Resto Question

Yikes

is

Yes... The appearance. Unless you want a camouflage look..

I've never painted a car, but I'll share a little story, and my own thoughts. . . . . . . . . . A friend of mine had a 1965 Mustang. It was always various shades of primer. One day I dropped by his place and in the driveway was a shiny red '65 Mustang. I looked inside and immediately realized it was the same car, with the old interior.

So I asked him when he'd had it painted. He said, "I haven't had it 'painted'... I did this with the $.49 spray paint from K-Mart."

I was in disbelief, because the car looked new. He had applied coats of cheap spray paint in his driveway, and wet sanded between all the coats. The point was to make the car as shiny as possible, that way he could look down the long length of the body and more easily spot the minor surface imperfections that needed to be filled before the "real" paint went on there.

Now, granted, that cheap $.49 spray paint wouldn't have lasted long with regular exposure to the elements--he never intended to leave it on there long-term. However, I came to quickly understand that taking your time, doing the proper prep work, spending time wet sanding between coats, and properly buffing the paint could yield pretty dang good results--even with the cheapest paint available. He didn't even have a clear coat on there and you could see yourself in the paint!

My advice, if you've got the time and the determination, do it. My Dad used to provide point of sale software and hardware to a few paint stores, and many would not only mix up the color of automotive paint you wanted, but put it into aerosol cans as well. He'd had them match the paint on his Saab to do some touchup on the hood.

Personally, I'd invest in a GOOD airbrush kit and small compressor. YES, it's gonna take longer with an airbrush vs. a real spray gun, but if you're willing to use canned spray paint, doing a quick job (laying down a lot of paint in a short amount of time) is obviously not a huge consideration for you. A good airbrush kit will let you control the paint, and you can lay down really nice, thin coats.

There are books available on auto body and paint. I'd suggest picking one up. In the end, the cost of the tools, books, and supplies will be a lot less than paying someone. If you pull it off, you'll not only save a LOT of cash, but you'll have gained some new knowledge, and will have the satisfaction of knowing you did it yourself.

I love the DIY spirit, so good luck, and if you decide to do this, please post pics so we can all check it out.

~jp

Bob wrote:

HUGE difference. Rattle can paint is fine for small areas.