Post by grumpynorthener on Jan 16, 2024 7:33:00 GMT
The primer was then profiled back - largely by hand =
Guide coats are critical if you want to achieve a decent quality final paint finish
Just requires a methodical process to work around the van completing one area at a time
Areas have been spot primed where required - these shall be keyed back this morning
And its also been remasked where required - all being well and providing I can get the workshop temperatures to an acceptable level for painting I should be able to apply the final body colour to the bodyshell today (Its currently -4 outside)
Post by grumpynorthener on Jan 19, 2024 17:47:20 GMT
In between various other things I wet flatted the offside rear panel
Followed by a first stage machine polish
I don't want to over polish the paint - It's a commercial vehicle and whilst I want a reasonable quality to the paint I don't want the van to carry a over restored look
Care is required on the screwheads otherwise the paint will be thinned to reveal the metal head of the screw
Post by grumpynorthener on Jan 25, 2024 10:28:13 GMT
Various loose panels & closures have now gone into paint
They will get flatted & polished as I fit them back to the van
Made sure that I painted the door hinges at the same time
Whilst waiting for the paint to cure I've made a start on refitting the bulkhead & wiring harness around the front chassis area - I'm fitting new rubber grommets to the bulkhead along with new harness clips as I progress as the originals are well past their sell by dates - further updates to follow soon
Post by grumpynorthener on Jan 26, 2024 9:39:09 GMT
Tyres on the van were new 10 + years ago - they haven't seen any road use and less than a few hundred metres has been covered by the treads whilst the chassis & body has been transferred from a few locations
Most owners think that if a tyre has sufficient tread depth then its more than fine for road use - look closely at the pic - new tyres 10 years old and the sidewalls are extensively cracked - I wouldn't fit these to a wheelbarrow let alone a road vehicle
Replacement tyres in stock and I will get them swapped over when I repaint the rims
Bulkhead at a mid point through flatting & first stage polishing
Now completed
Along with all the fixed panels on the offside
Inner wings / splash panels now refitted to the chassis
Along with various brackets / fittings - The wiring harness continues to be clipped insitu as I progress - Lots happening but just not a lot that can be captured photographically
Post by grumpynorthener on Jan 27, 2024 22:20:03 GMT
Door hinges were attached today to the nearside front door
Along with both the rears which were then fitted & aligned to the van
They all still require flatting & polishing along fitting up with the glass & door furniture - The rear of the panels will all be treated with a cavity wax before the door cards area fitted too - This now frees up my panel stands to allow the next batch of panels & parts to be primed then painted - more soon
Post by grumpynorthener on Jan 30, 2024 8:32:46 GMT
Last batch of the body panels were put into primer
Guide coated then profiled back
Rehung to the panel stands for final prep
Then the colour coats applied
Pics may look a little hazy as this was immediately after they had been sprayed
Some of the panels will be hung to the van prior to being flatted & polished
Others like the bonnet panels are better flatted & polished as separate panels prior to being assembled & fitted to the van - more to follow as progress allows but this is now all the blue applied with exception of the wheels - still lots of smaller parts to spray black yet
Post by grumpynorthener on Feb 1, 2024 19:31:52 GMT
Offside front door is now fitted & aligned to the van
Along with the door for the spare wheel
Large batch of smaller parts hung to the stands
This is a time consuming process in ensuring that you get the maximum number of parts hung in the batch
Whilst ensuring that you can access all areas of the parts in order to apply the paint
In some cases its impossible without painting the part in 2 stages - inside first then the outside once the inside faces have cured - In some cases parts can be carefully touched in where they have had to be hung or supported and in most cases of the parts you see here they are all not directly within eyesight
However its still critical to ensure that primer / final paint covers all surfaces otherwise its just an open invitation for rust to develop in the areas where insufficient paint coverage exists
The other critical point is to ensure nothing is going to fall / detach from the stands whilst they are being painted - the air pressure from the spraygun is more powerful than you think that it is - I leave nothing to chance and use a whole range of methods - everything from making a simple friction fit mounting to double sided duck tape to wire lanyards along with physically bolting parts to the stands if required
Looks great Chris, any wisdom to share on painting hinges in such a way that they don't immediately chip when used? cheers.
JP - Things like hinges don't receive the attention that the larger panels such as wings / fenders / doors etc - For this reason they tend to suffer from poor preparation prior to paintwork along with a build up of paint density that chips very easily - It's tedious but the better the preparation the better the results - If its a poor substrate or thick paint I would bare metal the hinge - always key the base metal and consider using a self etching primer that forms a strong key with the metal - Good quality paint materials go a long way to obtaining not the just correct finish but also a reasonable lifespan of the paint too
Post by grumpynorthener on Feb 2, 2024 20:35:16 GMT
Lots of sanding / keying back of the primed small parts
Which accounted for most of today
Rehung to the panel stands - sanding dust removed and plenty of panel wipe applied
Then on with the paint - one mist coat - two full coats
Everything from the starting handle to door lock parts - front bumper & the grille insert for the radiator cowl panel
Tool box panel
Very oddly shaped front quarter panels
Headlamp bowls along with no end of brackets / stays / access panels
Handbrake parts & rear door stays
Chassis end caps & front wing supports
Just had a count up and to date I've undertaken 5 separate stages of primer followed by 5 separate colour stages and there's still another black stage primer + colour to follow for the seat frames & spring pads, another primer + blue colour stage for the wheels & primer + colour stage for the cream dashboard & internal window surrounds - One van = 8 primer stages & 8 colour stages = 16 individual painting stages
Looks great Chris, any wisdom to share on painting hinges in such a way that they don't immediately chip when used? cheers.
JP - Things like hinges don't receive the attention that the larger panels such as wings / fenders / doors etc - For this reason they tend to suffer from poor preparation prior to paintwork along with a build up of paint density that chips very easily - It's tedious but the better the preparation the better the results - If its a poor substrate or thick paint I would bare metal the hinge - always key the base metal and consider using a self etching primer that forms a strong key with the metal - Good quality paint materials go a long way to obtaining not the just correct finish but also a reasonable lifespan of the paint too
