I need to know if what I am planning and doin is correct.
I am currently working on the body front clip is off. I just put the body back on the frame, frame is shrinkwrapped and bolted back.
I have sanded the drivers side to bare metal with 80 grit DA. Their are a few areas needing filler can I put it over 80 grit or do I need to rough the metal with 36 grit?
The shell will need pass rear quarter and deck filler so I figured getting the driver side bare metal filled and etched would be ok until I can get the 500 for the panel

how do I spray etch and epoxy only to a point then come back to it later....

just tape off what I'm not ready for yet and sand the mask line off???? as you can tell I am new to this and probably have rambled on enough

I guess what I need answered is

1. what grit do I da the metal before the filler

2. what type of primer over DX1791

3. I have read in past posts that a beginner should do a panel {section} at a time but im confused how to blend it all together when done?

Chris, for the first coat of filler on metal I would go with 36 grit. After that 80 grit is gine. Just on metal I want as much "tooth" as I can get for the filler to bite on too.

For the beginner the panel by panel method is best as you wont get over whelmed with one HUGE project just smaller ones smile.gif

Now you want to do any body work first, get the metal as straight as you can get it first before you apply any filler. Rough up any areas that need filler with 36 grit. Apply your filler and block it smooth. Now you want to da the metal with 180 or even 240 grit. You dont need or want those 80 grit sand srcatches in metal or filler. You should block out that final coat of filler with 180 and also sand the metal with 180 also. The coaser scratches just give the primer more area to fill and that can lead to excessive shrinkage, so go with 180 or 240 before any primer.

Once you are done with that blow off any metal with air and then wipe it clean with a surface cleaner such as PPG's DX330. This will remove any containments that remained on the metal and didnt get blown off. You can apply in 2 ways, first take a rag and fold it 4ths then pour some cleaner on rag just enough to dampen the rag then wipe the area with the rag. Then take another clean DRY rag and wipe it dry as you DONT want to allow the cleaner to dry on the surface. The second method would be place some cleaner in a spray bottle and spray it on then wipe dry, either way will work fine.

Once done I like to allow the panel to sit for around 10 mins before I apply any product. Then apply your wash primer(dx1791) you only need one coat. Allow 20 mins flash time for that then you can apply some 2K or primer surfacer. I prefer PPG's k38 primer surfacer. Apply 3-4 coats of k38.

I would get as many other panels done first then worry about the shell. Once you have the money for a quarter and filler then I would start working on the entire shell. But if you wanted to work on half the car then install new quarter, you can blend the products together pretty easy.

What I would do is skip the epoxy primer period, no need for it when you are first appling a wash primer and then a 2k primer. Get the good quarter done and sanded along with the roof and half way down the other quarter til you meet the sail panel joint. Once you have the them done apply your dx1791 over the good quarter and roof and down the sail panel on the other side. This time apply the dx1791 in 2 coats instead of one coat. Dont apply any other products over this, unless it will sit outside then you should apply an epoxy over that.

Once you have the new quarter installed sand the entire roof and other quarter with 240 grit, just enough to scuff sand it and apply one coat of dx1791 over the entire car. Dx1791 MUST be sanded and recoated after a 24 hr time period if not topcoated within a certain time frame.

Now if the car sits outside apply a coat of epoxy over that dx1791. When new quarter installed just scuff the epoxy and recoat it as well with epoxy. All thou it says dplf can be recoated any time up to one week before sanding I still scuff it, makes me feel better. Also if you do buy the epoxy buy the 402 hardner, DONT get the 401.

No need for tape lines just sand far enough into the old bad quarter and paint into the bad quarter.

Hopefully thats understandable as am not the best in putting stuff into words...Eric

Why the DP402LF and not the DP401LF? Is this because of the induction period?

I just bought the 401 because it had longer pot life; is that not really a concern? :confused:

I do like the cleaner in a bottle suggestion! That works a lot quicker!

Crankshaft

401 has like a 72 hr potlife were 402 has a 8hr. But in order for 401 to achieve max performance properties it MUST be allowed an induction time of 30 mins. An induction time is that the product must sit for 30 mins after being mixed. No induction time is needed for 402. I just find that a big PITA. Also you can topcoat 402 faster then 401, 401 you need to wait a hour or more before any topcoat, 402 is 30 mins. But from what I have found with using both 401 and 402 is that the 402 sands easier. Epoxy is hard enough to sand the 401 makes it abit harder as I find it gums up faster as it seems softer were when mixed with 402 it seems harder and wont gum up.

So pretty much I hate having that induction time and 402 sands better then 401

Thanks Eric, your wisdom is appreciated.

chris

How do you know when to stop sanding the filler? I know it sounds dumb but I too often end up sanding away most of the filler I just spread. graemlins/sad.gif

Yes, thanks for sharing the knowledge/experience, Sevt!

DaDon,
Get a flexible straight-edge and place it over the filler, with each end touching metal (on either side of the spot you are working). It should all be flush.

Are you using a longboard to sand with? You know, something longer than the area your working? This will help keep you from digging in and going too deep.

Crankshaft

This question will show my body work ignorance...

I recieved great help on the types of sanders to get but how do you use them? Ive read you block with a X pattern but do you use the sander with the long part in a line or go sideways in a x.

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I hope i have gave a idea what the heck I'm talking about.

chris

I do have a long board Crank...but you can't always use it...especially along body lines. I'm learning to "lighten up" a bit, and not try to dig into the filler too heavily. I see where most guys like to use 80 or even 36 grit for the initial sand on the filler but, when I tried that I just dug it out pretty bad. So I'm using 100 grit and a lighter touch. I don't have big areas to work on, just a bunch of smaller ones like a couple of dings and a patch or two. It just gets frustrating to go over the same area 2, even 3 times. Wish I was better at this! graemlins/angry.gif

Don I wish I could only tell you when to stop sanding and when you need more. The best method is by running your palm of your hand over the filler and surrounding metal. It should feel smooth without any bumps or wierd areas going from metal to filler.

Even thou this might sound dump but try placing a soft rag between yout palm and the surface and then rub your hand back and forth. The rag will help you pick up those minor lows and highs. I use this method once in awhile when I get a funky spot and just cant pen point it.

As for digging in the filler sounds like your are using too much pressure. You want the board to float across surface. Use only enough pressure to keep the paper in contact with the surface, be gentle smile.gif

I sand the long side of the board and work in the X pattern. I also nose the leading edge of board down just SLIGHTLY that keeps the paper from catching