For some crazy reason I thought I could paint my track car. It won't be a perfect showcar paintjob, but i want it to look fairly nice. Plan: sand with DA sander using 400 grit sandpaper. Remove rock chips and scratches. Fill a couple small dents with body filler. Paint with single stage paint.

Questions:
1. does my 93 BMW have urethane paint? what type paint should I use to repaint it if I'm not going all the way to metal?
2. 400 grit smooth enough to paint over?
3. if I want to use two or three different colors for individuality, do I need to clear coat over them?
4. since this will be a track car, and close up finish is not terribly important, is wet sanding and buffing really needed?
PS - I'm trying to think of a unique paint scheme and I'm open to any suggestions. Will probably stick with reddish color since I don't want to repaint the interior right now.

here's a starter photo:

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i308/jmitro2000/IMG_0040.jpg

Duder... I'm a first time DIY'er as well. I'm just helping a buddy finish up a dual-stage paint job on his restoration of an '85 VW GTI. In short, here are a few of the major lessons learned. Feel free to ask and I'll expound on the ideas. I have a feeling that we were going for a much more polished finish than you're looking for, but nonetheless I think what I just went through (hell... haha, not really but it's been a bitch sometimes) can produce some constructive criticism.

1) Paint over 600 grit sanded areas, and use a scuff pad on all areas you sand.

2) Don't use a cheap ass gun. The poor tolerances of a shitty gun (we initially used a VAPER gun... went with DeVilbiss after we had problems) will result in problems with controlling the material delivery rate and thus the spray leading to RUNS = more sanding = pain in the ass

3) Unless you're going to be painting in a booth, and even then, you're going to want to at very least compound the paint and if you have done that you might as well polish. Dust that dries into the paint will need to be removed, as will any slight imperfections

4) MIXING... make sure you use a power tool of some kind to mix the paint with the catalyst/hardener/thinner. Failing to do so may result in solvent pop, which is basically impossible to fix without a respray.

5) Take the time to prep the car properly... wipe down extremely well with some sort of solvent that will leave absolutely no residue.

thanks for the response. are you saying to sand the entire car with 600 grit before painting it?

i talked to the paint guy and he suggested priming the whole car again since i used some body filler, just to make sure the color is uniform before i spray paint.

also, what kind of power tool are you talking about? can you not just stir it with a stir stick or something?

what kind of solvent did you clean the car with? acetone? mineral spirits? laquer thinner?

usually when you use some sort of body filler, you want to put acouple coats of primer over that area. Then sand it with some 800 grit wet to make sure its smooth and completly level.
Priming the whole car wouldnt be a bad idea either. you can just sand it with some 600-800 grit wet sand paper after the prime.
I use this product called 70/10 from spies hecker to clean the car. There are cheaper versions of this availible. If you can get some great, if not you can use rubbing alchohol if you wanted.
Never clean the bondo with liquid. Just wipe it down with a cloth. Before you put on the basecoat. clean the primer with the liquid cleaner dry it off then use something called a tack cloth. Its semi stickey cloth that will get all the dust off the paint. You can also wet the floors with water before you spray so the gun doesnt kick dust up off the floor.

you dont need any devices to stir the paint just a stir stick and make sure you get the bottom and sides of the container.

also as stated before you might get some dust in your clear coat thats what buffing isnt a bad idea. It would look terrible without sanding though.

Here's a trick you'll enjoy, and it comes from one of the best custom car painters in the area. He's been painting custom cars since he was young and he's now old but still does jobs on the side.
I asked him recently how he paints cars at his house without a proper paint booth etc. Here's his trick he told me and he has a million more he didn't tell me:
He preps the car and leaves it covered overnight, maybe in his carport or under a cover. Early in the morning, a special morning, he waits for perfect conditions. No wind is always one condition. He waits just until the morning dew has fallen and when the grass is wet, that's his que.
He pushes the car out into the open, cranks up his sprayer and goes at it.
He explains that just after the dew has fallen, it removes dust from the air so it's cleaner than normal and quieter than normal. The air is still for a while because the sun hasn't heated things up yet and that's the time he aims for. He carefully puts cardboard down so he doesn't kick up any dust/dirt and walks on that.
As time proceeds and the day begins to look normal, the paint has dried sufficiently and he rolls it back under the carport for the final drying phase.
-John C.

Concur with Medik;

1) Definitely go to at least a 600 - 400 will leave sanding scratches that paint will not cover and oftentimes it accentuates them.

2) Sand the ENTIRE car to at least 600

3) With as much work as you're going to put in to this, don't give in to the temptation to use a Harbor Freight gun. The quality of the paint job WILL be on a par with the quality of the gun.

4) Anywhere you use filler, put a coat of primer over it and anywhere you use filler, make sure you have either paint or epoxy primer UNDER it. Don't leave any areas bare and then shoot paint over it. Best idea is to shoot epoxy primer over bare areas, then do your body work, then reshoot epoxy on the bare metal that came along when you sanded your filler. Once you've done that, put a couple coats of your primer-surfacer over the entire car and then do more sanding up to at least 600 grit. 800 is better.

If you want, take a look at Southern Polyurethanes for their products. SPI is a very high quality and about the best priced product you'll find.

When you actually lay the paint down, yes - the early morning is the best if you're shooting anywhere near the open. Make sure you double-wipe-down all surfaces with a good wax and grease remover and a tack-rag. What wax and grease remover? Wherever you're getting your paint products from can recommend what they carry. Before you even do that, clean the area you'll be painting in VERY thoroughly. Hose it, blow it, hose it, blow it, then hose it yet again. Nothing like laying down the best job and having dust accumulate on it. You should also wet down the floor before you start spraying - that will hold down any dust you may kick up as you move around the car.

Better yet - look in to renting a spray booth. They're available pretty reasonably and you can take advantage of all sorts of things that you just can't replicate in your garage or carport.

Above all else, wear a spraysuit and utilize proper masks. Don't expect to use a $2 filter mask ! The toxins in paint will eat your lungs alive ! At the very least, a cartridge filter mask should be used. Ideally, a fresh air system is the best. Don't overlook the fact that you could irreparably damage your lungs breathing paint fumes. Paint resideu can also be absorbed through your skin. Those guys on tv on those stupid pimp shows and such are gambling with their lives. Even the Grand Master Foose sometimes shows up painting in shirt sleeves and a cartridge mask - and he knows better!

Take your time and adjust your paint gun to a nice fan at approx 16". Don't lay down too much paint at once and make sure you set your air pressure properly.

And make sure to read the Data Sheet for your paint - it will tell you a lot about what settings to use, flash time and recoat windows.

You can do it - just think and prepare ahead of time!

Great thread..been thinking about doing some minor paint work as well. Where do you guys buy the factory paint from? Any good online sites?

Order SPI products from a place called Baker - I believe they're out of somewhere in GA. You can call them M-F and order - (800) 476-3006. You might want to get reducer while you are ordering too - some of the products tend to spray a little thick.

Best deal is to order gallon of each, $120 for 2 gallons sprayable is a great price. Compare it to DPLF @ $40 for a quart. SPI's is much happier about being sanded and lays down very nice. At the same price as what you'll wind up paying for DPLF, you may as well spray the whole car rather than spot it in. Epoxy primer for a quart was around $25 I think...

If you went with a gallon of single stage red, it'll probably run you about $175. 2K is about the same price, but figure another $75 or so for clear. If you shoot a 2K finish, the clear will protect the paint a lot better - especially consider it if the car is outside a lot and not garaged...

Whatever you do, don't get involved in the cheap lacquer stuff. It won't last...

http://www.bakerpbe.com/

great info. thanks

i thought that putting water on the floor would cause water vapor to rise and get in the paint job.

EDIT - i bought some DUpont red oxide primer last night, so I should stick with all Dupont products from now on, right?

Yup. Some people say it's ok to mix brands of materials, but alot of professionals see the benefit in sticking with one. Regarding wet-sanding and buffing; it's definately something you'll want to do. It doesn't take that long to do, and it looks so much better once it's done. Wet-sanding can be intimidating, but youtube has videos on wet-sanding. I've been here before, and I know that you'll be happy with the paintjob for about a week if you don't wet-sand it, then it'll start to bug you. Wet-sanding the entire vehicle and buffing takes a day if you get on it and don't stop everytime your hands get tired. But trust me, it's worth the time and effort.

do you mean wetsanding the final clear coat and buffing it? with what?

1000 grit? 2000 grit?
polishing compound? rubbing compound?

Tape that bad boy up, show up at matco's with a little extra cash, slide it to one of the guys and save yourself the headache. Since you're not interested in having a amazing paint job. You already covered the most important part, the prep work.

ok, so I've got the car primed, but ran into a problem. there are a couple areas on the hood that are bare metal, and the primer is flaking off them. this is a laquer primer surfacer, mixed 2:3 with laquer thinner per directions. i tried sanding this out with 600 grit, but it kept coming back. any suggestions about how to get this out?

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i308/jmitro2000/IMG_0074.jpg

http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i308/jmitro2000/IMG_0075.jpg