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OK, I am going to make an effort to shoot my own car at home. I figure how bad could it be. If it is crappy enough, I will just sand it down and re-prime.
What is the easiest to use (and cheapest) paint for home use?
I am just going to shoot the car plain white, nothing fancy. I figure I have nothing to lose.
Really, none of it is cheap. By the time you buy the reducer, strainers, laquer thinner for cleanup,dewaxers, etc, it really starts to add up.
Someone like HOTRODPAINT will be a better source, but my guess is that a straight enamel would be the cheapest. White is also one of the better colors to shoot, as it tends to hide alot of flaws, and is initially one of the cheaper colors to buy.
Everytime I go to the paint store, they have a table there of paints that are reduced in price, because they mixed it and for some reason the shade is a little off, or someone didn't pick it up. You can save some money that way at times.
The secret to a nice job is preparation. The actual shooting is kind of anti-climatic, and takes the least amount of time. It is the sanding, priming, masking, etc that takes the time. Even to get an Earl Scheib quality job (is that an oxy-moron..........Earl Scheib/quality job? ) takes time and money.
Don
Don's pretty much on the money. I would advise using a hardener in the paint. Might cost an extra $50-100. If you get a run or dirt, you can sand it smooth and polish it back up.....and it will last longer, too. Without a hardener, you start painting again!
OK, so what kind of place would I look for in the phone book to go and buy that stuff? Do regular paint places like Sherwin Williams carry auto paint?
Maybe I would be better off finishing off my prep here, removing all of the trim, etc, and taking it down to Earl Scheib. I imagine it would be pretty cheap there since they can buy in bulk. Especially if i use a really basic color like white.
This really bites, if I could just land one cash client, I could take car of my paint and pay off some bills too!
As a tidbit of info, Earl uses a "different" paint that you and I can buy at the paint store.....and it aint a higher quality! They buy a formulation specific for them to keep cost down.
Look up automotive paint in the yellow pages... there are zillions of stores in the Phoenix area.
Quote:
Originally Posted by robot
Amen. One time we had our marina truck painted by Earl. Let's just say he won't be winning any awards. It had runs, bugs, dirt, and the paint could be scraped off with your fingernail. They pay their painters by the job, like $ 20.00 I hear, so that should tell you something. Oh, they also painted a good portion of our windows, no extra charge.
Don
Would a kit like this one be a good thing to start out with:
http://www.paintforcars.com/kits_arcticwhite.html
I dont know how different prices are out there but i just spent 300 bucks for one gallon of paint , and that was the cheapest i could get, granted it was red which ive been told is the most pricy paint, 70 bucks for primer,about 50-60 bucks for mixing cups and stuff
White is not expensive, as paint goes. Like Hodroddaddy says, reds are on the high end. That is because all of the good pigments come from third world and communist countries. I've paid over $400 a gallon for some. If you don't spend the $$$ up front, it will soon change from "gloss red" to "flat pink"!
What you need more than a "kit" is to go to an automotive paint store, and buy quality products that will work together. It's a good bet if you stick with the same manufacturer, and ask for a "tech sheet" for each product. Those will tell you about what reducers, temperatures, and drying times work best. They should be able to help with that, but if they can't, you can go to the company's web site and download the product sheets.
As far as cost, you might ask why 75 percent of shops buy quality paint? Do you really think it is because they don't want to keep most of their money? It is because they want to do a job that a customer will be happy with, or they will soon be out of business.
Yeah the first color i picked was 475 bucks
Shrug....please listen to what Hotrodpaint is saying....
*use primer and paint from the same manufacturer
*buy quality stuff
*get the tech data sheets and follow the directions
Going the cheap route will be worse than no paint job at all since a crappy job will require more work in the future to correct.
Like heart surgery, dont buy on price alone!
You know that is easy to say when you have the luxury of money.
When it takes you six months just to save up 300 bucks, you cant be as picky.
If you look at the pics of my car now you will see that all that work has been done at home for less than $100.00
I straightened the body, doing mostly old fashioned hammer and dolly work, then finished up with a bit of bondo and spot putty. Then I did a good full body sanding, and them primed it with spray cans. I primed it black instead of gray because the paint was .50 cheaper per can. Then I went over the whole car with steel wool to give it a smooth look.
I did all of the prep myself and paid a guy 200 bucks to spray my 87 F-150 black, and it looked fine.
I am not going for a shw car here. This is just my daily driver. With the amount of punishment a car takes in Phoenix I do not want to put a lot in to it anyway.
My Taurus is only two years old, and already has an impressive collection of chips from road debris. Not to mention the fact I am on my third windshield (thank goodness I have 100% window coverage on my insurance)
If I spent 2 or 3 grand on paint, which would involve me saving up cash for several years, and possibly selling off body parts to science, and then I ended up behind a gravel truck, which happens weekly out here, I would just have to kill myself.
Maybe I would feel differently if I could find full time work, but that wont happen unless I move to India and change my name to Apu.
The name of this thread is cheap paint, not "I have 5 grand to drop on paint"
I have had plenty of 200-300 dollar paint jobs from places like One Day, and Earl Schieb, and they looked fine to me.
Let's face it if I had a couple of grand to blow, do you think I would bother trying to do it myself? I would just go to a shop like Arizona Street Rods and let them do it.
I mean look at my car, it is not like it is a 69 GTO Judge worth 50 or 60 thousand dollars.
At best my car is worth maybe 5 grand. Why would I want to spend 3 grand on a car that was only worth 5? That would just be silly.
I agree with Denny W. 100% ,I think if you want a number paint job. listen
to the guys on this form, if you want cheap talk to Earl Scheib,(I have had plenty of 200-300 dollar paint jobs from places like One Day, and Earl Schieb, and they looked fine to me )
The name of this thread is cheap paint, not "I have 5 grand to drop on paint"
Let's face it if I had a couple of grand to blow, do you think I would bother trying to do it myself? I would just go to a shop like Arizona Street Rods and let them do it.
At best my car is worth maybe 5 grand. Why would I want to spend 3 grand on a car that was only worth 5? That would just be silly.[/QUOTE]
Without calling my paint store, I would estimate you should be able to buy quality materials, prime, paint it white acrylic enamel, with a hardener, and pay for your sandpaper and tape, for about $500, and it will last for 10-20 years, if you take your time, and do each step right.
You can even lightly sand and buff it, at very little extra expense, and make it look like a $3-5,000 job. What you have saved is all of the labor it takes to make them look nice.
The misconception is when people think they can paint the whole car for $100-$200, and think it will look as good, or or last as long.
The most important part of painting is the PREP. I think that was mentionted above. People think paint will cover bad body work. Well it will but the bad body work just got SHINNY. I don't know if you have any farm stores around you. John Deer has what I'd call good paint and a lot of colors its made by Val Spar primer $30. hardner $30. thinner $15. Paint is priced by color. I know there Blitz Black is $27. a gal. It looks like hot rod primer but its hard as nails and has a sheen to it not glossy.
Oh and as far as lasting long, I can pretty much guarantee that by this time next year I will not only have a different car, but I probably will have gone through a few more as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT
That is just me. Since high school I have had over 200 cars. Not to mention quite a few trucks and bikes, and even a few campers.
So if I can get a paint job which will look ok running down the road at 60, and last for one year, I will be a happy fellow.
Since I have moved here to Phoenix 2 1/2 years ago I have had the following:
1953 Chevrolet 210
1969 Cadillac ElDorado
1965 Chevy C10
1987 Ford F-150
1985 Ford Bronco
and now my 1965 Chrysler Newport
I also had a 1973 Apache Mesa Pop-up trailer.
So no, I am not concerned with a paint job that will last for 20 years.
Chances are within a few months of painting this car, I will be looking to trade it for something else.
HOTRODPAINT...
Thanks for the good advice....
Sounds like you better head over to home depot and get the rustoleum special!!!:LOL: Get the professional series enamel,rusty metal primer,its high fill,then the paint is only 35 bucks a gallon!!!:whacked: I only say this because you specified,cheap and easy.single stage paint.However I will be painting my truck in this stuff,#1 cheap#2 easy#3 I wont have to goto jail from killin all the door dingers and the fools who rub the rivetts on levis!!!This is my first project,kinda like a practice piece,after doing a frame off on the truck removing the bed and doors to paint it again is very minimal:LOL: My next paint project will use por-15 hardnose paints.I was sent a sample of this product and I beat it ,cut it ,sanded it and bent it all to heck and it held up well,I also stuck the sample in the ground for about a year and the exsposed metal rotted away quickly,but what was under the hardnose paint ,was like new and there was virtually no creep under the paint!!!
I'm shooting mine with Acrylic Urethane or AU as it is commonly called. Black Factory black, OMN MTK9300G with medium hardener OMN MH168D and slow urethane reducer UPD UP2401 (for Austin TX climate).
Shot the bottom for learning and now I know enough to be dangerous. The paint on the bottom and firewall is holding up nicely. Color sanded and pollished out fine.
The Paint was $80 for a gallon, hardener was $38 and reducer was $10.50. From what I've seen around here that's pretty darn cheap!
Good Luck, Kitz
You could go with a basecoat clearcoat system for around 600 bucks . I am in the process of repainting my Nova right now . I have a little over 600 in to it . I went with the ppg line .Most of the time the base is the most expensive part . If you go from one color shade to the next , the price can vary quite a bit .You can also go from the standard line to the premium line . I like the premium line it seems to spray on smoother.
Shrug---I know what its like to want to paint a car and not have a lot of money. If you use an automotive paint from a main line bodyshop paint supplier, it will cost you a ton. For what you want to do, probably your best avenue is to use an enamel paint from a mass hardware distributor. Here in Canada we have Canadian Tire selling a brand of paint called Tremclad, as well as Motomaster, and Rustoleum. I'm sure that where you live there must be similar "automotive everything" stores. They will sell you the enamel paint, the correct reducer, and yes, even hardner if you want to use it. (Contrary to what Hotrod paint says, you can not sand and buff it to repair any "bad" areas---if they turn out really bad, you will have to wait 2 weeks and respray that panel). You will be able to buy everything you need to do the entire car for less than $200. Since this is your first attempt at a paint job, you would be throwing money away to buy $300 a gallon automotive paint. The paint I am advocating will be shiny, and will last about 3 years before it starts to "dull" from atmospheric oxidization. Then it will need a good coat of "cleaner wax" to revitalize the shine. These paints are premixed colours, and are available in a limited number of different colours. They are not "metallic" paints, and that is good because metallic paints require skills that you do not have. The car you have is very large, and will require a minimum of 4 quarts of paint before mixing.(this will give about 6 quarts after mixing)---Do wear a charcoal filter respirator---spray at about 45 PSI at the gun if you are using a syphon feed gun. (I have never used an HVLP, so can not offer advise there). Do not spray the car outside in direct sunlight (outside is okay, but rig a tarp to keep direct sunlight off the paint. Do not let the car get wet for at least 72 hours after spraying it (the paint will feel dry to touch, but any rain will waterspot it in that first 72 hours). When you buy the paint, buy at least one quart of "laquer thinner"---not for mixing with the paint, but to clean your spray gun with afterwards. Spray the complete car with one light coat. You won't see a lot of colour build, but that is the way it should be. Wait 20 minutes, then spray the car a second time. You will see the colour start to build fairly good. Wait 20 minutes then spray a third and final coat. Spray when the temperature is between 72 and 78 degrees Farenheit.---Don't expect miracles---this is your first job. The car will be shiny, it will look better than it does now, and you will not be able to get the grin off your face for the next 5 days. You will have the bragging rights, and if you have any degree of success, you will immediately start looking for other other things to paint.
"between 72-78 deg" Good advice Brianrupnow.
I find that is the "paint friendliest" temperature range. If I spray when its cooler than that I have orange peel problems. If I spray when its warmer than that, I have gloss problems because the paint drys before it has a chance to "flow out" smooth. I know that you can buy different temperature ranges of reducer, but I always used "medium dry" when I used to paint a lot.
Look at Southern Polyurethanes (http://www.southernpolyurethanes.com/homepage.htm)
A gallon of their white is less than $97. Give them a call, and you will be told how to purchase this paint. This stuff is great tho you do need to do at least a little bit of prep work.
ive bought acrylic enamal paint from them for some mud machines we use for 4x4'n around here & it didnt seem like a bad product..sprayed ok but the actual colors are off from the photo's in the websites..also it took at a minimum of 3 weeks to receive the paints & there is no tech sheets on their paints..but..it is a cheep paint for someone looking to start learning..wont have to worry about losing much moneyQuote:
Originally Posted by Shrug
here is a ranger i painted outside with the dark mettalic blue from them for a freinds son's first truck..actualy came out nice & didnt even get any dust or bugs in it since we painted mid day when the bugs were down..one thing i did notice is it took the whole gallon for color coverage & was using a devilbiss finishline III with a 1.4 tip,make sure you use the hardener or it will take a few weeks to get hard..also..the metallic paint they have is so fine you dont even notice its metallic,better off buyin a solid & adding your own metallic in the paint..good luck on the first paint job!..i know how you feel..excited!
BarryK is a GREAT person to deal withQuote:
Originally Posted by Irelands child
http://www.paintforcars.com/acrylic_enamel_paint.html
get great acrylic enamel pait here
much cheaper then $95,00, per gallon,
more like $35 to $46 ahipping is maybe $15 u.p.s THEY HAVE MANY NICE COLORS!!!
and it uis gtreat quality paint,,my friends alwasy ask me,,is that base coat clear coat,,,,,(hehe)
just trying to help you all save maney,im not asociated with this company in any way,, as a Employee,,,,,,,,,,
Donny Wagers
try dupli-color, it comes in quarts & gallons, the part houses aorund houston sell it, auto-zone, etc. I have used their primers (good Stuff). they also have a build-up primer. I used their primer on my 34 ford, and spayed over it with PPG (Copper Head Pearl) base coat-clear-coat. have not had any prolbems.
This may not quiet be what your thread is about, but, what I am doing is self-prepping, then priming it myself, then I will buy the paint. I'm then having it done by a paint shop as a foregner, or off the books. It's costing me like $200 for his time to spray it, but, we both win, he earns $200 before he opens up for the day, and I get the finish that I want on my car. That's what I would advise you to do, you may spend almost $200 in paint that needs to be rubbed back down, and hiring compressers and spray guns. But, I have seen a lot of good D.I.Y jobs, but mainly on matt finishes. I guess it's just whether there is somebody local to you that will help you out for a nice price. The paint cost me $150, that was for a high gloss black, that includes my primer and hardner aswell. Good luck with it though, post some pictures up when it's done, I'd love to see it.
Here's a option.
If you're not pressed for time check with one of your local High Schools.
They often need donor cars for class projects.
You supply the materials and the students provide the labor.
I had a Pro Comp 91 Cutlass that needed color.
I let the kid across the street use it for his senior project.
Their teacher was a Body Shop veteran and quite the perfectionist. I ended up with a phenomenal job for just the cost of materials.
I popped for a Pizza party upon completion and a promise to return after the car was finished.
When I returned, I Rolled it off the trailer and lit the tires up for them.
After the smoke cleared and the whooping in hollering subsided I thanked them again for all their hard work. I then asked them to all sign their names on the hood scoop with a paint pen. It was funny as sin, due to their excited state most of their hands shook like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge....
I've used teh DupliColor primer.... it seems to work well, never used the paint but im thinking of buying a gallon to do the undercarriage.... i work for Advance Auto (only for the discount) so i can get a gallon of black for around $40....