Cortina nearly ready for paint. Advice and help needed.

[.pete.]

i'm about to start spraying mine soon with cans. I know it's not as good as a compressor, but I sold my compressor to buy some wheels. It's going to be white so no need for seperate laquer. Is this about right?

 

Flatten the primer with 800grit wet and dry with water.

Wipe with degreaser cloths when dry.

First coat of paint

Second coat of paint.

Flatten with 1200grit wet and dry and water.

What then, rubbing compound?

 

Are the grades of sandpaper OK, and should I be using water with it? Are there any stages i've missed, like between the paint coats?

[banarama]

sounds about right id use a block especially over the repaired areas. dont forget to dicote first

[.pete.]

whats dicote?

[retrorigg]

i would flat with 1200 grit, and i would put a good 3 or 4 good coats on of white and then flat it off and polish it up with g3 compound usin loads of water with it , ideally u want a machine polisher coz its very hard work doing it by hand , i tend to use g3, then t cut then give it a good wax polish

[.pete.]

i would flat with 1200 grit, and i would put a good 3 or 4 good coats on of white and then flat it off and polish it up with g3 compound usin loads of water with it , ideally u want a machine polisher coz its very hard work doing it by hand , i tend to use g3, then t cut then give it a good wax polish

 

do you mean flat the primer to 1200grit first?

[harris horse power]

i would flat with 1200 grit, and i would put a good 3 or 4 good coats on of white and then flat it off and polish it up with g3 compound usin loads of water with it , ideally u want a machine polisher coz its very hard work doing it by hand , i tend to use g3, then t cut then give it a good wax polish

 

do you mean flat the primer to 1200grit first?

 

i wouldnt use 1200 as it wont cut in enough use 800, also put washin up liquid in with the water whilst u flattern it

[retrorigg]

yeah flat the primer all over till it feels smooth b4 painting the white, just advised 1200 as a more safer option, yeah i use washin up iquid to and dunno if makes a diffrence but i use warm water aswell , maybe its just nicer on the hands

[Nuttynil]

Hi you have gone this far can you not hire a compressor and paint it and give it 3 coats of 2k ,you are not going to get an even finish with rattle cans ,then you can flat it with 1200 and polish it ,i would not polish by hand use a machine def g3 compound and not 800 it will scratch to deep and to polish out you will go through the paint .

[retrorigg]

oops i missed the using cans bit, i thought u were usin compressor, your deffo not gonna get a very good finish with cans , well nowhere near as good as a compressor

[Guest cortinamad-gonetoo]

your not supposed to use washing up liquid its not good for the paint

 

id use 1200

[.pete.]

the thing about the compressor is that even though i've sold it it's still here and I can use it until it's collected, i'm doing it in my just wider than single garage. Using cans for the primer was bad enough with the fumes and overspray, so i'd have thought that the spray from a compressor will be much worse. If I had loads of space to work in i'd definitely use the compressor, but i'll be a bit too cramped.

[harris horse power]

your not supposed to use washing up liquid its not good for the paint

 

id use 1200

 

 

when i used to work at an accident repair garage they made me use it as it lubricates the paper and suminthing to do with it cleanin the panel aswel.

 

I no you shouldnt use washing up liquid whilst washin a car, as it takes all the wax off , if you have polished it.

[Jiffer]

your not supposed to use washing up liquid its not good for the paint

 

id use 1200

 

 

when i used to work at an accident repair garage they made me use it as it lubricates the paper and suminthing to do with it cleanin the panel aswel.

 

I no you shouldnt use washing up liquid whilst washin a car, as it takes all the wax off , if you have polished it.

when I painted my old mk1 fez I used a water and bar of soap when flating just to make life easy, dont know if that was wrong?

[Fiesta Steve]

as it takes all the wax off , if you have polished it.

 

..ands thats exactly why you should use it to wet flat primer. It removes wax and grease, its a good thing.

 

Personally, I use 600 grit to wet flat primer, 800 will be ok though.

 

And 1200 should be ok to flat the top coat, but with only 2 coats from a rattle can I wouldn't want to be the person doing the polishing, you could go through the paint very easily, be careful

[GT_lenny]

if you've got use of the compressor ...Use it, it'll cost a hell of a lot less for the paint and be a much much much better finish

[Guest cortinamad-gonetoo]

maybe thats what i heard not to wash your car with washing up liquid

[mexman123]

At £5 each for a decent rattle can, that is gonna cost a lot of money for a shite finish....Use the compressor!

[.pete.]

right, i've sent a message to my mate Tom who bought the compressor from me a couple of weeks ago but hasn't collected it yet, to see it I can use it for the Cortina. If he says I can use it, how much do I need as i'll be using cellulose. I know 2K is better but i've not got any space to work in as it is, let alone proper breathing equipment. Is it 2.5litres of cellulose paint mixed with 2.5 litres of thinners? Would this be enough or 2 or 3 coats?

[mexman123]

I painted mine outside on the drive on a nice warm dry day as my garage is tight also. Just hose the floor down first...Mine came out excellent, any bits in the paint can always be flatted out after.

As i remember, i required 5 litres of paint and the same of thinners, but remember you will need thinnerrs to clean up and blow through the compressor also.

[retrorigg]

to be totally honest ul prob get a better finish with cans than cellilouse , 2k is so easy and gives much better finish, just buy a cheap mask and leave the garage door open and pick a non windy day, just my preference but celly i think is crap to use

[tina2]

Don,t know if this will help but I use aerosols for detailing small parts and always have the tins warming in a tub of hot water. This seems to help get a good shine and finish.

[.pete.]

wel you've all talked my into giving it a crack with the 2k and the compressor, as my mate said he won't be collecting it until early May.

I'm ordering the paint tonight. How much do you think i'll need, remembering it has a vinyl roof, and the door shuts and engine bay etc are being done with cans. I'll need to get the paint, hardner, thinners, and the mask then i'm ready to go. I think i've heard it's about 5 litres needed, but is that 5 litres of paint plus the hardner and thinner, or 5 litres after being made up?

[retrorigg]

i would say 3 litres is ample and will leave you some for touchin up ,ask the guy (or doris) in the shop to supply you with the correct amount of hardener and thinners

[Stu_B]

Washing up liquid has a high salt content so make sure its all rinsed out(and don't drink it )