DUB

OH YEAH!!!!!

DUB

AutoFast

Powder coat

twinpack

I recently finished mine in primer right know. Sandblast cost $300.00, Eastwood Extreme Chassis primer and Extreme Chassis Black (satin) cost around $200.00. I have enough primer and paint for all the front and rear suspension. So 3k you can farm the complete process out, powder coat it and still have cash left. If it's a driver I feel doing it yourself is the way to go. After all this is what we hobbyist do. Have fun.

drspencer

Sir, what is your opinion on removing the body to do a chassis/drivetrain rebuild, but not doing paint?

Is it practical to remove the body on a car with driver+ quality paint (8.5/10), or will it risk being damaged in the process?

Thanks

DUB

I have to assume ...due to not being totally clear in what you wrote...that when you are referring to 'paint'...I am assuming that you are talking about a paint job on the body and NOT the frame???? Correct???? because this thread is about coatings on a frame.

YES...you can remove a body and NOT damage the exterior paint IF you are careful and have the correct set-up to do it.

I can say that the effort to remove the body may take a bit...but once it is off....access to everything is so much easier. BUT...there is a bit of an issue due to the weight being lightened...it can effect on how MUCH FUN it can be to release a rear leaf spring. And not knowing what year you have...knowing that there are steel rear leaf springs and composite rear leaf springs...this will take a different route to do than if the body were on the car with the weight of it to aid you in compressing the spring.

And the same goes for the front spring where you REALLY want to use the correct type of spring compressor.

Practical or not....that all depends on what I see I need to do and the condition of 'things' that would be easier to service with the body off. I do not make it a habit of pulling bodies for the heck of it. So it depends on what I see and if the time is then warranted to do so.

I hope this helped....but I can say that if you do take th body off....adn depending on what youw ant teh car to be...taking avery good look at it so a determination can be mad eon what teh next step would be WHILE you ahveth body off.

ALSO....just to let you know....look at your UPPER control arm mounting bolts and look at the amount of shims used for your alignment. IF these shims packs are getting really thin. This is telling me that NOW is the time to get the cradle stretched back ....so I can install shims with some thickness to them for future alignments I look for more at least 3/16"+ total thickness of shim packs. Because if the upper control arm shaft is against the perch of the frame...then there is no way to adjust the alignment....unless you use one of the off-set shafts offered. And if you still have shims....you can try to use the spreader bar so the cradle does no collapse....but some people do not want to do that...which is why I stretch the upper control arm mounting perches back so I have a good thick shim packs.

DUB

drspencer

Thanks for the response. And yes, when I asked about not doing 'paint', I was referring to not painting the body.

My car is a '71 350/270, 4-speed convertible w/~120K miles.

Looks great (paint is 8.5/10), runs well, mechanically sound. But, is does have 120K miles. It's drips oil, weeps gear oil, weeps ps fluid, compression could be better. Suspension is safe, but tired.

My first order of business was to do a rear end/rear suspension rebuild. A big project to do on your back with the car on jack stands.

Then front suspension, and drive train rebuild. Again, doable, but a lot of effort for the hobbyist on his back under a pair of jack stands

Wouldn't it be to my benefit to pull the body and do a complete chassis/drivetrain rebuild, even though it doesn't need paint?

Having said that, I haven't found a single thread on this Forum where someone pulled the body and didn't do paint.

Thanks again.

Alan 71

Hi drs,
When I started working on my car my plan was to not paint the body.
When I was finished with the chassis and running gear I realized that the paint didn't look quite so nice when compared to the freshly repaired parts of the car.
The same thing can be true for the chrome and ss on the car…. it looks pretty nice with the old paint but looks a little dull with a really nice new paint job.
The new paint and chrome then made the slightly marked glass look not quite so nice so I wanted that to be replaced too.
Yes, one thing leads to another.
When I made the decision to paint the car I didn't have the $ to make it happen. So I spent a couple of years finishing the chassis, working on the body, and looking for a painter, while I saved up the $ to be able to pay a painter for the kind of paint job I wanted.
Regards,
Alan

Here you can see the body still being protected in anticipation of it going back on the chassis.


By this point I realized that in this case the body wasn't going back on the chassis.


Here's the body leaving for the painter.


Here it is coming home from the painter about 10 months later.

DUB

That very well may be true. But I can tell you that I pull bodies and NOT paint them when they are off the frame. SO...it is quite 'do-able'. Just because the body is pulled...DOES NOT mean that it HAS to be painted. And the paint will not get damaged if you are careful.

I prefer to paint the bodies when they are ON the frame and secure....mainly because I have the 'luxury' from time to time to have to go look at a Corvette that WAS painted off the frame and major problems showed up WHEN the body was trying to be set back up.

Keep in mind that the firewall and under body have all been restored to perfection....so I am only painting the exterior and jambs. That is...when I pull a body and KNOW I am going to be painting it.

DUB

drspencer

Hi Alan-Is 10 months a typical time window to get a C3 painted?

If I remove my body and roll it to a painter on a dolly, how much should I be prepared to pay for a paint job of your caliber?

(feel free to PM me if you're not comfortable posting figures)

Thanks

drspencer

You're scaring me, Dub. lol.

What can go wrong when putting a freshly painted body back on it's chassis?

Thanks

DUB

A LOT....or maybe nothing at all.

SO much of it depends on what was done to the body when it was on a dollie.

Please understand that I am SUPER PICKY about my panel gaps and the panels being flush when I am doing a Corvette (or any car for that matter). I do not CARE what other people think...I KNOW what I need to do to get them to where the car looks Correct...regardless of what GM produced for the year model I am working on.

This is why I do all my work when the body is ON the frame and CORRECT. That way I know what I do....is the way it will roll out the door...and NO surprises. AND with me working on BOTH convertibles and coupes...trying to have the body on a specifically set up dollie for them is just a waste of time.....BECAUSE...I have been called into shops where they did a body OFF the frame on a really nice custom made dollie.....but wen the body went back down and was getting shimmed back to where it needed to be...it CHANGED drastically from what they had the body set at when it was on their dollie. They look at me and after talking with what was done to the car and the EXTENT of the repairs and panel replacements, etc...it is explained to them that they f'd up. And there is no EASY fix to that bulge or buckle in the panel that have now.

YES...a coupe is MUCH stronger than a convertible....due to the birdcage. So there rear of the car is less likely to move...but the front clip can still sag. If the windshield is taken out when on a dollie....that takes away even more strength and 'things' can move.

Installing the body can be done with little to no damage to the paint but it takes some doing and having the correct type or modified 2 post lift so it can pick up the body by the rocker channels as needed...instead of using the fabric straps.

If you are concerned about the dusts created and are wanting to not have that be an issue.,..I have worked past that and that is not a concern...and I can present a Corvette that you can eat off the floor pans if you choose to do so. Just takes a little bit of preparation.

DUB

Dennis Tapp

Bringing back an old thread. Alan, when using your Krylon 1613 do you use any primer? I have an 80 with no rust but has some paint missing in a couple of places like under the power steering box. Wanted to touch up some of the places on the frame. Not wanting to paint all of the frame. I want this car super clean and to look in great shape, not a restored car. Because like you said one thing leads to another and you have to paint or replace it all. If there is something better than Krylon for what I want to do, please let me know. Thanks, Dennis

Alan 71

Hi Dennis,
When using Krylon 1613 for small parts and interior pieces I generally don't use any primer.
But for the frame I would.
You might want to check into the 'self-etching' primers that are available.

You might also look at the various SEM brand paint products that are available and folks think highly of.
People also seem to like John Deere Blitz Black.
(I'm stuck on Krylon because to my eye it does a good job of duplicating the original black finishes on the cars.

I think it would be worth the effort to try a couple of different paints on some small parts to see what you like and to get a little experience spraying them.

Good Luck!
Regards,
Alan

Mr D.

I will also add to this old thread;

It would appear that Krylon Semi-flat Black 1613 (5 Ball) is no longer available due to paint formula change and is now called Krylon ultra-flat Black 1613 (5 Ball). Guess SEM semi-gloss is now the only black available for us.

Everyone has their own opinion on what works for them but I use PPG DP90LF on my frames. If I was doing a frame on and needed to paint the frame I would use rattle cans.

Dennis Tapp

A company MSC has an industrial flat black that they market as 1613 flat black. Is it the same with different can marketed to industrial business?

Norm07

I too am doing a fairly extensive frame on restoration of a 71 Convertible and have spent a fair bit of time trying to find the right shade/sheen of black. Did some lurking on other forums and eventually tried Rustoleum Professional, semi gloss, cut with acetone and a Sherwin Williams Hardner. 8-4-1, on top of a 2 part epoxy primer.

My first attempt has been on the front suspension components using a Harbour Freight HVLP gun. Paint dried in a few hours, and a finish that I cannot believe I did it with really no experience with a paint gun...but....way too glossy. I suspect it was the Hardner. (Just a guess)

Next batch of paint will be the Rustoleum Flat black. All this in preparation for the frame and engine bay.

rosslato

WOW that looks Great! Getting ready to paint mine, also going for a lil less gloss.

slofut

Master Series AG111 Brake fluid and everything else proof... looks like factory.
http://shop.masterseriesct.com/product.sc?productId=3

Or this, but once you open the can you need to use it all. Takes some effort to get any shelf life out of it. Again, solvent proof. Spray cans etc... will wash off with brake trans fluid and solvents.
https://www.kbs-coatings.com/Frame-C...tin-Black.html

Tjf2000

Have done three cars with master series.... I like it a lot even though it has a little more gloss than factory

slofut

Is that AG111 or Chassis Coat black (mcu)? Looks great btw