Paint recommendations

[joshm121]

Still a little bit away from paint but starting to plan for exactly how I'm going to handle bodywork and paint. Not expecting perfection but want something that looks good. Planning on going with the old pale Ford blue for exterior and bright light on the interior. Question is I have several layers of paint and some body work. Play coat is a primer coat. Should I simply sand and paint over, or do a chemical strip and trying it getting it down to the metal? Also, budget for the paint job is around $1200. I know that's not a lot, but wondering if Maaco was a good option or if you have some other recommendations. "

 

[joshm121]

Sorry for problems with Voice to text, I'm using Siri. I meant bright white on the interior. And the current coat is a primer coat over several layers of paint.

Josh

 

[jperry1290]

By no means a paint expert, but I painted my eb myself and it turned out decent. macco wanted 1500 in Ca with no jams, no warranty, no inside, and an extra SUV charge. Look on Craigslist for someone that does painting on the side, it will save you a lot of time. Also look at tcpglobal.com for paint.

 

[joshm121]

Yeah I actually bought a paint gun considering that I'm do it myself. Maaco just seemed so expensive that I thought it might be a better option. However from your standpoint sounds like a do-it-yourself deal may be a better option.

 

[joshm121]

My main question is the prep work. Should I just sand off what's there, or try and strip off the original Paint and primer?

 

[Pa PITT]

.. I sold DuPoint for 30 years but that was 15 years ago. So Systems have sure changed. You'd think I say buy the best. But I do not because it just cost way to much money.
So if your Bronco will go the the trails & be used to play with. Then my advise is go to TSC. Tractor Supply . Buy a gallon of their paint & a pint of hardner & a PINT of Reducer..or what ever the mixing instructions are for what you buy .
... You always need a gallon of Lacquer thinner to clean your gun. Every 10 minutes.. A good compressor and lots of sand paper . I'm sure today you can U-Tube & learn a lot. I say take each part off & paint them one at a time. You can do a much better job on a small part than the whole side of a Bronco.
.. You tube & search lots of info . But I can't see some of the price tags I see today for paint.

 

[TN1776]

If you have a few layers of paint and primer, you are going to want to get it back down to bare metal or at least very thin paint/primer over the base metal. It will be more durable and less prone to chipping, and will look a lot better in the long run.

I painted my Bronco myself, first vehicle I've ever tried to paint and it came out decent given my lack of experience. A lot of your end result lies in the prep, so when sanding and filling, just keep sanding beyond when you think its good enough. A light guide coat every once in a while is your friend, as is a pneumatic body sander and a good long hand sanding block.

When you think you've got it smooth, take a thin cloth and rub it across the surface of the vehicle pressing down through it with your fingers, you will be amazed at how much more you feel when you add that layer of cloth vs just using your fingers. Then sand some more and get everything feathered. Plan on a big mess and a bit of a time commitment.

I shot single stage acrylic polyurethane, ended up shooting 4 light coats and then cut and buffed it a little. For a vehicle that I take offroad and know that I will scratch it up over time, its just fine. Its no show car but it definitely turns heads like a lot of Broncos do.

Or like others have said if time/space is a concern, put an ad on craigslist or search for ads already posted by others. There are body guys out there looking for work.

 

[zbronco]

My main question is the prep work. Should I just sand off what's there, or try and strip off the original Paint and primer?

Your paint job is only as good as the prep work. I am in the middle of this process. The bronco I just picked up had 1 coat of paint that was in poor condition. It had little chips and scratches everywhere..

I stripped the paint down to the metal in 90% of the bronco. I tried chemical strip on the hood and it was a bigger pain then just sanding it down.

If you have any bodywork or filler it is best to remove it, asses the issue and fix accordingly.

The key is a good foundation..,One option for you on paint is to dip your bronco.. You still need a good foundation but can add color and protect the primer until you have the funds to do a good paint job.. The sweet part is if you do not like the color just peel it off. Plasti dip is around 50 gal versus car paint around 500.

 

[AZ73]

If you paint it yourself you'll need 1) a big compressor 2) a filter/dryer that gets rid of water (you're in Atlanta). Compressors will change the humidity in the air to water in your line and you'll get blemishes all over your paint. Other than that, a little practice on a piece of cardboard to get the hang of movement and dial your gun in, and you can do it yourself. If you're still unsure, it should be easy to find someone to shoot it for you after you do all the prep work.

 

[Darren]

I just bought a ’74 with an older glass tub. I am in the process of sanding off the paint and I was thinking of giving it the matt desert camo from a can.

I ran across this post from a guy that painted his car with a foam roller. It's about 6 or 8 replys into the post.

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=2331682&page=0&fpart=1&vc=1

He buys a gallon of rust paint and thins the paint to the consistency of water and rolls it on. I want to do a little research to see how the paint will do on a glass body and if I think it will stick I will give it a try in a few weeks.

 

[Spartan]

Yeah I read that several months ago, (if thats the post that 30-40pgs long, i read the whole thing) but there's a TON of work involved in it and you need a specific type of paint that (at the time I read it) was available in Canada only)
Results definitely varied.
I was tempted, but only for a sec

 

[John Marinan]

Check out the paintucation videos from Kevin Tetz. Four videos that cover just about everything. If you have any questions, he has a great forum, and answers questions very quickly.

 

[Arikilen]

Sanding worked the best for me too. I have tried house stripper, automotive stripper and aircraft stripper to remove the original ford paint. Forget it, its messy and doesn't remove it very well. I recommend sand a bunch, primer a bunch, sand some more...

 

[allenfahey]

Sanding worked the best for me too. I have tried house stripper, automotive stripper and aircraft stripper to remove the original ford paint. Forget it, its messy and doesn't remove it very well. I recommend sand a bunch, primer a bunch, sand some more...

When I use stripper at work I grind the panel real good with 40 grit on a grinder or DA. Don't go down to the bare metal, just gouge up the paint. Some metal is ok but make sure to 180 those out when you are done. I then tape up the seams so stripper doesn't get in there. Put the stripper on with a rag, old scuff pad, or paint brush. The stripper can then get under the paint and it will start to bubble. Use a scraper and scrape the paint/stripper onto 36" paper on the floor. Very little mess to clean up. Sometimes it takes a couple applications. I neutralize the stripper with lacquer thinner on a red scuff pad. It dries it out so you can then sand the panel.

 

[bad 68]

Since you don't know whats under your current primer coat for sure it should all come off.
Grinding down to bare metal is a great way to warp every panel as the grinder builds heat in concentrated areas. Try the method Allen said in the above post and you should see good results.

Seems like you should be able to find a Bronco enthusiast in your area that could coach you along.

Heres a minimum list of tools and materials you will need:
Air compressor with at least 10 cfm
DA sander with a 6" pad
Long board
Set of Durablocks
Paint gun with 1.5mm tip
At least 3 grits of paper for the DA
at least 2 grits for the long board
At least 3 grits of sticky back rolls for the durablocks
At least 3 grits of paper sheets.
several rolls of 3/4" painters tape
several rolls of 2" tape
16" roll of paper
gallon of quality plastic filler
glazing putty
half a dozen tack cloths
several gray scuff pads
several red scuff pads
gallon of primer surfacer with proper catalyst and maybe reducer
your choice of bare metal primer
sealer ( may use epoxy primer as a sealer)
Tube of Seam Sealer
wax and grease remover
paint of choice, single stage or base/clear with appropriate catalyst and reducer
Wet sanding paper and soft block to nock down the bugs and runs
buffer and 3 different compounds to bring it back from the wet sanding

You can buy the paint and paper supplies for $1200 but if you don't have the tools you can't do the paint job for that amount.

 

[allenfahey]

Since you don't know whats under your current primer coat for sure it should all come off.
Grinding down to bare metal is a great way to warp every panel as the grinder builds heat in concentrated areas. Try the method Allen said in the above post and you should see good results.

Seems like you should be able to find a Bronco enthusiast in your area that could coach you along.

Heres a minimum list of tools and materials you will need:
Air compressor with at least 10 cfm
DA sander with a 6" pad
Long board
Set of Durablocks
Paint gun with 1.5mm tip
At least 3 grits of paper for the DA
at least 2 grits for the long board
At least 3 grits of sticky back rolls for the durablocks
At least 3 grits of paper sheets.
several rolls of 3/4" painters tape
several rolls of 2" tape
16" roll of paper
gallon of quality plastic filler
glazing putty
half a dozen tack cloths
several gray scuff pads
several red scuff pads
gallon of primer surfacer with proper catalyst and maybe reducer
your choice of bare metal primer
sealer ( may use epoxy primer as a sealer)
Tube of Seam Sealer
wax and grease remover
paint of choice, single stage or base/clear with appropriate catalyst and reducer
Wet sanding paper and soft block to nock down the bugs and runs
buffer and 3 different compounds to bring it back from the wet sanding

You can buy the paint and paper supplies for $1200 but if you don't have the tools you can't do the paint job for that amount.

That's a real good list to start but for a spray gun I would get one with a 1.3 tip. If you use a 1.5 it will not atomize the paint as well as a 1.3 and you will get orange peel and or runs from trying to slick out the orange peel. 1.5-1.8 is good for primer though. Devilbis Finishline is a decent affordable gun and has multiple tips in it.

 

[rjrobin2002]

http://classicbroncos.com/forums/showthread.php?t=195587
These things kick ass, 1 pad can do about 1 front fender and the dont warp panels. I had my last bronco sand blasted for 500 bucks and they epoxy primmed it. It was worth it to me.