painting experience?

painting experience?

so my friend just bought a 93 integra... and we are planing on painting the engine bay... im pretty confident that i can do it but is my first time painting a car... the only part that worries me is the gloss... i really dont want it to look flat... any suggestions?:superconf

use a gloss coated paint...

you better off buying this spray can auto paint http://www.automotivetouchup.com/spray_paint.asp

not a bad idea but i wanna do it the way that its suppose to be done... cause if it turns out ok ill be doing a few other things...

The automotive spray paint is actually pretty good. I've seen it used on some bumpers and it came out looking good.

yeah heard that too.... but still if anyone has any advice let me know...

are you trying to make the engine shine or close to shine(dull)?

yes... something like this:


and if it comes out right ill do some exterior parts...

Ok, I see what you are after. Most automotive paints (urethanes, multi-component, etc.) should work out just great for that application. As for gloss finish - that is more a function of how the paint was applied, type of paint, and initial prep work.

Unless you have a garage or semi-enclosed are to do this - I wouldn't even think about trying this out yourself. One - depending on where you live it - they can fine your a$$ for shooting paint outside. Two - you can get an unbelievable amount of debris, dust, bugs sticking to the fresh paint, that means more work for you later to touch up. Three - good equipment is expensive, not worthwhile for a single job, unless you can find some cheap.

You could do the job with a rattle-can - but you can definitely tell that it was painted by hand. The biggest complaint of the typical spray can is the finish doesn't come out glossy. With smaller pieces, gloss and finish are unsually fine - but once you start painting an area that big, any mistakes will be magnified. They do make better spray painting options for someone without the equipment. Something like a powerhead spray system - works like a standard spray (rattle) can - but has a refillable paint cup and a replaceable spray cartridge. As you get low on poaint, just refill the cup, if you start getting an uneven spray pattern - you replace the sprayer with a fresh one. This setup puts down a lot more paint than your typical rattle can.

If you are dead-set to do this - have prep the area properly. Easily the most time consuming portion of the job. If you are not shooting the whole car - you have to mask just about everything else. Nothing looks worse that overspray. Choices are to strip everything down to the bare metal (recommended, but a major PITA without experience and a shop to do the work in) or if the original finish is in good shape, use that as is - maybe.

Once you get everything clean, i.e., zero grease, lint, bugs, etc. Test spray in a small area. I find that some paint will not stick to the original finish without some primer first. Some paints will also do weird stuff, with or without primer first - like bubble and sag, bleedthrough and fish-eye is another issue. If that happens, either the area is not as clean as you thought or the paint is not compatible with the old finish - you need to take everything down to the metal. That case - you got chemical paint strippers (unpleasant + need safety equipment) or sandblast it (faster - but you need a decent aircompressor + makes a $hit ton of dust).

Sometimes you can get a bodyshop or similar fill a regular spary can with automotive quality paint - this can help enhance the gloss and final finish, but not always. Spray can quality has improved quite a bit, you might be able to go the multiple coat, wetsand, more coats method with a final wetsand to cut out any surface defects and a good rubbing compound/polishing compound/sealer with a machine to bring out the finish. The only thing I worry about that is you need a good bit of paint to even think about that - might take 10, 20 cans or more to do an engine bay. All depends on what kind of finish you want in the end.

this was the kind of answer i was looking for.. thank u very much...

I have a semi-enclosed garage... i live in PR and the weather is good... and my friend (the one with the garage has good equipment...

we are working on the motor and a few other stuff... when thats done ill give it a try...

thanls again... very helpful.

that engine bay is no walmart spray can...as i stated above its better to buy http://www.automotivetouchup.com/spray_paint.asp or buy http://www.automotivetouchup.com/store/accessories/spray-gun-ATD.aspx

Now that folks, is one CLEAN civic.

Interesting. My opinion yasdc05, I'd rather wait on engine painting but it's up to u. I would raise plenty of money, and paint the whole car including the engine bay so it can give that oem look and glossy at the same time. Buena suerte con el proyecto!

yeah that what i would usually do... but the exterior of the car is in great condition... and the thing is that i want to learn to do it... but thanks for the advice... gracias me va hacer falta...jeje