Roushed2
302 Motorsports
LOL thats good gt400
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NEW HOOD-The 4 P's
- Thread starter GT400SC
- Start date
hellz yea
GT400SC
PM for Decals
Wetsanding
With all the heat in the past few days, I found that the paint has cured sufficiently to begin wetsanding. So, I'll document how I'm doing it.
I'm sanding with Meguiar's UNI-GRIT sandpaper at 1500 grit. This paper is exceptional in that it's smoother than most sandpapers as it's name implies. It leaves the surface being sanded much smoother with no scratches. This will make polishing later on much easier. It's about $20 a pack for 25 half-sized sheets. Not cheap by sandpaper standards but will cut hours off your polishing time. Available in 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3000 grits.
http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/product_detail.asp?T1=MEG+UNIGRIT+1000
Start by soaking the sandpaper in bucket of water, 2-3 sheets will do for now. The instructions say 15 minutes of soaking but I soak overnight. The paper actually works best if wet and after soaking.
Get a spray bottle and fill it 3/4 with water and add 5-10 drops of your favorite liquid soap, (I use Dawn) and shake well. This is a lubricant for sanding. You're not using the water from the bucket, but from the spray bottle.
Pick a spot to begin sanding and work around the part methodically. Spray the area you're going to work in and keep that area very wet. You can't keep it too wet. As paint comes off on the sandpaper, rinse it off in the bucket and wipe the sanding area off with a microfiber towel to check your progress. DO THIS OFTEN! Work an area of 1-2 square feet and try to sand larger areas with longer strokes back and forth instead of circular patterns. Remember, you are removing paint and the smoother you leave the surface, the easier it will be to polish later.
Here is a photo (below) that shows the progress of sanding. The lower left area is sanded while the area to the right is not. You can see where "some" sanding has been done but hasn't removed all the orange peel yet. The goal in sanding is to "level" the paint removing all the miniature bumps that give the surface it's name, "orange peel". Sand until there are no bumps and then STOP!
This photo dramatically shows the difference between the wetsanded side and the unsanded side. The sanded side is extremely smooth and a dry towel flies across the surface even though it's not glossy. Being that smooth, polishing will be that much easier.
A closeup of sanding progress near the passenger side scoop opening.
As of today, the hood is about 1-2 square feet short of being HALf sanded and has taken about 5 hours total to get this far. In all, this hood will take about a dozen hours to wet sand correctly before it's ready for polishing. I have used three sheets of sand paper.
This is another time where patience will pay off.
REMEMBER: You are removing paint in this process and it is here that you will be glad you put on FIVE coats of paint instead of two or three. Don't try this with a factory paint job!
Tim
With all the heat in the past few days, I found that the paint has cured sufficiently to begin wetsanding. So, I'll document how I'm doing it.
I'm sanding with Meguiar's UNI-GRIT sandpaper at 1500 grit. This paper is exceptional in that it's smoother than most sandpapers as it's name implies. It leaves the surface being sanded much smoother with no scratches. This will make polishing later on much easier. It's about $20 a pack for 25 half-sized sheets. Not cheap by sandpaper standards but will cut hours off your polishing time. Available in 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3000 grits.
http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/product_detail.asp?T1=MEG+UNIGRIT+1000
Start by soaking the sandpaper in bucket of water, 2-3 sheets will do for now. The instructions say 15 minutes of soaking but I soak overnight. The paper actually works best if wet and after soaking.
Get a spray bottle and fill it 3/4 with water and add 5-10 drops of your favorite liquid soap, (I use Dawn) and shake well. This is a lubricant for sanding. You're not using the water from the bucket, but from the spray bottle.
Pick a spot to begin sanding and work around the part methodically. Spray the area you're going to work in and keep that area very wet. You can't keep it too wet. As paint comes off on the sandpaper, rinse it off in the bucket and wipe the sanding area off with a microfiber towel to check your progress. DO THIS OFTEN! Work an area of 1-2 square feet and try to sand larger areas with longer strokes back and forth instead of circular patterns. Remember, you are removing paint and the smoother you leave the surface, the easier it will be to polish later.
Here is a photo (below) that shows the progress of sanding. The lower left area is sanded while the area to the right is not. You can see where "some" sanding has been done but hasn't removed all the orange peel yet. The goal in sanding is to "level" the paint removing all the miniature bumps that give the surface it's name, "orange peel". Sand until there are no bumps and then STOP!
This photo dramatically shows the difference between the wetsanded side and the unsanded side. The sanded side is extremely smooth and a dry towel flies across the surface even though it's not glossy. Being that smooth, polishing will be that much easier.
A closeup of sanding progress near the passenger side scoop opening.
As of today, the hood is about 1-2 square feet short of being HALf sanded and has taken about 5 hours total to get this far. In all, this hood will take about a dozen hours to wet sand correctly before it's ready for polishing. I have used three sheets of sand paper.
This is another time where patience will pay off.
REMEMBER: You are removing paint in this process and it is here that you will be glad you put on FIVE coats of paint instead of two or three. Don't try this with a factory paint job!
Tim
very nice. and you are smart doing it sitting down. i hate working ont he car my damn back always hurts and i jsut turned 23 yesterday lol
great progress
great progress
GT400SC
PM for Decals
VP_96COBRA said:
Don't have a lot of choice in the matter.
Check out the huge surgical scar on my knee!
Two back surgeries and both knees replaced.
Yeah, I'm gonna sit! LOL
And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
thx i feel you though im 6'6 1/2 but great progress love the pic up dates
GT400SC
PM for Decals
I just want to add that in the process of wet sanding, the hardest areas are ridges or body lines in the part. Take special care sanding these "crests" where paint is often times the thinest. People who have painted a lot may actually plan ahead and lay down an extra coat along these areas knowing that sanding later on and then polishing will get dangerously close to the primer layer if they're not careful.
I did this on this hood as well as all the edges. It's very easy to sand too far on a raised area or the edges. This is why soapy water as a lubricant is so important. Sanding is little more than friction and friction creates heat. You won't create enough heat to ruin or burn your paint. But lubricating the sandpaper slows the sanding process and with that comes control.
Personally, I will sand for about 30 seconds with light pressure, keeping the part wet spraying it with the bottle in the opposite hand as the sandpaper, then wipe it off with a microfiber towel. Check the progress, rinse the sandpaper off in the bucket, spray more soapy water and keep on.
Here's another tip: Don't sand with the sandpaper in your bare hand. Going back and forth holding the paper in your hand will eventually reveal ridges that are the same distance as the gaps between your fingers. Use a sanding block made of soft pliable sponge rubber or a wet sponge.
I did this on this hood as well as all the edges. It's very easy to sand too far on a raised area or the edges. This is why soapy water as a lubricant is so important. Sanding is little more than friction and friction creates heat. You won't create enough heat to ruin or burn your paint. But lubricating the sandpaper slows the sanding process and with that comes control.
Personally, I will sand for about 30 seconds with light pressure, keeping the part wet spraying it with the bottle in the opposite hand as the sandpaper, then wipe it off with a microfiber towel. Check the progress, rinse the sandpaper off in the bucket, spray more soapy water and keep on.
Here's another tip: Don't sand with the sandpaper in your bare hand. Going back and forth holding the paper in your hand will eventually reveal ridges that are the same distance as the gaps between your fingers. Use a sanding block made of soft pliable sponge rubber or a wet sponge.
nice great info!
GT400SC
PM for Decals
Polishing
I finished wet sanding today and went immediately on to the next step, polishing.
This hood will be polished in two stages. The first stage is with a variable speed polisher/buffer that can be bought on sale for as little as $30. Make sure you get a VARIABLE speed model. Some come with "slow" and "fast" but I don't really recommend them. The one I have for this task is from Harbor Freight. Although the speed dial doesn't indicate RPMs, you can get an idea of your speed because there's 5 tick marks on the dial and the speed range is 200 RPMs to 3300 RPMS. Simple division will give you the approximate speed for each tick on the speed dial.
For the first round of polishing, I am using a medium grit pad used for removing swirls. It is a medium aggression pad and coarser than a finishing pad but softer than an aggressive removal pad used for taking off oxidized paint. The polish is Meguair's FINE CUT CLEANER polish. This polish, like their entire line of polishes is known as a "diminishing abrasive" polish. This means that the grit in the polish cuts into the paint and smooths it very quickly but then the grit breaks down very fast to a finer grit. This finer grit continues to polish even finer and the process keeps going until it's gone and you need more polish.
As with wet sanding, start in an area and work a patch about 1-2 square feet. Put the polish on the car, not the pad. I put a dab about the size of a dime on the hood, lower the pad onto the polish and then turn the machine on. For polishing like this, I run the machine at about 1500 RPMS.
This product is amazing. The shine comes up within 3-5 seconds and then the polish begins to break down. For this hood, I used approximately 1/3 bottle.
The next round of polishing will be with a CYCLO dual head polisher using Rightlook clear coat polish. Although this hood has no clear coat, the polish will work just fine. It is a much finer grit and is also a "diminishing abrasive" type polish. As pleased as I am with the shine of this hood today, the next polishing will bring out the shine even more.
Polishing this hood is time consuming but is fairly easy because the wet sanding left the hood ultra smooth.
Patience pays off!
I finished wet sanding today and went immediately on to the next step, polishing.
This hood will be polished in two stages. The first stage is with a variable speed polisher/buffer that can be bought on sale for as little as $30. Make sure you get a VARIABLE speed model. Some come with "slow" and "fast" but I don't really recommend them. The one I have for this task is from Harbor Freight. Although the speed dial doesn't indicate RPMs, you can get an idea of your speed because there's 5 tick marks on the dial and the speed range is 200 RPMs to 3300 RPMS. Simple division will give you the approximate speed for each tick on the speed dial.
For the first round of polishing, I am using a medium grit pad used for removing swirls. It is a medium aggression pad and coarser than a finishing pad but softer than an aggressive removal pad used for taking off oxidized paint. The polish is Meguair's FINE CUT CLEANER polish. This polish, like their entire line of polishes is known as a "diminishing abrasive" polish. This means that the grit in the polish cuts into the paint and smooths it very quickly but then the grit breaks down very fast to a finer grit. This finer grit continues to polish even finer and the process keeps going until it's gone and you need more polish.
As with wet sanding, start in an area and work a patch about 1-2 square feet. Put the polish on the car, not the pad. I put a dab about the size of a dime on the hood, lower the pad onto the polish and then turn the machine on. For polishing like this, I run the machine at about 1500 RPMS.
This product is amazing. The shine comes up within 3-5 seconds and then the polish begins to break down. For this hood, I used approximately 1/3 bottle.
The next round of polishing will be with a CYCLO dual head polisher using Rightlook clear coat polish. Although this hood has no clear coat, the polish will work just fine. It is a much finer grit and is also a "diminishing abrasive" type polish. As pleased as I am with the shine of this hood today, the next polishing will bring out the shine even more.
Polishing this hood is time consuming but is fairly easy because the wet sanding left the hood ultra smooth.
Patience pays off!
1 word..............WOW!
Gib
Gib
GT400SC
PM for Decals
Thanks Gib. I cannot express the importance of PATIENCE!
A hurried attitude will leave you with a crappy final product. I guess in my old age I've slowed down and maybe that's a blessing.
A boss of mine from 30 years ago had a motto in the printshop where I worked.
"Quality, Speed or Price...Pick only two!"
If you wanted quality and speed, then the price would be higher.
If you wanted it fast and cheap, then the quality would be low.
And so on.
If you're going to attempt something like this, plan ahead, take your time and be patient! You'll be amazed a what a little more effort, attention to detail and patience will give you.
Costs so far for this (above and beyond the cost of the hood)
Paint, reducer and hardener (filters, mixing cups, stir sticks, etc) $95, Sandpaper $24, Polish (for this polishing) $12, Harbor Freight polisher, $32 (with tax), Tarp used to paint under $9, drop cloths $2, Duplicolor bed liner paint and roller kit $80. Total to date: $254.00
A hurried attitude will leave you with a crappy final product. I guess in my old age I've slowed down and maybe that's a blessing.
A boss of mine from 30 years ago had a motto in the printshop where I worked.
"Quality, Speed or Price...Pick only two!"
If you wanted quality and speed, then the price would be higher.
If you wanted it fast and cheap, then the quality would be low.
And so on.
If you're going to attempt something like this, plan ahead, take your time and be patient! You'll be amazed a what a little more effort, attention to detail and patience will give you.
Costs so far for this (above and beyond the cost of the hood)
Paint, reducer and hardener (filters, mixing cups, stir sticks, etc) $95, Sandpaper $24, Polish (for this polishing) $12, Harbor Freight polisher, $32 (with tax), Tarp used to paint under $9, drop cloths $2, Duplicolor bed liner paint and roller kit $80. Total to date: $254.00
GT400SC
PM for Decals
A larger photo....
GT400SC
PM for Decals
Notice the yellow box of "go juice" in the upper left corner?
you sob that looks greaaaattt!
GT400SC
PM for Decals
The old fart does it again! LOL
yep congrats. it looks greaat!
GT400SC
PM for Decals
I'm about to get started on the FINAL polishing. I'll post pics later on what I'm using and how I do it.
1 part polish + 1 part Pacifico beer = great shine.
1 part polish + 6 parts Pacifico = who cares! LOL
1 part polish + 1 part Pacifico beer = great shine.
1 part polish + 6 parts Pacifico = who cares! LOL
thats wtf im talkin about!
GT400SC
PM for Decals
POLISHING-Round 2
Today, the hood got it's FINAL polish and it looks like glass!
As much as it shined after using the Meguiar's FINE CUT CLEANER, today's polishing with MACHINE GLAZE brought out the shine even more. Polishing today was done with a CYCLO Dual Head Orbital Polisher. If you don't have one of these, get one if you can afford it. They run $250-300 depending on where you buy it but I got mine on Craigslist for $15.00. (Yes, FIFTEEN).
The advantage to a CYCLO is that because of it's patented dual head design, it CANNOT leave swirl marks. It just can't!
Now that the hood is as polished as it's going to get, the next step is to apply a POLYMER SEALANT. But that won't be for a few weeks. The solvents in the paint need to totally evaporate before this can be applied. Application will be with the CYCLO and (soft) white finishing pads.
After final polishing:
It's beer time!
As usual, all the progress photos are on my website: www.gt400sc.com
Today, the hood got it's FINAL polish and it looks like glass!
As much as it shined after using the Meguiar's FINE CUT CLEANER, today's polishing with MACHINE GLAZE brought out the shine even more. Polishing today was done with a CYCLO Dual Head Orbital Polisher. If you don't have one of these, get one if you can afford it. They run $250-300 depending on where you buy it but I got mine on Craigslist for $15.00. (Yes, FIFTEEN).
The advantage to a CYCLO is that because of it's patented dual head design, it CANNOT leave swirl marks. It just can't!
Now that the hood is as polished as it's going to get, the next step is to apply a POLYMER SEALANT. But that won't be for a few weeks. The solvents in the paint need to totally evaporate before this can be applied. Application will be with the CYCLO and (soft) white finishing pads.
After final polishing:
It's beer time!
As usual, all the progress photos are on my website: www.gt400sc.com
GT400SC
PM for Decals
Larger photo with more detail.
