painting engine bay

88_GT_5_oh · Jan 22, 2007

for all of you that have done it yourself.

i was gonna get my bay profesionally painted but i am unhappy at all the prices i have been getting, bassically its more than i can spend and between my trip to mexico in march plus other parts i gotta buy i simply can't afford to get it done and have the car running in the spring.

what i want to know is what paint guns are the best to buy? in terms of easy to use and not too expensive.
what type of paint is decent?
the bay is about 75% done for filler.
i have a compressor or i can use my buddies upright 60 gallon tank.

anyhting else i should know?

Ozz · Jan 22, 2007

Can't say anything about guns, but...

I don't know the specs on the compressor but I'd be more *comfortable* using the 60 gallon upright 'just in case'. You never know when the small compressors can have a hiccup. Paint isn't cheap (well, it can be but who wants to go thru all this trouble and cheap out on paint...) and you don't want any messups. Some places rent out guns, so if you really want to keep this on a budget that might be a way to consider.

The paint I bought was the same as you'd get for the body. I got mine from an auto body paint supplier. If you're asking about brands, there are a lot that are at least decent. Fewer that are tops

GearHd6 · Jan 22, 2007

Ask Bentley429 he just did his.

joeyd0730 · Jan 22, 2007

what color are you looking to do it? i did mine black with por15. kinda expensive paint. you put it on with a brush and it flows out on its own. the best is you cant scratch or chip this stuff even with a wire brush or hammer. it only comes in basic colors so if your looking to match your body it wont work out

88_GT_5_oh · Jan 22, 2007

i'm looking to match the body as close as possible, since its the bay you won't be able to notice as much (or so i am told) but i work in a printshop running machines so its part of my job to recognize color variations lol so either way i will notice

the compressor i have is a 30 gallon with a 5 HP motor and pumps out really good CFM for its size (my buddies 60 gallon aint much better) i may look into renting a gun but if i could find a decent one for relitivly cheap it would be nice to have so i can do other stuff too, are there any brand of guns that are better than others? or are they all about the same. i am not gonan skimp out on paint, since its only the engine bay i am painting its not like i am buy a whole lot of it like i would if i did the whole car

carbed87 · Jan 22, 2007

joeyd0730 said:
what color are you looking to do it? i did mine black with por15. kinda expensive paint. you put it on with a brush and it flows out on its own. the best is you cant scratch or chip this stuff even with a wire brush or hammer. it only comes in basic colors so if your looking to match your body it wont work out

dude, no offence, but what the hell is going on with your paint

88_GT_5_oh · Jan 23, 2007

bump for some more input

blackened88lx · Jan 23, 2007

GearHd6 said:
Ask Bentley429 he just did his.

:Word: I'll direct him to this thread when I talk to him. Gearhd can tell you what kind of gun to use and how to spray it, he's a pro. I helped Bentley with the prep. Make sure you rough up the surface and get it as clean as possible with thinner before spraying. He got the paint from NAPA, and it matched pretty well.

GearHd6 · Jan 23, 2007

I used a Devilbiss suction touch up spray gun. I ran about 60 psi on the primer and 45-50 on the color. We easily used a 25 gallon compressor with no problem at all. I think it kicked on maybe 3 times through the whole process. You need a decent quality water filter to filter oil/water out of the air lines or you'll have paint that wont stick and fish eyes everywhere.

This is my gun here, minus the paint cup:
http://www.autorefinishdevilbiss.com/main.php?p=g&id=12

1Bad88notch · Jan 23, 2007

i used a gravity feed gun to do mine. you want to try to find a decent paint gun thats a good price. as far as matching your paint get the paint code off your car and take in to the paint shop and the should be able to match it up.

88_GT_5_oh · Jan 23, 2007

oh, i forgot to mention the car was repainted by the previous owner so the paint code is no good. but this one supplier in town is supposed to be amazing at matching paint, i had them do a spray can for me one time on another car and it was pretty damn close, since its the engine bay i don't think it will show as bad as it would if it was a door or something

are HVLP guns any better? i seem to be seeing these alot on sale and they seem to be really common. i think for $100-$150 (cdn) i should be able to get a decent gun.

GT_Rich · Jan 24, 2007

Hey man, I'm in the middle of an engine bay smoothing project as well. However, I have some painting experience, so I can probably help you out.

I prefer HVLP gravity feed guns. These have the best transfer efficiency of any gun you can buy, so you'll use less paint and have less overspray. I have a Devilbiss GTI Millenium, as well as a Devilbiss gravity feed touch up gun. If you decide to go with a gravity feed, I suggest spraying base coat at 20-25 psi, and clear coat at 30 psi. Use a regulator attached to the inlet of the gun to set your pressure - never rely on the regulator on the compressor. Also, buy a dessicant filter to put inline with the gun (these are about 7 bucks a piece, and will ensure you wont put moisture into the paint). The llittle balls inside the filter change color when they are saturated, and thus indicate when to throw it out. One should be plenty for just an engine bay job.

Some other random painter's tips:
-Whatever gun you get, make sure you shoot some test panels before you go painting that bay!
-Base coat can be put on "dry" - you'll create your finish with the clear.
-When you first spray clear, work your way into it. Put down a stripe that looks orange peeled and dry, then go back over that same area until you can get the clear to flow. This will help you get a feel for how much clear needs to be applied per coat for a smooth finish. Just don't hammer it down right away - the last thing you want to do is run it.
-Use a good primer - I like two part epoxy primers
-Finish sand the primer with 400-600 grit wet before painting. 400 if the paint has no metallic, 600 if it does.
-Use acetone to wipe everything down
-Take your time and let each coat flash over before applying the next. Clear should be dry to a light touch before applying the next coat.

That's all I can think of right now, plus my lunch is over, so I should start "working" again. If you have any specific q's, feel free to ask!

Later,

Vipersix · Jan 24, 2007

Don't buy more than a pint or two. I bought a gallon for some stupid reason and have enough left over to do just about the entire car.

Pay more attention to the difference in CFM between the two compressors than air capacity. A 10,000 gallon capacity at 1 CFM won't do crap for you but a 5 gallon 25 CFM will rip a hole in your metal.

Oh, and paint in a well ventilated area with a real mask. The nuisance dust masks don't work worth a %&*#! heh....

88_GT_5_oh · Jan 24, 2007

GT_Rich said:
Hey man, I'm in the middle of an engine bay smoothing project as well. However, I have some painting experience, so I can probably help you out.

I prefer HVLP gravity feed guns. These have the best transfer efficiency of any gun you can buy, so you'll use less paint and have less overspray. I have a Devilbiss GTI Millenium, as well as a Devilbiss gravity feed touch up gun. If you decide to go with a gravity feed, I suggest spraying base coat at 20-25 psi, and clear coat at 30 psi. Use a regulator attached to the inlet of the gun to set your pressure - never rely on the regulator on the compressor. Also, buy a dessicant filter to put inline with the gun (these are about 7 bucks a piece, and will ensure you wont put moisture into the paint). The llittle balls inside the filter change color when they are saturated, and thus indicate when to throw it out. One should be plenty for just an engine bay job.

Some other random painter's tips:
-Whatever gun you get, make sure you shoot some test panels before you go painting that bay!
-Base coat can be put on "dry" - you'll create your finish with the clear.
-When you first spray clear, work your way into it. Put down a stripe that looks orange peeled and dry, then go back over that same area until you can get the clear to flow. This will help you get a feel for how much clear needs to be applied per coat for a smooth finish. Just don't hammer it down right away - the last thing you want to do is run it.
-Use a good primer - I like two part epoxy primers
-Finish sand the primer with 400-600 grit wet before painting. 400 if the paint has no metallic, 600 if it does.
-Use acetone to wipe everything down
-Take your time and let each coat flash over before applying the next. Clear should be dry to a light touch before applying the next coat.

That's all I can think of right now, plus my lunch is over, so I should start "working" again. If you have any specific q's, feel free to ask!

Later,

just wondering what you mean by putting the base coat on "dry" and "flash over" i assume the flash over is letting it set. sorry still new to paint. i plan on practicing on some panels i have and an old truck lid i can get for free. i am pretty sure i am getting a gravity feed HVLP gun cause they seem to be decently priced, is there much difference in a $120 gun and a $350 gun for what i am doing?

Vipersix said:
Don't buy more than a pint or two. I bought a gallon for some stupid reason and have enough left over to do just about the entire car.

Pay more attention to the difference in CFM between the two compressors than air capacity. A 10,000 gallon capacity at 1 CFM won't do crap for you but a 5 gallon 25 CFM will rip a hole in your metal.

Oh, and paint in a well ventilated area with a real mask. The nuisance dust masks don't work worth a %&*#! heh....

my 25 gallon tank has pretty decent CFM for its size, every guni have looked at requires less tahn my tank puts out so thats good. i am setting up a mini booth in my garage and between me and my dad we are trying to figure out a good way to ventilate it.

ALMOST STOCK · Jan 24, 2007

88_GT_5_oh said:
i am setting up a mini booth in my garage and between me and my dad we are trying to figure out a good way to ventilate it.

Seal a fan in the garage window if you have a widow in the garage so that it pulls the air toward the widow, or putting a fan under the garage door will work also.

GearHd6 · Jan 25, 2007

When he says to "put it on dry" he means keeping the gun far away from the panel or sweeping the gun to fast. With people that are new to painting you tend to be scared to lay the paint on thick in fear of getting a run. When you do that the paint goes on "dry" so to speak which makes the finish have that orange peal look. To get a real nice finish without having to buff you lay the paint on real heavy, just before the point of a run. That technique comes with experience. Its only an engine compartment so a run here or there isnt going to kill you. If you get it on thick with one or 2 runs that arent that noticeable then the other 99% of the job will look smooth and flat.

GT_Rich · Jan 25, 2007

I think GearHd6 answered the question that was directed towards me. I'd like to clarify his though. Base coat (the color) can always be put down dry. Even if you put it down dry, it always dries flat (no orange peel). An example of this is body shops that blend panels during a repair. Let's say they repair a door ding in the center of a door - they will only apply base coat in the area of the repair, and then blend it by applying more base coat in a much light quantity farther away from the repair. (like a "fade" paint job, but with the same color). So on this door, they've applied base coat really "dry" in places. However, the clear is what produces the final texture of the paint job, and this is what needs to be put down in the proper amount.

Like GearHd6 eluded to - the difference between a paint job with a some runs versus one with a smooth finish isn't much! Same goes for smooth vs orange peel. Since you have a test panel to play with, I suggest painting a small section that you leave the clear orange peeled, and then painting another section that you purposefully fun - just so you know how far you can go. Then, when you paint your car, you'll know both extremes and can shoot for something in the middle.

Good luck,

88_GT_5_oh · Feb 1, 2007

i came across this paint gun at a local store (kind of like harbour freight) its a no name brand and has a 1.4 mm tip
seems like a good price, anything i should look for when i go look at it again?

(remember its canadian dollars)
View attachment 406413

25thmustang · Feb 1, 2007

I used a rattle can for mine... Its nothing special but looks alright for an engine bay that will only be seen at shows, and will have an engine in there as well!

ALMOST STOCK · Feb 1, 2007

In my case.. I did mine almost 7 yrs ago

$35-$45 paint gun = Harbor Freight special.
View attachment 406313

A compressor that I use almost every day for my work.
View attachment 406315

And this is was the result from going the cheap route.
View attachment 406317

3 yrs later and professionally painted it now looks like this.
View attachment 406318

painting engine bay

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