interior painting prep question
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 1,006
Likes: 163
From: Grand Harbor in South Carolina
interior painting prep question
Hopefully soon I will be getting to the interior restoration on my '61. What would be the best proceedure for preping the fiberglass interior parts ( center console, gage cluster ,kick panels, etc. ) for the new paint. I will be using spray can to do the job as that is all I have access to and any experience with , but am hoping to get some much needed "prep experience" from you guys. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Race Director
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 17,681
Likes: 3,678
From: Central Arkansas
Are you using paint or interior plastic/vinyl dye - might make a slight difference? In any case I would clean them very good with strong soap and then wipe them down a couple times with something like DuPont Prep Sol - an oil and wax remover. If they are in good shape, don't need any repairs, and your looking for an OEM look, you can probably just scuff them lightly with 1000 grit sandpaper and spray them. I don't know about a 61 but I don't remember finding any evidence of primer on my 66 interior parts. It would probably be a good idea to spray a light coat of adhesion promoter first like Bulldog or SEM sells. If your going for a superior finish to OEM then using a high build, sandable primer first and block sanding with the 3M rubber backing pads would the first step. If you have some small nicks or scratchs the red plastic spot putty you can buy about anywhere will probably take care of it. It's usually lacquer based and has some inherent shrinkage so let it cure out good before sanding down and its probably best to primer over any of these areas, at least lightly with a regular non-sanding primer. Also pick up some tack cloths and use them before each coat you apply to keep dust nibs and stuff out of your finished paint.
Dan
Dan
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 8,506
Likes: 3
From: Calhoun, GA_______ Let It Rock
I agree with Dan. You can find all this stuff, at your local autobody paint supply store. You can also substitute Windex for the prep sol. Wash everything down heavily with it 3-4 times. Tac rags are about 1.00 each at Wal-Mart. Just lightly run them over the surface before painting. Don't press down hard on them. The Bulldog stuff may only be sprayable from a gun ? Be sure to mask all the areas to prevent overspray.
Last edited by Grey Ghost; May 28, 2006 at 09:01 AM.
