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Post by wildjeff on Jul 18, 2008 21:26:28 GMT -8
I’m taking the next two weeks off work to get the body work done and paint my 83 T/A. I shopped around and decided I’ll give it a go myself, I’m spending about as much if I had it professionally done but in the end I’ll have a good collection of painting tools and a larger compressor. I can also make sure it done correctly.
It’s much more complicated then I thought it would be when I started looking into it. There is a lot to do in a specific order. I’ve created a step by step for myself so I don’t miss anything.
I’m planning on single stage for the engine bay and base/clear for everything else. This will keep the engine bay looking original and provide a durable coat for the exterior.
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Post by drdirt on Jul 19, 2008 15:49:50 GMT -8
Good Luck! You're probably already past this stage, but in the latest (Sep 2008) issue of High Performance Pontiac, there is an excellent painting how-to (page 87-88). It is in a response to a question in the Tech Q&A letters, but still more comprehensive than most full-length paint and body articles.
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Post by TAdan on Jul 21, 2008 4:28:02 GMT -8
Jeff, have fun! I look forward to hearing (and seeing some pics) of the paint work! Good luck  I would like to do some paint work on mine. (My hood is faded). Just curious, where did you get your paint? |
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Post by mrturbota on Jul 21, 2008 19:13:51 GMT -8
I don't know, If you do it really good, everyone here will be dropping off their cars for you to do.  Good luck and just take your time, don't rush. George  |
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Post by wildjeff on Jul 21, 2008 22:00:46 GMT -8
I’m using PPG Deltron series paint that I’m getting from Wesco, there are a local auto body supply company. Most of the specialized tools (spray guns, paint suit, etc...)I bought came from www.autobodystore.com/They had really good prices but mostly their forum autobodystore.com/forum/index.php was a big help so I wanted to support them. So far I’ve made good progress. Most of the parts (not including the body shell) are ready to be washed and primed. There are a few repairs that I need to make, I’m hoping to get the car primed on Thursdays or Friday, then the blocking over the weekend and get painting started by Wednesday (7/30/08) at latest. This will give me 4 day to lay the base coat and clear coat. I also order some graphics from Phoenix Graphic, Well see how well they match. |
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Post by Agent13 on Jul 23, 2008 22:46:12 GMT -8
Any progress pictures?
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Post by wildjeff on Jul 25, 2008 21:02:58 GMT -8
I’ll have some pics tomorrow, so far just a bunch of sanding and cleaning. Tomorrow I’m mounting the fenders and hood and then I’ll be doing more sanding and cleaning.
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Post by TAdan on Jul 26, 2008 12:54:54 GMT -8
Jeff, I might have an original gold DX1 hood bird decal if you are interested. |
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Post by wildjeff on Jul 26, 2008 20:17:22 GMT -8
Hey thanks! If you do have one I’d be interested. I just got a Phoenix Graphix decal set but if you have an original decal I’d go for that. You can email me the details to 82transam at comcast.net.
A note on the Phoenix Graphix set, its pretty close to original, however, the original stripes have a black background whereas the Phoenix Graphix set does not. This means I need to get very precise when I tape for the gold color.
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Post by wildjeff on Jul 26, 2008 20:51:47 GMT -8
Well after a week of work this is what I have to show for it. It doesn’t look like much but I’m getting closer to primer. My original goal was to have it in primer today but that didn’t happen, maybe Monday but most likely Tuesday. Today I put the front fenders and hood on. The panels are aligned and should be set. Getting the door aligned was a challenge, luckly I had help . I feel like I’m making progress, I’m final putting stuff back on my car! The front and rear bumper cover still needs a lot of work. I also had to replace the driver door. repairing the hinges was much more difficult then I thought it would be but the door works great. Overall the body is in great shape except for the driver side rear. The car had been smacked on the rear corner and needs some tweaking.    |
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Post by wildjeff on Jul 30, 2008 16:59:22 GMT -8
I finally got the first coat of primer on. Overall I’m pleased with the progress although its going slower then I though, I was sure it would only take half hour, just like on TV  |
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Post by TAdan on Jul 31, 2008 4:54:35 GMT -8
It looks so nice with some paint on it. I looked, and I dont think I have a gold hood bird (I could have sworn I had one)... I did find 4 silver ones though, haha.  |
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Post by Agent13 on Jul 31, 2008 20:26:04 GMT -8
Looking good Jeff!
I'm looking forward to pictures of the finished product!
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Post by wildjeff on Aug 3, 2008 17:37:16 GMT -8
TAdan – thanks for looking, 4 silver! So that’s where they all went, I'm still working on fixing a few last spots needs some attention. |
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Post by wildjeff on Aug 10, 2008 17:30:30 GMT -8
Well, the body work is taking longer then I thought. I got the second coat of primer on and I'm still working on little spots. I guess I have about 80-90 hours in it so far which is way more then I thought when I started. The body was in pretty good so I figured it would be a quick job. All I can say is I now understand why a good paint job cost so much. I'm not even going to guess when I'll be ready for the color coat, but I'm making progress.
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