Which coating for a long waiting period?

[PhotonFanatic]

I'm something of a newb to autobody, so I'm hoping someone knows - What kind of coating do you get if you want the vehicle coated, but you're not ready to paint it yet?

I have a 70's truck and the original paint job is just about gone. In it's place is a lot of surface rust. There's no bad rust underneath, as it's a southern truck. But I would really like to get all that surface rust taken care of, and get all the dents fixed.

But I want to do most of the other stuff myself. Like installing the engine, transmission, interior, etc. What should I do? It needs some kind of coating for me to know where I'm at. I want a clean, flat, blank slate to look at. Not dents and surface rust.

Is this a dumb question because I have the wrong idea? Should I just have them do the whole paint job, and just be damn careful not to scratch it when I'm doing all the rest of the work?

Thanks!

 

[Sad Sack]

Epoxy primer

 

[Trucksareforwork]

Second on epoxy primer. Clean up the surface to remove rust, then shoot with epoxy.

When you are ready to spray a spot or the whole car, it’s best to shoot a little additional epoxy on top of the old to get the best bond.

I have stuff in epoxy for 5 years plus with no worries. Honestly I think a truck in black spi epoxy looks pretty good and the coating is tough as nails if applied over clean surface.

 

[fast 99]

Epoxy is an excellent barrier coat. Best to read directions. Some brands must me sanded and recoated with epoxy after 7 days, others like Nason just sanded.

Sprayed motorcycle tin yesterday with Nason. Never used their product before. Can be used over bare metal, is a sealer and surfacer. Sprayed on nice with good hiding and build. Nason is also a little less expensive.

Your millage may vary.

 

[Grit dog]

There is a very detailed discussion posted recently. Answers all of your questions.

 

[Sad Sack]

Search for

https://www.gmsquarebody.com/threads/which-primer-to-use.47826/unread

 

[PhotonFanatic]

Search for

https://www.gmsquarebody.com/threads/which-primer-to-use.47826/unread

Thanks that's a great thread! Seemed to be a few varying opinions there, so to clarify -

Just use epoxy primer, but you have to scuff it again before finally applying paint 5 years later. Does this sound right?

Or do you need some other coating over the epoxy primer? My truck will not be outside getting rained on, but it will be in a garage that has no climate controls. Humidity will be a factor.

 

[fast 99]

Thanks that's a great thread! Seemed to be a few varying opinions there, so to clarify -

Just use epoxy primer, but you have to scuff it again before finally applying paint 5 years later. Does this sound right?

Or do you need some other coating over the epoxy primer? My truck will not be outside getting rained on, but it will be in a garage that has no climate controls. Humidity will be a factor.

Read the instructions. Those can be sourced from the paint store or online.

 

[Grit dog]

Thanks that's a great thread! Seemed to be a few varying opinions there, so to clarify -

Just use epoxy primer, but you have to scuff it again before finally applying paint 5 years later. Does this sound right?

Or do you need some other coating over the epoxy primer? My truck will not be outside getting rained on, but it will be in a garage that has no climate controls. Humidity will be a factor.

You sand/scuff any and all coatings before re coating if it’s beyond the recoat window. So it’s not extra work even though that other dude was making it seem that way. Plus bodywork. Unless you’re a pro AND starting off with perfect sheetmetal you’re sanding the whole car atl least 3 times anyway. Minimum. Plus bodywork
And humidity is not an issue with even the most basic cheap primer. No need to use epoxy if you don’t want to. There are other bare metal primers if you wish

 

[Trucksareforwork]

Definitely comes down to “read the instructions.”

Pretty sure the SPI stuff is a scuff and shoot with a seal coat of epoxy that acts as a sort of re-activation before you spray other stuff on it. But there’s detailed discussions of it on the Spi website.

One thing is for sure, that stuff is rock hard after it sits for a while.

 

[Camar068]

my opinion, put primer on it. When you see discoloration/surface rust....scuff the surface rust off and spot hit it. Long term and don't want to keep an eye on it, do the above. Cheaper if you keep an eye on it. Not that difficult.

Really for surface rust, it would take less than a minute to scuff and rattle can/spray primer over it.

 

[Camar068]

I'm something of a newb to autobody, so I'm hoping someone knows - What kind of coating do you get if you want the vehicle coated, but you're not ready to paint it yet?

I have a 70's truck and the original paint job is just about gone. In it's place is a lot of surface rust. There's no bad rust underneath, as it's a southern truck. But I would really like to get all that surface rust taken care of, and get all the dents fixed.

But I want to do most of the other stuff myself. Like installing the engine, transmission, interior, etc. What should I do? It needs some kind of coating for me to know where I'm at. I want a clean, flat, blank slate to look at. Not dents and surface rust.

Is this a dumb question because I have the wrong idea? Should I just have them do the whole paint job, and just be damn careful not to scratch it when I'm doing all the rest of the work?

Thanks!

and your second question, do what all you need to do other than body and do body last. Saves time and hassle.

 

[fast 99]

Don't want to point fingers. Some of the above information is wrong. Different paint brands have different procedures.

ASK WHAT YOU CAN AND CAN NOT DO AT A PAINT STORE!

 

[PhotonFanatic]

Don't want to point fingers. Some of the above information is wrong. Different paint brands have different procedures.

Well the body shop will be handling it all, because that's the one thing I don't like doing myself - Paint and body work. I'll leave that to the skilled professionals. So I'll just ask them, I'm sure they'll know what you can do with whatever they'll be using. To me it's well worth the money to pay someone who's already good at that job.

You sand/scuff any and all coatings before re coating if it’s beyond the recoat window. So it’s not extra work even though that other dude was making it seem that way. Plus bodywork. Unless you’re a pro AND starting off with perfect sheetmetal you’re sanding the whole car atl least 3 times anyway. Minimum. Plus bodywork
And humidity is not an issue with even the most basic cheap primer. No need to use epoxy if you don’t want to. There are other bare metal primers if you wish

Would that result in a "higher build"? I've heard some painters say "We don't want it to build too high" or something like that. I ask because I'm one of those people who can see when a paint job is too thick. Maybe everybody can see that, but I don't like the thicker paint look. The factory paint is something like 100 micrometers, or 4 to 7 mils thick. I'd love to have it be factory thickness, but maybe that's not possible in the real world.

One thing is for sure, that stuff is rock hard after it sits for a while.

I always wanted to know what that black coating is, that they ship new parts with. So if you order a new fender, or a hood or something, and it's covered in black. That stuff is pretty tough.

 

[Trucksareforwork]

always wanted to know what that black coating is, that they ship new parts with. So if you order a new fender, or a hood or something, and it's covered in black. That stuff is pretty tough.

Think that’s an electro coat or EDP. It’s tough to remove but I have had plenty of parts rust with it on.