Subject line says it all. I am looking for a good book on painting and
bodywork for a beginer.

Chris

On 6/27/05, Joel Walker <jwalker17@earthlink.net> wrote:
> My 1986 syncro is currently painted dark brown (for you Canadian's
> think "National Park Brown" with several LARGE primer spots to repair
> deer damage. I really want to get it repainted and am considering
> staying stock but lately I have been seriously considering going to
> different color for the exterior (I would live with the INTERIOR metal
> being brown until I could get to that job myself).
> 
> I recognize there may be a loss in resale value from a collectors
> standpoint, but my van moves further and further from stock all the
> time. What are your thoughts on repainting the van differently from
> its original color?
> 
> 
> such a deal i have for you! ;) ok, the easiest and best way to do this
> .... if you wanna spray it yourself ... is to go down to sears or
> wherever and buy a compressor and spray gun. good costs $$. better
> costs more $$$$. but what you want is a compressor with a long
> duty-cycle ... and a big air tank. bigger tank = less compressor run
> time = more spray time. figure about $500 for a good setup, including
> the hoses you'll need to buy (they don't come with the compressor!!
> and you have to buy these little brass fittings that go on the ends of
> the hose and on the tank). you'll need to buy an adjustable pressure
> reducer ... very important for spray painting ... and a drier .. a
> thingie that fits onto the tank and takes moisture out of the
> compressed air. so figure $600 by the time you're done. oh, and a
> spray gun. :)  get a decent one if you can ... like the $50-60 kind.
> the $10 aren't any good and the $200 ones are better than you need.
> 
> you would like to get a 60-gallon tank (or bigger), and a compressor
> that can pump up to 120 psi (or higher). you'll need the pressure
> reducer to lower the output pressure to match the spray gun ...
> typically 20-30 psi. trust me, if you try to spray at 120psi, you get
> zippo paint sticking to anything ... just a fog of paint floating over
> everything. :)
> 
> then buy a book on spray painting your own car. www.motorbooks.com
> like $25-35. better yet, buy the book FIRST. it'll tell you what to
> get for compressors and such.
> 
> you CAN get buy with an el cheapo compressor and small tank, but ...
> you have to let the compressor rest or you'll burn it up. you can't
> just keep spraying all the time. spray one minute, rest three. like
> that. that's a short duty-cycle. spray five minutes, rest five -
> longer duty cycle. i think that's the way they figure it. anyway, the
> bigger tank allows longer spray time before the compressor kicks back
> in to build up pressure and volume again. but you will not be spraying
> for a full five minutes anyway ... maybe a minute or two before you
> stop for a minute to move the hoses and change positions or some such.
> 
> now ... colors. trouble with already-painted-in-a-dark-color car is
> that it's very hard to cover that dark color with a lighter color.
> unless you put MANY coats of light color over it. you can cover light
> colors with a darker color easily. even light colors with other light
> colors, or dark colors with other dark colors. but light over dark
> causes problems. just so you know.
> 
> and it is a LOT of manual work to get a really good job ... spray,
> dry, sand, spray, dry, sand, and repeat. like that. :( but at least
> the bus is mostly flat ... so the spraying and sanding is easier. cept
> at the top and bottom and corners. :)
> 
> ok, so you do NOT want to spray it yourself. what to do to help bring
> the price down to a reasonable level? do as much of the prep work as
> possible!!! remove bumpers, door handles, mirrors, mask off glass and
> window rubber (a cute trick on window rubber: get some 12-gauge wire
> (like 3 or 4mm in diameter) and run it around the window, UNDER the
> rubber gasket ...between the gasket and the bus body. pushing the wire
> under the gasket lifts the gasket up off the body metal and you can
> put tape onto the gasket easier. it also allows the sprayed paint to
> get under the gasket, so when the paint is dry and you remove the
> wire, there is a nice clean edge to the rubber gasket, not overspray
> onto the gasket like normally. trouble is, it takes a LOT of wire to
> do the whole bus at one time. might be easier to do one side, then the
> other, then the front then the back. or something like that. but that
> slows the shop painter down. so it might be better to just buy the
> wire and do all at once. small dowels can be used, too. don't work too
> well in the corners, but otherwise, ok.
> 
> in other words, anything you can do to make the painter's job easier
> and quicker will lower his labor costs, and he might be willing to
> funnel some of that savings back to you in a lower price. a vanagon
> should be a quick shot paint job, except for the roof. that's a bitch.
> :( have to rig scaffolding along the sides to stand and walk along to
> paint the roof. lots of prep up there before painting.
> 
> oh, and if you really wanna do it right, you'll want to remove the
> clearcoat first. all over the bus. :( lotsa work there.
> 
> now, on the positive side of painting it yourself, you can use the
> compressor for LOTS of other things. ;) like get some air tools ...
> ratchet wrenches and cutters and grinders and such. lots of toys to
> buy. :) however, it must be stated that air compressors have been
> listed as the causes of marital DISharmony in 9.34 percent of all
> divorces. :)
> 
> and one trick to always remember if/when you get a compressor: when
> you are done, bleed the air tank!!! open the bleed valve and let ALL
> the air out. that gets any moisture of the tank and keeps it from
> rusting inside-out. it's really noisy ... like a jet engine ... so
> don't do it late at night or the neighbors will be up in arms. :) and
> it'll hiss for a while then stop, then BAM!!! and it starts hissing
> again. that's normal ... expanding air is cooled and it will actually
> freeze the moisture in the tank trying to get out. then the ice plug
> melts or is pushed out with a bang, and the hissing starts again.
> scared the daylights out of me first time it did it. :)
> 
> good luck! hope it helps.
> joel
> 
>