Repainting

[akcamaro02]

I got a 2002 camaro that's black, and almost fulled blacked out(minus headlights and fogs, leaving them alone), just need to VHT the marker lights and it will be good to go but I have had the car for about 1.5 years and as time goes on w/all cars, the paint gets worse and worse. More and more surface scratchs have appeared, My mom decided to move my car acouple times and one time backed into trash can and took paint off spoiler, hit ladder in garage, took paint off front bumper, hit person in parking lot, only minor scuffs on rear bumper and not to mention, the clear coat is coming off in certain spots..so ANYWAY, I was looking at trying to repaint the car in a couple years down the road, once the money is good and the paint is worse, but I was wanting to do it myself..has anyone ever repainted there own car? is it hard? maybe a link to a writeup? what needs to be bought? etc. The car still is the cleanest camaro, interior, engine bay, underbody, exterior i have ever seen, no rust, no fading, no cracks, one minor dent on hood but i'll get an ss hood sooner or later but there's just those spots that drive u crazy and all the scratches will get on my nerves. A buddy of mine repainted his Grand Prix and he did it himself and it looks great. but anyhelp from a camaro owner would be appreciated

[truekoa]

Re: Repainting

You going to stay black?

When I repainted, I brought it to a shop but I sanded, primed, and taped off everything myself so it wasn't that expensive. I figured bringing it to a shop would be much better, you get warranty, a professional job, and just overall experience.

I don't really have any painting advice but as far as prepping for paint its not that hard. If you do the prep work yourself you're looking at maybe a 600-800 dollars for just a paint job. The majority of the work is the prepping.

Just my 2 cents,figured you'd like some diff choices on this.

I pretty much just follow this guide for my prep work:
http://forum.camarov6.com/showthread.php?t=91029

[venom3300]

Re: Repainting

You going to stay black?

When I repainted, I brought it to a shop but I sanded, primed, and taped off everything myself so it wasn't that expensive. I figured bringing it to a shop would be much better, you get warranty, a professional job, and just overall experience.

I don't really have any painting advice but as far as prepping for paint its not that hard. If you do the prep work yourself you're looking at maybe a 600-800 dollars for just a paint job. The majority of the work is the prepping.

Just my 2 cents,figured you'd like some diff choices on this.

I pretty much just follow this guide for my prep work:
http://forum.camarov6.com/showthread.php?t=91029

i agree, i would suggest doing the prep work yourself and maybe primer yourself and then take it to a shop. i mean unless u just happen to have a professional spay gun laying around. also if you get a shop to do it, it will probably last longer. plus this way you spend the money once and right, rather than it not being quite up to par and spending the money again.

the guide he linked u to is very good btw

[ssms5411]

Re: Repainting

Just make sure its prepped well and primered and make sure they use a sealer and good paint and clear on it. At least 3 coats paint and clear and they should cut & buff the paint after it cures.

[hockeyman]

Re: Repainting

Renting a shop or finding some sort of enclosed garage is about the only way to go if you're going to do it yourself. If you attempt to paint it outside, you'll most likely get curious bugs, dust, dirt, etc. stuck in the basecoat / clearcoat, and it'll be a MESS!

*If you get a garage, sweep it very well, hang drop cloth's from all corners, and spray the area down with a bit of water before firing up the gun. The water will keep most contaminants stuck to the ground while you're spraying, and keep dust to a minimum.

*A good starting point is to just pre-mix the whole container of paint w/reducer in one shot. If you don't...and you stir up different batches, the finish may come out in different shades because of the slight variation of reducer that was either put in -or- left out in the different mixes. Reducing all of the paint in one shot eliminates this. Whatever's left over, put it in a clean & sealed container.

*Mix up more paint than you think you'll need. This is something I should have thought about when I first began spraying. Oh well, live & learn...

*One more thing (may be debatable upon who you talk to);
If you've never sprayed with a HVLP (or equivalent) gun before, do not start on your good car! If you have a beater, then have a blast :) If you can pick up a spraygun and master the craft overnight, contact Chip Foose immediately! He may have a business proposition for you.

There are plently of other good tips, but I recently got home from work & need a beer. :banana:

[ssms5411]

Re: Repainting

My brother in-law who fixed up a 67' mustang fastback with a built 302(about 300WRHP) and T5 tranny sprayed his own took him like4-5 coats primer, 8 coats of paint to get it right and then like 5-6 coats of clear. He had to touch it up so many times becuase it either came out wrong or didn't look right to him was his first paint job, its a deep blue with stock 67' rims that were chromed.

[akcamaro02]

Re: Repainting

Yeah I found that link after I posted this, well it sounds like i should leave the painting to a shop. I thought it wouldn't be too hard, i've painted my billet grille, taillights, 3rd brake light, friends taillights, it wasn't too hard, hardest part was the prep work but the better the prep work, the better the paint turns out.

I have the stock snowflake wheels and was thinking about powdercoating them black, does anyone have pictures of their wheels blacked out??

[bigairboarder44]

Re: Repainting

http://forum.camarov6.com/showthread...lack+snowflake
http://forum.camarov6.com/showthread...lack+snowflake

[akcamaro02]

Re: Repainting

if i took the parts off the car, like hood, doors, spoiler, truck, bumpers, etc. and painted those in a garage, would that be easy? My friend's dad painted all of his parts for his 69 camaro z28 drag car in his garage and he didn't have any problems from what they look like.

[BallerMaro13]

Re: Repainting

not too shabby^

talk to Schlotzky, he's not the "spray can king" for nothing...

[akcamaro02]

Re: Repainting

sounds good, i'll have to talk to him

i was also looking at getting my hands on some of those halo lights, do you have to buy new headlights or just the bulbs or what?

[BallerMaro13]

Re: Repainting

the halos are completely new headlight assemblies, hid's are just kits to plug into your existing set.

i picked up my halos from k2motor.com---very good experiences with them, check out the site man.

[akcamaro02]

Re: Repainting

will do..thanks baller

[BallerMaro13]

Re: Repainting

no prob!

do you have pics of your ride up on the boards? if not get us some pronto!

[akcamaro02]

Re: Repainting

No i don't actually. I have pictures on my computer of the car when I first bought it. But that's before the billet grille, window tint, new tires, blacked out taillights, and some performance mods.
I'll wash it later in the week and try and get ahold of my gfs camera. The only thing I think that looks better when i first bought itwas there's no spots where the clear coat was coming off..now i got a few spots but hey, it's 7 years old. what can i expect..it was gonna happen sooner or later.