The Paintjob - Car Craft Magazine

Ccrp 1204 Project Garage The Paintjob 000

There's a reason people refer to the body shop as "paint jail." Painting a car is a huge undertaking. In this line of work, we meet and interview hundreds of people about their cars every year, and the majority of them describe the paintjob as the most problematic part of the build. We've heard so many horror stories of botched paintjobs, con-artist painters, chicken-wire repairs, and Rip Van Winkle timelines that we could write several seasons of an autobody-based reality TV show.

Don't get us wrong, there are a lot of great body shops employing highly skilled and truly gifted bodymen and painters, but the work is hard, physically demanding and labor-intensive. It is also time sensitive. Part of the job is literally waiting for paint to dry. And if it's not paint, it's primer, sealer, Bondo, and a variety of coatings and metal treatments that require you to wait as they dry, cure, treat, convert, or whatever other voodoo they do. Strictly looking at the man-hours involved, a good paintjob is an expensive proposition. On top of that are all the expensive tools, supplies, and chemicals you need to do the job, from the sandpaper to the topcoat.

Yeah, you can paint a car for less than $1,000, but only if the car you're painting is in good shape to begin with. If not, skimping on some aspect of the job will show, and everyone will be able to tell. You don't need to know a thing about cars to spot a crappy paintjob or wavy quarter-panel from across the parking lot.

Bodywork and paint take time, practice, and a lot of patience. A good paintjob takes less than an hour to spray, but it takes dozens of hours of prep and finessing to get the car ready for it. We don't mean to discourage anyone. Autobody work is something most mechanically inclined people can learn and become quite proficient at. And in doing so, you stand to save yourself a lot of money. Plus, you get the satisfaction that comes from being able to say, "Yup, I did it myself."

Paint Removal

Echoing what Editor Glad said in his column on page 6, this car can be considered the son of El Guapo, our LS-swapped, minty-green primer project car from a couple of years ago. That car had a number of problems that we just didn't have time to address in the midst of budget cuts and office moves. We grabbed the best parts of that car and saved them for this--El Guapo Jr.--which came to us with its own set of problems, but ones that were more manageable, and this article will address a whole bunch of them.

The car represents your typical '60s-era, swap-meet muscle car. It looked good when we bought it, but we later discovered it needed a little more help than anticipated. Hyperbole aside, this car really was purchased at the Pomona Swap Meet for $2,000. It was just a shell, but the seller had just finished replacing the floor, cleaning up the frame, and rebuilding the suspension before he ran out of cash and decided to sell. And it's here that we begin our tale.

Right off the bat, we must apologize for not having a real "before" picture of the car. We began working on it before it was an actual assignment. In summary, the car still wore its original lacquer paint, which was badly faded and cracked. All the sheetmetal was intact, and there were only a couple of spots of visible rust on the exterior: one on the hood and one in the bed on the driver-side inner wheel house.
Right off the bat, we must apologize for not having a real "before" picture of the car. We
Be suspicious of cars with rust in an area where there are no signs of external damage. The rust had to start somewhere, right? So if it didn’t start on the outside (in a dent or scratch in the paint), then it came through from the back. And if it was bad enough to rust all the way through 18-gauge steel (roughly 1⁄8 inch), there’s a lot more hiding back there. Rust damage doesn’t need to be a deal breaker when you’re deciding whether to buy a car, but be aware of what you’re getting into before committing. See the Metal Work section later in this article on how to deal with rust without spending a mad, crazy fortune.
Be suspicious of cars with rust in an area where there are no signs of external damage. Th
Though we don’t have personal experience to back up our claim, we recommend removing lacquer paint rather than trying to paint over it. The chemical makeup of the paint available today may not be compatible with the lacquer paint used in some cars through the mid ’80s. All your efforts will be for naught if your fresh coat of new urethane starts to bubble up after a few days of mingling with the 50-year-old lacquer paintjob underneath it. It’s messy and annoying work, but the lacquer has to go.
Though we don’t have personal experience to back up our claim, we recommend removing lacqu

If you can afford it, send the car to a blaster to be stripped. We don’t have that kind of money to spend, though, and we’re guessing many of our readers don’t either. So if you’re one of the 99 percent, you’ll have to Occupy Your Garage and strip the paint yourself. You have a couple of options: mechanical and chemical stripping. We did both but started with the chemical method, using Aircraft Stripper, which you can buy anywhere (Lowes, Home Depot, or online).
If you can afford it, send the car to a blaster to be stripped. We don’t have that kind of
Here’s a big downside of chemical stripper: Tight curves are hard to reach with a scraper, and you’re left with a sticky, half-painted mess that you have to sand to get rid of.
Here’s a big downside of chemical stripper: Tight curves are hard to reach with a scraper,
Astute readers are now probably thinking, Well, if I have to sand the car after using chemical stripper, why don’t I just sand the car right from the start? Great minds think alike, and we did exactly that after getting sick of sniffing Aircraft Stripper for several days in a row. We stuck a piece of 36-grit sandpaper to our Makita rotary polisher and attacked a section of the car.
Astute readers are now probably thinking, Well, if I have to sand the car after using chem

Not too happy with the results from grinding, we paid a visit to our local big-box home improvement store in search of a better option. That came in the form of a 60-grit flap disc, which is better because it doesn’t generate as much heat, though it does eventually clog, just not as quickly as the sandpaper.
Not too happy with the results from grinding, we paid a visit to our local big-box home im
This method is a little quicker than using chemical stripper, but it leaves your garage (or warehome) full of paint dust. It also gouges the metal underneath the paint (as shown in this picture). Avoid doing this. Gouges in your car’s sheetmetal can show through the paint unless you spray on a lot of filler primer and block-sand all the imperfections away. Bigger scratches and gouges may even need to be filled with Bondo.
This method is a little quicker than using chemical stripper, but it leaves your garage (o
The better solution is to use this combination of products: 3M’s bristle disc and paint stripper kit, both available from The Eastwood Co. The black stripper disc works great, removing large swaths of paint in seconds. Its fibrous, sinewy composition resists clogging, and it doesn’t wear out very fast. Eastwood sells it with a pliable, foam backing plate that attaches to an angle grinder.
The better solution is to use this combination of products: 3M’s bristle disc and paint st

Grinding the paint has another downside: It’s expensive. When subjected to 36-grit paper on a grinder, the paint gets hot, turns gummy, and clogs the sandpaper, rendering it useless. You’ll burn through a lot of sandpaper and a lot of cash this way, as the more aggressive the sandpaper, the more expensive it is. A gallon of Aircraft Stripper costs about $15, easily one-third the cost of the number of 36-grit discs needed to strip the paint from our El Camino.
Grinding the paint has another downside: It’s expensive. When subjected to 36-grit paper o
The stripper disc cuts like 80-grit sandpaper, but the overall effect is far better. It chews through paint and primer fast, without overheating the metal underneath. Following this with the Scotch-Brite pad, which works like 150-grit paper, will result in a mirror-like finish to the base metal. Be warned: You’ll be tempted to leave your car this way.
The stripper disc cuts like 80-grit sandpaper, but the overall effect is far better. It ch
The bristle disc removes paint even faster than the stripper pad, and its smaller diameter enables it to better reach tighter spots. If you can’t afford to have your car blasted or dipped, we highly recommend using these products to strip your car. Buy two of everything—that should be enough to strip an entire car this size.
The bristle disc removes paint even faster than the stripper pad, and its smaller diameter

Metalwork

"You call it rust, I call it cancer." Words of wisdom spoken by my neighbor. Though his sobriety is often questionable, he is correct on this subject. Rust starts out small but spreads a path of destruction that can encompass entire panels. It is also difficult to treat. Chemicals can work to treat smaller outbreaks, but more serious cases often require the infected sections of sheetmetal to be removed and replaced.

Here’s our subject in shiny, bare steel. Yup—it looks good here, but as Mom always said, beauty is only skin deep.
Here’s our subject in shiny, bare steel. Yup—it looks good here, but as Mom always said, b
Yuck. Buried on the backside of this Elco’s sheetmetal was way more rust than we expected to see. Yeah, Midwesterners, we know this is nothing compared with the road-salt rot you have to deal with, but this was always a California car. It looks like it was dipped in the ocean and sealed in a sweaty plastic bag for the last two decades. Any surface not covered with paint is covered with rust.
Yuck. Buried on the backside of this Elco’s sheetmetal was way more rust than we expected
The easiest way to get rid of rust is to grind it off. Some of it disappeared when we sanded the paint off the car. Minor surface rust can be easily ground off with sandpaper or even a Scotch-Brite pad on an orbital sander. The owner of the car didn’t have heaps of money to spend on panel replacement, and he asked us to do our best to halt the rust’s progress, so we threw everything we had at it.
The easiest way to get rid of rust is to grind it off. Some of it disappeared when we sand

Deeper surface rust calls for more aggressive treatment. Here, we’re using a 60-grit flap disc on a rotary buffer to dig out a more firmly entrenched section of surface rust. Remember that whenever you’re shooting sparks, you’re removing metal, and that will likely leave low spots in the surface of the panel that you may need to fill later. Also, aggressive grinding drastically increases the likelihood that you will warp the panel you’re working on because of the intense heat generated by the friction between the grinder and the metal. If you are going after deeper rust, at the very least use a flap disc and stop periodically to let the panel cool.
Deeper surface rust calls for more aggressive treatment. Here, we’re using a 60-grit flap
A little body filler in a gouged fender is an easy repair relative to treating the rust damage found elsewhere on the car. While sanding off the remaining paint and primer, we discovered several spots where the body had rusted from the inside out.
A little body filler in a gouged fender is an easy repair relative to treating the rust da
These appeared as pinholes or shadows on the exterior, that, when probed with a pick or screwdriver tip, opened up to larger holes in the body. This is a section of the roof Swiss-cheesed by rust from the inside. The ideal repair is to replace the panel. You don’t need to be a genius to conclude that a rust-through such as this is not an isolated event, and that it’s only a matter of time before the whole panel disintegrates.
These appeared as pinholes or shadows on the exterior, that, when probed with a pick or sc

If panel replacement is not financially feasible, or if the job is too daunting, treating the rust is the next best option. For good measure, we sprayed the entire car with Eastwood’s Fast Etch, a rust-converting chemical solution.
If panel replacement is not financially feasible, or if the job is too daunting, treating
Fast Etch chews up the rust and turns it into this dark-colored stuff you can clean up and paint over. Although it will not stop the rust from spreading, this and similar rust treatments will slow the spread considerably.
Fast Etch chews up the rust and turns it into this dark-colored stuff you can clean up and
Don’t let Fast Etch air-dry on the car. We sprayed several large sections of the El Camino with it and let it sit overnight. When it dries, Fast Etch leaves a tacky coating behind that is hard to wipe off. We checked with the guys at Eastwood, and they confirmed that we messed up. To use the product the right way, spray it on and keep the treated surface wet for at least half an hour. Then wipe the residue away with a solvent like Eastwood’s PRE. If Fast Etch does dry, you can reactivate it by spraying more on, letting it soak, and then wiping it with solvent.
Don’t let Fast Etch air-dry on the car. We sprayed several large sections of the El Camino

In the chemical treatment process, we used up the quart of Fast Etch before finishing the car. There wasn’t time to order more, so we picked up a gallon of CLR on another trip to our local big box store. We’d heard rumors that it kills rust and figured we should give it a try.
In the chemical treatment process, we used up the quart of Fast Etch before finishing the
Learning from the mistake we made with Fast Etch, we followed the instructions on the CLR bottle to the letter. They say to rinse treated surfaces with cold water within two minutes of application, and that’s what we did. Unfortunately, they didn’t have autobody work in mind, because the car instantly flash-rusted after being rinsed with water, and we had to reapply the CLR to remove it. Can you sense our frustration? This time, we worked panel by panel, wiping the second coating of CLR with lacquer thinner before it had a chance to dry.
Learning from the mistake we made with Fast Etch, we followed the instructions on the CLR
These products theoretically neutralize the rust by chemically altering it to a zinc-based compound. It essentially seals any remaining rust from coming into contact with the air. If oxygen can’t get to it, the rust can’t spread.
These products theoretically neutralize the rust by chemically altering it to a zinc-based

Though there were several pinhole rust spots throughout the body, one section of the roof was bad enough that we decided to cut it out and replace it with new metal. After cutting the section, we traced the shape onto a piece of 18-gauge steel we bought as a remnant from our local metal supply shop.
Though there were several pinhole rust spots throughout the body, one section of the roof
We cut the shape out with Eastwood’s throatless shear. It chomps right through 18-gauge steel with minimal distortion.
We cut the shape out with Eastwood’s throatless shear. It chomps right through 18-gauge st
We used files to final-fit the patch panel to the shape of the opening, held it in place with a couple of magnets, and welded it in with our Miller Diversion 165 TIG welder, as it is easier to control heat with a TIG machine. You can use a MIG welder to do this repair, but you may end up burning through the surrounding metal that is made thinner and weaker by the underlying rust.
We used files to final-fit the patch panel to the shape of the opening, held it in place w

Here is what a few of the filled areas looked like after grinding. Each one will need a little body filler to hide all the low spots.
Here is what a few of the filled areas looked like after grinding. Each one will need a li
The weld isn’t pretty, but it will clean up after some grinding. Following this with a coat of filler will make this a passable repair. We’re not entirely happy with it, but the only alternative is to replace the roof.
The weld isn’t pretty, but it will clean up after some grinding. Following this with a coa
Here is what a few of the filled areas looked like after grinding. Each one will need a little body filler to hide all the low spots.
Here is what a few of the filled areas looked like after grinding. Each one will need a li

Here is what a few of the filled areas looked like after grinding. Each one will need a little body filler to hide all the low spots.
Here is what a few of the filled areas looked like after grinding. Each one will need a li
We welded the remaining pinhole rust spots closed using our TIG welder and quite a bit of ER70S2 filler wire. This is a better option for areas like this fender opening. We weren’t sure if we had the skills to make a patch panel out of flat sheetmetal that would match the compound curves of this area of the quarter-panel.
We welded the remaining pinhole rust spots closed using our TIG welder and quite a bit of
In addition to the myriad of rust holes to fix, the car was riddled with dents and dings. While all minor stuff, every panel of the car had some crease on it somewhere. We used a hammer and dolly to fix such problems on parts like the fenders and hood that offered unobstructed rear access.
In addition to the myriad of rust holes to fix, the car was riddled with dents and dings.

We’ve covered this technique in previous articles, but as a reminder, work out the damage in reverse order to how it was formed.
We’ve covered this technique in previous articles, but as a reminder, work out the damage
Hammer the peak, or high part, of the damaged area while pushing on the low part of the dent from the backside with a dolly.
Hammer the peak, or high part, of the damaged area while pushing on the low part of the de
If you work slowly and check your progress often, you will be able to flatten the dent to a point at which it will only require a thin coat of body filler to complete the repair. Here we’re using the edge of a slapper hammer like a straightedge to check our work.
If you work slowly and check your progress often, you will be able to flatten the dent to

We couldn’t reach the backside of the quarter-panel, so we used a stud welder dent-pulling tool we bought from Harbor Freight for about $100.
We couldn’t reach the backside of the quarter-panel, so we used a stud welder dent-pulling
You can also use the slide hammer as a pulling tool, pulling on the low spot of a dent while hammering the high spot with a slapper or body hammer.
You can also use the slide hammer as a pulling tool, pulling on the low spot of a dent whi
Using a pair of Vise-Grip pliers, twist the head of the pins to remove them from the body of the car. You may have to grind some remaining bits if they don’t pull off cleanly.
Using a pair of Vise-Grip pliers, twist the head of the pins to remove them from the body

One last repair we made was fixing some stretched sections of the quarter-panels where a previous owner had likely attached a camper shell to the bed of this car with sheetmetal screws.
One last repair we made was fixing some stretched sections of the quarter-panels where a p
Using a No. 0 tip on our acetylene torch, we heated the area of the screw hole to a cherry-red color.
Using a No. 0 tip on our acetylene torch, we heated the area of the screw hole to a cherry
While the steel was still red, we tapped the area a couple of times with a body hammer using moderate pressure. We then quenched the area with compressed air to further shrink the steel. We had to repeat this process a couple of times to get these stretched-out areas to be flush, or slightly below the level of the quarter-panel.
While the steel was still red, we tapped the area a couple of times with a body hammer usi

We then filled the holes with our TIG welder and ground the area flat.
After all the welding was done, we finished this part of the job by sealing our rusty sheetmetal with Eastwood’s Rust Encapsulator, which forms an airtight and moisture-resistant barrier over the repair area. This should prevent any spreading of the rust trapped underneath, which needs oxygen to continue to spread.
After all the welding was done, we finished this part of the job by sealing our rusty shee

Applying Paint

Though most of the rust holes have been fixed and the dents have been straightened, the car isn't ready for paint yet. It still needs primer, block-sanding, and possibly a little more hammer-and-dolly work to get the panels smooth and all the body lines arrow sharp. We decided to first spray the car with a single coat of primer, immediately followed by two coats of a product called Slick Sand (sometimes referred to as a spray-on Bondo), a high-build, high-solids filler primer.

Bare steel needs to be coated with either an etching primer or a direct-to-metal urethane or epoxy primer. We chose Eastwood’s 4:1 urethane primer. When 4:1 is mixed with activator, it can be used as a high-build filler primer. But you can also thin it by mixing it with a reducer and using it as a primer/sealer. We chose the latter and sprayed the whole car with one coat using our DeVilbiss Starting Line spray gun fitted with a 1.8 fluid tip.
Bare steel needs to be coated with either an etching primer or a direct-to-metal urethane
After waiting the appropriate flash time, we sprayed two wet coats of Evercoat’s Slick Sand with the same spray gun and 1.8 fluid tip. A bigger fluid tip would have been better, though, because the product came out of the gun a little grainy. According to the instructions on the can, Slick Sand needs to dry for three hours before sanding. In our case, it was still tacky after four hours, but that may be due to temperatures in the low 50s F at the time we applied it.
After waiting the appropriate flash time, we sprayed two wet coats of Evercoat’s Slick San
Though primer isn’t as glossy as paint, there is enough shine for you to look down the length of the car to see any areas that need additional work. Several of the low spots may even out when we block-sand the car, and that’s exactly why we chose to cover the car in Slick Sand. Knowing we were going to have to block-sand the car anyway, it made sense to cover the car with a super-high build primer. This eliminated the step of having to apply filler to several small areas of the car. Eastwood sent us a gallon can, and that was enough for the whole car.
Though primer isn’t as glossy as paint, there is enough shine for you to look down the len

We sanded the car with 180-grit paper on long sanding blocks, then followed up with 400. Any remaining low spots were filled individually with Evercoat’s metal glaze.
We sanded the car with 180-grit paper on long sanding blocks, then followed up with 400. A
Be sure to spray any filler you’ve added at this point with a coat of primer. Body filler and metal glaze are porous, and if you just paint over it, it will suck the paint in, leaving shallow but perceptible craters in your glossy topcoat. If there are only a few areas of filler, you can coat them with an aerosol primer. After blocking the El Camino and filling the remaining low spots, we sprayed the entire car with another coat of Eastwood’s urethane primer. Priming the car one more time prior to topcoating it is also a good idea because the car is all one color prior to painting. Sometimes, a patchwork of primers can show through paint as slight shadows or light spots. That’s the last thing you want after all this work.
Be sure to spray any filler you’ve added at this point with a coat of primer. Body filler
At long last we were ready to paint the car. We used Eastwood’s Candy-Apple Red. It’s a low-V.O.C., California-compliant basecoat/clearcoat system. As with Eastwood’s primer, the paint is easy to mix and spray. We only needed 1 gallon each of the color and the clearcoat to finish the car. End
At long last we were ready to paint the car. We used Eastwood’s Candy-Apple Red. It’s a lo

	Parts List
Description	PN	Source	Price
Diversion 165 TIG Welder	907005	Miller Electric	$1,650.00
Fast Etch	19415ZP	Eastwood	19.99
Economy throatless shear	11797	Eastwood	179.99
7-piece hammer and dolly set	11979	Eastwood	119.99
Rust Encapsulator	160707P	Eastwood	129.99
7-inch cleaning/stripping system	31114	Eastwood	34.99
3M bristle disc, 50-grit	31128	Eastwood	29.99
Low-V.O.C. urethane primer	50300ZP	Eastwood	89.99
Evercoat Slick Sand	19784ZP	Eastwood	74.99
Evercoat Rage Gold body filler	12712ZP	Eastwood	54.99
Evercoat metal glaze	31279ZP	Eastwood	39.99
Quick mix board	31273	Eastwood	16.99
Rhynaloz 80-get 6-inch sanding discs	19626	Eastwood	11.99
180-grit wet/dry adhesive back sandpaper, 45-yard roll	50871	Eastwood	54.99
400-grit wet/dry adhesive back sandpaper, 45-yard roll	50874	Eastwood	54.99
PRE Painting Prep	15094ZP	Eastwood	59.99
Candy-Apple Red urethane paint and activator	13569ZP	Eastwood	169.99
Low-V.O.C. clearcoat	50264	Eastwood	129.99
60-grit 6-inch flap disc	N/A	Home Depot	12.99
CLR	N/A	Home Depot	12.39
Stud Welder dent-repair kit	98357	Harbor Freight	99.99
Scrap 18-gauge mild steel	The remnant pile	M & K Metals	6.00
Gun cleaning solvent	PC111-1	Finishmaster	15.94
Plastic sheeting, 16 x 350-foot roll	SPS1635	Finishmaster	44.02