Steven Smith
CCCUK Member
As promised a while ago I am now in a position to start my biggest project on the C4 so far, painting it on a budget!
The history of my car is that sometime in it's past it received a very poor respray, no panels or lights were removed and it was done in the wrong colour red.
The correct colour is 81U bright red but it was done in a shade of Subaru red.
Not only is it the wrong colour but it fades terribly in the sun, I can cut and polish it to a lovely finish but within a week it's a milky red again.
I did toy with the idea of wrapping it but couldn't get a red that I liked and the cost wasn't much different than painting it but the biggest disadvantage is that wrapping is temporary.
So a full respray it is, my biggest disadvantage is that the car will not fit in my garage so what can be removed will be painted inside and what I can't remove will be painted under a gazebo!
So this year I have been obtaining everything I need.
I did look serious at electric spray guns which are quite new and look very promising but settled on a conventional compressor powered system as it also allows me to use it for air tools.
My first purchase was a second hand compressor for £100, it has a 3 hp motor, has an output of 14 CFM and a 100 ltr tank.
Air lines, air / water seperator and connectors was another £50.
The next thing I needed was a spray gun, after a lot of research I settled for a Inokraft Drizzle LVLP spray gun at £110.
This is a Low Volume Low Pressure gun and only needs between 9 and 10 CFM to run, but can work as low as 4 cfm.
The Pro kit comes with everything you need, the gun, 3 different size nozzles for different paint consistency, tool kit and cleaning brushes, pressure regulator, air / water seperator and disposable cup system for the paint to make cleaning up easier.
Once assembled the gun looks quite big but it's easy to handle.
A good face mask designed for 2k paint is also essential, I bought a Gerson 2k paint respirator face mask for £36.
My last purchase so far has been paint. I have chosen 2k solid paint rather than base coat and lacquer because I am not using a metallic paint and I think it will be quicker and easier for my situation.
I have gone with MIPA HS 2k paint along with their HS25 normal harden and V25 thinner.
This is a high solid paint so gives good coverage and the HS25 lacquer has a good gloss.
I purchased 5 ltr of paint mixed to 81U bright red, 2.5 ltr of hardener and 1 ltr of thinner. The mix ratio is 2:1 for paint and hardener along with 10 to 15% thinner.
Total cost for the paint was £300.
Just got to buy some cheap thinners to wash the spray gun out before and after use, panel wipe, masking tape and paper and sandpaper.
That's as far as I have got so far, with luck I am hoping to paint the roof panel this weekend, I will post pictures of my progress, success or failure and keep you all posted.
After all, what could possibly go wrong
.
The history of my car is that sometime in it's past it received a very poor respray, no panels or lights were removed and it was done in the wrong colour red.
The correct colour is 81U bright red but it was done in a shade of Subaru red.
Not only is it the wrong colour but it fades terribly in the sun, I can cut and polish it to a lovely finish but within a week it's a milky red again.
I did toy with the idea of wrapping it but couldn't get a red that I liked and the cost wasn't much different than painting it but the biggest disadvantage is that wrapping is temporary.
So a full respray it is, my biggest disadvantage is that the car will not fit in my garage so what can be removed will be painted inside and what I can't remove will be painted under a gazebo!
So this year I have been obtaining everything I need.
I did look serious at electric spray guns which are quite new and look very promising but settled on a conventional compressor powered system as it also allows me to use it for air tools.
My first purchase was a second hand compressor for £100, it has a 3 hp motor, has an output of 14 CFM and a 100 ltr tank.
Air lines, air / water seperator and connectors was another £50.
The next thing I needed was a spray gun, after a lot of research I settled for a Inokraft Drizzle LVLP spray gun at £110.
This is a Low Volume Low Pressure gun and only needs between 9 and 10 CFM to run, but can work as low as 4 cfm.
The Pro kit comes with everything you need, the gun, 3 different size nozzles for different paint consistency, tool kit and cleaning brushes, pressure regulator, air / water seperator and disposable cup system for the paint to make cleaning up easier.
Once assembled the gun looks quite big but it's easy to handle.A good face mask designed for 2k paint is also essential, I bought a Gerson 2k paint respirator face mask for £36.
My last purchase so far has been paint. I have chosen 2k solid paint rather than base coat and lacquer because I am not using a metallic paint and I think it will be quicker and easier for my situation.
I have gone with MIPA HS 2k paint along with their HS25 normal harden and V25 thinner.
This is a high solid paint so gives good coverage and the HS25 lacquer has a good gloss.
I purchased 5 ltr of paint mixed to 81U bright red, 2.5 ltr of hardener and 1 ltr of thinner. The mix ratio is 2:1 for paint and hardener along with 10 to 15% thinner.
Total cost for the paint was £300.
Just got to buy some cheap thinners to wash the spray gun out before and after use, panel wipe, masking tape and paper and sandpaper.
That's as far as I have got so far, with luck I am hoping to paint the roof panel this weekend, I will post pictures of my progress, success or failure and keep you all posted.
After all, what could possibly go wrong
.
I am sure it will be doable with a bit of care and patience!
