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posted on April 27th, 2011 at 02:42 PM
don't short cut !!!! Do it properly !!!
As some of you dubbers out there know, i am restoring a 1961 bug. I have learnt a lot about the body work that needs to be done from all sorts of
people. (some overseas)
If you are planning on repainting your car I suggest you read the following.
GO DOWN TO BARE METAL.
If you just sand the paint that is already on the car, there are going to be lots of contours, lumps, and bumps. It will take ages for you to sand
those flat and smooth. Remember it's the paint prep that makes a paint job look good! Bare metal is one flat clean surface.
What is the best way to get your car down to bare metal?
THE WAY I HAVE BEEN DOING IT FOR THE PAST YEAR
Paint stripper !!!! it is the best way to get your VW down to bare metal. Simply apply the stripper to your paint and scrape it off.... this may take
a couple of coats. Then sand your metal down with some wet and dry paper... i start off with 80 grit and work my way down to 360, 800 then 1200.
Why wet and dry sand ?
This will get your metal down to a smooth flat surface after paint stripping, once you cant see anything but bare metal, there are no imperfections.
Remember to sand with a FLEXIBLE block due to VW's curvy panels.
Why not sand blast ?? won't this be easier??
Go ahead if you want to ruin your car. Sandblasting is a NO NO when it comes down to VW's. From the factory they where penetrated with a mist which
stops rust, you do not want that coat to go. Sandblasting actually cuts into the metal which wipes out your penetration coat. Paint stripping will not
do this, it will only take your paint off. Also once your car is painted, in some areas the paint will not stick as well, this is most likely to
happen in little tight corners and areas. In order for paint stripper to ruin your penetration coat you will need to leave the stripper on the metal
over night. I have left my car in bare metal for almost a year nowl..... and the whole car only has 4 tiny areas of surface rust. (due to me sanding
in those spot a bit too much)
Now I am telling you this because i don't want any more people to go through the stress and pain when it comes down to getting your car back from
paint and seeing imperfections. You will not get any sort of imperfection if you Bring "ER" down to bare metal.
I have done this before, i took a short cut because i wasn't bothered to take my panel down to bare metal, i thought it would be ok. And what
happened ??? MY SURFACE WAS LUMPY, BUMPY and FULL OF IMPERFECTIONS, and it also took 3X longer to sand a surface smooth than to paint strip it. I
thought that the surface was smooth... but it actually wasn't. It takes the smallest elevation of paint to ruin your finished product.
Some other little tips are:
For small tight areas that have paint still stuck in them, use a drill with a wire wheel, this will take any loose paint off your car and doesn't
scratch the surface.
Hand sanding is better on curved surfaces, using a belt sander and something like that can wear down your curvy piece of metal and make it flat.
Leaving a wonky surface.
You don't have to go down to bare metal in places you cant see. I am leaving paint on my heater channels and wheel well areas which can rust, having
a GOOD SOLID paint as a base will be a good protective surface against rust. These areas will not be seen and is ok to not be totally perfect.
Hope this helps you Guys out there and understand my point of view. I know how it is like when you haven't got the time, but if you want to do
something properly this is the way to do it. But otherwise if you don't really care and want the car done quickly then sand blast it. I would rather
start from bare metal than having a pre painted surface. A show winner will only come from the amount of time and care you have put into your
preparation.
I am free to answer any questions.
Anthony.
rob53
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posted on April 29th, 2011 at 03:04 PM
Leaving your car bare metal without any protection (eg coat of oil, etch primer, etc) is asking for trouble. Flash rust can form quite quickly. Sooo
many people have 'restored' their vehicles by going to bare metal only to find later rust appearing. See this similar thread discussing issue of for and against bare
metal resto's.
Thats not rust, it's ah ... orange primer ... yep that's what it is ...
gerggl
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posted on October 3rd, 2011 at 02:39 PM
I have used a CRC product and that inhibits any kind of surface rust forming ... if you want more info let me know!
Greg Gordon-Lane
Brisbane
Vw's are part of life's journey .... get on board!
VW Safari / Thing 1976 - "A work in progress"
Ducati St4s - "Poetry in motion"
Dasdubber
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posted on October 17th, 2011 at 10:57 PM
Just a quick note, sand blasting is a not a no-no for vw's providing the blaster knows what they are doing. We have had over 20 of our customer's
vw's done by our blaster (who only does classic cars) and not one single warped panel. I do agree going back to bare metal is safest so you know the
underlying substrate is not going to cause compatibility problems or have rust creep under the original paint (which by the way is very common despite
this 'penetration coat' you refer to).
Best of luck with the remainder of your resto, but just try not to disperse misinformation regarding methods you may not have actually utilised
yourself.
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posted on October 17th, 2011 at 11:18 PM
Hi
I had a shell soda blasted last year, came up great, its all in the way the guy with the gun works as Al said.
Steve
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helbus
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posted on October 18th, 2011 at 11:47 AM
In regards to media blasting, the blaster has to be a good one.
We do Austin Healey, Aston Martin, E-Type Jaguar, and vehicles of similar value, and they all get media blasted using the right product, pressure and
angles as done by the blaster. Soda and garnet are the main media used. Done properly, prepared properly and then Poly Vinyl Butyral acid etch coated
within two hours of the final surface cleaning.
The whole process ends up costing up around $5000. So yes there are less expensive ways to do your car.
posted on April 27th, 2011 at 02:42 PM
