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EASY PAINT YOUR CAR HOME

 

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"An indispensable hands-on manual for people wanting to do an expert and easy job of painting their own car or anything else on wheels! Slade is an absolute genius in putting this together- There is nothing else like it, ANYWHERE..."

- Craig Simpson, ex-pro automotive refinisher

 

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3) 12 Detailed Still Photo Images of Finished Demonstration Surfaces

Complete~!

This is the absolute MUST HAVE totally Affordable COMPLETE Guide to Painting Your Car, Truck, Boat, Motorcycle, Bicycle or anything else. Includes body surface repair of dents, rust, and holes for metal or fiberglass. Learn to paint indoors, outdoors, any time of year, with a minimum of expense and equipment- for SUPERIOR results.

----- Original Message -----
From: David Guest
To: Neil Slade
Sent: Monday, November 13, 2006 9:30 AM
Subject: Re: paint DVD

Neil,
Everthing came in and it is better than expected, thanks again.


-David Logan Guest

*          *          *

Original Message -----
From: DolfanPC@aaa.com
To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Sent: Thursday, November 09, 2006 8:30 AM

Neil, Received your package, yesterday. I watched your video last night; you do a very good presentation- simple, easy to digest.

 

-Sincerely, Pete Christie,  Chuluota, FL

 

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To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Subject: just bought how to paint car

 

loved the dvd, very clear and easy to follow.... i have a 92 bmw 525i ... thank you very much.  your video was great and i will be recommending the site to my friends- it is very refreshing to have a businessman who has a web site and actually responds to his customers questions.. and does it immediately! AMAZING! 

Brandon

 

 

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ABOUT NEIL SLADE

BASECOAT/CLEAR COAT

In the mid 1980's, cars and trucks were being made with thinner and thinner steel bodies to reduce the curb weight of the vehicles. Everything that could be done to get better gas mileage was being done. 

By folding and creasing metals, the same strength could be had without having to carry around the extra weight.

The technology of building cars and trucks that fold up around you if you have an accident also changed the way vehicles were built. 

It had become time to create a paint system that was flexible enough to expand and contract with the new thinner metals and plastics as the temperature expanded and be flexible enough to stay with the car door when you lean on it and push it in. 

The entire automotive industry adopted acrylic urethanes. These sprayable plastics have all of the flexible properties to stay on the car. They don't fade. They can be driven into whatever the weather presents them at 83 miles per hour and come out as good as before. 

We technology of applying paint changed at the same time. People wanted cars and truces with pearls and fancy metallics. In the "good days" the car painter knew how to adjust the color of the metallics by how much thinner, how fast the thinner evaporated, how far kinds of things to do to change the color. 

Except most of the time, the repainted fender still didn't look quite like the original finish- there were too many variables. 

Because the  OEM'S, original equipment manufacturers, had begun putting the color  on first and then putting clear over the top, it had become time for the refinish paint companies to make a product that would match the OEM finishes. 

Welcome to the wonderful world of chemistry. 

When you pull the trigger on your spray gun, fluid suddenly comes out of the gun as the needle is pulled back. The fluid suddenly out of the front has a lot of space to accelerate into. 0 to 60 in less than a second flat. Is that street legal? This rapid change in volume makes the fluid become very cold very quickly.

Understanding this sudden coldness, the chemical engineers at the automotive paint companies added a product to the basecoat colors that has lots of names: stabilizer, basecoat fixe, reactive reducer, etc. Everybody's product is a trade secret and they're all the same. 

By using a "bulky" hydrocarbon, sometimes called alkane or paraffin or wax, in the paint coating, when the trigger is pulled, a temporary electrical charge makes static lines run across the paint surface. 

While the paint is wet, the tiny electrical charge forces the metallics or pearl micas to arrange themselves in rows and columns just like a checker board. All you have to do is point the gun at the car and the color will become the correct color. 

It's amazing isn't it? 

And the stabilized or fixed paints can be used for a very long time as long as no hardener has been added to them. They cover like a blanket. Usually three coats only a few minutes apart and the whole car is covered. 

After about twenty minutes or so of dry time, the color is ready for the shiny top coat. You'll want the clear on top too, because when the color dries it it's as flat as asphalt. Dirt flat! We’re talkin' flat here! 

The first coat of urethane clear is applied over the top of the color. As you come back around the car, it looks as if you didn't spray the clear on it. It's almost flat again! 

That first coat sinks down into the color and makes it hard and flexible and what will finally make it dry. It just sucks right into the colored pigment and marries itself into the whole coating. 

This means, of course, that you don't want to hose the color on just because you have it in the gun. As soon as the color has covered, quit putting it on the car. Geez! You don't keep drilling for oil after you have it coming out of the ground! The clear is only going to go in so far and then it quits, so don't expect it to harden 15 layers of paint! 

It usually takes three coats of clear to make shiny happen. You've seen that bumper sticker? SHINY HAPPENS. But it doesn't happen in the first coat! 

Anyway, that's all there is to it. It's so easy. 

If you get a run in the clear and don't notice it enough to take it out while you're painting, you can color sand and buff the finish later without screwing up the metallic or pearl or color. 

 

A few pointers: 

1) Urethane is moisture cure. Once the hardener or catalyst or activator (all the same thing) is added to the clear, the CLOCK IS TICKING. Whatever you don't use today will NOT be okay to use tomorrow! 

 

2) Your Painting area needs to be bone dry. Any moisture evaporating up from the floor will pass through the space at the end of the spray gun... remember the spray gun? When you pulled the trigger, the pain/clear got real cold? The evaporating moisture from the floor turns some of the hardener into plastic beads on its way to the car. Geez! I got a lot of dirt in my finish. (Nope! You put a lot of “dirt” in your finish.) This doesn't hurt the paint and the paint store dudes win love you because you'll spend extra bucks buying sandpaper and compound to make SHINY HAPPEN. 
 

3) To avoid the problem in #2 above, ground the frame of the car to a metal conduit or water pipe or the ground wire under your electrical box. Ask your friends at ALLEN PAINT. They'll be happy to tell you how this is done. 

4)  Remember to ask about how to remove runs and sags while the paint is wet, so you don't have to do so much rubbing and compounding after the paint job is dry. 

5) If you haven't done any or a lot of previous painting, pick a LIGHT SOLID COLOR to paint your vehicle. Darker colors, and especially metal flake colors will show mistakes or less than perfect body work much more than a light solid color (like white, or other light color). A light color will be more forgiving. 

6) We hope you have found this useful and informative. If you have any questions about paint and paint applications Allen Paint (Denver, Colorado) is available 7 days a week. 

 

EASY PAINT YOUR CAR HOME

 

 

#1 For How To Paint Your Car!


Welcome! to

To Easy Paint Your Car

How To Paint A Car, Motorcycle, Truck, Bike, or Anything Else- All Levels

 

Free Information Below

and Great Online Download and DVD Materials for  YOU!

 

 

Above, author Neil Slade

YOU Can Paint Your Own Car

Do A Great Professional Quality Job

Save A Ton of Money

And Enjoy It!

 

 

FOREWORD  

How To Paint Your Car- Fun!

First of all let me say I am delighted that this page has proven so popular, and that it has been the #1 page on Yahoo and Google (when it WORKS) for the search "HOW TO PAINT A CAR" and similar searches  for several years now. (I recommend the Yahoo search engine these days).

 

This is a web page built by a painter, a PERSON WHO PAINTS, not just another commercial internet advertising platform. Whew!!

You will find how to paint your car advice that IS actually good advice that works.

Congratulations for finding a REAL web page on painting!

The page has LOTS of unsolicited testimonials to show what people like you are getting from this page and my materials-- so  you know this is REAL, and really USEFUL info on how to paint your car.

There have been literally dozens, perhaps hundred of How To Paint Your Car web sites that have sprung up since I first published this page in 2003. Unfortunately for the budding person interested in learning how to paint your car, many of these sites are poorly done, some impressive looking ones contain obvious mistakes , others leave out things "till next month" (!) and the worst thing, is virtually most pages showing up near the top of search engines are primarily commercial advertising platforms.

You won't have to suffer through the same bad advice I was subject to when I first started. Congratulations! If you find it helpful, then you can get further inexpensive and totally affordable online instant download information and/or the DVD. I help you, you help me survive, and I keep improving this page and materials. Human to human here, :-)

Make sure and read my additional notes at the bottom.

You can end up with a far better paint job than your local cheap OR expensive outside service. Why? Because you may care more than the actual guy working on your car for $12.50 an hour.

Above all, have fun, and enjoy your finished paint job~!

We have now created a very practical and foolproof 80 page illustrated manual (color photo version download), 62 minute online video download, and/or DVD/CD that you may purchase and keep with you out in the garage and watch on your computer and/or DVD player - so please consider picking one of these up. These will be priceless for guiding and helping you. (I keep the price inexpensive, because these days, everyone is eager to save a little money where ever they can.) So, enjoy!

 

 

From: "Jan" <jan@xxxxx.co.za>
To: <neil@easypaintyourcar.com>
Subject: Wow!
Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 21:33:55

Hi Neil,

My name is Jan and I live in South Africa. I recently (about 6 months ago) had my car re-sprayed by a “professional” spray painter after a struck damaged the rear door by backing into it. (It is a Uno Pacer SX ’95 Model and the paint work was real dull). It cost me R8000.00 (+/- 1150.00 Dollars)I was really disappointed when I collected it from the workshop. The hood still has scratch marks on it because of the rough sanding paper and it seems like their masking was poorly done because of overspray and which looks like fine cracks close to the rubbers. I have also noticed that the paint chips very easily an figured out after my google trip that they must have added excessive hardener to it.

After a lengthy argument with no progress and a lack of interest, I decided that I would learn to re-spray my own car. (Have no insurance). Scrolling through endless web pages, (my own fault, searched: spray painting a car, without the space) I came across your site, read through it and looked at the two videos. Man what a relief!

I didn’t know that there were still people out there that actually cared about delivering an excellent service.

You have inspired me. Thank you.

With a new fire I’m tackling this car of mine! God bless you!

J. Davel

 

Free information below on this page...  :-)

 

Also of great interest:

 

THINK and INK  Our New Brain Inkjet Ink Tests--
Save 75% $$  just by using your brain

 

 

 

 

THE REAL POOP ON PAINTING YOUR CAR

The reason I learned how to do car painting is because I owned a rare collector car that would have cost me $3000-$4000  minimum to have the body work and paint done- and it needed it. AND, I could not afford this.

So, I contacted one of my friends, perhaps the best expert on fiberglass repair and body painting anywhere, Mr. Vic Cooper in Denver. He regularly repairs and repaints the most expensive, the most exotic passenger and race cars, from Lotuses to Lambos to hot rods. He taught me how to do this over a long period of time. Since I am a writer and film maker (and he and other experts I knew are not), I translated everything I learned from him into a form that people could easily learn from right off the web. I further got regular advice from an exceptionally good paint shop in Denver that specializes in automotive refinishing.

I spent months learning what works, and what doesn't work- and when I was done I had done my first car, my white Lotus that you see on the book cover. It turned out perfectly. And the method I used can be applied to any vehicle, fancy or plain, big or small, boat or car, truck, bike, or motorcycle.

 

There are tons of BAD books and DVDs that look good on the surface, but in practical use were complicated and had stuff in there that was unnecessary. I wanted to make material available that WORKED as advertised, and was not overly complicated or poorly written.

You may find yourself in a similar position looking at painting your vehicle- but without having done this previously, or have done it making many mistakes and not having things turn out so good. You may not know anyone who knows how to do this, or has the time to show you.

I will show you, because it is my business teaching people- and I've been a teacher for 35 years.

 

If you decide it is best to paint your car yourself, you will need a spray gun, a compressor, the paint, some miscellaneous small tools, sandpaper, and a certain amount of patience. You can do it in a car port, garage, paint booth, or even in your driveway- you decide what is best for you.

You can borrow or rent the gun and compressor and save money that way, and pay about $100 for the paint and sandpaper, and if you read the instructions you can come up with a decent paint job on most cars. You will also need odds and ends which you may or may not have, light solvents, gloves, an air respirator, and other small items necessary for painting.

Or, you can spend about $250 on the gun and compressor, own it permanently and do lots of things with it for the rest of your life- like paint your house, air clean stuff, run other tools with it, etc.

If you have a special car or a collector car, plan on spending a lot of time sanding and re-sanding, and fine sanding, and polishing, and correcting your mistakes, and doing body work.

If you don't have an extra $3000 sitting around, this may be your only choice- AND you can do it, and come up with an absolutely gorgeous job. I will show you how, and my methods come from THE BEST EXPERTS possible.

If you just have an old car and would rather do it yourself than spend $300 or $400 at the budget shops for a mediocre job that they will do, you can do it quickly and end up with a finish as good if not better than such shops, and spend a minimum amount of time doing it- although you will still need the materials and equipment you don't already own, and a place to do it.

You can get the download or DVD (it is dirt cheap), or just read through the basics on this page  and get a good idea of what you will need to do.

Okay....you decide. No bull here. The best painting adventure to you!

 

 

THE HEART of PAINTING

Anyone can paint a car. The bodywork and dent repairs and swinging of hammers all require a little more expertise and patience, but painting  is fun... and easy. 

 

Here are the most basic things you need to know:  How To Paint A Car Expert Tips

1. Before doing anything else, wash the car with soap and water. This removes road salts and bird droppings and other water soluble things that you don't see. It's pleasant to eat from a clean plate at dinner, but critically important to have a clean surface to paint. 

2. Use a wax/grease remover with PAPER TOWELS (which are not a fire hazard when you throw them in the trash ... cloth is a fire hazard ... use paper towels!!!). Commercial removers are wonderful. You can also use liquid charcoal starter or house paint type mineral spirits ... these all work to remove crayon marks from things the kiddies decorated too ... because they are wax and grease removers ... crayons are wax. 

3. Now it's okay to sand something if you need to make it dull. NOTICE THAT SANDING IS STEP #3 AFTER YOU REMOVED THE WAX AND GREASE- otherwise, you  will drive wax and grease into the surface. 

4. Ground the frame of the vehicle. Find the chassis frame under the car or truck and attach any size wire to the frame and the other end to something grounded (or "earthed" if you're British,) so the static electricity can get around those pesky rubber tires on the car. The static makes the dust jump up off the floor into the paint job. Dust is quite lazy, so it would rather stay on the floor than jump up if you just get rid of the static. (Please note, my Lotus is a fiberglass bodied car, and skipped this step on this car- didn't seem to matter)

5. Make certain it is bone dry where you are going to paint. Helpful old souls will tell you to wet the floor down to keep the dust down ... say "Thank you for that idea," and then, whatever you do, DO NOT WET THE FLOOR IN THE PAINTING AREA. All urethane is moisture-cure material. Any humidity, fog, steam, cloud, water vapor, passing from the floor into the sky as it evaporates will pass through the spray mist from your spray gun. At the end of the spray gun, as you pull the trigger, the temperature of the paint drops many degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius, as you wish ... this cures some of the paint before it ever hits the car!!! "Gee, I got a lot of dirt in my finish ... duh. " No, actually, you PUT A LOT OF "DIRT" IN THE FINISH. DRY! DRY! DRY! Always paint in a dry place. 

5A. PUT UP PLASTIC WINDSCREEN if you are outside in a car port. Yes, you can actually paint outside. You could paint in your driveway , but you might have little mites and flies in your paint (although you could sand and remove these to a certain extent). I actually painted in my car port open on one side. Take a little extra time and put up that plastic sheet to keep out that little bit of wind.

5B. TAKE YOUR TIME MASKING the parts of the car you don't want to paint. This is a relatively unexciting portion of this job-- but its the difference between a crummy MAACO paint job, and a really fine looking precision job. Remember, spray will go EVERYWHERE you don't cover.

5C. USE PREMIUM BODY PUTTY. Okay, we shall assume you've had some good advice about the body work. Other than this, use the best urethane 2 part epoxy catalyzed body putty you can buy for patching . It is a million times easier to sand, doesn't shrink, and is much harder than the cheapo Bondo or other stuff out there (good lord DON'T USE BONDO- it SUCKS!!) , and dries almost instantly. You will have to go to a specialty auto paint shop for this. I used RAGE GOLD at about $30+ a gallon. It was worth it. Try: http://www.sherwin-automotive.com/products/show_product.cfm?product=29779&cat=37  if you can't find it locally.

 

5D. OPTIONAL INDICATOR BLACK ENAMEL COAT
 
After you apply primer,  apply a thin misted coat of spray flat black enamel before sanding the primer coat-- (just a mist! to barely lay down this coat). Using enamel from a can works fine, you are going to remove all of this.
 
The black will fill both the low points and cover the high points on the surface, i.e. it will settle in the "valleys" and also cover the "peaks" of the surface.
 
As you sand the primer, the black will remain visible in the low spots of the surface, giving you an accurate indicator of what parts of the surface are not level.
 
When you've just barely removed all the black by sanding (be careful, go slow) you've got a smooth even surface, ie. you've lowered the peaks down to the level of the valleys.

If you've gone through black at one portion and nothing but primer remains, and there is black enamel left in an immediately adjacent area next to the black, the surface is thereby indicated as uneven. Continue to sand until the black is removed and nothing but primer is left. (In no case leave any enamel on the surface!! It will ruin and urethane paint put on top of it!!)

 
 

6. After enough base color has been applied to cover whatever you're painting (10-15 minutes between each color layer), let the last coat air out (dry) about 30-90 minutes (but never no more than 60-90 minutes) before applying the clear coat.  Allow 10-15 minutes between each clear coat, applying at least 3 coats of clear.

 

7. UPDATED JULY 31,2007 URETHANE bumpers  DO NOT REQUIRE a flexing agent. Standard urethane paint (as I recommend)  is plenty flexible itself, and essentially the same material as these bumpers. HOWEVER, it IS recommended that you use an ADHESION PROMOTER (available from your car paint dealer) so that the paint sticks well to plastic surfaces, which is essentially a plastic primer.

Even dealers and pro paint shops will skip this step to save labor-- big mistake.

The problem is, each paint manufacturer differs in how/when and to what coats the flexing agent is added- so TALK TO YOUR OWN PAINT SUPPLIER if you are doing a urethane bumper, to obtain the correct information as to when you add the flexing agents.

 

8) Filter the paint as you pour into the paint gun cup using one of those cheap mesh disposable cone filters (usually the paint dealer will give them to you free). I HAVE painted without the small cartridge final filter inside the gun, as it tends to clog the gun, and I haven't had any problems from doing so.

*          *          *

BASECOAT/CLEAR COAT

In the mid 1980's, cars and trucks were being made with thinner and thinner steel bodies to reduce the curb weight of the vehicles. Everything that could be done to get better gas mileage was being done. 

By folding and creasing metals, the same strength could be had without having to carry around the extra weight.

The technology of building cars and trucks that fold up around you if you have an accident also changed the way vehicles were built. 

It had become time to create a paint system that was flexible enough to expand and contract with the new thinner metals and plastics as the temperature expanded and be flexible enough to stay with the car door when you lean on it and push it in. 

The entire automotive industry adopted acrylic urethanes. These sprayable plastics have all of the flexible properties to stay on the car. They don't fade. They can be driven into whatever the weather presents them at 83 miles per hour and come out as good as before. 

We technology of applying paint changed at the same time. People wanted cars and truces with pearls and fancy metallics. In the "good days" the car painter knew how to adjust the color of the metallics by how much thinner, how fast the thinner evaporated, how far kinds of things to do to change the color. 

Except most of the time, the repainted fender still didn't look quite like the original finish- there were too many variables. 

Because the  OEM'S, original equipment manufacturers, had begun putting the color  on first and then putting clear over the top, it had become time for the refinish paint companies to make a product that would match the OEM finishes. 

Welcome to the wonderful world of chemistry. 

When you pull the trigger on your spray gun, fluid suddenly comes out of the gun as the needle is pulled back. The fluid suddenly out of the front has a lot of space to accelerate into. 0 to 60 in less than a second flat. Is that street legal? This rapid change in volume makes the fluid become very cold very quickly.

Understanding this sudden coldness, the chemical engineers at the automotive paint companies added a product to the basecoat colors that has lots of names: stabilizer, basecoat fixe, reactive reducer, etc. Everybody's product is a trade secret and they're all the same. 

By using a "bulky" hydrocarbon, sometimes called alkane or paraffin or wax, in the paint coating, when the trigger is pulled, a temporary electrical charge makes static lines run across the paint surface. 

While the paint is wet, the tiny electrical charge forces the metallics or pearl micas to arrange themselves in rows and columns just like a checker board. All you have to do is point the gun at the car and the color will become the correct color. 

It's amazing isn't it? 

And the stabilized or fixed paints can be used for a very long time as long as no hardener has been added to them. They cover like a blanket. Usually three coats only a few minutes apart and the whole car is covered. 

After about twenty minutes or so of dry time, the color is ready for the shiny top coat. You'll want the clear on top too, because when the color dries it it's as flat as asphalt. Dirt flat! We’re talkin' flat here! 

The first coat of urethane clear is applied over the top of the color. As you come back around the car, it looks as if you didn't spray the clear on it. It's almost flat again! 

That first coat sinks down into the color and makes it hard and flexible and what will finally make it dry. It just sucks right into the colored pigment and marries itself into the whole coating. 

This means, of course, that you don't want to hose the color on just because you have it in the gun. As soon as the color has covered, quit putting it on the car. Geez! You don't keep drilling for oil after you have it coming out of the ground! The clear is only going to go in so far and then it quits, so don't expect it to harden 15 layers of paint! 

It usually takes three coats of clear to make shiny happen. You've seen that bumper sticker? SHINY HAPPENS. But it doesn't happen in the first coat! 

Anyway, that's all there is to it. It's so easy. 

If you get a run in the clear and don't notice it enough to take it out while you're painting, you can color sand and buff the finish later without screwing up the metallic or pearl or color. 

 

A few pointers: 

1) Urethane is moisture cure. Once the hardener or catalyst or activator (all the same thing) is added to the clear, the CLOCK IS TICKING. Whatever you don't use today will NOT be okay to use tomorrow! 

 

2) Your Painting area needs to be bone dry. Any moisture evaporating up from the floor will pass through the space at the end of the spray gun... remember the spray gun? When you pulled the trigger, the pain/clear got real cold? The evaporating moisture from the floor turns some of the hardener into plastic beads on its way to the car. Geez! I got a lot of dirt in my finish. (Nope! You put a lot of “dirt” in your finish.) This doesn't hurt the paint and the paint store dudes win love you because you'll spend extra bucks buying sandpaper and compound to make SHINY HAPPEN. 
 

3) To avoid the problem in #2 above, ground the frame of the car to a metal conduit or water pipe or the ground wire under your electrical box. Ask your friends at ALLEN PAINT. They'll be happy to tell you how this is done. 

4)  Remember to ask about how to remove runs and sags while the paint is wet, so you don't have to do so much rubbing and compounding after the paint job is dry. 

5) If you haven't done any or a lot of previous painting, pick a LIGHT SOLID COLOR to paint your vehicle. Darker colors, and especially metal flake colors will show mistakes or less than perfect body work much more than a light solid color (like white, or other light color). A light color will be more forgiving. 

6) We hope you have found this useful and informative. If you have any questions about paint and paint applications Allen Paint (Denver, Colorado) is available 7 days a week. 

 

Neil’s IMPORTANT EXTRA Notes for How To Paint Your Car 

A) Sherwin Williams Automotive Urethane Paint is excellent stuff, and a fraction of the price of overpriced PPG brand paint. Same quality at Sherwin Williams, but minus the total rip-off pricing of PPG. Plus the guys at Sherwin Williams (at least in my town) were WAY more helpful.

B) DON'T - DO NOT pick your paint color from one of those little paint chips in books. They are totally deceptive. You absolutely cannot gauge what an entire car will look like from one of these little one inch squares. Find a car- a whole car- that is the color you like. Get the paint COLOR CODE from the inside of the drivers door jamb plate if necessary. Are you paying attention here? Good.

C) You CAN paint your car in a paint booth or at home in your driveway or car port.  Hurray! Yep, that's what I did, and the results were great. The key is, don't paint in a lot of wind (duh). Cover anything you don't want paint on. Final sanding can be with 250 grit if you use a sealer (see Allen Paint for details), or finer if you don't use a sealer, say, 400 grit by hand. Otherwise, sanding marks will show.

D) The best deal I found on a spray gun and compressor was at Home Depot, Husky brand HVLP GRAVITY feed gun 6 CFM (cubic feet per minute), $79; and a Husky 5 hp 13 gallon tank compressor that will handle that gun; $199. Don't get cheaper than this or problems may occur. If you borrow equipment BEWARE it works perfectly. !!  You can get a smaller compressor (2hp) and get by, but it means waiting for the tank to fill with air, and you can't spray the whole car without stopping and waiting for the pressure to rebuild. In this case, bigger compressor is better. Yeah you can use a smaller one, and my friend Vic has painted amazing paint jobs on Lotus cars with a 2hp 12 gallon set up, but even he said, easier with a bigger set up. HVLP gravity feed (paint cup on top) guns are state of the art, and use a fraction of the paint the old kind of guns use- don't get any other kind.

E) Paint your car this way, and the paint will last 25 years. By then, we'll all be riding bicycles again.

  Visit The AMAZING Brain Adventure

 

 

Neil Slade  neil @ easypaintyourcar.com

 

 

 

Easy How To Paint

Your Car

 

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1) 80 page Color Illustrated Easy How To Paint Your Car Manual on DVD (both Word and PDF printable)

 

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The COMPLETE and Easy-to-Understand fully detailed printable EBOOK PDF manual with over ONE HOUR of Windows Media Player VIDEO content. PREVIEW VIDEO #1 Windows Media Player

From: brolaxxxxxx@aol.com

To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Subject: just bought how to paint car

 

loved the dvd, very clear and easy to follow.... i have a 92 bmw 525i ... thank you very much.  your video was great and i will be recommending the site to my friends- it is very refreshing to have a businessman who has a web site and actually responds to his customers questions.. and does it immediately! AMAZING! 

Brandon

 

 

 

 

 

----- Original Message -----
From: Myron Wilson
To: Neil Slade's Amazing Brain Adventure
Sent: Monday, November 13, 2006 3:09 PM


Hi,
Just got the video, thought it was great. I took a painting class and you covered 8 weeks of school in 1 hour and added some things to boot.
Take care, - Myron

 

----- Original Message -----
From: George Weston

I saw another very fancy web page,"How To Paint Your Car" site, and the guy was spraying indoors WITHOUT A MASK!! In many demonstrations---!! I sure won't be buying their information- yow!! Man, if they haven't even got THAT right.... eeek!

 

 

 

 

How to Paint Your Car, Truck, Motorcycle, Bicycle, or Anything Else!

Made Easy, With Beautiful and Expert Results

 

 

 

 

Check out this!! Neil does his LOTUS ELAN

Fun With Body Putty

 

 

----- Original Message -----
From: Ben Cheatham <white240sx@xoxoxo.net>
To:  neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Subject: Want to say thanks

Hi Neil,

I ordered your "How to paint a car" quite some time ago. I'm restoring a '72 240Z and planned on painting it myself. Well a friend of mine was replacing all of the fairings on his motorcycle and needed his gas tank painted to match. Figured this would be a perfect opportunity for me to learn before tackling my car. I told him I would paint it for free so long as he supplied all the paint and materials. After watching your videos and reading your pdf again, I went ahead and dove headfirst into this tank. Let me tell ya, your tutorials really helped a lot. They gave me an awesome basic knowledge of painting and whatnot that I probably couldn't have gotten anywhere else. I just wanted to tell you thanks for helping me out, it's really appreciated. Here is the gastank (and cowl that I haven't finished yet) so you can see how it turned out http://www.members.cox.net/csturbo240/gsxrtank.htm

Thanks again, Ben Cheatham

 

From: "Scott Moore" <smoo28000@zzzzzzz.net>
To: <neil@easypaintyourcar.com>
Subject: Paint


Best $9.95 I have ever spent!!! I have been working on a 1963 Chevy Belair that, yes, belonged to a little old lady! .....

Thanks for the Great tips!!!! Keep it up!
Scott Moore

 

FREE INFORMATION BELOW THE PURCHASE INFORMATION

 

----- Original Message -----
From: mrvanzo@xxxx.com
To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Cc: thankyou@aim.com
Sent: Monday, December 04, 2006 6:40 PM
Subject: Re: item # 1940-2726-8191

 

Hi Neil I received your dvd today in the mail, and I'm extremely pleased with it. It was very helpful and answered all of my questions I had with painting my car. Thanks also for your fast response to my email I really appreciate that.

Sincerely,  -Michael  

THE REAL POOP ON PAINTING YOUR CAR

The reason I learned how to do car painting is because I owned a rare collector car that would have cost me $3000-$4000  minimum to have the body work and paint done- and it needed it. AND, I could not afford this.

So, I contacted one of my friends, perhaps the best expert on fiberglass repair and body painting anywhere, Mr. Vic Cooper in Denver. He regularly repairs and repaints the most expensive, the most exotic passenger and race cars, from Lotuses to Lambos to hot rods. He taught me how to do this over a long period of time. Since I am a writer and film maker (and he and other experts I knew are not), I translated everything I learned from him into a form that people could easily learn from right off the web. I further got regular advice from an exceptionally good paint shop in Denver that specializes in automotive refinishing.

I spent months learning what works, and what doesn't work- and when I was done I had done my first car, my white Lotus that you see on the book cover. It turned out perfectly. And the method I used can be applied to any vehicle, fancy or plain, big or small, boat or car, truck, bike, or motorcycle.

 

There are tons of BAD books and DVDs that look good on the surface, but in practical use were complicated and had stuff in there that was unnecessary. I wanted to make material available that WORKED as advertised, and was not overly complicated or poorly written.

You may find yourself in a similar position looking at painting your vehicle- but without having done this previously, or have done it making many mistakes and not having things turn out so good. You may not know anyone who knows how to do this, or has the time to show you.

I will show you, because it is my business teaching people- and I've been a teacher for 35 years.

 

If you decide it is best to paint your car yourself, you will need a spray gun, a compressor, the paint, some miscellaneous small tools, sandpaper, and a certain amount of patience. You can do it in a car port, garage, paint booth, or even in your driveway- you decide what is best for you.

You can borrow or rent the gun and compressor and save money that way, and pay about $100 for the paint and sandpaper, and if you read the instructions you can come up with a decent paint job on most cars. You will also need odds and ends which you may or may not have, light solvents, gloves, an air respirator, and other small items necessary for painting.

Or, you can spend about $250 on the gun and compressor, own it permanently and do lots of things with it for the rest of your life- like paint your house, air clean stuff, run other tools with it, etc.

If you have a special car or a collector car, plan on spending a lot of time sanding and re-sanding, and fine sanding, and polishing, and correcting your mistakes, and doing body work.

If you don't have an extra $3000 sitting around, this may be your only choice- AND you can do it, and come up with an absolutely gorgeous job. I will show you how, and my methods come from THE BEST EXPERTS possible.

If you just have an old car and would rather do it yourself than spend $300 or $400 at the budget shops for a mediocre job that they will do, you can do it quickly and end up with a finish as good if not better than such shops, and spend a minimum amount of time doing it- although you will still need the materials and equipment you don't already own, and a place to do it.

You can get the download or DVD (it is dirt cheap), or just read through the basics on this page  and get a good idea of what you will need to do.

Okay....you decide. No bull here. The best painting adventure to you!

 

 

 

Learn to  paint ANYTHING Professional Quality

 

 

New And IMPROVED 5/16/2007

Highly EXPANDED INSTRUCTIONS

INSTANT DOWNLOAD eBOOK and VIDEO

Streaming and Download Right off the Web

(hard physical mailed copies also available)

 

"An indispensable hands-on manual for people wanting to do an expert and easy job of painting their own car or anything else on wheels! Slade is an absolute genius in putting this together- There is nothing else like it, ANYWHERE..."

- Craig Simpson, ex-pro automotive refinisher

 

PRINTED BOOK VERSION HERE

 

Order DVD Version Below

 

 

Order this: 

   CLICK HERE for Special  Online Download Price $9.95 All Locations

All Cards Accepted Through Paypal Portal- No Paypal Account Needed- Instant Download

 

IMPORTANT NOTE: ONLINE DOWNLOADS

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2) Your download is AUTOMATICALLY sent to the email YOU PAY WITH on the ORDER

3) If you need your download sent to another address than the Paypal address please

email neil@easypaintyourcar.com after your order payment is made and tell me- thanks

4) Also please check your junk or spam boxes, sometimes downloads end up there, especially Yahoo email accounts which almost always sees the instant download reply as spam. Yahoo email people, please let me know if your instant download reply doesn't show.

5) To pay, use the Paypal portal even without a Paypal account (you do NOT have to join)

 

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Contains:

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3) 12 Detailed Still Photo Images of Finished Demonstration Surfaces

Complete~!

This is the absolute MUST HAVE totally Affordable COMPLETE Guide to Painting Your Car, Truck, Boat, Motorcycle, Bicycle or anything else. Includes body surface repair of dents, rust, and holes for metal or fiberglass. Learn to paint indoors, outdoors, any time of year, with a minimum of expense and equipment- for SUPERIOR results.

----- Original Message -----
From: David Guest
To: Neil Slade
Sent: Monday, November 13, 2006 9:30 AM
Subject: Re: paint DVD

Neil,
Everthing came in and it is better than expected, thanks again.


-David Logan Guest
 

*          *          *

Original Message -----
From: DolfanPC@aaa.com
To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Sent: Thursday, November 09, 2006 8:30 AM

 

Neil,
Received your package, yesterday. I watched your video last night; you do a very good presentation- simple, easy to digest.
 
-Sincerely, Pete Christie,  Chuluota, FL

 

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From: brolaxxxxxx@aol.com

To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Subject: just bought how to paint car

 

loved the dvd, very clear and easy to follow.... i have a 92 bmw 525i ... thank you very much.  your video was great and i will be recommending the site to my friends- it is very refreshing to have a businessman who has a web site and actually responds to his customers questions.. and does it immediately! AMAZING! 

brandon

 

Universal DVD Hard Copy by mail 

 

 

Order the 80 page Color Illustrated Easy How To Paint Your Car Manual on DVD (both Word and PDF printable) and Broadcast High Resolution 62 minute DVD by Mail  $14.95 USA  Free Postage (International and Canada add $5 Shipping) Use the buttons below for mailed copy-

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The COMPLETE and Easy-to-Understand fully detailed printable EBOOK PDF manual with over ONE HOUR of Windows Media Player VIDEO content. PREVIEW VIDEO #1 Windows Media Player



Contains the best explanation for all levels, from first time beginner to experienced painters.

Everything you need to know about painting your car is made simple, and practical.

Chapters: 

1)   Introduction 

2)   Painting Environment Options 

3)   Additional Tips and Technology History

4)   Materials List 

5)   Materials Photos 

6)   Painting Procedure Outline 

7)   Sanding and Body Filler Materials and Tools 

8)   Surface Preparation and Repair 

9)   Primer: Mixing and Applying 

10) Color and Clear Coats: Mixing and Applying 

11) Smart Clean Up

12) The Finished Product

13) Finish Polishing


You can put a new everyday durable finish on your car that is better than the budget shops offer at a fraction of the price, or just do the body work and leave the spraying to the shops and save hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

You can also learn how to put on the highest grade show car level finish, suitable for any valuable collector car.

Every detail is explained with dozens of color photos, and easy to understand text in a 45 page printable and computer viewable eBook manual. AND each step of the way is clearly shown in a demonstration VIDEO.

Neil Slade is an internationally known author of 6 books, a feature film, and 20 audio CDs. His web page on car painting is the #1 search result on Google "How To Paint Your Car" for a reason-- Its' the BEST way to learn painting!

You would have to be crazy to pass this up!  This is the Best, Quickest, Most Useful, Most Affordable, and Easiest way to learn to do a GREAT paint job- LEARN FROM AN EXPERT now! How To Paint Your Car- Hassle Free!

 

PRINTED BOOK VERSION HERE

 

 

----- Original Message -----
 
To: neil@easypaintyourcar.com
Subject: Thank you

 

I want to thank you for helping me through my first ever auto paint job. I bought your ebook and DVD and it helped me get through a lot of things.

I just wanted to let you know that even though I made mistakes they were not due to your instructions. It was me being lazy. If I would have stuck to your instructions it would have been better! But still a very good result.

I have attached before and after pictures for you.

Thanks again,
Bob Fierro, Milwaukee WI

 

THE HEART of PAINTING

Anyone can paint a car. The bodywork and dent repairs and swinging of hammers all require a little more expertise and patience, but painting  is fun... and easy. 

 

Here are the most basic things you need to know:  How To Paint A Car Expert Tips

1. Before doing anything else, wash the car with soap and water. This removes road salts and bird droppings and other water soluble things that you don't see. It's pleasant to eat from a clean plate at dinner, but critically important to have a clean surface to paint. 

2. Use a wax/grease remover with PAPER TOWELS (which are not a fire hazard when you throw them in the trash ... cloth is a fire hazard ... use paper towels!!!). Commercial removers are wonderful. You can also use liquid charcoal starter or house paint type mineral spirits ... these all work to remove crayon marks from things the kiddies decorated too ... because they are wax and grease removers ... crayons are wax. 

3. Now it's okay to sand something if you need to make it dull. NOTICE THAT SANDING IS STEP #3 AFTER YOU REMOVED THE WAX AND GREASE- otherwise, you  will drive wax and grease into the surface. 

4. Ground the frame of the vehicle. Find the chassis frame under the car or truck and attach any size wire to the frame and the other end to something grounded (or "earthed" if you're British,) so the static electricity can get around those pesky rubber tires on the car. The static makes the dust jump up off the floor into the paint job. Dust is quite lazy, so it would rather stay on the floor than jump up if you just get rid of the static. (Please note, my Lotus is a fiberglass bodied car, and skipped this step on this car- didn't seem to matter)

5. Make certain it is bone dry where you are going to paint. Helpful old souls will tell you to wet the floor down to keep the dust down ... say "Thank you for that idea," and then, whatever you do, DO NOT WET THE FLOOR IN THE PAINTING AREA. All urethane is moisture-cure material. Any humidity, fog, steam, cloud, water vapor, passing from the floor into the sky as it evaporates will pass through the spray mist from your spray gun. At the end of the spray gun, as you pull the trigger, the temperature of the paint drops many degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius, as you wish ... this cures some of the paint before it ever hits the car!!! "Gee, I got a lot of dirt in my finish ... duh. " No, actually, you PUT A LOT OF "DIRT" IN THE FINISH. DRY! DRY! DRY! Always paint in a dry place. 

5A. PUT UP PLASTIC WINDSCREEN if you are outside in a car port. Yes, you can actually paint outside. You could paint in your driveway , but you might have little mites and flies in your paint (although you could sand and remove these to a certain extent). I actually painted in my car port open on one side. Take a little extra time and put up that plastic sheet to keep out that little bit of wind.

5B. TAKE YOUR TIME MASKING the parts of the car you don't want to paint. This is a relatively unexciting portion of this job-- but its the difference between a crummy MAACO paint job, and a really fine looking precision job. Remember, spray will go EVERYWHERE you don't cover.

5C. USE PREMIUM BODY PUTTY. Okay, we shall assume you've had some good advice about the body work. Other than this, use the best urethane 2 part epoxy catalyzed body putty you can buy for patching . It is a million times easier to sand, doesn't shrink, and is much harder than the cheapo Bondo or other stuff out there (good lord DON'T USE BONDO- it SUCKS!!) , and dries almost instantly. You will have to go to a specialty auto paint shop for this. I used RAGE GOLD at about $30+ a gallon. It was worth it. Try: http://www.sherwin-automotive.com/products/show_product.cfm?product=29779&cat=37  if you can't find it locally.

 

5D. OPTIONAL INDICATOR BLACK ENAMEL COAT
 
After you apply primer,  apply a thin misted coat of spray flat black enamel before sanding the primer coat-- (just a mist! to barely lay down this coat). Using enamel from a can works fine, you are going to remove all of this.
 
The black will fill both the low points and cover the high points on the surface, i.e. it will settle in the "valleys" and also cover the "peaks" of the surface.
 
As you sand the primer, the black will remain visible in the low spots of the surface, giving you an accurate indicator of what parts of the surface are not level.
 
When you've just barely removed all the black by sanding (be careful, go slow) you've got a smooth even surface, ie. you've lowered the peaks down to the level of the valleys.

If you've gone through black at one portion and nothing but primer remains, and there is black enamel left in an immediately adjacent area next to the black, the surface is thereby indicated as uneven. Continue to sand until the black is removed and nothing but primer is left. (In no case leave any enamel on the surface!! It will ruin and urethane paint put on top of it!!)

 
 

6. After enough base color has been applied to cover whatever you're painting (10-15 minutes between each color layer), let the last coat air out (dry) about 30-90 minutes (but never no more than 60-90 minutes) before applying the clear coat.  Allow 10-15 minutes between each clear coat, applying at least 3 coats of clear.

 

7. UPDATED JULY 31,2007 URETHANE bumpers  DO NOT REQUIRE a flexing agent. Standard urethane paint (as I recommend)  is plenty flexible itself, and essentially the same material as these bumpers. HOWEVER, it IS recommended that you use an ADHESION PROMOTER (available from your car paint dealer) so that the paint sticks well to plastic surfaces, which is essentially a plastic primer.

Even dealers and pro paint shops will skip this step to save labor-- big mistake.

The problem is, each paint manufacturer differs in how/when and to what coats the flexing agent is added- so TALK TO YOUR OWN PAINT SUPPLIER if you are doing a urethane bumper, to obtain the correct information as to when you add the flexing agents.

 

8) Filter the paint as you pour into the paint gun cup using one of those cheap mesh disposable cone filters (usually the paint dealer will give them to you free). I HAVE painted without the small cartridge final filter inside the gun, as it tends to clog the gun, and I haven't had any problems from doing so.

*          *          *

BASECOAT/CLEAR COAT

In the mid 1980's, cars and trucks were being made with thinner and thinner steel bodies to reduce the curb weight of the vehicles. Everything that could be done to get better gas mileage was being done. 

By folding and creasing metals, the same strength could be had without having to carry around the extra weight.

The technology of building cars and trucks that fold up around you if you have an accident also changed the way vehicles were built. 

It had become time to create a paint system that was flexible enough to expand and contract with the new thinner metals and plastics as the temperature expanded and be flexible enough to stay with the car door when you lean on it and push it in. 

The entire automotive industry adopted acrylic urethanes. These sprayable plastics have all of the flexible properties to stay on the car. They don't fade. They can be driven into whatever the weather presents them at 83 miles per hour and come out as good as before. 

We technology of applying paint changed at the same time. People wanted cars and truces with pearls and fancy metallics. In the "good days" the car painter knew how to adjust the color of the metallics by how much thinner, how fast the thinner evaporated, how far kinds of things to do to change the color. 

Except most of the time, the repainted fender still didn't look quite like the original finish- there were too many variables. 

Because the  OEM'S, original equipment manufacturers, had begun putting the color  on first and then putting clear over the top, it had become time for the refinish paint companies to make a product that would match the OEM finishes. 

Welcome to the wonderful world of chemistry. 

When you pull the trigger on your spray gun, fluid suddenly comes out of the gun as the needle is pulled back. The fluid suddenly out of the front has a lot of space to accelerate into. 0 to 60 in less than a second flat. Is that street legal? This rapid change in volume makes the fluid become very cold very quickly.

Understanding this sudden coldness, the chemical engineers at the automotive paint companies added a product to the basecoat colors that has lots of names: stabilizer, basecoat fixe, reactive reducer, etc. Everybody's product is a trade secret and they're all the same. 

By using a "bulky" hydrocarbon, sometimes called alkane or paraffin or wax, in the paint coating, when the trigger is pulled, a temporary electrical charge makes static lines run across the paint surface. 

While the paint is wet, the tiny electrical charge forces the metallics or pearl micas to arrange themselves in rows and columns just like a checker board. All you have to do is point the gun at the car and the color will become the correct color. 

It's amazing isn't it? 

And the stabilized or fixed paints can be used for a very long time as long as no hardener has been added to them. They cover like a blanket. Usually three coats only a few minutes apart and the whole car is covered. 

After about twenty minutes or so of dry time, the color is ready for the shiny top coat. You'll want the clear on top too, because when the color dries it it's as flat as asphalt. Dirt flat! We’re talkin' flat here! 

The first coat of urethane clear is applied over the top of the color. As you come back around the car, it looks as if you didn't spray the clear on it. It's almost flat again! 

That first coat sinks down into the color and makes it hard and flexible and what will finally make it dry. It just sucks right into the colored pigment and marries itself into the whole coating. 

This means, of course, that you don't want to hose the color on just because you have it in the gun. As soon as the color has covered, quit putting it on the car. Geez! You don't keep drilling for oil after you have it coming out of the ground! The clear is only going to go in so far and then it quits, so don't expect it to harden 15 layers of paint! 

It usually takes three coats of clear to make shiny happen. You've seen that bumper sticker? SHINY HAPPENS. But it doesn't happen in the first coat! 

Anyway, that's all there is to it. It's so easy. 

If you get a run in the clear and don't notice it enough to take it out while you're painting, you can color sand and buff the finish later without screwing up the metallic or pearl or color. 

 

A few pointers: 

1) Urethane is moisture cure. Once the hardener or catalyst or activator (all the same thing) is added to the clear, the CLOCK IS TICKING. Whatever you don't use today will NOT be okay to use tomorrow! 

 

2) Your Painting area needs to be bone dry. Any moisture evaporating up from the floor will pass through the space at the end of the spray gun... remember the spray gun? When you pulled the trigger, the pain/clear got real cold? The evaporating moisture from the floor turns some of the hardener into plastic beads on its way to the car. Geez! I got a lot of dirt in my finish. (Nope! You put a lot of “dirt” in your finish.) This doesn't hurt the paint and the paint store dudes win love you because you'll spend extra bucks buying sandpaper and compound to make SHINY HAPPEN. 
 

3) To avoid the problem in #2 above, ground the frame of the car to a metal conduit or water pipe or the ground wire under your electrical box. Ask your friends at ALLEN PAINT. They'll be happy to tell you how this is done. 

4)  Remember to ask about how to remove runs and sags while the paint is wet, so you don't have to do so much rubbing and compounding after the paint job is dry. 

5) If you haven't done any or a lot of previous painting, pick a LIGHT SOLID COLOR to paint your vehicle. Darker colors, and especially metal flake colors will show mistakes or less than perfect body work much more than a light solid color (like white, or other light color). A light color will be more forgiving. 

6) We hope you have found this useful and informative. If you have any questions about paint and paint applications Allen Paint (Denver, Colorado) is available 7 days a week. 

 

Neil’s IMPORTANT EXTRA Notes for How To Paint Your Car 

A) Sherwin Williams Automotive Urethane Paint is excellent stuff, and a fraction of the price of overpriced PPG brand paint. Same quality at Sherwin Williams, but minus the total rip-off pricing of PPG. Plus the guys at Sherwin Williams (at least in my town) were WAY more helpful.

B) DON'T - DO NOT pick your paint color from one of those little paint chips in books. They are totally deceptive. You absolutely cannot gauge what an entire car will look like from one of these little one inch squares. Find a car- a whole car- that is the color you like. Get the paint COLOR CODE from the inside of the drivers door jamb plate if necessary. Are you paying attention here? Good.

C) You CAN paint your car in a paint booth or at home in your driveway or car port.  Hurray! Yep, that's what I did, and the results were great. The key is, don't paint in a lot of wind (duh). Cover anything you don't want paint on. Final sanding can be with 250 grit if you use a sealer (see Allen Paint for details), or finer if you don't use a sealer, say, 400 grit by hand. Otherwise, sanding marks will show.

D) The best deal I found on a spray gun and compressor was at Home Depot, Husky brand HVLP GRAVITY feed gun 6 CFM (cubic feet per minute), $79; and a Husky 5 hp 13 gallon tank compressor that will handle that gun; $199. Don't get cheaper than this or problems may occur. If you borrow equipment BEWARE it works perfectly. !!  You can get a smaller compressor (2hp) and get by, but it means waiting for the tank to fill with air, and you can't spray the whole car without stopping and waiting for the pressure to rebuild. In this case, bigger compressor is better. Yeah you can use a smaller one, and my friend Vic has painted amazing paint jobs on Lotus cars with a 2hp 12 gallon set up, but even he said, easier with a bigger set up. HVLP gravity feed (paint cup on top) guns are state of the art, and use a fraction of the paint the old kind of guns use- don't get any other kind.

E) Paint your car this way, and the paint will last 25 years. By then, we'll all be riding bicycles again.

  Visit The AMAZING Brain Adventure

EASY PAINT YOUR CAR HOME

 

Neil Slade  neil @ easypaintyourcar.com

 

 

NEW: "The Paint Your Car For $50 Paint Job Myth"

 

Paint your car for $50 fifty dollars? Is this possible? REALLY paint a car for $50 fifty bucks?

 

A $50 Paint Job? $50? Did I read this right... a $50 paint job, a serious paint job, or a joke paint job? What kind of paint job can you get or do for $50? Just think for one second, don't  you think EVERYBODY who knows cars, who knows paint, would be talking about this kind of paint job if it were actually a practical method of painting your car, for $50 or even $100? Let's examine this with a working brain....

 

Today someone forwarded a link to a page claiming a "Paint Your Car for $50" paint job, and I'm happy to share it with you http://www.autoblog.com/2007/07/03/need-a-paint-job-50-will-do-it/

 

What the page doesn't tell you is the WHOLE STORY which can be found here

http://www.rickwrench.com/50dollarpaint.html

 

I think if this was really a practical and easy method it would already be very well known, but the fact is, it has some inherent problems. Yes, you can also grow all the food you eat for pennies, if you have all the time and energy in the world. But, I for one, do not.

 

I once did indeed paint my Datsun station wagon with blue rolled on tractor high gloss enamel.

 

It did NOT look like either like the Corvair (keep reading) or my Lotus, or even my Honda.

 

To summarize, here are the problems-

 

1) The paint must be EXTREMELY thinned down in order to dry within a day to sand. Rustoleum will NOT dry sufficiently without thinning for a VERY extended period of time, weeks and weeks. Anyone who has every tried to sand enamel out of the can will know that for the most part it is impossible.

 

2) Thinned paint applied with a brush will likely (almost certainly) run and drip on vertical surfaces. Oops!  Sorry, I thought you cared about that. Never mind.

 

3) Many coats are required with 6-8 hours drying time between each coat. In the project above, the painter used 6 coats--- that's three days -- not counting the SANDING and SANDING and SANDING. And rolling paint on a car FIVE TIMES. Many people report having to put on 8 to 10 coats before the color actually finally covers the car sufficiently. Let's see, two coats a day, for 10 coats, that's five days..........I quote from the page itself:

 

"...Six coats was very complete coverage, with plenty of paint thickness to wet sand out any orange peel. Shot of the hood, sanded smooth. Other have reported applying 7, 8, sometimes 10 coats before complete coverage...."

 

Now, when you spray on urethane, unless you are going for a hand rubbed finish, you don't have to sand at all. This is how most factories do it-- spray paint applied correctly does not need sanding. You can do this, but it adds significant labor--  for example, I did this on my LOTUS. My arms went numb, and it looked amazing. But I did not do this on my HONDA.  You decide. With roll on Rustoleum, you will have to Sand.

And Sand

And Sand

And Sand

And Polish

And Polish

And Polish

And Sand

ETC ETC ETC ETC

Get the picture?

 

Urethane color covers in 3 coats absolutely. Period. It will ALL be totally dry in an hour. You then put on the clear coats. They will also be dry in an hour.  In two hours you have an EXTREMELY shiny car.

 

No sanding.

 

What is your time worth?

 

 

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Why should you paint your car yourself?

 

If you are considering why "Should I learn how to paint my car?", you may or may not have looked at all the reasons why and why not you should learn "how to paint your car." So, if not, here is what I will share with you that comes from years of experience as a do-it-yourself kind of guy, who also can show you how and why to paint your car.

 

1) You will save money.

 

I don't know about you, but my guess is that you simply would rather learn how to paint your own car, and invest a little elbow grease (but please keep it off the paint and off your car), and save a ton of money, or even just a few hundred dollars. Of course, you can take your car to the inexpensive painting shops, and for a few hundred bucks they will slap some paint on your car, and it will look OKAY, Mabye very good if you get someone who really cares about the job they are doing. But I've heard some horror stories as well. You get what you pay for. And maybe it will look a lot worse than you thought it would if you get somebody with a hangover that day.

 

You can always do the body work yourself, and have a budget shop doing the spraying, after you do all the masking, and after you say your prayers..... this has been known to produce good results.

 

Depending on whether you do an entire car, or just parts, there is considerable money to be saved by doing the paint work on your car by yourself over a day or two. If you are doing a fair amount of repair work before you paint, you will save a TON of money. Repair and body work is the most expensive part of painting, and to have someone do this on your car for you, will be very expensive. Please note, my manual and DVD explain car body work as well as painting your car.

 

2) It is better for the environment.

 

Not obvious right away, but if you follow my instructions for SMART clean up, you will know exactly what happens to the waste paint, solvents and chemicals. How many companies really care about the environment as much as you do? How many will take the simple steps to minimize environmental impact as you can? BY painting your self, you can do EXACTLY what it takes (easy) to minimize environmental impact, as opposed to a big corporate $$$$ commercial company that cares more about the bottom line than you do as you paint your car and try to keep the earth clean.

 

3) Its fun!

 

I have been writing books an brain and behavior science for twenty-five years, even before I started showing people how to paint your car-- and there is one thing I have really learned--- there is nothing more enjoyable than creating something yourself, and then looking at what you have accomplished. It is the greatest pleasure, and something you can predictably do over and over. As you learn how to paint your car, your brain will instantly reward you as expand your skills and knowledge- not only about paint and car work, but in understanding how to do something efficiently, effortlessly (to a degree!), and enjoyably. You can then apply this same method that you used to paint your car, to any other kind of project you have.

 

I have been a teacher for THIRTY FIVE YEARS. There is a fun and efficient and proper way to teach and learn, and there are a million bad ways that are overly complicated, no fun, and simply bad technique. In the world of "how to paint your car", there are plenty of REALLY BAD methods and sites out there. I have taken my 35 years of a teacher and applied it to this: how to paint your car. I have eliminated all of the anal retentive qualities seen so frequently elsewhere, and given you the pure essentials, and you can paint your car without getting buried in irrelevant dweeby facts. We are painting a car here, not doing brain surgery!!

 

4) It is not difficult.

 

Well, looking at other sites that try to show you how to paint your car, you would never know this. My own teacher (who did not teach how to paint your car to anyone except his closest friends), regularly repaired and painted the MOST EXPENSIVE CARS MADE-- Ferraris, Lambos, Lotuses, as well as inexpensive daily drivers. As a teacher, I know there is a very fine line between showing someone the essentials to painting a car, and showing either too little or too much. I know you will find exactly the right BALANCE to learn how to paint your car HERE-- and that's why I've posted so many TESTIMONIALS.

 

Further, you don't need a paint booth-- you can paint in your garage, a car port, even in a driveway or parking lot. In fact, painting outside is better than painting in an enclosed area in some respects for a DIY home painter since it increases the amount of fresh air in the painting zone-- better for your health. (Granted, you don't want things floating into your paint!)

 

 

 

So there you have it!  Okay now-- learn how to paint your car and ENJOY yourself, and ENJOY your fixed up car!- Neil

 

 

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