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Gillespie Coatings experience
- Thread starter Mike Axle
- Start date
5-90
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Hammerspace
I've heard enough good reports from them that I'm probably going to use their stuff to paint my XJ during its refit.
NB: Three-fourths of a good paint job is in the prep work! I don't know if you know this, but someone will probably read this who does not, so it needs to be said.
If you're painting over an existing coat, here's what you want to do:
1) Knock the clearcoat off with 180-220 grit paper. You don't need much, and you don't want to remove the colour coat.
2) Let the dust settle, even if you used a sander with a vacuum attached. The vacuum won't get everything.
3) Clean the area where you're going to paint. Don't sweep it with a broom, don't suck it up with a vacuum - blow it out with water (air hoses just stir the crap up. Water wets it down and keeps it under control.)
4) Clean the dust and fingerprints off of the parts right before you paint them - using a clean lint-free rag and something like acetone, lacquer thinner, or denatured alcohol works best (wets the rag to pick stuff up, dries rapidly, leaves no residue.) Change rags often.
5) Wait just long enough for the last of the solvent to evapourate, then paint. Multiple light coats are invariably better than one heavy coat - so work slowly.
6) Any runs, drips, or sags can be knocked down later, using 220-grit or finer. Since Gillespie implies that you're going to use a matte finish, you don't need to take as much care as you would with gloss and clearcoats (surface finish isn't at issue here.)
NB: Three-fourths of a good paint job is in the prep work! I don't know if you know this, but someone will probably read this who does not, so it needs to be said.
If you're painting over an existing coat, here's what you want to do:
1) Knock the clearcoat off with 180-220 grit paper. You don't need much, and you don't want to remove the colour coat.
2) Let the dust settle, even if you used a sander with a vacuum attached. The vacuum won't get everything.
3) Clean the area where you're going to paint. Don't sweep it with a broom, don't suck it up with a vacuum - blow it out with water (air hoses just stir the crap up. Water wets it down and keeps it under control.)
4) Clean the dust and fingerprints off of the parts right before you paint them - using a clean lint-free rag and something like acetone, lacquer thinner, or denatured alcohol works best (wets the rag to pick stuff up, dries rapidly, leaves no residue.) Change rags often.
5) Wait just long enough for the last of the solvent to evapourate, then paint. Multiple light coats are invariably better than one heavy coat - so work slowly.
6) Any runs, drips, or sags can be knocked down later, using 220-grit or finer. Since Gillespie implies that you're going to use a matte finish, you don't need to take as much care as you would with gloss and clearcoats (surface finish isn't at issue here.)
OverlandZJ
NAXJA Member # 101
- Location
- Bristol,PA
I used GCI's Mil-Spec paint on my rig, worked well on my first attempt at painting. Dont know anything of their regular line.
RCP Phx
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Phoenix,Az
Do not sand anything until youve de-waxed it first !!!
DanMan2k06
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Damascus, MD
And for the love of God don't use acetone, paint thiner, xylene, or any other solvent to clean your surface prior to paint. This can cause MAJOR paint failures down the road. Buy or order a designated wax and grease remover, it's like $15 a gallon. Then use a 50/50 mix of water and 91% iso alcohol just before your first coat.
5-90
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Hammerspace
Yah. More often than not, the "final clean" before painting is done with DA. Mild enough to not screw with the paint you're going to spray on, still dries quickly, actually helps to remove water from the surface, and leaves no residue.
If there's water on the surface, use DA and use a hair dryer to blow the stuff off. Repeat without the hair dryer to remove dust.
If there's water on the surface, use DA and use a hair dryer to blow the stuff off. Repeat without the hair dryer to remove dust.
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