Painting Advice Wanted

[the_rainman]

Also wanting advice on painting the caterham...need to lock down a paint shop in the next couple of weeks...

 

Surely, there must be a way to limit the costs of painting...i am not looking for concours level painting, just a good solid (not Maaco) paint job by some garage type shop...surely i can get a good solid full paint job on the car that will last with less than $800 or so...i would also be willing to do some of the paint prep myself to save some $, but dont know if anyone will work with me on something like that...

 

Why do most quotes i have heard run $1200+ for such a little car? Is the prep required to paint aluminum responsible for the high cost?

 

Part of the car is already aluminum, and i could go with mostly aluminum instead of painting the whole thing to save some money...

 

If i went with mostly polished aluminum to start, i would want to strip the bonnet of its paint. How hard is stripping a bonnet back down to bare aluminum?

 

There is a small hole in one part of the non-painted aluminum area right now that i wouldnt think could be fixed without painting over it. How do you plug a hole in aluminum and have it look ok without painting over it?

 

Also, how many monthly hours will i end up spending to keep a polished aluminum car looking decent if you are driving it alot?

 

Finally, anyone have any recommendations for good inexpensive paint shops in the Dallas/Ft Worth area?

 

Thanks!

Randy

 

 

[slngsht]

cheapest option - as you say - is to strip the paint, and just paint fenders and nose cone... you can take those off the car and get them painted.

 

polished aluminum has some maintenance. I was planning to do that, but for now I'm going to stay with brushed aluminum.

[the_rainman]

So, how hard would it be to strip the paint off the bonnet aluminum? I am guessing REALLY hard since its so thin there and has the louvers...but if i am to keep it mostly aluminum, then i want to be able to have the bonnet also aluminum...looks much better that way i think...

 

Randy

[WestTexasS2K]

Well I have a automotive painting background. I have done most of my own cars for the last 20 years. There are a few things that go against you. Paint materials have gotten super expensive. Most primers are now catalyst based and can cost as much as the paint. When going on bare aluminum a etching primer must be applied first then the filler primer is applied and block sanded and then a second coat of filler is applied for final sanding usually with 400-600grit range. Heck a good roll of tape is 8.00. Just for instance. I painted my car completely fenders hood and side panels. I started with all new panels so there was no stripping involved. Just initial sanding for the etch primer blocking the fiberglass hood and then applied a few coats of primer blocked sanded with a final grit. Masked the car off and cleaned and painted it in a friends booth which was free. I used 2 quarts primer, 2 quarts of paint and 3 quarts of clear. With sand paper and masking materials and associated supplies I spent 800.00 in materials. PPG brand paint. There are some a little cheaper but not much could have gone with the cheap stuff and saved about 100.00 in all. And I sprayed the car and did all the labor myself. So if you can find someone to do all of that for 800.00 in my opinion it is a deal. 1200-1500 would be a decent price. Now you can find small back yard shops that do really good work. They will give you the best deals but may take a little longere since they are usually doing it on the side. Stay away from the large shops because they will usually only do insurance repair work. And if they are willing to do your car you will pay 65.00 hour labor plus materials.

 

As far as stripping the hood most chemical stripers will mare the aluminum. You can try to find someone that does soda blasting or dry ice blasting. These methods strip paint quickly and do not cause the pitting that sand blasting does. But you are going to have alot of work ahead of you sanding the hood thru stages of 220 400 600 1200 2000 2500 4000 grit before you can get a good polish on it. This is what my experiences have been good luckwith your project. Loren