** ON TO THE NEXT BIT ** Nose to Tail - 1972 Spitfire MkIV restoration upgrades!!

[Colin Lindsay]

2 hours ago, Badwolf said:

This is why a colour 'let in' can look great in the garage, but a total mis-match in daylight.

Not to mention orange streetlights, which can make a car look totally appalling!

I once resprayed Spitfire sills and rear wings, perfect match in daylight, but under streetlights it was two totally different shades and looked embarrassing.

[Badwolf]

I had a yellow toyota which had bodywork done due to no fault of mine accidents. It was professionally done and after 18months, every panel was different. I think that's why I want to try myself, then at least I can say I had a go and that's the best I could do. As has been said earlier in this thread, you can make an awful lot of mistakes and buy a lot of paint, other product and tools for the price of a professional job and then not worry about the odd scratch... just get on, enjoy driving the thing and, having gained some knowledge along the way, repaint as and when needed.

[poppyman]

I wonder if that is why VW did polo's and golf's in "harlequin" . Anyone remember them?

Tony.

[poppyman]

I thought i had a pic

[Badwolf]

Yuk. Does anyone remember the bus in 'The Partridge Family' **Thread Drift Alert**... that car looks like it's chained up!

Seriously, does anyone know if there is a great difference in quality in cellulose paint (1K) from different suppliers. There does appear to be quite a difference in price between (say) Autopaint franchises, the club shop and an independent like Brighton Autopaints for example.

[Colin Lindsay]

4 hours ago, Badwolf said:

 you can make an awful lot of mistakes and buy a lot of paint, other product and tools for the price of a professional job and then not worry about the odd scratch... just get on, enjoy driving the thing and, having gained some knowledge along the way, repaint as and when needed.

You've hit the nail on the head there! After years of worry about the GT6 - where I parked it, what damage was done by stones etc to the professional paintjob which really did spoil the enjoyment of days out, I bought a tatty TR7 so that I don't care what happens to the paintwork and so I can drive as I like and park where I like without constant worry.

[Paul H]

4 hours ago, Badwolf said:

I had a yellow toyota which had bodywork done due to no fault of mine accidents. It was professionally done and after 18months, every panel was different. I think that's why I want to try myself, then at least I can say I had a go and that's the best I could do. As has been said earlier in this thread, you can make an awful lot of mistakes and buy a lot of paint, other product and tools for the price of a professional job and then not worry about the odd scratch... just get on, enjoy driving the thing and, having gained some knowledge along the way, repaint as and when needed.

Hi Badwolf what compressor / spraygun setup are you planning to use

Paul

[Clive]

Quality branded cellulose is OK. 

However, I hope you have had a good read-up on spraying. I think the mig welding forum has an excellent section on it.

Back to cellulose, the really important bit is to get everything really good before any paint, as filler-primer can and will sink over time. There may be a better, safe-to-use primer? No idea, I use 2K (with all the hazards etc associated with it)

[Badwolf]

Hi Paul - Using an Apollo Spraymate airless spray gun. Got good reviews years ago and several members of the forum have used them with good results (see previous postings on this thread). I'm not after a concourse finish, just an acceptable coverage that I can cut back and polish. The restorer I spoke to over the weekend confirms that I should, with patience and practice, get a reasonable standard of finish for what I need. He told me his daughter uses one.... for her spray-tan business and gets a nice even coat... but I don't want brown!!! 

This will now open the door for everyone who loves them or hates them to post their comments....please do, I value all comments good or bad, it all helps me, before I start.  I will, in due course post my attempts in the hope it may help others.

[Badwolf]

Clive - Thanks for that. Yes I have been warned about the 'slump' effect. Also not to spray 2K primer but to brush it on in 2 coats. Then leave it to go rock solid as it is then waterproof and I can set to with the primer and paint at my leisure or when the weather warms up. I have also been warned that on no account should I strip back the paint and leave the metalwork in 1K primer as this absorbs and traps moisture which will cause blisters and paint lift. If you look back to the photos of my bonnet, I think that is what happened with the original paint job. This looked great for a couple of years and then blistered horrendously.  I think I have the technique and theory now. I need to collect all the materials ready to start stripping and priming over the winter having warmed my nicely insulated garage. I have also been advised to read the Haynes Guide to Bodywork (and spraying) as this apparently is ideal for classic cars. Unfortunately there appears to be several print runs of this so not sure which is best of if they are all the same.  May just take a punt on Amazon or Fleabay with a secondhand copy.

[Badwolf]

Can anyone give me some idea about the quantity of paint (topcoat, primer, thinners etc etc) to paint a MkIV Spitfire with hard top. Someone told me 5 litres of top coat but that does appear a little excessive considering thinning (50:50 to start, going down to 25:75) and so on. I was going to order it in litre cans but 5litre cans are also available.

Also I noticed on the club shop, that the paint appears to be labled 'Autopaint International'. Is that actually who supplies it or is this just a stock photo?

[Clive]

3 litres minimum of topcoat, but things can/do go wrong so a 5L tin makes sense. You need a lot of celly as it is largely solvent before thinning.

a litre of etch may just about do you. 3+ litres of filler/primer. 10L std thinners, 5L antibloom/topcoat thinners. 

Order some acrylic stopper (NOT cellulose stopper) and decent filler. A few cans of aerosol for guidecoating. 

Beware, you may need some isolator if you are not stripping all the paint. Celly is bad for causing reactions in buried layers of paint (etch paint, particularly Acid8 is even worse)

For sprayguns, I use the cheapish HVLP gravity guns, about £20ish. Small needle, 1.4 probably what you want. A mini touch-up gun may be handy too. 

Water is the enemy, so a trap on the compressor, and one on the gun. Saw one that is full of desiccant, seems a good idea.

[Badwolf]

Clive Thanks, just what I need. Going back to metal and using epoxy primer, brushed not sprayed. Got a decent filler (Upol) and some acrylic stopper (thought that celly stopper would be better though due to reaction problems but will take your advice) and some aeros of Upol8. Already found out about reaction problems many years ago. Just need to decide where to get the paint (see comments about various suppliers earlier)

Using an airless Apollo Spraymate with a 1.3 needle, so no provision for a water trap. It got good reviews and some members have used them to good effect. Hopefully should do what I need. Has to be better than current state of the hardtop and bonnet (see earlier photos).

[Badwolf]

Can some explain the RAL paint coding. I notice that 'Signal Red' on Amazon is shown as RAL3001. Is this some kind of industry guide for colour shades etc and would it be consistent from supplier to supplier or am I expecting to much?

[wayne Rollinson]

The Ral code is a standard that all paints are mixed to and should be exactly the same, wherever you go to, every Job I get in with steel work the drawings specify which ral to have the products finished in it is the same for paint or powder coating regards Wayne

[Badwolf]

Thanks Wayne. Appreciate the help.

[Clive]

However.....I bought some cheap ready-mixed 2k RAL paint for my spitfire, and found it was a bit "thin" so I purchased the same RAL code but in a high quality paint. There was a shade difference, very noticeable. 

It may not matter a lot in some situations, but don't expect paint to the same code from 2 different suppliers to be a perfect match 

(and having just gone round a stack of student properties during my mad 2 weeks when they all change around, I can assure you white nor magnolia from different makers are a perfect match. But most landlords don't seem to care....)

[68vitesse]

I prefer the one litre tins to five litre, easier to handle and any remaining will keep better in the smallet tins.

Use airline to blow of dust from tin, use disposable filters to transfer paint to gun, you can also get filters to fit to gun pickup tube.

Use dedicate airline for spraying to avoid oil contamination from air tools and their oilers.

Or has all this been said before?.

Regards

Paul

[Badwolf]

Clive - I thought that might be the case, this is one of the reasons why I am asking these questions before I buy any paint. If the club shop is sourcing paint from Autopaint Int and it is good, then I will either buy from them or nip down the road to the local franchise and save the carriage. Likewise, I have been recommended the paint from Brighton Autopaints by a lecturer in restoration so that should be good if a little more expensive.

[Badwolf]

Paul - Thanks for your input, but (see earlier posts) no airline. Doesn't matter if anything has been said before, I value not onIy any repitition but the fact that several people may advise to do/not to do the same thing. That's what this forum is all about. I agree about the smaller tins, also covering the part used tin with cling film before putting on the lid to make it easier to open. The smaller tin and the cling film also reduce the chance of getting hard bits of paint coming off the rim of the can by successive opening/closing

[Badwolf]

Back to a previous post. Does anyone know if production of the KYB rear shock absorbers for a MkIV Spitfire has ceased. After the positive comments on the forum, I have been trying to get a pair. Everyone is out of stock. One supplier even sent me a single unit after I had ordered a pair!! Looks like I am going to have to get a pair of Monroes, even though they get mixed reviews here. The posh stuff (Gaz, Spax etc) is just to expensive/over engineered for what I need, but the cheap and cheerful units from R*mmer appear to be too basic. Any thoughts/experienecs please?

[Badwolf]

To answer my own question, in case anyone else is looking for KYB shockers, there are no stocks in the whole of Europe, except for the single unit I have. The nice man from KYB Uk phoned me to say that he was expecting 10 units (5 cars worth) from Japan in October. This was a year's supply as they only sold 10 last year. So, in view of the excellent reviews via this forum,  I will wait until they arrive.

[Colin Lindsay]

On 9/17/2018 at 8:33 PM, Badwolf said:

Hi Paul - Using an Apollo Spraymate airless spray gun. Got good reviews years ago and several members of the forum have used them with good results

Which one do you have? I used one a few years back and it was excellent, so bought one recently... and found they've changed the configuration from what was an excellent spray system to something fit only for spray tan or thin woodstain. I've no idea if I accidentally bought the wrong model, but it's not a great looking item compared to the original and I'm not sure if it'll even be up to car spraying. Anyone tried one of these newer models?

[Bordfunker]

Colin that definitely looks like something I’d paint the shed with, not a car!

I’ve used paint from the club on my Herald, and can vouch for the fact that it goes on very nicely even with my amateur efforts.

Karl

 

[Badwolf]

Colin - I have the blue version. Still not tried it but I am slowly collecting consumables together as and when there is an offer as I am in no hurry. Paint stripping of the test piece, the hardtop, will start shortly, when I have got the 2K primer to brush on. Then the metal should be protected til the spring when the weather warms up. Unfortunately, I have too much on at the moment to spend a great deal of time on it.

 

Further to posts on other threads about Windows 10. I tried to print something yesterday, only to find that none of my printers would print text, only graphics. After a lot of searchng. I eventully found that Microsoft had loaded, without my permission, a 'crutial update'. This crippled my printing capability. A attempt to do a 'point restore' failed and my system is now toast. I post this as a warning in case anyone else has problems. It will now take days to restore my programs, thankfully all my data is backed up.

Footnote.... Managed to find a restoration point that worked and system now back up and running... until M/S has another go at destroying my computer under the heading of 'update'!