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In this guide, I will walk through the steps to creating a professional paint job on virtually any piece of your car that you desire. I will be using the centre console of my 2001 Celica GT.
The first, and most important step with any paint job is to prepare the surface that you are painting. Paint will adhere best to a clean, oil-free, dull surface. Begin by making sure that your part is is clean; use a mild detergent in warm water to break up and carry away any dirt on the surface.
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Next, dull the surface with 400 grit sandpaper. This will remove any minor surface imperfections, and the added surface area in the 400 grit scratches will give the paint more surface to adhere to. After the 400 grit, step up to 800 grit, and sand the surface until it looks even, and is smooth to the touch.
Once you are done with the sanding, wash the piece again with warm soapy water. The final step in cleaning and prepping the surface is to wipe it down with mineral spirits (paint thinner). This should be done once or twice, and allowed to dry completely before any paint is sprayed onto the surface.
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paint thinner...
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Next, we move on to the primer coat. It is essential to get a good even primer coat on the piece, as any imperfection in the primer will rear its ugly head in the finished paint.
Begin, and do this as a general rule before you spray ANY kind of paint, by wiping down the surface gently with tack cloth (roughly $.45 at a paint store or walmart). This will remove any dust, dirt, lint, etc. from the surface. Do this immediately before you paint, and this will lesson the chance of anything getting caught in the paint.
You will get the best finish with a high build primer/surfacer. This should be sprayed on in several thin coats, tack clothing in between each. Make sure that you get good coverage, but be careful not to lay it on so thick that it runs or sags.
Once you get done spraying your coats of primer, and it has dried for at least 6 hours, you should lightly sand the surface with 1000 grit sandpaper. Continue sanding lightly, in a circular pattern, until the surface appears even and is completely smooth to the touch. If you should happen to sand through the primer, fear not, just tack cloth the piece again, and spray a few more light coats onto it. It's important to remember that you don't have to sand the piece too hard, the paint will sand easily, with little pressure, so be gentle.
Wash the piece again with soap and water.
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sandpaper...
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Now, on to the good stuff... the color coat.
For this, you should use a paint that is formulated for your specific application. Example, if you're painting a valve cover, use high heat engine paint; if it's a urethane bumper, use a flexible exterior paint, etc.
Again, make sure that you have cleaned the surface to get any oils off of it, and that the surface is completely dry. You should give the primer coat at least overnight to dry completely. Tack cloth the piece before spraying.
The color should be laid on in several thin coats. Don't worry about covering the the primer in the first couple of coats, just go lightly. In fact, four coats is usually a good beginning for the color. After the primer is completely covered, and the paint has dried for at least six hours, take the piece to the bathtub or sink, and hold the piece under luke-warm water, and sand it very lightly with 2000 grit sandpaper. Let the piece dry, and inspect it to see that the primer isn't showing through anywhere, and that the sanding has created an even, smooth surface. If there are any deep scratches, or any dust blebs, sand them out now. The finished appearance of the sanded paint will be dull and cloudy. Don't worry, that will change when you clear coat it.
Once you have the color coat evenly sanded, and the primer completely covered, let the paint dry over night.
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Alright, we're getting close, don't quit now!
After the color has had a night to dry completely, you can clear coat the paint to really bring out the color, and add depth to the paint.
I usually like to use at least three seperate coats of clear-coat.
Each of these coats whould be applied exactly liek the color coat, in several thin layers. The sanding is where it differs, however. Instead of using sandpaper, invest in some 0000 grade steel wool (around $4.00 at a paint store, or walmart). This should be used very lightly after the first two clear coats, without any water. Again, strive to make the surface smooth and even. Every time you sand it, it will get cloudy, and the next layer of clear coat will make it clear again. Make sure that you rinse the piece after every time that you sand it, and the let towel it completely dry. Tack cloth it immediately before every layer of clear coat to remove any leftover steel wool fibers, or lint.
After the final clear coat, VERY gently wet sand the paint with 0000 grade steel wool. Yes, i know, this will make the paint cloudy again. Don't worry, it's not going to stay that way.
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The final step is to give the paint its gloss by buffing out the fine scratches.
The best product for this is 3M brand Rubbing Compound (part #03900). This will remove 1500 grit and finer scratches. Use a clean terry cloth rag to apply a small amount to the surface of the paint, and rub using a smooth circular motion. When the compound starts to dry, lighten your pressure. Turn to a clean portion of the cloth and gently buff the dried compund off the paint. Repeat this until the paint has a mirror gloss. You can bring the paint to an even higher gloss by using Meguiar's Deep Crystal polish. It is best, after you have used a paint polish, to let the paint cure for about a month (depending on the humidity of your area), then you can use your favorite car wax to maintain the finish of the paint. You should not wax the paint before the month is over, as it will seal the paint, and prevent it from curing and completely adhering to the piece that you painted.
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polish and wax...
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Thanks everyone! I hope this helps some of you out with your custom work. Enjoy!
If you have any other questions, or comments, you can PM me, or send me an email to: RaderStudios@hotmail.com
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this is a great guide but can you post pics of the actual final product of your center console painted i wanna see the difference between doing all the steps you listed and just painting it without sanding
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you prob won't be able to tell much of a difference in a picture, his way will look much better up close, have more detail, and most importantly last alot longer.
painting without preping will never last as long and will get chips very easily like if you bump into it with something hard or bend it to much when puting it back on.
this guid is one of the most comprhensive i've ever seen, MAD MAD PROPS!!! keep up the good work.
it would be nice to have pics of an actual peice going through the process.
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I agree, but the problem is (and i feel bad about this) I haven't had time to actually finish my centre console yet. I just went ahead and did the paint guide because people seemed like they wanted to have the info. Fear not, when I actually get time to do it, i will post some pics of the process, or at least the finished product.
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Hey Jon were did you get a 1000grit sand paper???
When i was painting my centr console i used 600grit . I went to couple of stores but no one sells higher than 600
P.S.Very good installation gude.
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You should be able to pick up 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit at your local autozone, pepboys, checker/schucks/kragen, or any auto body supply shops
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I just wanted to thank Carbon again for this guide.
I've started painting my enging plastics again. I'm just painting the small plastic piece on the drivers side for now. I just put the first clear coat on this morning and all I can say is WOW It looks like a professional did. As soon as it's finished I'll post pic's so everyone can see the difference.
Thanks again.
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Sorry I didn't post this yesterday my computer was down.
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WOW, the little piece looks awesome!! Good work!
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I'm thinking about makeing it a little darker. Is there anything special that I need to do or can I just sand off the clear coat?
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Um.. pretty much the only thing you can do is to repaint it with a darker blue. So, you should scuff up the paint that's on it now with some 0000 grade steel wool, and then you can just spray your darker blue coat over that, no need to re-prime it, the paint will bond to the ruffed-up clear coat nicely.
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here's a shot of the beginning of my project painting Claypeanutz centre console....
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and here i just got done sanding a piece of my centre console after my first coat of black...
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here's the top piece of my centre console after the last coat of black, and before i sand it in preparation for the clear coat...
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and here's the middle piece of my centre console, finished, completely, as done as it's getting. The bottom piece of my console already looks like this, and it's already installed in my car.
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oh yeah, and here's a shot of my shop... messy huh?
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My finished console....
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another....
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again...
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last one
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B-e-a-utiful
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