billybunters - from a bmw z4 to a mx5 se

[Bizi]

Will you be doing the mirrors at the same time as the rear spoiler or it that a future surprise? Either way I suppose you'd want to paint them similarly.

Can you remind us all which paint colour you chose?

Have you thought of painting anything else white while you are at it?
Hardtop you picked up on the cheap, roll bar, helmet etc?

[billybunter]

hi bizi
will be doing the mirrors - rear wing - front/rear bars - side skirts - mudflaps- head/tail light bezels etc shortly.
these items require a total rub back to remove the clear coat. then it just a matter of hitting it with the plastic primer top coat and clear
all the above will be painted artic white but the b/d roll bar will at this stage stay black.

[billybunter]

clear coated inside doors and boot cavity

[billybunter]

not i didn;t clear coat the bird - just sent wrong photo

[Bizi]

Yeah, I was going to ask how the bird liked 200 grit, undercoat, colour, topcoat, clearcoat.

[billybunter]

yeah, by the time i complete this paint job - it will cost me as much as i paid for that bird

[billybunter]

when i was removing the masking tape yesterday - i didn't let the paint dry long enough and tore a chunk of paint to the bare metal off the passenger side window area.
couldn't do nothing about it as the paint was way to soft so today i had a go at it. it was back to the metal anyway so it was just a case of feathering the top coat with 320 wet/dry to blend into the bare metal areas then masked and primed.



15 minutes later i did a wet sand with 600 grit and you can see how i blended it into the previos work



i then applied a light top coat and waited a few minutes for it to tack dry



another coat of paint



end results





next time try not to be in a hurry and do it right

[davidau]

when i was removing the masking tape yesterday - i didn't let the paint dry long enough and tore a chunk of paint to the bare metal off the passenger side window area.
couldn't do nothing about it as the paint was way to soft so today i had a go at it. it was back to the metal anyway so it was just a case of feathering the top coat with 320 wet/dry to blend into the bare metal areas then masked and primed.



15 minutes later i did a wet sand with 600 grit and you can see how i blended it into the previos work



i then applied a light top coat and waited a few minutes for it to tack dry



another coat of paint



end results





next time try not to be in a hurry and do it right

Hey nice work so far why didn't you take the window/door seal off?

[billybunter]

couldn't figure out how to get if out of the window frame - or how hard it would be to get back in. now if some-one could give me details i might just do it

[Guran]

Was thinking the same thing. Not sure about the NB, but on the NA the rubber window trim is just clipped in and you lever it out with a screwdriver or similar.

Similarly, I'm a bit surprised you haven't removed the windscreen and it's rubbers. I realise it's a much bigger task than popping out the side window rubbers/seals, but it would give you a much better finish.

[billybunter]

thats true - to do a perfect job it's the only way to go. the only trouble is i'd have to pay some-one to remove/replace etc the screens/windows . from past experience when i've had some-one in to help all i end up doing is a lot of money with very little return.
last guy i had in my yard was 15 years ago to work on a honda s800 convertible.
cost me $50 per hour then - and to drag the time on he managed to cross tread all 4 spark plug cylinder threads.
two days later $700 down and one happy worker who couldn't fix it anyway.
i know this won't be a perfect job but under the circumstances it will be a pretty good job. already it's well ahead of the paint job on the mgf

[davidau]

thats true - to do a perfect job it's the only way to go. the only trouble is i'd have to pay some-one to remove/replace etc the screens/windows . from past experience when i've had some-one in to help all i end up doing is a lot of money with very little return.
last guy i had in my yard was 15 years ago to work on a honda s800 convertible.
cost me $50 per hour then - and to drag the time on he managed to cross tread all 4 spark plug cylinder threads.
two days later $700 down and one happy worker who couldn't fix it anyway.
i know this won't be a perfect job but under the circumstances it will be a pretty good job. already it's well ahead of the paint job on the mgf

I think you have done a much better job than what I did to my 4WD last year thats for sure haha just make sure the paint can last under the aussie sun as to my experience many people can paint the car looks amazing for the first couple week and fade or crack quickly after 6 months.

[billybunter]

true. i think the key to any good paint job is the prep and primer coat

[billybunter]

next job - rear bar prior to rub back



badges removed



wet rubbed with 329 w/d



sanded mirrors and wing

[Lokiel]

While you've stripped the rear badges off and are re-painting the rear bumper, have you considered plugging the badge holes and just going with the stick-on MAZDASPEED MX-5 badges like in the US?



I did this but swapped the badges around - we drive on the opposite side of the road and are in the opposite hemisphere after all (and it "reads better" from left to right). I think it makes for a cleaner look too.

Since your car will be white, you may want to consider painting the badges black too to make them stand out (maybe not the "flying wing" Mazda logo though).

- just my A$0.02 "food for thought".