How high quality do it yourself? Is it possible to paint a car yourself? How correctly and most effectively most? This article will provide answers to the questions posed.
Equipment and materials
Do-it-yourself car painting requires pre-training the following equipment and materials:
Body preparation for painting
High-quality car painting involves the mandatory dismantling of the rear and front bumper, decorative grille, radio antenna, all headlights and sidelights, direction indicators and other outdoor lighting equipment. If your machine is equipped with impact protection in wheel arches, then it is also subject to dismantling.
In addition, it is necessary to remove the fender liner, mudguards, all nameplates, moldings from the doors, lining. Also, the spoiler and door sills (if any), as well as door handles (for which you will have to disassemble the doors from the inside), are subject to mandatory dismantling. The problem is that if you paint the parts without removing all this, then after a few months the varnish will simply begin to peel off and fly off (you won’t be able to properly clean the surface). As a result, everything will have to be done again.
Vehicle painting should begin with preparatory operations, the quality of which affects the final result. The machine must be washed thoroughly so that with water and detergents remove dirt and road dust from the body. Bitumen and grease stains, which are quite often present on the car body, are best removed with white spirit or other special means.
Do not use gasoline or solvents for these purposes. Large defects on the car body (dents, cracks, chips, etc.) can be marked with colored chalk or quick-drying acrylic paint. Next, you should once again carefully inspect the body of the car to identify defective places with their subsequent mark.
At the next stage, you will need a chisel or a sharpened screwdriver with a “sting” width of 3-5 mm and sandpaper (No. 100, No. 80, No. 60), with which it is necessary to thoroughly clean the defective areas until clean metal appears. When carrying out this operation, it should be taken into account that the area of defective areas should correspond as much as possible to the cleaning area. This will help reduce material consumption and avoid additional labor costs.
The transition from a defective area to a non-defective surface must be made very smoothly in order to avoid the appearance of ledges and overhanging of the edges of the old car body coating. This is easy to check by stroking the surface of the car with your hand. By the way, the human hand is able to determine the height difference within 0.03 mm by touch. This stage is completed by a thorough cleaning of the body from dust, which is best done with a cotton rag soaked in white spirit.
Car polishing. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Puttying
Then you can start filling the defective areas of the car body. To do this, it is necessary to prepare a synthetic polyester automotive putty and spatulas (rubber and metal) of various widths, corresponding to the area of \u200b\u200bthe areas prepared for applying the putty. For high-quality elimination of defective areas, you can use a fine-grained finishing putty, which will be quite easy to work with when grinding the surface.
The putty with the hardener included in the kit will have to be stirred by yourself. For these purposes, you can use a special metal spatula 1 mm thick and 150 x 150 mm in size, which is quite easy to do with your own hands. When kneading, you should adhere to the proportions indicated on the jar.
Some experts recommend taking two tablespoons of putty and a "sausage" of hardener, having a length of 30 mm to 40 mm. Mixing should be done within 30-40 seconds, after which it is necessary to immediately start applying the solution to the defective areas. A flat and smooth surface will help to achieve special equipment applying putty, which includes vigorous cross movements with an alternate turn of 90 °.
In the mixed putty, a significant release of thermal energy occurs (as a result of the chemical reaction of hardening, heat is released). Therefore, the solution should be taken quickly, but without too much fuss. The appearance of lumps when putty is applied to the surface of the car body indicates its unsuitability for further use.
Hardening of the putty occurs within 30-40 minutes at an air temperature of +20°C. To check the readiness of the surface, you can use the following method: the puttied area should be wiped with sandpaper No. 80. If the putty is poured with fine powder and there is no sticking of the putty to the paper, then the hardening process can be considered complete.
Cleaning of puttied areas should be done with sandpaper (step by step you need to move from No. 120 to No. 600) exclusively by hand until the geometry and roughness are identical to the surface of the car body. Cleaning is best done in several stages and, if necessary, additional lubrication of defective areas with a putty solution.
It is required to use special planers or stripping boards to achieve a flat surface. Puttying everything the first time will not work, it will be necessary to spread and wash the putty 2-3 times.
The final control of the puttyed surface should be carried out after its thorough cleaning of dust, which is best done with a rag soaked in white spirit.
Cleaning up patched areas. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Parts dismantled from the car (which were mentioned at the beginning of the article) and elements should be washed and cleaned of rust, dried thoroughly and folded. Next, you need to clean the surface of old paint by abrasive grinding and eliminate pockets of corrosion. Care must be taken to ensure that paint does not get on the windows, grille and wheel disks. To do this, it is best to seal the radiator grille with a newspaper or install a cardboard partition between the lining and the radiator, designed to protect against paint ingress.
Paper or a film thrown over the wheels fixed with ordinary adhesive tape can prevent paint from getting on the rims. Wipers are recommended to be removed or covered with the same film. Doorways must be carefully sealed with paper, newspaper or wide masking tape. Glasses must be sealed in such a way that a small strip of open glass (about 5 cm) remains at the edges.
It must be remembered that it is not required to remove all the previous paintwork to the metal. This must be done only in places with defects (dents, deep scratches etc.), or in those areas where the corrosion process has begun (it is easy to notice - the paint swells and inflates). In addition, it is necessary to wash the paintwork if the part has already been painted, but the work was done poorly (the varnish begins to fly off, peel off, can be “removed” from the part along with adhesive tape, etc.) In these cases, the coating is removed completely. In the rest, the paintwork is simply polished with sandpaper (index 500-800) and painted.
It is extremely important to thoroughly clean the surface. This is the basis for future priming and painting. The fact is that applying primer or paint to a poorly sanded surface will lead to the fact that the paintwork will begin to fly off and chip off after a few months. So the surface under the primer must be cleaned with all care, as well as the primer layer before painting.
Primer
1. We drip a drop of soil into the chip. 2. We are waiting for drying. 3. We grind the surface until it becomes even. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Applying a primer (it is recommended to use a light gray primer) allows you to visually check the quality and cleanliness of the treated surfaces and, if necessary, eliminate defects. This will require a spray gun and a compressor.
The primer must be diluted with a hardener (in the proportion indicated on the can) and a solvent (to the desired consistency). After that, the primer is poured into the tank through a special filter watering can, the spray gun is adjusted and the puttied areas and the entire surface are primed.
The primer can be applied over the old paintwork, but only under two conditions:
- the old coating is of high quality and does not fly off the car;
- before applying the primer, the surface must be thoroughly cleaned so that there are micro-scratches that the primer can catch on, and degreased.
The primer must not be applied to a glossy or non-degreased surface, after 3-4 months such a paintwork will definitely fall off.
Priming over the old coating has other nuances. Sometimes the paint is small chips. Their cleaning, puttying, another cleaning and priming take a lot of time. To speed up the process, you can resort to the following method:
The entire surface is minimally sanded, primed with the same even layer. But since the layer is even, the traces of chips will not be completely filled and will be visible. Then a rod is taken (for example, an electrode or even an ordinary match), and at the end of the primer, all noticeable chips are carefully dug: we dip the rod into the soil that remained at the bottom of the can, where it was stirred, and then drip 1-2 drops into the chip. It looks like droplets on the surface. But when cleaning with a planer, they are quickly erased and the surface is smooth. This is much faster than puttingty and cleaning everything.
Of course, the detail after that does not look very beautiful and aesthetically pleasing, but the frozen “drops” are easily erased, and this approach saves time and money to a large extent without loss of quality.
The choice of paint and the basic rules for its application
Click on the photo to enlarge.
Do-it-yourself car body painting is a rather responsible event that requires a careful and consistent approach not only to performing individual operations, but also to the choice of materials.
In this case, you need to immediately decide - do you need to disassemble the car? To do this, you need to answer the question of whether doorways will be painted or not. As a rule, they are painted, as the thresholds are quickly covered with heels (especially stilettos), and the pillars are scratched by locks and rivets on jeans.
If the openings are to be painted, it is highly recommended to disassemble the car - remove the doors, hood, trunk and front fenders.
The fact is that self-painting a car is a very difficult task (especially if this happens for the first time), so it is not recommended to paint the entire car at once, and in the case of openings it is all the more difficult, since you will have to constantly open and close the doors that are not fixed (the locks on the uprights will be removed).
And in general, painting the whole car at once is very difficult, it is much easier to do it in parts - first paint the body (roof, rear fenders, pillars and openings), and everything else separately.
Naturally, you can paint a car without dismantling it all (first one side, then the other, etc.), but after each run, you will have to wait until the parts dry thoroughly so that you can stick film and newspapers to them with tape. And the removed elements can simply be taken out to another room and work can continue. So most craftsmen recommend disassembling the car.
In order to paint the car yourself with high quality, it is necessary to create special conditions in the room: the minimum temperature should be at least 16 ° C, the recommended one is from 18 ° C to 22 ° C. It is better to water the floors of the room in advance with water (if they are concrete), this will significantly reduce the amount of dust.
Before you cover the car with paint, you should decide on its appearance. Fans of matte shades are recommended to purchase single-layer coatings, and adherents of gloss and brightness (metallic effect) should pay attention to two-layer types of paint.
In both the first and second cases, it is necessary to follow the painting technology.
One of the most popular technologies involves sequential application of paint in 3-4 layers, the thickness of which does not exceed 80-120 microns. For high-quality paint application, it is best to use an airbrush.
Painting a car should begin only after the appropriate preparation of the paint. First, the type of paint is determined - simple enamel or base (with subsequent varnishing). If it is acrylic enamel, then it is mixed with a hardener in the proportion specified on the can, after which it is brought to the desired consistency by adding a solvent. If this is just a base for varnishing, then the paint is mixed and diluted with a solvent. IN this case The paint just dries, so no hardener is needed.
Enamel must be diluted with a solvent to required level density, constantly monitoring the process visually: after immersing a metal rod with a diameter of 1-2 mm in a can of paint and then raising it, the paint should drain at a speed not exceeding 3-4 drops per second.
For greater certainty, you can use a special measuring stick. It looks like a small watering can. It is required to close the hole from below with a finger, pour in the finished paint and remove the finger, while noting the time on the stopwatch. As a rule, the paint should flow out in about 20 seconds. This parameter is specified in the instructions more precisely. If it flows noticeably longer, you need to add a solvent.
It is recommended to pour the enamel or base into the spray gun tank after preliminary filtering, carried out through a special mesh funnel or a cut of a nylon stocking. In order to qualitatively, it is necessary to constantly stir the paint with a spatula or a clean stick before the next filling of the spray gun tank.
If you have quality compressor, then it will be possible to paint the car with a paint gun with a nozzle from 1.5 mm to 1.6 mm (the allowable nozzle should not exceed 2.0 mm). It is recommended to set the paint consumption closer to the maximum, and the air consumption should be reduced in such a way that from a distance of 0.3 meters not paint dust would fall on the surface to be painted, but rather large drops.
The torch should be adjusted to an average dispersion angle, and the enamel pressure in the spray gun should be in the range from 4 to 6 atmospheres.
Spray painting scheme. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Next comes the actual painting of the car. Before applying the next layer, you must wait until the previous one is completely dry. It usually takes about 10-20 minutes to wait. Otherwise, the paint will either not have time to dry enough, which will lead to streaks, or it will dry out too much or seize. When painting with a varnish base, it is advisable to wipe each layer of paint with an antistatic cloth. That is why it is necessary that the paint layer dry out, otherwise the napkin will pull the lines. But in no case do not wipe the part when painting with simple acrylic enamel (with a hardener) - the napkin will leave traces that cannot be painted over and you will have to redo everything.
In this case, the viscosity of the paint in the previous layer should be higher than that of the next one. You should not attempt to cover the car's native paint with the first layer. Its transparency should not exceed 50%. The total number of layers should be a multiple of 3 or 4, and the best result can be achieved when coloring in color.
Painting a car should start from the roof, and the whole process from the first to the last layer will take approximately 1.5 hours (the time interval between applying each subsequent layer should be from 10 to 15 minutes). At the end of the staining, you can apply a special varnish that will give the car a little gloss. It must be applied to the base, but acrylic enamel can also be varnished, which will extend the life of the paintwork. It is necessary to apply 2 layers of varnish (sometimes 3), taking breaks of 15-20 minutes between each of them. If you tighten it too much, a too obvious shagreen will form, which then will have to be washed off. The main thing is to prevent streaks, which will certainly happen if you rush too much and do not let the previous layer grab.
At the end of the work (after about an hour), you can gradually begin to remove the paper from the elements of the car. But it’s better to wait at least 5-6 hours, or better, a day, since you can easily tear off a piece of paintwork. Complete drying of the paint occurs only after 24 hours.
The technology described above answers the question of how you can quite simply and efficiently paint the car yourself.
The paintwork of the car is extremely difficult to keep in decent condition if you use the car every day. Seems to be against the paint of your loved one iron horse all known works road factors, pebbles flying from under the wheels of neighboring cars, a dusty suspension flying along the road in spring and summer, snow and reagents in winter, ultraviolet rays, which in the end also burn out the paint structure making it weak and faded.
Against this background, you think nothing can be done in order to restore its former beauty and appearance car body? No matter how! And we'll show you how to take pride in the look of your car. Inexpensive and simple car paint repair that will help the paintwork shine again with all the colors of the rainbow.
However, don’t get us wrong, we agree that there are times when it’s better to send the car to the professionals for repainting, to one of the body shops of a local workshop that you trust. However, if you just want to freshen up your old car by repairing minor defects paint, the presented approach can certainly save you a lot of money and reward you with a presentable result. We'll consider the following body repairs:
Removal of mechanical damage on the bumper
Removing bumper cracks
Local tinting
Shading of chips
Find your color
Before you start painting, you need to go through the first, but extremely important stage - the selection of the desired paint color. Dozens of shades of the same color can make searching tedious and inefficient. Of course, you can come to the store and sort out all the probes from them, applying them to the body of your car, or you can make it easier by looking at the coded designation of the paint shade that is used on your car. The factory paint code for your car can be found on a plate on the inside of the pillar on the driver's side or under the hood (usually the automaker installs it on front reinforcement in front of the radiator or at the rear wall of the engine compartment).
An example of the location and type of code
Type this code into Google search and you will easily find the name of the desired color.
List of materials
With the search and purchase of materials for work, you should not have problems. Remember one simple but effective technique for any type of work. To save money and time, you need to buy everything you need in advance.
Armed with your car paint code, you can easily find all the necessary products on the Internet and order them directly to your home. Within a few days, you will have them. However, only paint can be included in the list of virtual purchases (if its shade is not represented in your local auto shops).
Materials such as primer, sandpaper, putty and masking tape can be easily purchased at ordinary auto shops.
Click on photo to enlarge
An exhaustive list of the plastic bumper of your car needed for repair is presented in the photo above. The total cost of quality automotive material will be approximately 5.000 rubles . You can find cheaper options, but the quality of repairs when using such tools may not be as high. Therefore, we advise you to find out from the professionals on the forum or from the seller in the paint and varnish store the best materials for repair. You don't want to pay twice, do you?
However, if you only need to retouch the resulting chips, the list can be seriously reduced.
The photo above shows a set of all the items that you will need the body of your car. Such a repair kit will cost about 1000 ruble and he will serve you for a long time. Not a single chip can remain unsmeared.
Preparation for repair
Professionals from home renovation with my own hands, it has long been noticed that the repair of the paintwork is easier and easier if it is possible to isolate the part being repaired from the entire car. For example, to work with a bumper, it is best to remove it from the car. On different cars this process can take a different time and deliver more or less difficulties depending on the method of attaching it to the car.
However, for surface repairs, for example, painting chips and removing scuffs, you can leave this part in its place, but according to the canons of repair, it would be better to twist such a complex element as a bumper from the car in order to avoid paint spraying onto other surfaces of the car.
Help site: In order to find out how this or that element is removed on your car, refer to the manual.
The vehicle that will be used today for the refurbishment demonstration is a Nissan 300ZX Twin Turbo. Let's get to work.
But first, a little advice, before starting work, drive the car to the sink, the body must be clean.
1) Mechanical damage to the bumper
The damage looks serious, what can be done about it?
An excellent invention, they are able to survive many blows and return to their own every time. original view as if nothing had happened. However, contact with another solid object does not always go unnoticed. Usually traces of contact are visible on the smooth shiny surface of the bumper in the form of quite clear scratches, paint that has flown off and a chipped primer. The view can be said unrepresentative.
To resolve the issue, follow these steps*:
*Before starting work, thoroughly wash the bumper from all sides in hot water with car shampoo to remove dirt, oils and other technical liquids.
Step one step Sand the surface with 600 grit sandpaper. This can be done either by hand or with a grinder.
The grinder allows you to apply equal pressure on a large plane, so the result of the preparation will be of better quality, you will avoid the appearance of depressions when processing such soft material like plastic.
step two Once the area is leveled, apply a cleaning agent to remove any fine dust that has formed.
Step Three Then apply epoxy putty to the surface to level the surface and. When choosing putty, refer to the help of sites with reviews or forums, just like with paint, you cannot save on the quality of this material if you want a durable, good result.
Step Four After the putty has hardened, re-smooth the surface with 600 grit sandpaper. Watch the level of the surface with which you work, it should become perfectly flat, no bulges or dents should remain. Important! Paint after its application will show all the flaws in your work. Handle it responsibly.
And so, after bringing the surface to perfect readiness, you are ready for painting!
2) Dealing with cracks in the bumper
But before we move on to painting, let's go through one more common damage - cracks in the bumper.
The photo shows an attempted inept repair. Making mistakes
Cracks usually occur when the bumper is heavily impacted by a stationary object. It is also easy to tear a piece of an element from a sports bumper, which usually has many air intakes, for example, against a high curb. If you own a car with such a bumper, park carefully and do not force large snowdrifts. But if damage does occur, it is not as difficult to fix it as it seems at first glance.
Step one step In our photo example, someone has already tried to fix the damage to the bumper, so first we will remove a layer of old and unnecessary putty. A dremel is perfect for this job. However, if it is not at hand and your garage neighbors have it, no problem, we act in manual mode, coarse sandpaper. Tedious and long work, but it must be done. It is important that on working surface roughness remains, so the epoxy compound will “stick” better to the surface of the bumper.
step two Then go over the surface with finer grit sandpaper.
Step Three Clean the surface of fine dust.
Step Four Application of epoxy resin. * On a clean surface, apply an epoxy base coat with inside bumper, having previously mixed the epoxy with a hardener (the proportions are indicated on the package). Before that, it is important to combine the elements of the bumper, as they should be located in a normal way.
Immediately after applying the epoxy, reinforce the surface with fiberglass, a piece of which you previously cut in accordance with the dimensions of the repaired part of the bumper. Crimp the fiberglass so that it takes the form of an element over its entire area and is impregnated with epoxy. Coat the fiberglass with a second coat of epoxy.
Wait for the time allotted for the hardening of the composition. It is written on the package. At the end of the work, you will see that the crack is practically not noticeable, and the element has regained rigidity.
*We will not recommend soldering broken bumper parts. The effect of it will be comparable to the use of epoxy, but the risk of completely ruining the part due to inexperience is too great. However, there is whole line other options for repairing cracks: using acetone and pieces of plastic, welding with a hot air gun or soldering iron, sealing a crack with a liquid polymer. But in our case, the repair will be carried out using epoxy and fiberglass. We carry out work in rubber gloves!
3) Part coloring
We continue to work on the bumper. Let's move on to painting. The most difficult and responsible part of cosmetic repairs. In our example, the paint was applied using an aerosol can. It is extremely important to start by practicing spraying paint at the right angle and from the right distance. Too close and you'll have streaks, too far and the paint will be too thin. Therefore, practice on an unnecessary part, if the result is practically indistinguishable from the factory, proceed to painting.
Security measures! Work with paint in a well-ventilated area or outdoors. Its vapors, however, as well as the vapors of acetone and other chemical liquids in high concentrations are hazardous to health.
For good result painting needed*:
* We wrote about this in detail in the following article: Here is an excerpt from it:
Step one To paste over the borders of the car painting, on which the paint should not get. There are many pitfalls here.
Do not use newspapers, the paint can easily soak them or seep under the folds, leaving streaks.
Buy in advance a special film used for painting bodies. There are a huge number of them and their main advantage is density, paint will not seep through them to other surfaces, they fit well to the body, are able to take various forms relief. Usually sold in grocery stores paintwork.
But just wrapping the car with a film is not enough, for a good result, glue the joints with adhesive tape, only in this case there is a guarantee that the paint will not get on other surfaces.
step two Apply a primer to the surface. The tone of the primer should be as close as possible to the color of the paint. Prepare the surface for painting by wiping it with white spirit. Apply primer evenly from a can. Three coats should be applied, allowing each coat to set for a few minutes. Let the primer harden for at least 12 hours.
Step Three Smooth out the primed surface with fine sandpaper (400). It is necessary to achieve perfect evenness of the surface. This is where mechanization comes in handy. Wipe the surface from dust.
Step Four We apply paint. Three or four layers, over and over. Gradually, the primer will show less and less under the layer of paint, you will understand that the job is done when the old and newly applied color merge together.
In our example, simply painting over a previously damaged surface would have left an obvious stain, so we had to resort to the trick of applying new paint over the old in a thin, light layer. This will mask the fresh paint against the faded old and redecorating will only be visible at close range.
Let the paint dry for 24 to 36 hours.
Step Five Apply clear nail polish. Washed off the application is the same as that of the paint. Do not stop monitoring the surface when applying varnish, it must also be applied in moderation. Disguise your work by making a transition to the old paint. Let the varnish dry, the hardening time is written on the can.
After that, you can remove the masking tape. Peel off the tape carefully to prevent visible edges on the border with the new paint.
4) Painting chips
Probably the easiest part of the job. Chips appear on the car inevitably, unless of course this is a museum piece. Therefore, they must be fought.
First step Cleaning the surface from dirt. You washed your car at the car wash, that's good. But just in case, the surface where there are chips must be re-wiped, degreasing it with white spirit. Clean cloth, cleaner and go!
step two We take a bottle of paint and shake it so that the paint takes on a uniform consistency. We unscrew the brush, and remove excess paint by wiping it on the inner surface of the neck of the bottle.
Step Three Apply paint to the chip. Make sure that its amount is not very large.
Step Four Take a paper towel, apply some equalizing thinner on it and while the paint is still wet, rub the paint lightly so that it lays evenly on the chip. This way you will avoid a hardened ball of paint on a chip, it will lie flush with the native paintwork of the car.
Carry out the same ritual with all other chips.
Perfection Budget or Perfection on a Budget
Are you waiting perfect result from the work you have done? Do not worry in vain, it most likely will not. Not every spray booth can paint a car body well, to say nothing of home conditions. Therefore, in our today's article, we talked specifically about an old car, for the redecoration of which it is a pity to spend a lot of money, but on which it is not a pity to experiment.
Do-it-yourself car painting - real way save on car repairs, but at the same time perform quality work, as well as give the transport individuality. Most motorists paint the car themselves with a spray gun or spray paint. The device allows you to apply paint in an even layer, as well as avoid smudges and bumps. The whole procedure is quite simple, so it can be completed within a couple of days. In order for the result to please the owner for many years, it is necessary to follow a certain sequence, as well as take painting seriously and responsibly.
Preparatory work
by the most long period when painting is precisely the preparation for it. If the coloring is not completed completely, then care must be taken to protect the elements that will not be painted. They can be closed with paper, tape, plastic wrap.
Since most often the car is painted due to damage to the paintwork, it is worth eliminating all existing defects on it.
If the old layer of paint and primer is holding well, then you should not remove it by force. Such areas can be cleaned with sandpaper and degreased with gasoline. Practice shows that this is enough to ensure reliable adhesion of the old and new layers. If you still need to remove the old paint or it is cracked and has very large chips, then it is better to use the etching procedure.
With help chemicals You can easily clean a large area in just 10-12 hours. For this purpose, a solution caustic soda. Preparing to paint a car with your own hands in the garage involves applying a 30 percent solution of caustic soda with a brush to the entire surface, which will then be painted. When applying the solution, you must be extremely careful, since etching can damage other parts of the body and be hazardous to the health of the car owner when misuse. The solution is left for 10-12 hours. After the designated time, the body is washed hot water. The paint layer will come off with the water.
If it is not possible to purchase a ready-made solution, then you can make it yourself. To do this, take a pound of potato flour mixed with water. 2 kg of caustic soda and 2 liters of water are added to the resulting mixture. All components are thoroughly mixed and applied to the body. The paste is kept for an hour.
After the paste has acted on the paint layer, it is removed with a spatula, and the surface of the body is cleaned with a powerful jet of water.
Primer and putty
After cleaning the surface, it is primed special formulations. For this, primer number 138 is used. On small surfaces it can be used without dilution. If the body is completely painted, then compositions under the numbers 647 or 646 can be used as solvents.
It is very convenient to use a rubber spatula with a width of 4-6 cm for filling a car.
Since it is impossible to paint the car completely without the use of putty, it is better to straighten the damaged body parts first, and if small holes were found, then use solder and patch them. If you cannot do without applying a thick layer of putty, then it is better to use nitro putty and apply it in several stages. Each layer must dry well before applying the next.
Do-it-yourself car painting technology in the garage
Painting an already prepared car usually does not cause difficulties even for inexperienced craftsmen. A prerequisite is the presence of good ventilation, as well as the absence of dust in the garage. The paint can match exactly the color of the body with local painting, or it can be a completely different shade. If the car is completely repainted, then you can choose a shade in accordance with the one specified in technical passport or choose a completely different color, but after painting, you will have to re-register the car.
If painting a car with your own hands in the garage occurs with the help of an airbrush, then the coloring composition is prepared before work. The paint is diluted with solvent number 647 in a spray bottle or in any other container. The paint must be filtered through a fine sieve before use. Since large particles are sometimes found in it, an unstrained composition can lead to nozzle clogging or unevenness on the surface of the body.
To save solvent and reduce paint layers on the body, you can heat the finished enamel up to 50 degrees.
In each case, the viscosity of the paint is selected individually. If the first layers can be quite thick, then the last ones should be more liquid in order to obtain a smooth and uniform structure. Each coat dries in approximately 15-20 minutes. Do not immediately apply several layers to the surface, as the paint may leak and lead to irregularities.
Complete drying of the paint on the car occurs in about a day. At this time, it is better to leave the car in a clean, well-ventilated place. Although the manufacturers of most paints claim that the compositions harden fairly quickly, it is better to wait a while at home to get the best result.
Painting a car with your own hands with a spray can is somewhat different from painting with the help of special devices. With a spray can it is convenient to paint small areas, but painting large areas will be quite laborious and expensive. The main advantage of painting with a spray can is simplicity and no need to use it. additional devices. The paint lays well on the body, so the surface does not have to be leveled, but it is advisable to do this to get the best possible result.
The paint is applied in 2-3 layers from a distance of 30 cm. The aerosol must be constantly in a perpendicular position with respect to the body.
The first layers of paint are applied in a horizontal way, but all subsequent work is done with vertical movements.
A prerequisite for painting the body with spray paints is the temperature environment. The room should have a constant temperature above 20-25 degrees. Each layer that is applied to the surface of the machine should slightly protrude from the previous one - this method of application will avoid sharp transitions. Complete drying of the paint occurs within 6-7 hours.
After painting the car, it will need to be sanded and polished. These manipulations allow you to achieve shine and radiance of the car. Only after polishing can you get a rich deep color that will last for several decades. Very often, after staining, small streaks of paint may occur, which are easily removed by grinding. It is better to use the dry method of grinding. This type of grinding uses special machines that provide the perfect result for correct operation. At the beginning, sanding paper with abrasive particles p1000 is used.
Grinding can be completed only after all visible defects have been eliminated. After grinding, be sure to re-clean the body of dust, and also inspect it for damage. Painting a car with your own hands in the garage for the first time is often not done very carefully, so defects in the form of scratches may occur on the body. During grinding, all this is easily and quickly eliminated, and the sagging at the transition points of the old and new paint is completely removed when the areas are carefully worked out.
Final polish
The last step in painting a car is polishing the body. There are several types of polishing:
- abrasive;
- protective.
Abrasive polishing is designed to eliminate the smallest scratches and haze that can make the paint dull. Abrasive polishing is performed using special pastes. Coarse abrasive pastes allow you to eliminate minor imperfections in the paintwork and make the body shiny and beautiful. Fine abrasive paste or non-abrasive compounds are used at the final stage. Means give the body an attractive appearance, on which even the smallest defects are not visible.
Car painting technologies are probably the most important part of the car. While the primer and putty will be hidden, it is the paint that becomes the real face of the car and evidence of the quality of all work. Currently, there are several methods for applying the final layer. At the same time, we must not forget that only under the condition of strict adherence to the technology of painting a car can a positive result be achieved.
Types of paints
Now, as a rule, two types of paint are used - acrylic and metallic. The first of these is a color pigment consisting of two components. It is easier to apply, but requires varnishing in the future. As for the second type, the technology for painting a car body when using it involves performing work in two stages - first “base”, and then “lacquer”.
You can determine which method was used for the machine by conducting a test. It lies in the fact that a small piece of material is wetted with a solvent, then they should be rubbed in some inconspicuous place on the body. In the event that the paint appears on the rag, we can conclude that it is acrylic. If the material remains clean, then a varnish layer has been applied on top.
Varieties of metallic
Now three types are used (with one, two or three layers). The first type is extremely rare in our time, since its use does not always lead to high quality the result. Most often, two layers are applied. As noted above, the use of such a technology for painting a car comes down to applying a base to the body first, and then varnish. In this case, the paint lays down very well on the ground, and it dries quickly. Moreover, all defects that have arisen in the process are qualitatively eliminated during polishing. Three-layer paint is usually used when the owner of the car has a desire to create some complex effects on it. Depending on the viewing angle to which it is applied, it may vary.
Preparing for metallic paint
The technology of preparing a car for painting is that all the constituent elements of the body must first be puttied, and then coated with a primer. Those parts that do not need to be painted should preferably be pasted over with adhesive paper, or even better, dismantled altogether. In no case should you forget about degreasing and blowing the painted parts, which is done with a napkin or anti-silicone liquid. Next, the composition is wiped dry and blown again. In conclusion, it is recommended to process the body elements with a dust-collecting cloth, which will prevent the presence of small particles on them.
Base application
The base is diluted with a solvent and applied immediately after the surfaces to be painted have been previously prepared. The temperature of the chamber and the brand of paint must be chosen very carefully and fully correspond to each other. When applying the first layer, spots and stripes are normal, because in the future they will all be smoothed out. The second coat of paint is applied after the first has become hazy (meaning that the solvent has evaporated). The base must be dried in natural conditions for about 30 minutes (depending on the recommendations of the manufacturer, this time may vary) after applying each new layer. Air blowing cannot be used for this, since there is a possibility that small metal particles will not sink into the base correctly.
It should also be noted that it is extremely undesirable to leave the car to dry for the whole night. The fact is that the varnish must be applied to the base only in full accordance with the requirements of the manufacturer - after the period of time specified in the instructions. Otherwise not excluded backfire, the worst of which may be the lack of adhesion.
Lacquering
Metallic car painting technology provides that the varnish must be diluted with a fixative and solvent before applying to the body, based on the manufacturer's instructions. In most cases, two or three layers are used, each in without fail must be dried. Many experts check this by touching a finger in an inconspicuous place. If the polish doesn't smudge, they apply another coat, even though the surface is still tacky. At the same time, it is advisable to still wait. When applying varnish, be sure to ensure that there are no streaks, since it will be almost impossible to remove them later. As a rule, this will require removing the layer and applying it in a new way.
Acrylic painting
Acrylic paint is applied in three layers. In this case, the first serves as the basis for the next and is the thinnest. The third coat of paint is slightly thinned and applied less diligently (compared to the previous ones). It is possible to cover the surface with varnish at the end, but it is not necessary. It will increase the depth of color and slightly improve the quality of the coating. The most important thing in this case is to wait until the surface is completely dry and pre-treat it with fine sandpaper.
The technology of painting a car with acrylic paint is in many ways similar to everyone else. Most best result achieved when the air temperature is about twenty degrees Celsius or more. These paints can be used for all types of cars. However, do not forget that it is better not to apply it to oil enamel. The fact is that these two types of paint adhere very poorly.
Self painting
Even the most accurate car enthusiast will never be able to save his car from accidental scratches, as well as small gravel and sand that fly from under the wheels of cars. And that's not even counting corrosion. Before starting work to eliminate these phenomena, it is necessary to make a thorough inspection of the machine, and then decide what kind of painting will be done - capital, partial or spot. At the same time, it is recommended to pay attention to the bottom and racks, because it makes no sense to update appearance a car that will soon need to be repaired.
The technology of painting a car with your own hands involves the performance of work in several stages. These are machine preparation, priming, puttying, sanding, painting, drying and polishing. The preparation stage in most cases takes about 90 percent of the time of the entire process. First you need to remove all body elements that may interfere, then clean and prime it. Sometimes at this stage there is a need for straightening and welding. Only after this, the painting itself begins, during which, as a rule, three layers are applied. The main nuance in this case is its protection from pollination. To do this, you can use paper or a regular medical plaster.
Paint application
According to the technology, it is applied to the body with a sprayer. Between the application of the first and second layers, it is necessary to maintain a pause of approximately five minutes. It should be noted that the last two layers are sprayed with a more liquid paint (compared to the first).
Modern technologies
Almost all new car painting technologies are aimed at speeding up this process. In this regard, in most modern workshops sprayers are used, due to which not only external, but also internal parts are processed. The main advantage of such devices is the possibility of applying a uniform layer on which there are no streaks and bubbles. The principle of their work is that inside the device is created high pressure, due to which the paint is converted into an aerosol. When supplied from a nozzle, it does not mix with air, in connection with which the technology was called "airless spray". Such units are best used for painting fairly extensive surfaces (for example, wings, roofs, doors or hoods).
Another common modern technology are pneumatic paint sprayers. They are distinguished by a relatively low speed of work, however, they make it easier to achieve decorative painting of a car. Their key advantage is considered to be complete control over the spread of the flow of paint. In this regard, the most appropriate is the use of such devices in those car workshops that specialize in processing small areas of body surfaces.
Once upon a time, there comes a moment when the car owner begins to seriously think about the fact that the time has come to update his iron horse, or rather, to paint it.
Of course, the best option would be to contact the appropriate specialists, who would quickly paint the car, of course, for a fee. But what if there is simply no necessary amount, and there is absolutely no desire to wait for the extra money to appear? The answer is simple - paint a car yourself, about car painting technology.
However, remember that painting a car is a rather serious and painstaking task. And if you are going to carry out this process with your own hands, then you will have to follow a number of recommendations. So, how to paint a car yourself? What do you need to know about this process?
Painting a car includes several stages at once:
- car preparation (before painting),
- putty,
- polishing
- primer,
- direct painting and polishing.
But first of all, you should decide on the place where the car will be painted. It is desirable that this place-room be spacious, although an ordinary box or garage is also suitable, the main thing is that there must be a constant positive temperature there.
Step-by-step instructions on how to paint a car yourself.
The first step is preparing the car for painting.
The surface of the car for applying putty must be prepared as best as possible. With the help of various detergents, all contaminants are removed from the surface of the body, and in the presence of fat and bitumen stains you need to use special solutions to remove such stains. By the way, the quality of surface degreasing can be checked using filtered paper: if greasy spots remain on it, then the surface must be washed again with a solvent. Remember: any spot of grease on the surface of a car is a potential source of corrosion.
After the degreasing procedure, it is necessary to dismantle the front, rear bumper car, radio antenna, decorative grille and outdoor lighting. All these parts must be thoroughly cleaned of dirt.
Further, in a well-lit place, we conduct a detailed study of the paintwork in order to detect defects. If cracks, dents and chips are found, they must be marked with colored chalk or quick-drying acrylic paint.
Removal of existing paintwork can be done mechanically or chemically. For mechanical way cleaning you will need metal brushes, scrapers, skins. They also carry out cleaning of defective places, while the transition from a defective surface to a defect-free one should be very smooth. The chemical method of cleaning the surface involves the use of special washing compounds.
If at the same time you find rust on the car, then you must get rid of it in a mandatory manner, first of all by removing the oxide and clearing the affected area. For these purposes, you can use a grinder, drill, angle grinder, ordinary sandpaper, or do etching, that is, get rid of rust chemically. A composition ready for this (based on acids) can be purchased at a specialized store.
Video on preparing for car painting
The second stage is puttying.
Puttying must be carried out if there are irregularities on the treated surface. To carry out this procedure, you will need spatulas and putty.
Puttying is carried out as follows: the putty is mixed with a hardener, and then applied to the surface in several separate layers, 1-2 mm thick). At the same time, each such layer must dry for at least 40 minutes in a room at a temperature of +20 degrees Celsius.
Video on car puttying
The third stage is grinding.
Grind the surface must be dry, that is, without wetting. For sanding, you need P80 sandpaper, as well as a flat, hard sanding block. The bar must be kept along the horizon line. If necessary, some areas of the car surface can be degreased, puttied and sanded again.
car sanding video
The fourth stage is priming and painting.
The car is driven into a paint brush, glued, blown, wiped and degreased. Covers are put on the wheels.
A primer is applied in 2-3 layers, each of which is allowed to dry: the surface becomes matte and the shine disappears.
Then the car is blown again, degreased and the smallest dust is removed. Next, go directly to the painting itself. And they start it from the roof of the car.
The spray gun is held at a distance of 15-25 cm from the surface. The paint is applied in horizontal, quick movements from top to bottom. 20 minutes after applying the first coat of paint, you can already start applying the second coat.
Dry the car not in the sun, but in a closed garage. Drying lasts 24-36 hours. Later due time the car is checked for any defects that, if found, can still be corrected.
At the end of this stage, the surface of the car is treated with an antistatic cloth.
Vehicle primer video
The fifth stage is polishing.
After the painting, some amount of dust will definitely settle on the car, which means that the car needs polishing.
Video on polishing a car after painting
Afterword.
If you were wondering: how to paint a car yourself, you probably got a detailed answer. However, do not rush to this process relying only on the knowledge that has just been acquired. After all, the lack of experience in painting a car can affect the final result. In other words, you run the risk of getting far from the look that you originally expected.
Know that painting a car requires compliance with all the small nuances, so before you start practicing, if you have already decided on it, master the theory well!
