Custom paint- good or bad
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
Custom paint- good or bad
I saw a c3 corvette with a sweet 3 tone red paint job, and I thought it looked really cool. I started considering this, and wondered? Is a custom paint job really good or bad?
Like if I ever want to get it re-painted in the future is it going to be really hard since its a complex paint and theres not necessarily a "code" for it?
And Would it be alot more costly as well to get re painted?
I would want my paint to last as long as possible, But If it's really faded 30 years from now i'd like new paint.
So what do you think? Any opinions? Am I better off just going with a stock color?
thanks
Like if I ever want to get it re-painted in the future is it going to be really hard since its a complex paint and theres not necessarily a "code" for it?
And Would it be alot more costly as well to get re painted?
I would want my paint to last as long as possible, But If it's really faded 30 years from now i'd like new paint.
So what do you think? Any opinions? Am I better off just going with a stock color?
thanks
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 17
Likes: 0
I would have no intentions of selling, I was just wondering If I would be hard to re paint a elaborate custom paint job If I wanted to repaint it for myself if it began to fade real badly over many years.
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 4,705
Likes: 983
From: Orlando FL
So I ask you, how old will you be in 30 years, and how important will the condition of the paint be then?
I`m building my cars for me to enjoy now. In 30 years, I`ll be gone, and they will be my KIDS` problem.
Enjoy yourself, enjoy your car, don`t worry about the paint 30 years from now......
Instructor
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 159
Likes: 0
From: asheville nc
My corvette is painted a non stock blue....and it is really slick. Last friday nite at a local car show with hundreds of folks milling about, my car had at least 3-6 people around it the whole night.
Now, I have had the car nearly 40 years and have no intention of selling. Some people have asked the original color which was Silverstone Silver and I proceed to tell them I love the car and really love the blue...and they usually agree.
Now, I have had the car nearly 40 years and have no intention of selling. Some people have asked the original color which was Silverstone Silver and I proceed to tell them I love the car and really love the blue...and they usually agree.
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 38,923
Likes: 1,481
From: Southbound
Cruise-In II Veteran
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Administrator
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From: About 1100 miles from where I call home.
I used to have a series of custom painted Corvettes in the 70s and 80s because I grew up with a well known custom painter on the east coast. I loved my paint jobs back then, but some of the problems I encountered were that they were very difficult to "fix." Road bumps and bruises, scrapes on the nose- very difficult to match or blend. Also as years went on, the more complicated the custom paint, the worse it would "wear" over time.
Other issues are that colors and designs that are so cool today can look very dated down the road, quicker than you might imagine.
And finally, while you plan to never sell, very often that plan changes and the custom colors are much harder to sell.
I wouldn't worry about 30 years from now or even 5 years. I'd do what you want to enjoy the car today, but keep in mind that its very possible that you might have to think about paint again down the road.
Other issues are that colors and designs that are so cool today can look very dated down the road, quicker than you might imagine.
And finally, while you plan to never sell, very often that plan changes and the custom colors are much harder to sell.
I wouldn't worry about 30 years from now or even 5 years. I'd do what you want to enjoy the car today, but keep in mind that its very possible that you might have to think about paint again down the road.
Racer
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 323
Likes: 8
Yes it will be a lot more costly to repaint it in the future. Put it this way; I spent 5 hours yesterday sanding the two tone paint on my 78 to get it smooth so no ridges will be present when we paint it. Two of us and five hours, and we got the front fenders and hood done. That's after I spent another 6 to 8 hours sanding the whole car down. Ill be back at the shop today to start on the doors back. If the car was one tone then I wouldn't have to spend 15 hours just prepping it before anything is sprayed on it. Painting is expensive no matter how you look at it. I'm lucky enough to know someone who owns a restoration shop and is allowing me to learn and work on my car as we paint it. If I didn't have that privledge, then I wouldn't be having my car painted.
