Painting in your garage...

[Dunecune442]

Quick question all.

I just bought a 1984 BMW 533i and I am interested in painting the car myself. I was under the impression that using a sealed space with minimal dust with good ventilation would be fine, so I am assuming that my garage with painting visqueene and a HD fan for ventilation would be OK. Also, the car has zero dents, just alot of chips. I'm thinking starting at a 200 grit and working up to 600-800 grit would be fine, again input would be appreciated.

Is there equipment I can rent, or would I still be better off buying the equipment and holding onto it? I have a compressor and the associated lines, I just need a spray gun. I heard there is a new design of spray gun that pumps warm/hot air into the paint to dry the liquid much faster resulting in quite a bit less drying time and such. If you have heard of it, what is it called?

Thanks in advance everyone. I've painted homes for a few years so I am used to working with paint, just not on metallic surfaces. I do intend on picking this up for my own personal enjoyment however and possibly as a way to pay some of my college expenses. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

-Keenan
Also, I will be primering this as well as a multi-stage clear coat, so it won't be "half-assed". Do it right, or not at all.

[killerMikeD]

U should be ok with the garage, wouldnt start with 200, go with 180-320 to get the chips out, Then you Primer using a 2k primer, then when the primer dries, sand with 400-600, then you apply the basecoat, then the clear coat, woldnt waste ur time with the hot air thing, i've heard it messes with the hardener and messes up the solvents, and affects the normal curing abilities, But i would get a few test panels, say a hood or something, and actually practice a bit to see how things work out. That and buy good materials! No nason or NAPA paint!

[Dunecune442]

No, going with OEM BMW paint. Thanks for the advice though, any brand of airgun I should focus on or qualities I should look for? Im looking at HPLV guns right now...

[RB240Mike]

U should be ok with the garage, wouldnt start with 200, go with 180-320 to get the chips out, Then you Primer using a 2k primer, then when the primer dries, sand with 400-600, then you apply the basecoat, then the clear coat, woldnt waste ur time with the hot air thing, i've heard it messes with the hardener and messes up the solvents, and affects the normal curing abilities, But i would get a few test panels, say a hood or something, and actually practice a bit to see how things work out. That and buy good materials! No nason or NAPA paint!

good plan there

please don't use a da if you havent really ever done this before.. actually stay away from air sanders (da) period until you know exactly how to use them. Use a good old fashion sanding block and a soft block for the curves. Remember your paint job will only be as good as your prep work. It's late I'm tired and can't think to well.. I'll reread this post in the morning lol.

[killerMikeD]

A decent HVLP should work fine, but u just need to practice with it, cause u spray each Primer/paint/clear all with different techniques.

[BAMF]

I'd try to get ahold of someone else's spray gun. Unless you have become seriously baller you'll waste a lot of money that could be spent better elsewhere if you buy a good spray gun. And you do need a GOOD spray gun and a GOOD compressor that can maintain a constant PSI.

The primer is child's play. Make sure its clean and gob on as much of taht shit as you need/want. You'll just sand it down later. But the base and clear are where you'll really need a good gun and good constant pressure. Oh yeah, also, throw down water under where you're spraying. It'll help trap overspray and keep it from getting everywhere....and it WILL get everywhere...into every crack in anything.