like said, I make NO claim to be pro at this, but have painted a number of car s over the years. some guys that have posted on this thread a re pros.
I will say this. a CLEAN enclosed area is really a must. remember the rafters , ceiling,... in that old garage can have lots of dust there! it will fall on your paint! lighting, a must, I try to get by with out additional light...mistake!! but I never have enough $$ to have everything like I want, and refuse to spend the next 10 yrs trying to have it all, ( probably kick the bucket before that!)... exhaust? yes. you need to pull the fumes out away from you. fresh suit is really needed. that stuff is nasty! real spray booths have engineered exhaust and lighting!
Tadams, if you lay that urethane on RIGHT, proper nozzle size and pressure, constant air flow, right reducer, it can be laid on with a great wet look. it will be shiney no further work to it. but all has to be right. don't have a HF pressure reg at gun that goes to **** bought time ya start for one thing! ha and yes ya need to keep out the dust, dirt, and BUGS! ha
and that Ivory will be a good color and non metallic. solves a lot of problems that can arise and show up later....! think of it like this, at least ya got the balls to do it.
A clean and well ventilated area would be best for health reasons but I know what you're trying to say Barbee. The cleaner the environment the cleaner the job. Frame the area with 2 X 2 's and cover with 4 or 6 mil plastic. Allow lots of room for easy movement around the vehicle. The plastic will create a slight elctrostatic effect and attract airborne particles that would normally end up in your work. Use large furnace filters for incoming and out going air. Trap the overspray by using the furnace filters, you don't want to have an issue with a neighbor or "an official" .
Yes. lots of light and be careful what light sources you choose. An open 100 or 200 Watt light bulb generates a lot of heat and could cause an explosion. Try to shield the light sources in some manner. I've made 4 wooden boxes and put double 4 foot florescent tubes in them and laid them on the floor on each side of the car. My overhead lights were florescent as well and they were mounted on the ceiling.
Self protection is a must with today's 2K materials. Paint suit, rubber or latex gloves, proper paint mask or air supplied mask/hood. I've had isocyanate poisoning twice and it wasn't a lot of fun. I use an air supplied mask because I have to.
The compressor must be able to keep up with demand. If it doesn't keep up your paint job may suffer.
Application parameters: constant stroke speed, constant gun overlap, constant air pressure, constant gun distance, constant viscosity, constant air and surface temperature, and constant gun settings are all a must for good results.
Please use a good spray gun too. There are so many guns available out there and the majority are just crap. I'm lucky to own the best spray guns available but I also have some "affordable guns" that do a pretty decent job of laying down paint. Ask around and see who's using what type. I'm not here to promote products.
Paint prep is key to any paint job. blow it/tack it/wash it 4 times at a minimum. M<ake sure evry nook and cranny has been cleaned or blown out. Water the floor down and you may have to water it down between coats if it's hot out.
Practice , practice, and practice some more. The more "gun time" you get the better you will become. "Reading the paint" is an art that comes with practice and the result is eventually a show winning paint job.
"Determination" plays an important role too. If you show determination to do a goo job you will succeed because you paid attention to every detail.. And if you strive to make each subsequent paint job better than the last one you will succeed.
I wish all you guys the best of luck with your projects. Please be careful when you are working on your cars, your family depends on you.
Any questions, PM me and I'll do my best to answer them.
sscuda