Body Work Faq

[hoopty5.0]

Since I'm about to go off the deep end with paint and bondo, I thought I'd offer up some information on an issue I ran into with my car. Outside of that, I know there are several of you who do this for a living, so I thought maybe we could use this thread to answer common concerns of the layman.

My issue is this:
I haven't had time to go to the paint store and buy decent body filler, so I took a chance on the Bondo brand pint of body filler that I saw at Home Depot. When sanding, it was as if it wasn't drying and was gumming up my sandpaper instantly, no matter the grit I used.

I asked a buddy who does it for a living and said part of the issue is that this particular brand is plastic based, and that I needed to use a polyester based filler for easier sanding. He also recommended using 1.5x the recommended amount of hardener and I shouldn't have any more issues.

Take that for what it's worth, or correct any misinformation. Anyone else, feel free to ask questions and/or add in any useful information.

 

[cenok is family]

bondo brand is junk, we use evercoat rage xtreme at our shop. rage xtreme is evercoat's most expensive line of body filler, but it sands like butter and has zero pin holes. depending on where you get it, it runs between $50-$80 a gallon. if you don't want to spend that much money on filler, go with evercoat z grip, it runs about $25 a gallon.

 

[hoopty5.0]

bondo brand is junk, we use evercoat rage xtreme at our shop. rage xtreme is evercoat's most expensive line of body filler, but it sands like butter and has zero pin holes. depending on where you get it, it runs between $50-$80 a gallon. if you don't want to spend that much money on filler, go with evercoat z grip, it runs about $25 a gallon.

hindsight 20/20 I suppose. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[FoxMustangLvr]

I agree w/ Cenok, Evercoat is good and easy to find in most areas and don't forget a finish glaze over your body filler.

Similar sanding story but with Primers. When it comes to bare metal you want a good self etching primer/2k (epoxy primer). You want to use very little and only on the bare metal spots. You see some epoxy primers that are a filler as well but they don't sand very well so I wouldn't recommend using it for your whole car unless your car is stripped all the way down to metal. Use the etch primer for the small bare metal spots (either before or after you use bondo) and then use a good filler primer for block sanding and evening out the body panels. Etch primer gunks up your sand paper really quick which makes it a PITA.

Body tech stuff like many other things are very debated because there is more than one way to get great finished results. My Father was a bodyman for Ford for over 30 years so I take his words of wisdom as scripture.

 

[hoopty5.0]

@cenok is family - I ran out on my lunch break to get some of the evercoat Z grip - $44/gal here!!! I sprung for the house brand @ $21/gal. It's got the polyester like my buddy said, so I will see how it works.

 

[gearheadboy]

bondo brand is junk, we use evercoat rage xtreme at our shop. rage xtreme is evercoat's most expensive line of body filler, but it sands like butter and has zero pin holes. depending on where you get it, it runs between $50-$80 a gallon. if you don't want to spend that much money on filler, go with evercoat z grip, it runs about $25 a gallon.

WORD. ^^^^^^ And more hardener = pinholes.

 

[hoopty5.0]

WORD. ^^^^^^ And more hardener = pinholes.

Really? Hmm.

I was told today that for a golf ball sized filler puddle, I need a 1/4" wide strip of hardener across the top. Is this correct?

 

[91TwighlightGT]

I've never had issues with Bondo brand. With that being said, care should always be taken to use the proper kind of filler for the application, and mixing correct amounts and paying attention to drying times corrected for heat and humidity is important.

 

[gearheadboy]

Really? Hmm.

I was told today that for a golf ball sized filler puddle, I need a 1/4" wide strip of hardener across the top. Is this correct?

1/4 wide across the top of a baseball sized "puddle" is more like it. If it has a fair amount it will get hard eventually. In a few minutes. If it has too much, pinholes to fill again or prime.

 

[gearheadboy]

Grabbed this pic off the internet. It is close but a bit much for my liking.

 

[tamadrummer88]

+1 on Evercoat Rage. When i learned body work from my dad thats all he ever used. sands really easy and good durability. I was taught never to use too much hardender. At least an amount the size of a dime or smaller.