Applying a Primer Surfacer The goal when applying a primer surface to a panel is to provide holdout and protection over your substrate. Primer surfacers provide some fill to level out feathering and correct minor flaws on your panel. Any dent repairs involving body fillers should be finished in P180-P320 grit paper before starting a…
3M Mask Fit Test Today we had a 3M representative visit our shop to go over a few things and help us better protect ourselves against organic solvents and isocynates found in the paint we are spraying. I thought I would take a minute to share what he had to say. First we went over…
How to Keep Dirt out of the Paint Spraying a clean paint job is a common goal painters in all industries shoot for. Many painters, especially new painters can fall short of this, get frustrated and have no idea what is causing the problem there having. While dirt can be easily extracted by polishing afterwards…
How to Blend Tri Coat Paint Three stage paint is often an intimidating thought to a new paint but the reality is it\’s a very easy thing to apply. With three stage paint you have to apply two separate paint mixes, one over the other. Your typical three stage will consist of a solid…
Replacing a Boxside Whenever the time comes that a panel is damaged too severely to restore using polyester fillers the next option is replacing the panel completely. Whether its a box side, door skin, quarter or any other piece of welded/bonded metal the process is basically the same: Here is the…
How an auto body repair estimate is written So you go to the local bodyshop with your vehicle smacked up to find out it\’s gonna cost you $2000 to have it fixed. What you don\’t know is how that number is calculated. Well here is a simple breakdown on how the math may work. Labor…
Spray Out Test This is a brief demonstration to show the effects of building up clearcoat over and how it can affect your color match. Many OEM manufacturers recommend not bringing your first coat of clear to the edge because it can change the appearance of the color and how it is going to…
With so many polishing methods out there I thought it would be beneficial to illustrate the difference between a good and bad polishing method. Using a scrap door I have isolated each area in the picture below to show how each step progresses. This is done using the 3M (foam) polishing system. Even…
Over time, a car’s finish can become dull and faded due to exposure to the sun and other elements. However, polishing the clear coat can restore the shine and give your car a freshly painted look. To get started, you’ll need some sandpaper (1500-2000 grit) if you need to remove scratches, as well as a…
A common misconception thrown around the trade is factory paint is better then refinish paint. While refinish paint does generate more of a margin for mistakes, it is not any different then factory paint. Factory paint is generally based on identical technology, with a few differences in application technique. Factory base coat can be applied…