$50 paint job in progress - Final Update

[Benny]

I can't see why you can't paint a car with a brush or a roller.

Many, many years ago, a friend's father had an old Holden FB ute which had seen better days.
It was due for rego, but with the way the car looked, after many years of dragging around builders' materials etc., there was no way the inspector would have passed it, so he decided he'd re-paint it to look more presentable.
He asked us to sand the bodywork down with sandpaper and water, which we did, and then I was horrified to see him come out with a can of Dulux full gloss house paint in one hand, and a 1\" brush in the other.

Well, a few coats later, it looked absolutely brilliant!
I guess that with his brush painting experience he knew what to do, but I was just amazed at how good it looked in its new, shiny, dark grey paint job. And not a brushstroke on it anywhere.

Needless to say, he took it for a rego check, the inspector took one look at it and said what a nice old ute is was, looked at the tyres, tested the lights, and passed it straight away without noticing the rusty front sub frame, poor brakes etc.

That ute looked good for another couple of years too, until it got stolen and burned out.

So don't be afraid to paint your car with a brush or a roller, as it can work really well, and without as much preparation as spraying, and a lot less mess.

[Dodgy Haro]

Is there a website for the Brightside paint, or an official distributor?
I told my friend who owns a panel shop and wants to try it on bumper repairs.

Hi Bruce,

The official website for Brightside paint is here:

http://www.yachtpaint.com/usa/

I am sure they would have details of the official distributors etc - it's how I managed to find the product at Whitfords in Australia as they were a listed retail seller.

I just picked up the phone and ended up calling them to confirm stock / availability. Several other Australian distributors were listed however there were some which did not appear to stock the paint anymore.

Brightside also have the Perfection range which has 2 parts and is supposed to have the ultimate gloss however for bumpers, the brightside topside range would still probably be better for bumpers - unlike the perfection paints, there is no mixing of hardeners and I believe the 2 parts makes the paint harder / less flexible.

He asked us to sand the bodywork down with sandpaper and water, which we did, and then I was horrified to see him come out with a can of Dulux full gloss house paint in one hand, and a 1" brush in the other.

Yes ... when I bought my paint, I also managed to pick up the painting instruction DVD which I believe you can download from the site above. It did get me thinking as to whether I could paint the car with just a brush instead of a roller. There is a certain technique of brushing horizontally then at 45 degree angles if doing it this way. It's actually the way how the paint is supposed to be applied however I went with the roller method in the end as it's proven for cars and there is less chance of uneven application.

Well ... I also started to work on the mirrors ... was just going to tape them up however I saw the screw and stupid me decided to loosen it, only to find that you can't tighten them without taking them apart fully.

Having dismantled one, I decided to do the other ... will replace the rusty screws but it actually makes painting the mirrors easier once they are dismantled:



I also seem to have a mind that easier gets sidetracked - whilst admiring my work to date, I finally decided to get down to replacing the side rest with a strap to keep with my spartan look theme. I got the parts from the Whitfords marine store the same time I picked up the paint.

Here's a bad pic:



Lastly, I laid the 4th coat around 1am this morning and have just rolled her out into the (downcast) sun today to help dry quicker. For the first time, I am able to take some shots of the car outside in better light.

This is the car after some wetsanding with 1200 grit and then a 4th coat applied. I am getting better with the mixing ratios now and know what seems to work best - you need to get the paint watery and then quickly pop the bubbles within a minute or two as the paint hardens.

If you wait too long, you'll leave brush strokes which make the final finish less glossy / smooth.

I'll probably apply a fifth coat later tonight ... if it goes well and covers everything, I may just call it a day at that and start putting it back Tuesday night then.

Not sure about sanding - I'm too rough and often remove more than I need to so I may even just go straight to the polishing.

Some updated pics:

[Dodgy Haro]

[fattima]

Looks good, the blue works well with the black bonnet. It is good to see you having a go at this method of painting, I have only seen it done once and they hadn't thinned the paint properly so it looked crap.

Not sure about sanding - I'm too rough and often remove more than I need to so I may even just go straight to the polishing.

Try getting a sanding pad (3M make them and any good auto paint store will have them) it is a flexible backing pad. It will spread your sanding pressure out evenly, use lots of soapy water and very fine paper say 2000 followed by 3000. It will take ages if you go straight to polishing.

[Okibi]

If I had a black bonnet i'd be tempted to do the area around the windscreen black too to match the bonnet/softtop.

Looking great though, fantastic thread. Thanks.

[Dodgy Haro]

Try getting a sanding pad (3M make them and any good auto paint store will have them) it is a flexible backing pad. It will spread your sanding pressure out evenly, use lots of soapy water and very fine paper say 2000 followed by 3000. It will take ages if you go straight to polishing.

Yes, I did see the sanding pads but somehow doubted whether they'd last long enough. Wetsanding goes a long way if you keep it wet always - I use a small piece per panel.

I did have a sanding block but never used it - the original method used by 69charger on the mopar forums is the best. When you sand by hand, you can feel when the panel is smooth and know when to stop. Also, the MX5 has a lot of curves so a block is not really suited to its surface curves.

A trick I heard is to spray(can) paint freckles of black onto the panel and you know the panel would be sanded smooth if you can remove the freckles altogether.

i'd be tempted to do the area around the windscreen black too to match the bonnet/softtop.

At one point, I would have seriously considered doing it however have refrained because it's what distinguishes the MX5 / miata from the rest. I'd be imagining I'll be driving a Z3 or S2000 if I were to paint it black.

Well ... I finally put on the 5th coat on Sunday night and then the 6th coat last night.

By now, you can guess I am getting tired of laying paint so I have decided that the 6th coat should be enough. Coverage appears to be good but I am yet to get the car out into some sunlight to check.

I have been putting on the last few layers heavy but watery - it seems to work best for me. The paint has to be watery enough to be 'sponged' onto the car and then the bubbles popped by just the weight of the roller alone once over. Refer to the pic below with the bubbles in it - this is how it is laid awaiting to be popped.

Some people may cringe but I don't plan on doing any more sanding for now. I am already starting to put things back on the car and remove the masking tape.

A downside is that being the cheapskate I am, I never removed and replaced the masking tape with new ones with each coat. As you can imagine, I have built up some layers of paint where the masking tape ends. I will probably use a hobby knife to cut the edges around and then do a touch up on any spots requiring more paint.

The great thing about paint this way though is that I can always sand later down the path, buff and polish it however I am just eager to get the car back on the road again at this stage.

Some more pics - if I get it all back by the weekend, there should be some finished pics as early as Saturday night. I am hoping the paint would have enough time to harden for use by then.

[Garry]

Why didn't you remove the side indicators and the aerial mount? They are easy to get off and I would have thought it would have been easier to paint if they weren't there and you wouldn't have to go to the trouble of taping them up.

[fattima]

A black guide coat is good when sanding down primer/spray putty, not so sure on a top coat. The pads I mentioned are just a soft flexible rubber that you put your paper over they do a nice job of evening out pressure. I find if using just your fingers it is easy to rub in one area and get highs and lows.

[AB7]

I painted my whole house with roller before...but never thought of doing it on a car

Im amazed how well it turned out.

[fastfreddygassit]

A trick I heard is to spray(can) paint freckles of black onto the panel and you know the panel would be sanded smooth if you can remove the freckles altogether.

The black guide coat is usually used when blocking back so you can find high/low spots and fill accordingly.

good stuff with the paint job btw.
You have put in a lot of work. Pity you didn't have access to a spray guns and a booth, as you have done all the hard prep work.

How durable is the paint job when compared with an oven baked 2k job?

[Dodgy Haro]

Why didn't you remove the side indicators and the aerial mount? They are easy to get off and I would have thought it would have been easier to paint if they weren't there and you wouldn't have to go to the trouble of taping them up.

Well ... I pried the side indicators off but then decided that removing it would leave the inside wiring + bulb dangling. If it fell behind the side panels, it'd be a hassle to dig out again. I've removed the side panels before and know how much flexing it takes.

The antenna is a different matter - couldn't be bothered finding out how it attached so just though taping it up was the quickest / easiest & perhaps laziest method.

How durable is the paint job when compared with an oven baked 2k job?

It would be unfair to compare it to a $2k job in terms of gloss but in terms of durability, someone once said that if this paint is good for the seven seas, it is good for anything that can be thrown at it.

Personally, I would compare the gloss finish to a single stage acrylic paintjob and unlike 2 pac, you can alway sand back and repaint over it again provided you don't seal it with a clear coat.

Charger69 said of the Rustoleum paint: "i'm not here to argue about the adhesion properties of the paint, the quality of the paint, what it really is, blah, blah, blah...i can say the paint IS MADE TO STICK TO BARE METAL, WOOD, FIBERGLASS, RUSTED METAL, CATS, DOGS, BIRDS, GRASS, GERBILS, basically anything (read the can). it's real easy to work with, does'nt smell at all (all you really smell is the mineral spirits used to thin the paint) plus i have had no reactions with underlying paint in any way shape of form on all the stuff i painted with it period. i would say it sticks roughly at least twice as good as any high quality single stage paint\\primer\\primer sealer out there. I've painted it in cold conditions and hot humid conditions with no issues. No fish eyes, peel, nothing. i've painted over it with single stage and BC/CC with NO ISSUES. The paint seems very inert, not prone to any of the stuff that auto paint is prone to. I have used the paint alot and can say it has not peeled, flaked off, nothing on anything i've used it on. Hell i even still have a 71 Kawasaki motorcycle i painted 15 years ago over the original paint and it still looks great."

Incidentally - there is a vast wealth of information on the net re the $50 paint job but the following links have proven the most useful to me as a reference and is probably all you ever need to know:

http://carpainting.wetpaint.com/

http://rollyourcar.com/default.aspx

http://www.miataturbo.net/forums/showthread.php?t=5199

[Dodgy Haro]

This is probably my final update for this thread + final pics ... I ended up putting the car back together 1am Saturday morning and then enjoyed the weekend driving her, which was a priceless experience.

Even my mates were surprised at how good rolling on paint could turn out to be.

Please NOTE I am yet to go through the whole process of a final sand to smooth the finish and then polish / buff / wax & seal. I have other projects on the go (ie. stereo + 10\" sub install to do) so I will put this on the list of things to do. In any case, it will give the paint time to harden more.



The paint is there more to protect the car and I am more than happy to drive it around as is.

To date, I have only done 6 coats with one 1 sanding with 1200grit between the 3rd and 4th coat. You'll notice it when you are close to the car but like the pics, it looks fine when you're on the road and moving.

One day, if I get bored, I may just sand it smooth and then do a proper polish but it's good enough for me for now:

[Dodgy Haro]

[green_comet]

It came up pretty good.. I think it will look alot better when you have done final sanding+polishing..

Well done..

[bruce]

Nice job. It goes well with the light green house in the background.