86 k10 body work and paint
- Thread starter Rjckey
- Start date
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Fat 454
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- Jul 24, 2012
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- Location
- Australia
- First Name
- Andy
- Truck Year
- 1973
- Truck Model
- C20 Suburban
- Engine Size
- 454
For the OP - ive had some good results over the years- all without any "fancy" equipment. Body work is all about the prep, not having a fancy paint booth. FWW, in my humble opinion ( and a good deal of backyard experience ) here are a few things you might want to consider -
* CLEAN everything above and below with a HOT ( steam ) wash ( not pressure wash ) before you start, as best you can to get rid of all baked on grease / oil / crud from the last 40+ years in one horrible, wet, messy go.
* get all your upper / outside body work / rust repairs done BEFORE you do anything with the frame. Use the frame as a rolling stand for cab and tub
* when the cab and tub are done, pull them off the frame and turn on side to clean / repair / paint the underneath
* spray some "body-shutz" ( rubberised undercoat ) on the inside of the wheel arches to protect from stone chips
* Dry blast ( send this out to a blast company - ask me how I know !.. ) and Paint - don't powdercoat - the frame. Have them zinc Gal undercoat the frame before you paint it. this will help heaps with the longevity of the finish.
* look at using an airless ( Wagner type ) spray gun for the frame. Its cheap and effective
NOTE - my opinion ( and personal experience, for what its worth ), is that powdercoating does not hold up in damp or humid conditions. If you're in the desert you may be OK, but in the south and / or near the coast - not so much. this may be due to the quality of the work, but I have found rust either "pinpricks" out from the powder grains not baking together enough, and / or water gets in behind and lifts off "blisters" of coating, leaving areas of rust underneath. Finally, paint can be knocked back and re-touched if it is damaged, in a way PC cannot.
* re-assmble with all new body mounts ( non-negotiable to get good panel fit later on, plus when else did you plan on doing this ? ) ( i'm still out on the whole rubber OEM v. urethane debate on this, however for NON-ROTATING mounts ( ie. not suspension ) I think the stiffer urethane is the way to go ( supension is a whole other post .. )
* Door shuts / firewall / inner cab rood and under dash etc. - again - prep is the answer - if you are changing the colour - more work. Anywhere you dont knock down the OE shiny paint surface - your WILL get new paint peel at some point. You don't have to rub back to bare metal - in fact it is best not to. You will not be able to replicate the OEM primer to metal bond from the factory, so just flat it off through the top coat for re-paint. Wet and dry 240 grit used wet with a little dish soap is fine for this.
* prime and paint all the shuts / firewall etc. first on both the cab, tub and hanging panels.
*Hang the doors ( with inner shuts painted ) and tailgate / fenders etc.
* NOW ( or a more organised person would have done tis at the start of the project ) - paint the whole of the outside in one go to colour match - either your self, or get a shop to do this. Be aware however many shops will not want to take on a 3/4 complete job like this, as they will not gaurentee the prep. BUT - as we have discussed all along - prep is king, so if you have done it right - no prob..
* You CAN spray and get a goo finish at home. The only visual "mismatch" will be on the sides, so you can continue to finish the outside of the tub, roof, hood etc., then mask off and do each side as one long section in turn. No one can ever look at both sides at the same time, so no problems there. Obviously metallics are harder to match then solid ( so don't do those at home end expect a show job ..)
* I have had to paint almost exclusively outside with to paint booth or enclosure, and have achieved great, durable results. Pick your day ( still, no wind ), time ( warm but not hot in direct sun ) and preferably time of year - for Florida I would suggest winter - low humidity
* make sure paint is pre-warmed
* EZ - ups make a great temporary sun shelter, are cheap, and can be moved / stored
* Finally - if you do build a paint booth ( I never have ) I would think you need the air being sucked out with the fumes, not blowing in? - and then ask what other dust / dirt you are going to pull in to the booth when you are doing that ? - I prefer a still, dry, warm day outside - has always worked for me.
Hope some of this may help - ( can't hurt eh ) - post pics and / or a build thread !!..
* CLEAN everything above and below with a HOT ( steam ) wash ( not pressure wash ) before you start, as best you can to get rid of all baked on grease / oil / crud from the last 40+ years in one horrible, wet, messy go.
* get all your upper / outside body work / rust repairs done BEFORE you do anything with the frame. Use the frame as a rolling stand for cab and tub
* when the cab and tub are done, pull them off the frame and turn on side to clean / repair / paint the underneath
* spray some "body-shutz" ( rubberised undercoat ) on the inside of the wheel arches to protect from stone chips
* Dry blast ( send this out to a blast company - ask me how I know !.. ) and Paint - don't powdercoat - the frame. Have them zinc Gal undercoat the frame before you paint it. this will help heaps with the longevity of the finish.
* look at using an airless ( Wagner type ) spray gun for the frame. Its cheap and effective
NOTE - my opinion ( and personal experience, for what its worth ), is that powdercoating does not hold up in damp or humid conditions. If you're in the desert you may be OK, but in the south and / or near the coast - not so much. this may be due to the quality of the work, but I have found rust either "pinpricks" out from the powder grains not baking together enough, and / or water gets in behind and lifts off "blisters" of coating, leaving areas of rust underneath. Finally, paint can be knocked back and re-touched if it is damaged, in a way PC cannot.
* re-assmble with all new body mounts ( non-negotiable to get good panel fit later on, plus when else did you plan on doing this ? ) ( i'm still out on the whole rubber OEM v. urethane debate on this, however for NON-ROTATING mounts ( ie. not suspension ) I think the stiffer urethane is the way to go ( supension is a whole other post .. )
* Door shuts / firewall / inner cab rood and under dash etc. - again - prep is the answer - if you are changing the colour - more work. Anywhere you dont knock down the OE shiny paint surface - your WILL get new paint peel at some point. You don't have to rub back to bare metal - in fact it is best not to. You will not be able to replicate the OEM primer to metal bond from the factory, so just flat it off through the top coat for re-paint. Wet and dry 240 grit used wet with a little dish soap is fine for this.
* prime and paint all the shuts / firewall etc. first on both the cab, tub and hanging panels.
*Hang the doors ( with inner shuts painted ) and tailgate / fenders etc.
* NOW ( or a more organised person would have done tis at the start of the project ) - paint the whole of the outside in one go to colour match - either your self, or get a shop to do this. Be aware however many shops will not want to take on a 3/4 complete job like this, as they will not gaurentee the prep. BUT - as we have discussed all along - prep is king, so if you have done it right - no prob..
* You CAN spray and get a goo finish at home. The only visual "mismatch" will be on the sides, so you can continue to finish the outside of the tub, roof, hood etc., then mask off and do each side as one long section in turn. No one can ever look at both sides at the same time, so no problems there. Obviously metallics are harder to match then solid ( so don't do those at home end expect a show job ..)
* I have had to paint almost exclusively outside with to paint booth or enclosure, and have achieved great, durable results. Pick your day ( still, no wind ), time ( warm but not hot in direct sun ) and preferably time of year - for Florida I would suggest winter - low humidity
* make sure paint is pre-warmed
* EZ - ups make a great temporary sun shelter, are cheap, and can be moved / stored
* Finally - if you do build a paint booth ( I never have ) I would think you need the air being sucked out with the fumes, not blowing in? - and then ask what other dust / dirt you are going to pull in to the booth when you are doing that ? - I prefer a still, dry, warm day outside - has always worked for me.
Hope some of this may help - ( can't hurt eh ) - post pics and / or a build thread !!..
Ricko1966
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You want to blow the air in through filters if you're just using box fans,you don't want to suck solvent vapors into a running electric motor.
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