Spraying,best finnish

[MrD]

Hey folks currently spraying the bonnet on my roc gloss black,have got through 6 500ml cans so far,putting it on in thin layers,then cutting back with 1200 wet+dry.
I was doing this on my kitchen table yesterday and i have made a bit of a mess with the overspray,and black dust over everything ! i was not in my wifes best books when she got home ..
So been doing it in a sheltered spot outside today,in places it`s a little bit patchy and dull,should i give it one last go with the wet and dry with plenty of spoapy water ? or as this is the final coat should i go over it with t cut then polish it off, then coat of clear laquer ?

Added pics

[filmidget]

From the little I know of using spray cans, you perhaps needed a slightly thicker 'wet coat' to finish. Maybe.

Edit: BTW why have you painted your bonnet gloss black?

[MrD]

Painted gloss black as i have tried to spray jg met in the past with really bad results ,so decided i will do bonnet,roof and tailgate black,think i will be going to do the next lot in my mates workshop,with propper air tools

[the edmundator]

I managed to get a really good finish on a flash silver tailgate I did, but admittedly that's really small areas of paint compared to a bonnet.



I bought my cans from paints4u.com which gave a really good match and good quality paint and cans. The finish didn't look that great until I'd applied the lacquer, which I had to put on much thicker than the paint itself to get a nice smooth and shiny finish.

I think with flat one-coat (i.e. no lacquer) paints, the big difference is in the flatting, cutting and polishing after you've painted. Provided you've used good thin coats and got a relatively smooth finish with no runs, the paint should come alive with flatting with very fine paper (once fully dry), a good few coats of t-cut with elbow grease then polish will sort it out.

I got a very good finish when I painted my marine blue Polo (and this was just a very quick weekend patch-up job - I could have done a lot better with a bit more time. Blending in was the hardest and least well-done part of this job as I only did small areas of the panels):







I think the orange-peel effect you've got will be improved with decent finishing, but it's hard to avoid when using spray cans, as you can't really get a fine enough coat and the nozzle isn't going to give a particularly even spray pattern.

[MrD]

You have done a great job there ! I did do a little reading,i have sprayed before,but never an area as big as a bonnet,had to stand on a chair to get to the middle section,it`s supposed to look like a sheet of glass when you apply it apparently.
Have been using the big cans of trade spray,which have adjustable nozzles 4 of those,then grabbed another 2 cans from hellfrauds,found the stuff from hellfrauds was a much better paint,prob a little less thinner,and went on better.
Think i am going to flat down the top coat,then will get some rubbing compound on it,there are a couple of areas where it was on the verdge of running.Amd i also found an old can that had been in my shed for a few months,this went on a littl bit splattery,so will need to sort that out.
Then i will clear laq it,i want it too look very glossy and wet almost,so i better by some more clear,in hindsight it would prob have been cheaper to go to the body shop it`s cost me over £60 in materials so far !
I have one of those 2 handed polishers,they are not perfect but it will take some of the strain out of the job,if i am not 100% happy i might even do it in anti radar paint,for the rat style look.
hanks for the advice

[MrD]

Edit: BTW why have you painted your bonnet gloss black?

This is why i am doing it black,will look good i think with the black kit and windows

[Dr. Dub]

You will never in a million years get a good finish straight from an aerosol. The paint has to be very thin in a can so that the meagre ammount of pressure can spray it out. This means it has a high percentage of thinner. Hence no 'body' to the paint. The paint dries by evaporation of the solvent. Because of the high thinner content, it evaporates very quickly and leaves a flat dull finish compared to coating with a real spray gun.

That said, if you get enough paint on with the aerosol it's no problem to flat it back and polish it. Wet flat with no rougher than 1500 paper then polish back with a product like Farecla G3. ALWAYS use a rubbing block and not your finger ends.

[MrD]

Have wet flatted it down again,and t cutted again,still not happy with result,bought some rubbing compound,so will give that a bash next,if that fails i will take it to be done propper.
Bought some meguirs wax for when it`s dry

[markh]

Aerosols really aren't good for a large area like a bonnet or roof. A spray shop would probably do it for £100, especially if you do all the prep work. Go easy with the rubbing compound or you'll be through the paint in no time. Good luck with it fella !

[the edmundator]

Like Mark says body shops wouldn't charge too much (but shop around as prices can vary considerably), I had a front wing and another small piece sprayed in a metallic colour for £100 by a bodyshop. The good thing about a bonnet is it doesn't have any window rubbers or other fiddly bits to remove, so should be fairly straightforward for a 'shop to paint.

[MrD]

Going to have another wet flat session today and see how it comes up,will have a crack with the rubbing compound if i get a half decent finnish after flatting.It looks much better than it was now,as it was in grey primer.
There is a bloke a few miles away from me who owns a small body shop,he is pretty old school,but also reasonably priced too.
Or i have the option of using a mates workshop,and big big compressor (only has 1 water trap though ? ) was loooking at the price of paint and it`s no wonder they charge so much.

I would really like to delete and fill the 2 plastic runners on the roof,and fill it so it`s flush,and get that sprayed black also,and eventually the rear tailgate too,then there are the rust patches on the doors,and where i have removed the rubbing strips needs attention .so it`s going to be a long process,no hurry though,i will get it how i want it eventually,thanks for the input

[Mr Funk]

I would really like to delete and fill the 2 plastic runners on the roof,and fill it so it`s flush,and get that sprayed black also,and eventually the rear tailgate too,then there are the rust patches on the doors,and where i have removed the rubbing strips needs attention .so it`s going to be a long process,no hurry though,i will get it how i want it eventually,thanks for the input

Was thinking about doing this to mine but it's a mammoth job and didn't really work out as practical*.






*Not that it's ever bothered me before.

[MrD]

Yeah it would be quite a big job to get right ! My roof is pretty heavily pitted in places,so something needs doing ..
Been keeoing an i on your project thread Mr Funk,love what you have had done to your doors ! bet that was not cheap !

[MrD]

Just spent another 3 hours on it,in places it`s looking fantastic,really glossy finnish . But there are still patches that are dull,and some orange peel too that still needs more work.Have also gone through the topcoat in a couple of places,on the edge which i was trying to avoid.. ..
Think what i am going to do is work on it some more,get rid of the orange peel ,fill the few small pits from stone chips,try and get a flat even finnish,then take it to the body shop for them to blow over and bake,really don`t think i will get a finnish that i will be happy with,as the bonnet is going to let it down if it looks less than 100%


Will they have to primer it again ? is it worth working on it more to get it flat ?

[Mr Funk]

Yeah it would be quite a big job to get right ! My roof is pretty heavily pitted in places,so something needs doing ..
Been keeoing an i on your project thread Mr Funk,love what you have had done to your doors ! bet that was not cheap !

I know the guy pretty well and to be honest I got a bargain. Bastard to get right and wouldn't come cheap.