard is this krylon for plastic? I'm always looking for a harder paint....

~KJ bondo extraordinaire~

Actually I used it on a piece of acrylic laminate. It is the type of plastic that is used to engrave name tags, or signs at doctors offices and the like. I painted the surface the color that I needed and then used the engraving machine over the top of the paint. It did not chip at all. This stuff adheres wonderfully and covers extremely well. Yellow paint over black plastic, and no one can tell it was painted. I would be willing to try it on inner fender wells or other under hood plastic components to see how it reacts to engine heat. I know that regular Krylon stuck to a water pump like glue and never faded. The engine paint faded before the Krylon...and I would be willing to bet that that water pump is still bright blue 7 years later..

The cans come with the fine spray, wide pattern nozzle that offers a broad area of coverage. I would just invest in a $3.50 can at Wal mart and try it for yourself to see if it has the result you desire. If not....just paint your favorite childs toys with it. The can says it's safe for kids.

Eightupman

============== Safe for kids eh? Hell, paint the kid and see if it sticks :)

I need kid-safe stuff, otherwise I'd hurt myself.

~Bozo, hurricane~

It does...

ROFL!