I have heard this more than once and agree....you are basically reblocking the car one more time. The more work you put into the body/paint process pays off in the end!

Trey, sorry man but to get the look most of these guys here want for their many dollars and or personal time spent will most likely take more than a quick spray and once over with 1500 grade paper. You have to start well below that to get the panels flat again. You will have to start with somthing like 800 or less and work your way up...then it's time to polish. It's a lot of work and man hours but that's the way it's done to get that killer finish.

One of the many problems with the last two paint jobs on my car was that Chris rubbed the hell out of it with 1500 clear up to 3k! He should have started below 1k....he sanded on the car for two weeks and never got the car flat and the orange peel gone...but it did shine and he went threw a boat load of time and product!

The quality of the body work and spray job will let you know what the job needs to get to a 'finished' point. Some times a good professional 'gun finish' is good enough....once you start sanding on paint you have decided to do a lot of work!

Remember quality takes time..........lots of time!

To simply answer your question .......YES!!!
**Spend a little money on a paint job...expect orange peel.
**Spend an arm & a leg on a paint job..get no orange peel(hopefully).
I've seen $25k paint jobs without a flaw on them. Me personally, I can't afford that so I'm fine with my $6k paint job without almost no orange peel. Only I notice it because it's mine and I know where it is. And other paint guys notice it because that's their job. But the average Joe looking at my car thinks it's the best damn paint job he's ever seen.

if you want a "factory" finish paint job, a quicky 1500 denib and cut usually is fine... but when you hear someone talking about zero orange peel in a paint job you should automatically know they are expecting a greater than factory finish paint job. with the 1500 you will be able to get most of the texture and orange peel out but if you look at the panel it will still have a slight "wave" or very mellow texture..

Yes sir and you cant really see the difference in pics. Its just something you have to see in person.

I am just saying, you don't need to do all of that other stuff to get a good paint job. That Mustang probably cost about $700 to do. This is more than enough quality for your average to high level Joe. I am sure you guys could flip your car off a cliff and the paint wouldn't have a scratch on it but spending that kind of money is just ridiculous for your average person. I wouldn't mind doing the extra steps if I painted the car myself but I probably am not going to paint another car so it's not worth it for me to buy the tools. Go to a car show and look at some of the cars, I can point out alot of flaws if I really look at it but most regular people would never notice or will take the time to find them.

I mean, would you rather pay $1000 for a car with a small amount of orange peel or $10,000 for a perfect job? I know I would if I could afford it, but most people can't.

My friend has a 79 Trans Am S/E and has won several car shows with this same paint job and his hasn't been wet sanded or buffed. I am not sure, I only took a quick glance but I remember there was orange peel.

Here are some more of a Grand National, the first two are probably a few hours out of the booth, second two are after the car is finished. Once again, about a $700 single stage paint job. Not sure how much it cost total because the car was stripped down and had other stuff done.

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/3810/imgp1533.jpg
http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/7427/imgp1532.jpg
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/4185/imgp1535.jpg
http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/3342/imgp1536.jpg

ill say it again.. you have a lot to learn...:thumbsup:

So GM -- if I get what you're saying - there is one level of sanding which would be getting rid of the orange peel (so an "okay" job) -- and there is a better way -- which is really cutting the clear which would be almost or very close to the same thing as actually blocking the car out? Is that what you're saying? Cause I like your way... which would add flatness to the car yet again?

I have some friends that own a muscle car retail store - they "color sand" almost all the cars - or give them a quicky clear and color sand and buff them - which makes them "shine" and the paint looks "good" - but you can still see all the 'just okay' body panels etc...

You're talking high dollar really GREAT paint jobs?? Where the cars are arrow straight to start with (after body work and blocking)... and now you're taking the paint to that level as well?

:D :rolleyes:

Greg, I think you are understanding him completely.

Trey, I don't take that as a put down, but a reminder. You are young and very green. Take your time and use this forum as a learning tool, there are many builders here with much experiance and are more than willing to help people and answer questions. These guys have been doing this for years and know what they are talking about....respect that and you will be amazed how much you can learn and the friends you can make along the way. :lateral: