OK, let the painting begin! ...Well.., at least let the preparations begin. I've been quiet for a while; I've been just enjoying driving the roadster while I've been finishing up a couple of other things, but the time has finally come. I have all the paint and materials and I have the time, so yesterday (Monday, Memorial Day) I put the roadster on jackstands and began stripping it apart for paint. I have some pinholes and other flaws in the body that I have to address first, but I should be spraying the white basecoat by Wednesday and should have this done in 4 or 5 days.

I'll post up some pictures as soon as I have something "picture worthy" to show, but, for those who are not familiar with the painting process, here is a brief description: (1)After the prep work is done, I will shoot a coat of primer-sealer on the whole body. The purpose of that is to give the entire paint area a uniform color to paint over and also to seal down all the different substrate materials (fiberglass, gelcoat, body filler, steel) so they won't "bleed" later and discolor the finish. (2)After the sealer is dry, the white basecoat goes on followed by the pearl coat. At this point it will be allowed to dry overnight. (3)With the white and pearl thoroughly dry, the layout and masking of the scallops is next. I will lay out both parts of the two-color scallop at the same time. After masking and wrapping all the necessary areas, I will spray the blue first. It will be allowed it to dry for about 4 hours (or overnight if it's too late to proceed), then masked over and I will spray the red. (4)As soon as the red is dry to the touch, I will remove the masking from the scallops. At this point it will be possible to see what the final product will look like. Also, if there are any flaws (paint bleed under the tape at corners or mistakes in masking), this is the time to make corrections. (5)Apply the clearcoat. I will spray on at least 3 coats of high-solids acrylic urethane clear so that I have enough buildup to allow for wet-sanding and buffing.

For those of you who think expensive equipment is necessary for painting, I am doing this entire job with a pair of Harbor Freight "purple guns". These are the guns that regularly sell for $16.99 and sometimes are on sale for $9.99! I started painting when I was 17 (now 66) and have used everything from the cheapest junk sprayers to high-dollar Sata guns. Yes, more expensive spray guns are more durable and are easier to work with, but for a beginner or ocassional painter, these work just fine. Stay tuned...