Help me stop second guessing on my refinish steps

A

aggie jon

About to start on a restoration of a 1949 Chevrolet truck flatbed. It was an old farm truck so there is some body work to be done, and some layers of old paint to come off.

I am hesitant to use a sandblaster because I don't know one locally that I trust to not warp the panels. I have to add a few patch panels to the cab. Most everything else is just a little bump bump and some filler. Planning to sand the old paint off to bare metal with 36 and 80 on the DA or grinder. And I plan to do the work in chunks, so one fender, other fender, grill, hood, door, other door, cab, etc. and epoxy each part as I get them stripped and bodywork complete. However I plan to paint the entire truck (maroon with black fenders) at one time. So.....

Both colors on the cab and front clip will be dark colors. What color epoxy should I use? I have some body work that I will have to do following the sand and epoxy prime, and all the hi build primers are gray, and 2k comes in white/black/gray. Does it matter the color of epoxy? Would it be beneficial to cover with black to keep the dark tone and cover easier? Thoughts?

Thanks
 
I am using black epoxy and painting a medium dark blue. You can always use a gray 2k if that's what is needed for tone. (I'm fairly new to this so some of the other guys will be able to answer that question Better than I) also when it came time to strip my vehicles I used a combination of a 7 inch grinder with a 3m 36 grit green corps disc(like a giant roloc) a 3m clean and strip disc on the 4-1/2" and the die grinder, and a sander. The strip disc was pretty quick and very forgiving.

Forgot to add if you are in a hurry to order and don't get a response just get Barry's number off the site and give him a ring. Super helpful guy.
 
Dark colors cover well, so it wouldn't matter much what color your primer is. One question I always ask myself: What color primer would show the least in a chip or a scratch? I would go with black in your case. Black epoxy and black Turbo 2k. Grey would be fine too though...it doesn't REALLY matter.
 
Dark colors cover well, so it wouldn't matter much what color your primer is. One question I always ask myself: What color primer would show the least in a chip or a scratch? I would go with black in your case. Black epoxy and black Turbo 2k. Grey would be fine too though...it doesn't REALLY matter. Sometimes I use different colors of primer as guide coat - so I can tell when I have broken through one layer into another.
 
Black epoxy is convenient because as well as being a most excellent primer, it can also serve as an all-in-one primer/topcoat for inner fenders, suspension components, etc. Black is what I use by far the most of these days.
 
Thanks guys! I thought I was on the right track, just wanted someone to confirm that I was. I'm still trying to figure out in my mind how to do this...I need to strip the body components, and I am going to go to bare steel. Its a hobby and with a full time job, two kiddos and a wife, my work on the project seems to be performed in 1 to 2 hour blocks. I have quite a bit of body work that will have to be done (old farm truck with lots of small working dents, and a roof that I think was a landing pad for hay bales and feed sacks). Should I strip to bare steel then epoxy and then fix the dents (hammer & dolly and filler) or leave in bare steel and epoxy once the body work is all done, then recoat before the chemical adhesion window of the epoxy is closed? It will be indoors in the shop once stripped. However, I am in central Texas, so we have fairly high humidity most of the time. I figured I would have some flash rust come on but could easily knock it off with 80grit on the DA before I was to prime.

How do you guys tackle it? I've read so much that now all the stuff is jumbled up. I just want to do it the was that will be best in the long run.
 
Yes sir. Strip to bare steel then lay epoxy then give it overnight and apply filler. I use a 1.4 gun for epoxy when its fresh. If you mix too much no worries put it in a covered mix cup and save it for tomorrow. Strip and spray another area the next day with what you have left. I have used it when 5-6 days old my self. Its starts to thicken a bit when steeped that long so at day 2 on I spray with a 1.7. A one seven would work throughout for primers and the titan vaper crash turned me onto has worked pretty well for epoxy and 2k(and a bit of thinned slick sand) and can be had for under $40 if you shop around. Best of luck and this is the forum for top notch advice, I have Barry's number in my speed dial for "right now" questions as well. A no bullshit zone around these parts.
 
My projects tend to sit for quite a while also. I try to do all of the hammer and dolly work first before stripping anything. As soon as it is stripped to bare metal, I like to get it cleaned and epoxied. You don't want to hammer and dolly on the epoxy.

Chris
 
I was, and still am, in the same situation as you with having to work on one panel at a time. My process was to strip a panel to bare steel and two coats epoxy then the next day apply and block out my filler the another two coats of epoxy. Then I'd move on to the next panel until I had all panels in epoxy. Now I'm in the 2k stage so I lightly sand the cured epoxy with 180 and spray the 2k primer. After I block the 2k I spray another coat of epoxy, which is probably unnecessary but I like the peace of mind that everything is sealed up and protected while I work on the next panel.

I'd also recommend using the black epoxy. It should dry to a semigloss finish that is very helpful when looking for dents, dings, or waves. You ought to consider using SPI black on those fenders - Barry has a great looking black base.

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I was, and still am, in the same situation as you with having to work on one panel at a time. My process was to strip a panel to bare steel and two coats epoxy then the next day apply and block out my filler the another two coats of epoxy. Then I'd move on to the next panel until I had all panels in epoxy. Now I'm in the 2k stage so I lightly sand the cured epoxy with 180 and spray the 2k primer. After I block the 2k I spray another coat of epoxy, which is probably unnecessary but I like the peace of mind that everything is sealed up and protected while I work on the next panel.

I'd also recommend using the black epoxy. It should dry to a semigloss finish that is very helpful when looking for dents, dings, or waves. You ought to consider using SPI black on those fenders - Barry has a great looking black base.
 
it's ok to do stuff in pieces and take a lifetime to do it....however, THE BIGGEST MISTAKE YOU CAN MAKE IS TO PUT ANY TYPE PAINT OR PRIMER OVER CURED EPOXY...YOU MUST SQUIRT A TIE COAT OF EPOXT TO GET ADHESION, FOR US, NO MORE THAN 4 DAYS AFTER SHOOTING THE CURED EPOXY...ANY OTHER WAY INVITES AND MOST LIKELY WILL CAUSE INTERCOAT ADHESION PROBLEMS, USUALLY AFTER YOU'RE FULLY DONE AND IN THE SUN...my opinion only and worth what you paid for it
 
DavidL;32404 said:
You ought to consider using SPI black on those fenders - Barry has a great looking black base.
Click to expand...

So I have heard. And using the black is the plan. I just wish I could get an SPI base in Cape Maroon. Then I could just write one big check to Barry and my shopping for paint and supplies would be complete!

- - - Updated - - -

DavidL;32404 said:
You ought to consider using SPI black on those fenders - Barry has a great looking black base.
Click to expand...

So I have heard. And using the black is the plan. I just wish I could get an SPI base in Cape Maroon. Then I could just write one big check to Barry and my shopping for paint and supplies would be complete!
 
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