I am thinking of stripping all the paint off the car and primering it to prepare for a new paint job. I want to do it all myself. The hood, dh fender and front bumper are the only things that need painted and don't know if I should just repaint them to match or do the hole thing.

If I was to strip it all down what is the best process to do that? Should I sand it all down or buy the stuff that eats it all away?

And tips for both

 

I'd use that aircraft remover stripper they have at the auto parts store. Buy the gallon jug, its 32 beans. I used it on my rims, it worked great. Make sure to wear safety glasses and gloves, stuff is brutal.

 

yeah I bought some last week just haven't had time to strip the hood. now heres the real question. I have a few little rust spots at the top of my windshield where the seal is. very small but could cause problems later. should go ahead and do the same there. I have to replace the windshield anyways so should I do that before I put the new one in?

 

Of course you should fix the rust while the glass is out. And paint the car too. Then put the new glass and moulding in.

I strip cars, and parts, with an air grinder and an 8 inch foam pad with some 80 grit paper on it. Then go over it with a DA sander to take off the little stuff thats left. It works well and gives you a chance to stop before you take any body filler completely off, if your car has places that have been repaired before. While it makes a dusty mess you don't run the risk of getting stripper in the cracks and door jams where you don't want it without tons of plastic protection. And it doesn't leave a caustic mess either, you just sweep the floor when you're done.

 

Eastwood sells 4 1/2 stripping disk that fits grinder. Think they sell some 7" disk as well..They work like good and leave about a 180 grade finish.. http://www.eastwoodco.com/shopping/p...roductID=10869

 

X2
Stripper is a MAJOR PAIN IN THE A_ _ & I hate it. After stripping 4 small aircraft. I say if you want somthing stripped take it to a paint shop . If you still what to do it yourself use a tevek suit, Heavy gloves, Respeator, & a face shield. that stuff is just bloody nasty & you'll need 3-4 gal. min for a car. Just say no to stripper. IMHO

 

Do you still feel the same way about stripping parts that have been removed? i.e. hood or bumpers?

 

Yes I'll sand, before I'd use stripper again. Partly because after seeing the local aircraft paint shop here in town, using there stripper system ( It reclaims the water ,& Uses water based stripper). I'd have them strip something.
For me paint stripper in hella nasty.

 

yeah I did a little section that way last week with my grinder and a tiger disk. But the whole car? What if I pop the windshield out and sand it down on top primer then put the ws back in. I can't afford to get it painted right now and don't know how to match whats already there. I can get it painted later and not see any difference than having it painted before the windshield is back in?

 

You need to have paint, not just primer on the car. Primer will allow moisture to get to the metal and start rusting. And the windshield isn't really the problem the moulding around it is. The moulding should be off to paint the car. If your glass shop does a good job they could leave the moulding off when you do the new glass and still get it in later.
And about stripper. Never put it on a plastic part unless it is specifically made for plastic.
When I stripped my T/A with an 8" foam pad and grinder I was done in about 3 hours. With a new sharp 80 grit disc you can take off a lot of paint. And with 20 bucks worth you can strip the whole car ... except the plastic parts.

 

Chemical or abrasive stripping?


Some additional points to consider:
Unless the rest of the paint is in EXCELLENT condition, the likelihood
that just the panels indicated will match, is small. So consider
ultimately doing the whole car, even if it's panel(s)-at-a-time.
Unless you're a fanatic, seeking the perfection of "MuscleCar" &
"Trucks" (on Spike TV), prepping panels that have been taken down
to bare metal w/ 80 grit, will be more work than carefully removing
just some of the top layers.
And DEFINITELY have the windshield trim out when painting the
roof/main body.

Good luck,
kk

 

Well....I had the car blasted inside and underneath, with the exterior panels sanded. Of course, as you can see, I have some reassembly to do, LOL.

 

a guy at my job told me that when he primered his chevelle he took a sander and scuffed up the paint then primered over it. My question about that is my paint is really thick. that won't make a difference will it? My hood I have to take down to bare metal but the rest of the car I can do it that way.

 

i stripped probably 20 cars or so. honestly is not that big of a deal if you not afraid of a little hard work. i actually stripped my car. took a couple days but no big deal.

 

If youir paint isn't factory paint, and you don't know what type it is, it may not be compatable with what you plan on using this time. If your car was painted with synthetic enamel you want to get it all off. If it was acrylic enamel, it's better, but I'd still strip it. The best bet for a nice long lasting finish is to strip it to metal and start with quality products. It also helps if you use the same paint system from start to finish. Don't mix products from different manufacturers. You say your paint is thick... thats bad ... strip it.

If time, money and know how are a problem, take it to Maaco and let them put on another layer. It won't take that much more to strip it off with the rest when you're ready to do a nice job.

 

I wish I knew exactly what it is you need to do first. If the rust spots around the windshield are first then you can take a utility knife and slide it between the glass and moulding and cut the top of the moulding off. Sometimes you can work an end of it out and just pull it out too, but cutting it is easier. It's just for looks and isn't the seal of the glass. Cutting it off gets it outta the way so you can work in the area better and then they will just replace it with the new windshield. If you have to replace the glass first, I'd ask them to leave the moulding off for now. It's going to be a little more work and the groove is going to get paint and stuff in it but they should be able to urethane the moulding in later.