Hey, it’s Tony from LearnAutoBodyAndPaint with another live stream. Thank you for coming on. Today’s live stream is all about Newbie Auto Body & Paint Ideas – AMAZING Things You Can Paint With Automotive Paints!
I’ve been getting questions from people asking if they could use automotive paint on non-car items. There’s this one guy asking if he could use it on his glossy style cabinets, there’s a kid who wants to paint his six-foot long remote control airplane.
I told them, “Absolutely!” You can paint anything with automotive paints. You can do custom jobs with automotive paints.
I have a VIP member who’s been successfully buying and selling antique items on eBay. They buy items like gas pumps and refrigerators, then refinish them automotive paints.
I used to paint mopeds and even goofed around with my friend’s Xbox because he wanted a metallic color to it. I also painted my daughter’s quad racer from an ugly red and custom painted it to a nice purple and put some flake in it.
It doesn’t have to be cars. It’s limitless with automotive paints. You can do anything with it. Whatever you’re taking and learning with auto body and paint, you can also apply the same concepts on things other than cars.
Question: Can you use clear coat on wood?
Absolutely! My father used to do wooden clocks when we lived in Hawaii. He finished them really nicely and spray with clear coat to make them pop and they come out amazing.
You just have to remember, if you’re painting a grainy wood, you’ll get a grainy finish. You have to make sure it’s sanded down as smooth as possible before you lay your clear coat on it.
Question: A cheap spray gun or a high-end spray gun?
I’ve talked about this in my other videos. If you buy those cheap guns, you get what you paid for. You can get a Harbor Freight spray gun for $20, but everything is made so cheap – the springs in the handle, the cups, the strip, and the spray pad comes out like crap. Don’t waste your time. At least get a mid-grade spray gun. You can go all out and spend at least $800 on a high-end spray gun like Iwata or Sata, or you can use a less expensive alternative one, the Warwick Spray Guns.
The Warwick spray guns are the only spray guns that we use in the shop. It’s designed in California and made in Taiwan. Just like the Apple products, which are designed in California and made in China.
Visit the LearnAutoBodyAndPaint Shop Page where we have a variety of Warwick spray guns. Check out the Warwick 904HE or the high end model, the Warwick 980HE.
Question: Can I buff out 1500-grit on clear?
Absolutely. But I like to go at least 2000-grit. Some people want to go 3000-grit, I think it’s an overkill. If you want to cut it quick, start with 1200-grit and get it flat. Go to 2000-grit and get it smoother and prepared. Then, you do your 2-stage buffing on top of that.
You want to use your 2-pad system, wool pad with your compound to get it glossy. Then, your scratch remover with the foam pad to get it looking like glass. If your paint is a month old, you can put some wax on it.
If your paint is just a couple of weeks old, I would give it a couple of weeks to breathe and cure. You don’t want to lock in your paints from drying by applying wax on your paint. If you apply it on fresh paint, you have the chance of getting a solvent pop, which are little bubbles on your paint.
You can do color sanding immediately on fresh paint, but I wouldn’t wax it until you’re about 30-45 days in.
Question: Do you recommend using tiger hair?
Yes. It’s also called kitty hair. You can use it if you’re doing fiber glass work.
Question: How much do you charge for a paint job like the Rav 4?
If you know what you’re doing and you’re getting good results with your paint jobs, you can charge at least $3000.
It all depends if you need the job and you need the money. You can up your prices if you’re booked and you have a lot of work.
Question: What is the good wool pad to use?
I like to use Buff and Shine pads. They have the yellow wool pad which is the right one to use for base coat clear coat. The white one is a little bit coarse, which I use for single-stage enamel buffing. Then, the foam pad is for final glazing.
Question: How many clear coat do you recommend on a motorcycle fuel tank using a Sata mini jet?
You could put two to three heavy coats. That’s more than enough to put for your paint jobs.
Question: Should I finish the VIP videos first before I start with the videos from the DVDs?
You could go through the DVDs as well. The DVDS are if you want to watch them while sitting in your couch whereas the cool thing about the VIP course is we update it every year with my new projects. I think you’re going to enjoy both.
Question: Where do you start painting candy when you’re doing a car?
You can start with the driver’s side fender. The best way to start painting candy is to do it over red base coat. It’s not going to show as much as painting red candy over silver base when you make a mistake.
If you paint red candy over silver base, you’re going to get more of a candy bright effect. That’s how you really want to do it. You can still get awesome deep candy look over red base though.
If you’re painting over candy, you want to pass one whole side of the car at a time. It’s not like doing the whole panel. You want to lay it out across the whole car at a time. It’s more of a 75% overlay versus a 50% overlay.
You have to be careful with candy because you can cloud things up if you don’t know what you’re doing. I recommend if you’re doing a blue, green or red candy, go over that color base coat, so you can practice and the paint job will come out amazing.
I had amazing reviews on The Godfather Project, so we’re doing Part 2. My godfather bought a Subaru Outback 3 months ago and about 2 weeks ago, he backed up and hit his mailbox. He scratched his tail light and put a 4-inch scratch in the top section of his quarter panel by the glass.
If you want to check out the complete Godfather Project, check out the LearnAutoBodyAndPaint VIP Course. I have lots of projects within the program that I’m sure you’ll love.
Question: Do you seal all the bumpers?
You can and you don’t have to seal the bumpers. If you have clear coat on your bumpers, you can just sand it down with 400-grit and put your new base coat and clear coat right on top of that.
If you’re doing chrome parts and say, want to make it all black, You have to make sure to scratch it with 80-grit on the DA Sander and sand it down. You can either use an epoxy primer or a basic 2K filler primer to prime all of those parts. Lastly, sand it with 400-grit and you’re ready for paint.
Question: Have you tried painting a car with spray can paint?
I have and it was a Corvette Hot Wheels when I was twelve years old. (LOL!) Other than that, No. I have not painted a full car with spray paint.
Question: What’s the better clear coat you have sprayed?
I like using House of Kolor Line from my buddy Jon Kosmoski. He has awesome paints and clears. You are more than welcome to use any kind of clears and experiment with it.
Question: If you have a chrome bumper that’s rusting, can you get the rust off and clear it to stop it from rusting or slow it down?
Yes. Apply some basic bondo, do your body work to it and seal it up. Make sure to use a rubberized undercoating to seal the back side of your bumper. Rust comes from moisture, so it will rust again if it’s exposed and not sealed.
You could treat it with vinegar and water with a 50/50 mixture after you grind it, sand it down, blow it off, and do your undercoating to seal it.
Question: Are motorcycle mufflers okay to be painted?
I would powder coat them because of the heat, but you will be fine to use the canned heat paint. Make sure to sand it well and blow it off. Hit the muffler area with a flat black heat paint on it.
Question: I sold a 2003 Mazda which ran perfectly. The next day the guy said check engine light came on and he wants to split the cost to fix it.
Hell, no. I hope when you sold the car, you had the bill of sale saying that the car was sold in “as is” condition. It’s not your problem. If he sold the car and breaks down, who knows what he did to the car overnight? Your responsibility should end when you sell the car. It’s his responsibility to check the car before he bought it.
It’s Tony from LearnAutoBodyAndPaint. I hope you enjoyed the show. I look forward to seeing you again next week. We’re live every Thursday at 9pm Eastern.
For Newbie Auto Body & Paint Ideas, grab your FREE 85-Page Auto Body And Paint Manual. I’m sure you’ll love the free information. Please Like, Share and Subscribe to my videos.
Talk soon! Cheers!
Tony
Other Helpful Links:
Final Sanding HACKS – 2K Prime, Glaze Putty, Dry/Wet Sand, Clean and Prep for Paint!
Auto Body for Newbies – How To Fix Rock Chips and Prep a Car for Paint
House of Kolor Pearl, Kandy, Clear Coat Demo – Jon Kosmoski & Tony Bandalos
How To Repair and Paint Your Truck Step by Step – Part 1
Automotive Spray Guns – SATA, Iwata, CP, DeVilbiss or a Warwick – Best Bang for Buck?