VG Auto Paints have a free course on some Saturday mornings. This is an big auto paint retailer near Parramatta (Sydney). Course runs for 4 Hours. About the first hour was about rust, which we dont have, but the rest was about body filler, spray painting and buffing the finished job. Acrylic paint only. I went two weeks ago. It was all practical demonstration, no dry lectures. I thought it was pretty good. Next lesson is not till after Xmas, unfortunately.

Sounds worthwhile for people who can go to it. It would be a pretty intensive course if they try to cover everything in 4 hours, I would imagine.

Be a good idea to make notes, thats for sure. What happens is that two guys make a dent with a hammer and also a large scratch in a car panel and then repair them over a period of about two hours while explaining what they are doing, then you try out the equipment and ask questions. Normally there are three stages to this sort of job, with 24 hours between, so they had some partly completed panels there. I had tried to check this subject out on the internet because I have a few scratches. This course had things I hadnt seen, such as how to mask to get a soft edge and how to adjust the gun. There were also things I hadnt understood very well such as how to blend in a repair. Most of you guys know this stuff but I will put up my notes if anyone needs it, they are fairly incomplete though.

There's plenty of information about this topic on the Internet already, if you do a Google search. Your local library may have some books on the topic too.

Gill,

Im there for the next one.
I have an entire TR i want to re-paint myself and i just bought a spray gun kit and am borrowing an air compressor from work.

At present i am good at the prep stuff but fail at the base coat and clear coat application. Something always goes bad which ruins the overall finish.

I have had a couple of attempts at re-painting my front drivers guard panel but i admit that the finish is horrible and its costing way to much going in blindly like i have been,

Cheers for the info on this mate! Post your notes as i will read them so to get better at this.

There's plenty of information about this topic on the Internet already, if you do a Google search. Your local library may have some books on the topic too.

the problem with the internet is that people think that only the best/most expensive way of doing things is the only way to do things. Often shortcuts are perfectly acceptable etc

Dougal, these are the notes I made. Good luck with the job. These guys seemed happy to answer a lot of questions. Part of their evil plan to take your money, I guess. The fellows who did the lesson were Mario and Mark. Think Mark is the store manager.


Dent Repair Notes
Clean up area around dent with wax and grease remover. Wipe this on with one rag, wipe off with another.

Use a modern polyester filler. This will stick to 2pak paint which is the original paint on most cars. Will not stick to acrylic.
Sand dent with 120 (dry paper). Dont need bare metal.

Mix the filler on an onion board or on glass, not on paper. Spread filler on a board then a line of hardener right across tends to be about the right ratio. Fill the dent. Feather the edges of the filler with the applicator.
A cheese file can be used while the filler is cheesy

Sand with 80 then 240 dry. 240dry is the same as 400wet. . Change sand paper often as tired paper will follow the defects.

Set gun pressure at 40psi. Adjust spray of gun on a sheet of paper. About 8” wide spray when 8” from paper. About a handspan. They used a gravity feed gun which they had for sale for $100.

Use back masking to avoid a hard edge in paint. Doesnt take long for acrylic. 2pack would be more trouble. It drifts a long way before it dries, 50 metres or so.

Thin primer 50/50 with multi purpose thinners. Spray putty is ready for use.
One coat primer 1.8 tip. Three coats Spray putty 2.5 tip. 10 minutes between coats.

Then guide coat (use a pressure pack can). Then leave overnight.

Rub off guide coat with 240 dry, clean with wax & grease remover then 3 coats primer. Then guide coat. Wait 24 hours.

Rub down entire panel so paint will stick. Use 800wet on guide coat and scotch brite grey with Scuff Stuff on rest of panel. Clean with wax & grease remover then a tack cloth
.
Blend by spraying each colour coat a little further, not to the edge of a panel. Then clear coat the entire panel

Mix colour 50/50 and clear 50/50 with thinners. Multi thinners is OK but use acrylic thinners for a whole car job as it gives a better result. Filter the paint for the best result. This shop sells disposable measuring jugs and filters.

3 coats colour not more than one hour then 5 coats clear. No clear needed on solid colours only on metallic. 5-10 minutes between coats. Use a 1.8 tip.

Wait for a couple days. Then cut back and buff. Use 1200 wet then use Septone Mr Buff on a large polisher with a lambswool pad. This is a big macine with a 180mm plate, be real careful on edges and corners. Use medium speed (about 3). Dab spots of Mr Buff on the panel, not on the pad. Use swirl remover on another pad (they used T57) then wait 3 hours then hand polish. They used T98 which seems to be a synthetic wax or sealer.

To clean the pad wait until the paste is dry then turn on machine & run back and forth against the side of a screwdriver.

To clean the gun put a little thinners in the bottle and spray, thats all. Store the gun dry, not in solvent.

A fellow asked whether the $200 Bunnings compressor would be OK. They said it would be OK for small jobs.

Yep, they have presented the official text book method. In practise though, thinning ratios need to vary and drying times can vary depending on the climatic conditions. The paint should go on and look wet for some seconds to allow it to flow. (This applies to solid acrylics only, with metallics you don't want this as the particles in the paint will settle flat) Too much thinner and you risk runs, not enough and you get a rough dry spray with no gloss. For metallics you aim to get an even coat with even particle distribution. If you get it wrong, you end up with bright or dull patches. Trial and error mostly. Also, a beginner painting a whole car is much better off starting with acrylic solid colour rather than 2 pack clear over base, as you will make mistakes - runs, the odd drip from the gun, much easier to correct with solid acrylic. Also, I prefer to wait 6 hours, then rub the acrylic top coat lightly with 800 wet and dry, then hand buff the panel while the acrylic is still soft. Shrinks back as it hardens fully to a good flat surface and reasonable shine. I keep waxes and polishes away for at least 3 months afterwards. More buffing before polishing to bring up the shine.

Each to his own I suppose.

Yes, the $200 Bunnings air compressor is fine, even if you want to spray a whole car. You can pump 500 ml of thinned acrylic top coat using 40 psi and a 1.5 mm tip in 15 minutes with it, if you are doing a large panel like a wagon roof. Start at one end, when you get to the other end the start end is dry if the weather is warmish so you carry on with the second coat of acrylic straight away. lol Even the $139 2.5HP compressor from Supercheap will do it easily. The bigger the tank on it is, the better. 2HP with 24L tank is ok, 2.5HP with 30L tank is better. Shop around for your tools if you are buying some, that's all I can say.

I hope they discussed breathing apparatus too. A good quality 3M mask will set you back $85 and well worth it. Without a mask you find your hand-eye coordination goes off very quickly. lol It comes with a plastic bag to store it in, use it to protect the filters from exposure to air.
Wear it when spraying but use it when using the body filler too. Wear a dust mask - packet of 5, very cheap - when dry sanding the filler as well. Saves you waking up in the middle of the night choking and having coughing fits because you got the dust down your lungs. Been there done that.

Thanks for that MadMax. No, they did not recommend a particular mask.

Having problems with the computer, wont log on to Aussiemagna.

Thanks for that MadMax. No, they did not recommend a particular mask.

Did they discuss masks at all? It's really easy to get caught up in the job once the painting bug hits, and just go for it, the smell of solvents isn't noticeable after a few minutes, but the operator needs to look after himself. A woozy operator can't do the best job possible.

For those in South Australia Hamilton Secondary College on Marion Rd do an Adult Auto Class which is 2hrs once a week for 2 months, it covers everything and the tutor swears that if he cant fix it and show you how he will pay to get it done! (He WONT touch suspension) And He does a 2week Panel Beating Course (Last time i went they took us to Mitsu's and gave us a door each to kick in and then repair/repaint, -this is also covered in the 2month course, they are both great courses and if u just bought a new car which needs work done its a great place as u take your car in every week and work on it! Cost is about $120 for the 2mth course and $60 for the panelbeating (mind you that was a couple years back but they still do it)

Thanks Gill and Thanks MadMax,

I now know where i went wrong the first time (lack of research and over enthusiastic).
I applied clear coat over acrylic paint when i repainted my driver front guard and drivers door :facepalm

Exactly as MadMax described i have dull patches and shiny patches and the overall finish is horrible. Argh! :hmm:

Nevermind a helpful member has sent me a replacement guard a few months back to do this properly.
The door on the other hand i will have to redo again as getting hold of a replacement door in the same colour and stuffing around with changing locks etc seems more of a bother.

To my fortune my work has a spare heavy duty compressor which can easily do the job with all the other tools i have at hand.

After this job i have a TE sedan rear quarter to repaint (maroon) which i hope will be far easier now that i know how to do this properly.
Problem on the TE is that the clear coat is crackling off (previous owner never once maintained the paint in 6 years of owning it)

Thanks again. So glad i joined AMC, so much $ saved and helpful info learnt.