LITZOUT

Forum friends,
I have a 2006 black C6 that I bought with an aftermarket ZR1 wide body kit. The factory painted pieces are a much more shiny, deep black than the plastic fenders and front bumper cover. It all looks good but it is time for a new paint job. How can I differentiate which auto paint professional is best for my Corvette? What questions should I ask? How will I know the painter is better than Maaco or some cheap paint place? What do I need to ask for to have a very dark, deep, ultra glossy black shine?

I appreciate any help.

Chad - NJ

DUB

By looking at their work...and seeing how well the end result looks. Getting referrals and maybe waiting until spring and asking around when you attend some Corvette events from local clubs.

Hard to tell you what to ask because it will depend on how much $$$$ you plan on putting into a paint job. Removing parts, stripping them (if needed), setting parts on fixtures and all that ADD UP to the overall cost....VERSUS....scuffing it and shooting paint on it with everything on it.

ASK them what they plan on doing and then come back with that info along with approximate cost and we can go from there.....BUT...this is also me NOT seeing your car ( being a painter) and sometimes 'us painters' can see things that most people do not realize is a BIG ISSUE that has to be repaired or the paint job will have problems.

I HOPE they plan on removing the bumper covers....that is for sure.


By doing what you are doing NOW....EDUCATING yourself and NOT just going out and finding the first person who 'says' they can paint your Corvette.

ANY GOOD PAINTER will tell you it is ALL in the PREP! YES...knowing how to spray paint is important also....but without good proper prep....painting a surface is POINTLESS. Without proper prep...I do not care who paints your Corvette ( even myself included)...it will fail in time....so the prep work is PARAMOUNT!!!! And hopefully the shop or person you find is very diligent in making sure ALL SURFACES that are going to be painted are PREPPED CORRECTLY.

Giving paint 'depth' usually requires MORE CLEAR....which thus add more $$$$ and worst than that....MORE PAINT FILM THICKNESS.....which in turn can make your paint job chip easier due to added film thickness....and when and if it gets chipped....the chip will go DEEP.

Get ready to spend serious bucks....to have your Corvette look like you just dipped it min 'baby oil'.....and especially BLACK...which shows up EVERYTHING....and making sure that the paint job lasts.

AND the WORST PART...is if the person who prepped the aftermarket parts that are now painted...did a poor job. Then they need to be stripped all the way down and prepped correctly and then painted. The factory parts are usually fine ...but that is ONLY IF no one has painted on them and they are original factory paint.

KEEP THIS IN MIND: ANY good painter will stand behind and warranty HIS/HER WORK. I DO. BUT...a person who is wanting me to paint their Corvette CAN NOT EXPECT me to stand behind work that was previously preformed NOT BY ME...regardless if it is FACTORY...or someone else's work ...regardless if it was applied on factory paint or completely stripped and re-done. I DO NOT own a 'crystal ball'. And even if the paint has been on the Corvette for a long time...just because I prepped it correctly...and then paint on it and then in the future the paint job that I prepped fails and starts flaking or peeling off...taking my work with it....has NOTHING to do with me and what I did. SO keep that in mind. And 90+% of the time...when I get Corvettes in that have had aftermarket or new parts installed and painted...I can take my air nozzle and blow air on it and get paint to blow off of it due to a very poor prep job. And it is usually the little 'nooks and crannies' that fail and the paint comes off because 'they' are in a hurry to make buck...they forget about proper prep....or were NOT given the money to do the job correctly because the owner DID NOT want to pay for the job being done CORRECTLY. I can not ALWAYS blame the painter....BUT I do hate it when people in my profession are willing to NOT maintain their INTEGRITY and willing to '*****' themselves out for a buck....because 'they' know some other person will do it ...so they might as well make the money off of it.

I KNOW I am a dying breed....if I can not do it the way it needs to be done...take it somewhere else......I do not have time for B.S.

I do not know if this helped....just do not be in a hurry. And be PATIENT with who ever you choose to do it...so they can do it correctly.

DUB