Orange Peel

[Ron Fox]

Do you start sanding the orange peel after the first coat of clear is on or do you put the second and third coat on then sand?

After sanding an area with orange peel is it difficult to bring that area up with clear again to make it even with the rest of the car or is the whole car sanded?

Sorry guys for the bone headed questions.

Thanks for everyones help.

Ron
1969 Firebird, 4-speed Coupe

[GM Muscle]

if you want a "show car" i would use 3 coats of clear. let it fully cure. bust it open and block it with 600 grit on a hard foam block untill all the texture is gone. grey scotch brite any areas that you didnt 600. then reclear the car with 3-4 more coats of clear. once its cured, you should be able to start with 1000-1500 from there and move up and buff.. i use a really heavy clear like ppgs concepts 2021. 4 coats is more than enough. if you use a thinner clear i still think 4 coats would be enough but ive never tried the thinner clears so im not sure..

[Ron Fox]

Thanks GM and everyone else.

I will need more advice on many more area's of the care in the near future.

Thanks,

Ron
1969 Firebird, 4-speed Coupe

[TreySmith]

At work we just go at it with 1500 grit by hand. You don't need to go through all the steps other guys say. Just wet sand until the clear is even, as in no black spots or whatever color you are doing. It's hard to explain, the clear will look hazy, it has to be even.

I am curious to see what kind of a difference all the other steps make, anyone have any pics?


Here is a single stage car I did a while back..

[GregWeld]

Trey --

Great post!

Wet sanding - or "color sanding" - cut and buff... call it whatever.... as I understood it - is just what you said - use fine grit - wet - a little soap in the bucket of water (or squirter) -- and sand until the shiny spots (low spots) are "just" gone.... then buff that bad boy up!!

Nice mirror reflection in that one shot!! Not a ripple - and obviously no orange peels on that paint job!

SO HERE'S the question for you --- you said it was SINGLE STAGE -- so no clear.... how many coats are on there -- and do you think you sanded off at least one of them??

[TreySmith]

I know they use two coats base and two coats clear but I am not sure about single stage. So I guess two or three coats? I just sweep the shop and detail cars every now and then so I am not sure.

I was told when you cut single stage that you don't want that full haze like you do with clear because you can burn through alot easier.

I don't know how much paint I took off, I would guess after cut and buff you would be at a half to a full coat. I don't know how thick a coat is or how much I take off so I really can't tell you, I am sure someone else that is actually experienced at this knows. I really don't think you take off a whole lot of paint with wet sand

[yellowrallys]

I'll but in here about my experiance with single stage. I'm old school and like SS, depending on the color. As some of the above mentioned spraying several clear coats, then sanding, then more clear, the same applies for SS. Spray several color coats, 600/800, spray more color. I like to mix in about 50% clear to the last couple of coats of color, then do my final cut/buff.

[GM Muscle]

Originally Posted by TreySmith

At work we just go at it with 1500 grit by hand. You don't need to go through all the steps other guys say. Just wet sand until the clear is even, as in no black spots or whatever color you are doing. It's hard to explain, the clear will look hazy, it has to be even.

I am curious to see what kind of a difference all the other steps make, anyone have any pics?


Here is a single stage car I did a while back..

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..

[camaro2nv]

Originally Posted by GM Muscle

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.

[TreySmith]

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.