E-Coat on new fenders

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mad dog

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Hey guys, I have 2 new AMD fenders, they are e-coated from AMD... I would like to spray the fenders in epoxy primer. What is the process to prep the fenders? how much of the e-coat do i have to remove?
I have heard that i can just "scuff" the e-coat with a red scotchbrite and ive heard that i should sand it all off... any suggestions from real experience would be helpful, thanks in advance..Rich
 
This depends on how well you trust the manufacturers ecoat process. If you trust that it is actually bonded to the metal then you can sand it with 320-400 red scuff and epoxy from there. If it were me I'd strip them to bare metal and epoxy them immediately.... then proceed from there. New modern sealers will actually stick to non sanded OEM ecoat. Before the manufacturers had such quality control I would clean new panels and paint them without any sanding or scuffing. They now come with so many imperfections that I sand all the outsides of the panels, red scuff the edges then seal and paint. I can guarantee you that OEM ecoat is stuck to the metal... aftermarket not so much and most paint manufacturers suggest you at least sand it with 320-400.

Also, I would highly recommend you check the panel fitment before assuming it's good and painting them. Most aftermarket sheet metal will take work to fit correctly and have good gaps.
 
Looking forward to following. I tried lacquer thinner on my E coat and it never touched it so I scuffed and painted. These were hidden areas like the floor for example, so was happy with my decision. Not sure what I would do on a quarter or fender?
 
I’m leaning towards stripping the panels with my D.A sander with 80 grit… I’m thinking that will strip it and give it a little tooth for the epoxy
 
67Dart440 thanks… I appreciate that advice, you confirmed what I was thinking…. I will strip the panel and scuff where my sander won’t reach, areas like the headlight buckets and such
 
mad dog said:
I’m leaning towards stripping the panels with my D.A sander with 80 grit… I’m thinking that will strip it and give it a little tooth for the epoxy
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IMO 80 grit is way too aggressive and could leave you with a bare metal surface that is a bunch of work to smooth. I would not do that to a new fender. As I said, just my opinion based on the few cars I have prepped & painted. I am just an amateur though and not a professional.
 
DC340....I want to be left with bare metal surface..im thinking i want a clean slate with a little tooth left on the metal so the epoxy will have good adhesion... i am obviously not a painter but this seems to make sense to me.... im keeping an open mind with all this advice, much appreciated...Rich
 
80 grit is way to aggressive for what your trying to do here. If your going to DA the e-coat off it will come off really easy with 180 up to 320 and not leave super deep scratches to worry about later.
 
plymouth67.... will 180 leave enough tooth for the epoxy to adhere to?
 
67Dart440GT said:
Also, I would highly recommend you check the panel fitment before assuming it's good and painting them. Most aftermarket sheet metal will take work to fit correctly and have good gaps.
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This^

The fitment of AMD fenders on my 72 would have required modification.
One side had a fitment issue matching the fender to the profile of the door. Hard to explain but the panel shape was too flat. Almost like the fender skin was on the bottom of the pile and was flattened a bit before the support structure was welded on. I would have had to bend it to get more of an outward bow or curve to make the profile match the door.

The other side had an issue matching up to the fender extension. I would have had to drill the spot welds where the outer sheet metal attach to the headlight bucket plate, make the necessary adjustments and re-weld. I painted mine and assumed they'd fit. That was a sad moment when I started putting panels back on the car.


In then end, I wound up purchasing an OE DS fender and had my rusty original PS fender repaired.
 
You need to read the product sheet for the epoxy you are using. Every manufacturer is going to suggest what they recommend for THEIR product to be sprayed over.

SPI Suggests 80 grit.

PPG Suggests for DPLF 80-180.

Sikkens EPII epoxy suggests 180-320

In my experience the beauty of epoxy is that it sticks to anything.

People tend to make the mistake of thinking a coarse grit paper will strip a panel faster, therefore they use that. When in reality in most cases 180 will strip a panel quicker, leave a scratch in the metal sufficient enough for material to stick and not leave a scratch so coarse that it can never be removed from metal again.. like 24,36,80....
 
67Dart440GT said:
You'd be surprised at what you find under aftermarket e coat. Oem not so much.
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I am yet to see any issues with AMD metal under the e coat. Can someone send me some issue they have seen on AMD panels.
Thanks
 
67Dart440GT said:
Did you sand them all off to confirm?
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I have stripped two AMD panels and the metal is perfect. I’ve seen plenty stripped on the Internet. I have not heard one person say underneath the Ecoat was in bad condition. That why I question stripping it. If e coat is done right its supposedly the best protection. I would just like others to step in and say they stripped their panels and there was issues under the E coat. This is for AMD panels only.
 
davescuda said:
I have stripped two AMD panels and the metal is perfect. I’ve seen plenty stripped on the Internet. I have not heard one person say underneath the Ecoat was in bad condition. That why I question stripping it. If e coat is done right its supposedly the best protection. I would just like others to step in and say they stripped their panels and there was issues under the E coat. This is for AMD panels only.
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Why did you strip them?

I read this somewhere else and it's exactly right...


You want to trust a 20k paint job on a 10 year old Taiwan boy making .60/hour .....

If you've seen any RECENT OEM quality Ecoat you can only imagine how bad an aftermarket suppliers e coat would be.
 
I stripped it because of everybody recommending that you should strip it and after stripping and I asked myself why they waste my time stripping it when it was perfect. I bet that Taiwan boy probably works harder for his $.60 an hour then people here in the states working for $30 an hour. The next time I would not strip it.
 
davescuda said:
I stripped it because of everybody recommending that you should strip it and after stripping and I asked myself why they waste my time stripping it when it was perfect. I bet that Taiwan boy probably works harder for his $.60 an hour then people here in the states working for $30 an hour. The next time I would not strip it.
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I've bought and used over 35k in Amd sheet metal in the last three years.... I have sanded it and the ecoating rolls off of it in most cases.

Secondly, the texture of ecoating is rough, porus and has many imperfections, which means you'll need to sand it to remove all of the imperfections. Sand it, and watch how much is left. Ever check it with a mil gauge?
 
67Dart440GT said:
I've bought and used over 35k in Amd sheet metal in the last three years.... I have sanded it and the ecoating rolls off of it in most cases.

Secondly, the texture of ecoating is rough, porus and has many imperfections, which means you'll need to sand it to remove all of the imperfections. Sand it, and watch how much is left. Ever check it with a mil gauge?
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Thanks for the input. That’s kind of what I been waiting to hear from the AMD users, but yet to hear people comment on it. Hearing this would keep me stripping the e coat off. Thanks for your input.
 
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