Hello all, So my friend and i had the great idea to paint my fiero. Now by no means are we professionals but we are very handy around the garage and cars. After parking my fiero in his back yard we began by pulling off most of the body panels. Hood, trunk, front fascia, rear bumper...ect. We sanded the car with 100 grit. Wet sanded with 600. Washed and wiped with ammonia cleaner and layed down a layer of primer. Now for the hard part, painting. I have decided to go with a acrylic urethane because i hear it is the easiest to spray. anyone else have an opinion? should the car be sanded with a finer paper like 1000? base coat/clear coat? We have a good air compressor and a few guns. Nothing expensive by all means. What i am hoping for is the cleanest, SHINIEST paint we are capable of and if anyone has any pointers they are greatly appreciated. I also have a ton of pictures of bodywork/prep that i want to post to help other first timers after we are finished. Thank all!!!

BTW the color is 1970's chevy black cherry

600 should be good for mechanical adhesion of the paint, But 100 was awfully coarse to start with. I find it hard to imagine you were able to get the 100 grit scratchet out going directly to 600. Any littl scratc will be magnified when you paint it.

Acrylic and Urethane enamel single stage paints are easy to paint with and cheaper. Just make sure you follow mixing instructions and play with your gun till its laying down a smooth even pattern before you start on the car. Usually if the paint says set at 35psi, that means at the nozzle. depending on the gun, that could be 55psi at the handle. so you have to play with it a bit.

If you use a single stage paint remember it takes a month to fully cure before you want to buff or wax it.

Good luck and post pics

Thanks for your input! Yeah i agree 100 was harsh But about 20 hours with 600 made the car pretty smooth. A planned on hitting it with 1000 before paint. Good idea or not?

No, 1000 is too fine and your paint will have nothing to "grab on" to.

I just completed repainting my 85 GT in mid April. I removed panels as you have.
I am not familiar with the cleaner you used, but it is strongly recommended that you clean the car body completely with prep solvent BEFORE any sanding. This prevents sanding wax, grease and dirt into the paint.

A gallon of this stuff is about $25.00 and I still have 1/2 left after doing my car.

As far a primer goes I recommend a catalyzed primer so you are certain it is dry before you paint, others may disagree. It is called 2K primer. The Dupont primer I used was very easy to sand.

I did not prime my entire car. The fenders and door had existing paint that was in excellent condition so after cleaning them with prep solvent I scuffed them with the purple scotch pads and then wet sanded them with 400 wet before spraying basecoat.

I made a mistake, although minor, not taking the paint off the hood and priming it. I did this with the back hood and it came out smoother. Primer has a way of showing you defects, especially on horizontal surfaces- roof, hood and trunk lids. I have a couple of sanding goofs on my hood that are minor but should have not happened.

After priming I sanded with 400 wet. I read on auto body 101.com to sand panels at a 45* angle to the panel, rather than in line. I did this with the back hood and not the front, again it paid off in the back.

After the primer was wet sanded with 400 and as defect free as the eye could see I wiped the surface down with prep solvent two times to be sure it was clean. Then I tack ragged it 3 times. I sprayed outside, here in Tucson there is little chance of surprise rain, but I did have some issues with the wind at times.

After painting the bc, I waited about 1 to 2 hours and sprayed clear. I had to apply two sometime 3 coats of base and two coats of clear at least. I used Nason paint a medium grade and coverage was not fantastic but it covered. (color is red btw)

After the clear was dry for 24 hours I wet sanded with 1000 and then 1500 wet. (all wet sanding with a block) Then I buffed it with medium cut Meguiars compound and after that with Swirl Removed.

I have painted cars before back in the 70's and using a gravity feed gun and bc cc was much easier than single stage we head then. Even if the bc is a little rough the clear will bail you out. You will have to learn from experience. I made some mistakes along the way. I had too low a pressure on my gun for a while, then I call Devilbiss and got that right, be nice if the bastards would put it in the manual, I did look!

Don't expect to by a 12.00 gun and get great results, I got one of those for primer and one nice Devilbiss for color and clear.

BE SURE you get a NEW quality respirator from the paint store and use it from the moment you are exposed to paint. I had a scare this last week thinking I poisoned myself with the 2K clear, but I only have a virus. Just the thought of ruining my lungs pissed me off. Do not ignore the dangers of this 2-part paint.

There is so much info to share I know I missed some things.
Oh, don't but the cheap Chinese/Indian wet/dry sandpaper at Harbor Freight. The stuff is garbage last about 2 minutes and then gouges up your work. Get 3M or Norton quality wet/dry paper.

I owe images to lots of guys on this Forum that assisted me on my paint work. I wanted to take shots after I waxed it but still can't wax due to the fact the paint is not cured yet.
I need to wash the car but I have to do it early or late, otherwise too sunny.

So here is a little of the work I did.

sparx22

[This message has been edited by sparx22 (edited 06-08-2009).]

Wow thanks for the help everyone! BTW that red looks amazing. I dont have the confidence to paint my car red again it might look worse than it did originally. okay so far th bc/cc seems the better way to go. If i go with a single stage paint is it still possible to sand out imperfections after its painted? or will that ruin the shine?

This mine with single stage black. Yes you can still wet sand and polish single stage, just have to wait a month. I like Single Stage for Black because it comes out much "blacker" or I think !

yes now that is a black finish! Looks amazing hope my black cherry turns out like that. What did you sand with before laying on your paint?

I used the 2K primer and sanded the primer with 600.

Thanks all! Painting car sat. (weather-permitting) and hopefully will have pictures up soon!

Good luck with it !

I had a '61 Impala I was painting black cherry....sweet color I think

I agree with everything sparx22 said EXCEPT, you CAN use the harbor freight gravity feed gun & have fantastic results. (it Costs $14 !) a great gun does not make a great painter, but a decent painter can make it look great even with a cheapie gun ! In 30 years I've found ,just because a paint gun is made by a "big name" & costs alot, it is not usually Better ! after you sand the primer ,( remember, ANYTHING you can see OR feel, WILL SHOW in the final shine. After you've washed it with "wax & silicon remover TWICE, and you are Sure it's clean, DO IT AGAIN !

great advice here folks. Looks like ill be hitting the booth again tomorrow with some 600 wet and elbow grease. Want to make sure i have all the imperfections out. what about the shade of the primer? ex: Primer is dark gray in some spots and lighter in others because of sanding. Will that show a color difference in my final spray? Plan on cleaning the car tomorrow and twice the morning before paint..

I still think 600 is too fine, 500 is plenty fine.

Good luck with it- remember the respirator!

Well Lou I never tried to spray clear or base with the HF gun, you are problably correct! But my DeVilbiss really lays out much more paint faster than the HF gun can. You are right about the operator for sure.
sparx22

600 Is too fine. wet sand with 400 has always been the "standard"

My local paint and body supply guy has alway said 600, but obviously 4 and 500 work well to. 600 has worked for me on my Fiero and two trucks so far.

I did my black with base clear, and it turns out more "mirror" looking... It can result in a really catchy black paintjob, but it is VERY tough to make perfect.

quote 600 Is too fine. wet sand with 400 has always been the "standard"

It would have never worked on my car... their were way too many 400 scratches in it when i was done with my first stage of final sanding.. the 600 was needed.

My prep went like this....

sand body down with 150, got off most of my cruddy junk under it... this varies from car to car. Add in bondo to chunks or dings or whatever.

apply a primer sealer of some sort, I used expoy primer, 1 light high reducer coat.

bunch of primer surfacer, 3 coats medium heavy. If you want to be cheap, only put it in areas you need to do flattening work.

Sand/block with 150 until you get all the waves and crud out, very time consuming and with a fiero, this step is fairly un-needed unless you are paranoid like me. You can never really get the panels straight, and it doesnt look bad with some dips and waves in it usually.

At this point most of that primer you put on should be gone, so I hit it again with another 1-3 coats of primer surfacer.

now the final sanding comes in. I did mine in 2 steps, as it went a bit faster...

First I dry 320 sanded everything... this step was fairly quick and effective at getting it perfect right off but left a "dull" look and some fairly obvious scratching in the primer, so I then went over that very carefully with 600 wet. Remember that wet sand paper leaves a deeper scratch than dry paper, so you should always knock off about 100 of the grit rating when using wet. Ex... 320 dry is the same as 400wet.

I have heard that it is not very uncommon to use 800 wet on black paintjobs, as they show so many defects.

I can honestly say that there are VERY few prep issues on my car, and none if you do not include the front bumper. I do not fully understand the issues on the front bumper, but it seems that some spider cracking has come up from the bumper itself, or I may not have spent the correct amount of time on it during prep.

[This message has been edited by darkhorizon (edited 05-27-2009).]

I'm just an amatuer painter but here's what I have learned. The actual spraying of the paint- spray on lightly the first coat over lap 1/2 your spray pattern as you go along, the next coat a little heavier, the next coat a little heavier. The hard part is the clear coat. It goes on opposite the paint. So it would be good to practice on something else first. It goes on heavy the first time, has to look wet. But there's a fine line between wet and runs. Good luck

Ok so I will be painting my 85 2m6 this summer and was wondering if it would be easier to pull the panels or just leave it all on and go that route?

Thanks for all the info. Glad to see im not the only amauter painting. I personally think its easier to pull off all/most of the panels to paint and prep. Looks nicer too. Thanks for the advice! pics coming this weekend

taking all the panels offdepends... solid or metalic, Or 3 stage paint ?? solids, fine, metalics & 3 stage, every panel MAY come out different ! you can spray metalic paints Out of the SAME can, Same GUN, the same day, & they May al look different ! are you mixing Everytime you mix the paint, shaking the gun between panels?? if 3 stage, you must CAREFULLY measure the ?pearl you add to the SAME amount of Clear each time. a whole lot easier to properly mask the jambs & shoot the car in 1 piece (except maybe the decklid (where you Have to have it off to fet the part below the rear window correctly)

I take everything off but the roof panels. I get grief for saying it but it's the only way to it right. Whether you care what the jambs & inner surfaces look like is up to you. Plus if everything is together you have a LOT of taping & masking to do.
When you paint, orient the panels the same way they are on the car & they will all match - i.e. hang the fenders, doorskins, & 1/4 panels in a vertical position. Laying them down flat will cause the mettallics to settle & make them darker.
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

If guns cause crime, all of mine are defective.

Bump : ) painting tomorrow and will have pics ASAP

quote Originally posted by Mike Gonzalez: This mine with single stage black. Yes you can still wet sand and polish single stage, just have to wait a month. I like Single Stage for Black because it comes out much "blacker" or I think !

This is a fact. While clearcoated may be glossier, it wont be as deep a black. Clear tends to turn it more dark charcoal...the more clear the worse. While clearcoated does look great, it never is as dark as a nice solid black sanded and buffed out.

I sand with 360 just prior to paint (go over it all with maroon scotchbrite afterward) on lighter colors. Black and other deeper colors I use 400. Anything finer wont leave a rough enough surface for the basecoat to adhere its best. Like said already, basecoat dont have to be glassy smooth...your going to cover it with clear. All the finish and gloss is in the last coat of the clear. Imperfections under the base, like scratches, chips etc....will still show up thru the clear.

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Glad to see this thread is still alive will post my finished product pics tonight

I've always used single stage enamel paints with a hardner. If you apply them correctly, color sand and buff them out, you can get a beautiful gloss finish. I also always prime and /or use plastic adheshion promoter as applicable.

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" THE BLACK PARALYZER" -87GT 3800SC Series III engine, 3.4" Pulley, N* TB, LS1 MAF, Flotech Exhaust Autolite 104's Custom CAI 4T65eHD w. custom axles, HP Tuners VCM Suite.
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Hey great advice i did go with the single stage acrylic enamel. Paint turned out great but there are some inperfections i would like to get out. My question is what is my next step? Wet sanding with a fine paper? or buffing? Just want to add that extra smooth shine.

AE takes 30-60 days to cure. Dont mess with it before then. After that you can wet sand with 1000-1500 just as basecoat/clearcoat and buff. I did my Mercedes SL in it back in the 90s and sold it to a local guy. Its still show quality, and as glossy and deep red as any custom laquer job. You may even be able to sand out some slight defects...and you dont have to worry about sanding thru the clear. You can quit if you start to see some primer showing thru