Bartman Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 It looks like the weather is going to cooperate and I should be able to shoot color on my engine compartment this weekend. I will be shooting a two stage PPG base coat and clear coat. My question is when should I spray the clear coat? Should I let the base coat completely dry then sand it before spraying the clear coat? Or can I spray the clear coat directly over the color coat without sanding? If I can do it without sanding, what type of timeframe do I have to shoot the clear coat after the base coat has been shot? This is a picture of the area I will be painting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 You can shoot the clear as soon as the base has dried enough that it is not 'tacky' any more. No sanding necessary until you color sand the clear. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vintage-TechZ Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 If for some reason more than 8-12 hours has passed (loss of chemical bond) after shooting your base, you'll to need to lightly scuff with a Scotchbrite "GREY" hand pad.(DO NOT SKIP CLEARING) Have you sanded your epoxy primer in the bay with 400-600 grit to get the needed mechanical bond ? Do a great job sanding and cleaning before you spray base. You don't want to stir up dust or find primer flaes AFTER you base. Then your clear will look great. Also remember that the air settings are DIFFERENT from base to clear too. Use a panel test till your certain your spray patterns are proper. A smaller "Jamb HVLP" gun is best suited for these tight quarters. I ACTUALLY raise the car on jackstands and then I stand in the middle of the engine bay and do a 360 degree attack. This way you can kneel and squat to evenly get EVERYWHERE .And at different levels you'll see so much more. I duct tape a florescant light to the chest of my Tyvek suit.Read "no hands". I have a small table set up just outside the radiator support with everything in reach for ALL steps and clean-up . GOOD LUCK.............plan and concentrate,it'll be great ! ..............Vinny 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staledale Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 http://www.ppg.com/cr-refinish/phase1/frmHome.asp Here's the PPG site, follow the product info link and you can download the information for the type of PPG paint you are using. It has all the times, the thinner type of sand paper to use, anyting you'll need to know. If you scuff their base coat you have to respray a coat over it. They know their product best. Stale Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staledale Posted February 6, 2005 Share Posted February 6, 2005 Guess I should have read Erines post all the way through. Sorry. Stale P.S. I just needed this to get my 200th post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartman Posted February 7, 2005 Author Share Posted February 7, 2005 Thanks for all the great advice! The weather didn't cooperate, so I'm hoping for warmer weather soon so I can complete this phase of my project. Probably just as well, since I haven't finished final sanding of the primer. The engine compartment is much harder than the exterior. It's hard to prepare and sand all those joints and crevices. You also have to contend with the indentations from spot welds and some pretty close quarters. I'm looking forward to the exterior with nice smooth even contours. Anyway I'm continuing to work on getting the surface nice and smooth before painting the colorcoat and then the clearcoat. Here's a progress pic: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartman Posted February 8, 2005 Author Share Posted February 8, 2005 One more question - how much paint do you think it will take? You can see in the first picture how much area I will have to cover. I will want to cover it with three coats according to the information I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted February 8, 2005 Share Posted February 8, 2005 By the time you have thinned and added hardener, 1 pint will be more than enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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