Cost of decent paint job
01-22-2019, 05:21 PM
#221
I backed into a pole. Middle of rear between bumpers. To repair and fix cracks and other repairs done earlier and bonding strips..& clear coat base coat, put back bumpers, lights etc. Was $6,000 in Maine.
Most of cost was labor. 20-30 hrs of block sanding to make lines sharp. Two other shops in Maine wanted $ 7,000 to $10,000. If I did front Add $6,000 to $8,000. Total car would have been close to $15,000. I do not throw money away....that is what it costs to have a good job done by others.
Paint was $2,000 Spies Heckler....
jack
Most of cost was labor. 20-30 hrs of block sanding to make lines sharp. Two other shops in Maine wanted $ 7,000 to $10,000. If I did front Add $6,000 to $8,000. Total car would have been close to $15,000. I do not throw money away....that is what it costs to have a good job done by others.
Paint was $2,000 Spies Heckler....
jack
01-22-2019, 05:28 PM
#223
Race Director
If a shop has too much overhead and can't make a profit on paint jobs alone, looks to me like he should turn the work away and do something else instead of burdening the customer with his fixed, "too high" costs. .
Commercial businesses are not the only place to get a quality job, no mater what your standard is.
Maybe thats why i paid 1/3 as much for a better paint job than other people paid.
Doug
01-22-2019, 05:32 PM
#224
Race Director
Doug
Last edited by AZDoug; 01-22-2019 at 05:33 PM.
01-22-2019, 06:32 PM
#225
Safety Car
My painter gave me his hourly rate and what typical processes cost. He told me I could do as much as I could to save money and even told me how he would do certain things and what he uses. I found a lot of good painters but finding people that do proper fiberglass repair was another story. In the OP’s original post he said the paint is 97% original with touch ups and typical paint cracks. What causes typical cracks? Joint shrinkage? 50 year old paint degrading? Damage from underneath? I have no clue. The OP also stated he knew it depended on the level of prep work though he never said what he expected.
I think you can get excellent work from a broad price range based on your own talents or finding good talent at a great price. My hat is off to you that can do it yourself. I think I could do my repairs but I don’t really want to experiment on this one. Plus I don’t have the room or probably the patience for all that sanding. So I have ended killing my budget for now but I have peace of mind knowing that my body work was done by someone who has been doing this 30 years and it will be right for even my son to enjoy throughout his lifetime. Part of my higher price overall is that I am having them reinstall all the glass and seals as well as remove and reinstall the body. So maybe I’m not to far off on just paint and primer as the extras add up. At least if my son just paints the car in 25 years he will only have a paint price and not body repairs. Of course one wreck throws that out the window. So I will be saving up a little longer to finish the car now.
I think you can get excellent work from a broad price range based on your own talents or finding good talent at a great price. My hat is off to you that can do it yourself. I think I could do my repairs but I don’t really want to experiment on this one. Plus I don’t have the room or probably the patience for all that sanding. So I have ended killing my budget for now but I have peace of mind knowing that my body work was done by someone who has been doing this 30 years and it will be right for even my son to enjoy throughout his lifetime. Part of my higher price overall is that I am having them reinstall all the glass and seals as well as remove and reinstall the body. So maybe I’m not to far off on just paint and primer as the extras add up. At least if my son just paints the car in 25 years he will only have a paint price and not body repairs. Of course one wreck throws that out the window. So I will be saving up a little longer to finish the car now.
01-22-2019, 07:01 PM
#226
Race Director
Like Rob 64-365 stated in post # 176 where the paint man said what is under the paint? Unless you are going to spray over the existing paint job, what is going on under that many years old existing paint job?
01-22-2019, 07:09 PM
#227
Melting Slicks
Mike M,
I do have to agree with you that you can get a good paint job from a man working on his own at $15/HR.
Without the ridiculous overhead of insurance (what if your car gets burned up while in his care?)
So what if the man does not have health insurance and is out of work for two months?(So what if your car sits for 2 or 3 months)
If a dust storm blows up and under his garage door and covers your new wet paint? (he will have to buff it out at only $15/hr)
Overhead heat is no problem either. ( He can just wait to summer to paint it)
I can see getting a $5000 perfect paint job' if you don't care about the painter's family.
Somehow I feel that you have never owned a business.
I do have to agree with you that you can get a good paint job from a man working on his own at $15/HR.
Without the ridiculous overhead of insurance (what if your car gets burned up while in his care?)
So what if the man does not have health insurance and is out of work for two months?(So what if your car sits for 2 or 3 months)
If a dust storm blows up and under his garage door and covers your new wet paint? (he will have to buff it out at only $15/hr)
Overhead heat is no problem either. ( He can just wait to summer to paint it)
I can see getting a $5000 perfect paint job' if you don't care about the painter's family.
Somehow I feel that you have never owned a business.
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01-22-2019, 07:36 PM
#228
Safety Car
In the OP’s original post he said the paint is 97% original with touch ups and typical paint cracks. What causes typical cracks? Joint shrinkage? 50 year old paint degrading? Damage from underneath? I have no clue. The OP also stated he knew it depended on the level of prep work though he never said what he expected.
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elwood13 (01-24-2019)
01-23-2019, 07:32 PM
#230
Team Owner
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I wanted to wait until this thread had apparently run it's course so now, it's time to respond to your kind of thinking. Don't you just love this kind of logic?
I started out selling encyclopedias door/door and then the internet came along so no need to look in the book, just make a few key strokes and the knowledge is right in front of you for almost free.
So, I decided to start selling vacuum cleaners door/door because everyone has a dirty rug don't they? But in all my sales adventures, I don't recall ever once knocking anything off the going price, depending on how many dependents I saw hiding behind the door. After all, I raised three of them myself so I have a fair idea what's fair.
PS. I later owned (still do) a successful real estate and home construction company.but I don't recall ever knocking off the price of the home or the property parcel because of how many dependents the buyer had. And all of those buyers now live in a more expensive house than I do.
You are a tribute to your fellow man. You're welcome.
Last edited by MikeM; 01-23-2019 at 07:33 PM.
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Roger Walling (01-24-2019)
01-23-2019, 08:12 PM
#231
Melting Slicks
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2023 Restomod of the Year finalist
It seems like the more the paint job cost, the longer they say the primer takes to dry.
Does it really take 30-50 days for primer to dry before sanding??
Most primer paint cans say drying time is 12-24 hours before sanding.
Do the classic car shops say 3-6 months for a paint job just to justify the $11,000-$15,000 they charge you for a full body paint job.
Does it really take 30-50 days for primer to dry before sanding??
Most primer paint cans say drying time is 12-24 hours before sanding.
Do the classic car shops say 3-6 months for a paint job just to justify the $11,000-$15,000 they charge you for a full body paint job.
01-23-2019, 09:00 PM
#233
01-23-2019, 10:01 PM
#234
On a typical show paint job, I sand the entire car at least 9 times, not including cut/buff. That's a lot of sanding my friends. I also wait 30 days for primer to cure before blocking on my high end stuff, a week or so on lesser cars. None of this is necessary if you don't mind seeing all the work through your final shine. Not saying lesser work doesn't show well, it can, but if you get up on it in the light, that's when you appreciate the time/money spent.
This aint selling vacuum cleaners or real estate, this is heavy, skilled labor that's harmful to one's health. That's well worth just compensation.
This aint selling vacuum cleaners or real estate, this is heavy, skilled labor that's harmful to one's health. That's well worth just compensation.
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Roger Walling (01-24-2019)
01-23-2019, 10:31 PM
#235
01-24-2019, 09:33 AM
#236
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. Not saying lesser work doesn't show well, it can, but if you get up on it in the light, that's when you appreciate the time/money spent.
This aint selling vacuum cleaners or real estate, this is heavy, skilled labor that's harmful to one's health. That's well worth just compensation.
synonyms:satisfactory, reasonable, fair, acceptable, adequate, sufficient, sufficiently good, good enough, ample, up to scratch, up to the mark, up to standard, up to par, competent, not bad, all right, average, tolerable, passable, suitable;
informalOK, okay, up to snuff
Last edited by MikeM; 01-24-2019 at 09:36 AM.
01-24-2019, 09:43 AM
#237
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If someone here asked how much a new pickup truck costs that would reliably get them around in daily duties and travel, nothing fancy just decent, I would almost bet the answers, 10-1 would be $50-$70K based on the respondents most recent purchase. Few would mention the bill could be filled by the same basic truck available for less than $30K.
01-24-2019, 10:00 AM
#238
Melting Slicks
I think one thing we can all agree on is that the cost of a paint job has gone up since this thread was started. I'm in the auto repair business and prices on parts and materials have taken a big jump in the past 6 months after being held in check for many years.
01-24-2019, 10:01 AM
#239
Safety Car
I drive a 99 S10 because I refuse to pay even $30k for a decent truck. I need a truck to get me where Im going and carry what I need, not watch out the rear when Im backing up, tell me if Im drifting out of my lane, give the current pressure in my tires including the spare, turn on the windshield wipers if its raining, warm my hiney, tell me where Im going although that might b a good idea, and one I hate the most stop and start the engine as Im idling. If I paid $50k for a truck I couldnt use it for its entended purpose as I would be too scared of scatching it. And there are places for lessor paint jobs just not on vintage Corvettes.
01-24-2019, 10:01 AM
#240
Burning Brakes
So many answers here. Hard to pick. Maybe we can finally answer: How long is a piece of string?
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mike coletta (01-24-2019)