BASF Paint and MAACO...

[sanders7981]

I have been looking in to getting the car painted by someone that knows what they are doing when I get to that stage so I googled autobody shops here in Jacksonville/Wilmington area.  A few came up, but I looked into MAACO for the hell of it... lol... I know Dont' go to MAACO  , but on their parent website it says they use PPG and Dupont.  So I figure whats the harm in calling for a quote.  I spoke to a rep and they said they use BASF paints and prices start at $899.00 for BC/CC high-end paint jobs.  The guy was pretty forward when talking durability and said that they have painted a few vans locally in the "General Lee" color and would stand by the BASF paint when it comes to quality.  I know the whole "You get what you pay for" speech, but when your on a budget and can't afford $3000+ paint jobs... then you seek out other options.  Any of you guys have any experience with BASF?  What are your thoughts on this?   

[nvrbdn]

they have a few maaco shops around here, and there have been several cars painted at a certain one. they have turned out beautiful. but everybody says only go to that perticular one cuz the guy that runs it really cares. i would check with people that have delt with your shop.

[randy73]

That must be a local choice for paint brand, because my local one uses PPG, but I would do this, if I were you.

1) Go talk to a painter, just because they charge a lot, does not make it better.
2) Get customers names and talk to them, good painters will let you call or email.
3) Go by a shop more than once and look at what is going one, again most good shops will let you look around and talk to employee's.
4) Watch out for BS, especially if they are going to do body work, have seen great paint jobs slowly ruined by bad body work or work claimed to be done and not done.
5) take pics of every piece of your car when you drop it off and do it with the shop watching, will make them take better care of the car and will help if a part turns up missing.  Hopefully

6) Whether the shop is Maaco or Bentley's own paint shop, checkout 5-6 cars they have recently done and NO, do NOT take pictures as signs of good work, look at the actual car. If they paint 200 cars and they  only show 2 or 3, chances are they are a sloppy shop.

[sanders7981]

they have a few maaco shops around here, and there have been several cars painted at a certain one. they have turned out beautiful. but everybody says only go to that perticular one cuz the guy that runs it really cares. i would check with people that have delt with your shop.

The Rep said they used to use PPG, but swore that BASF looked just as great if not better as PPG.  I think he mentioned that they were using waterborne BASF products IIRC.


Good advice Randy... I will probably do something like this, and try to locate some of those vans they painted to see how they are holding up.  I wont be too concerned in regard to all the pieces since I am doing all the bodywork and the car is completely stripped down.  I think the only parts I need to take to them is the shell, doors, hood, rear corner pieces, and trunk lid, along with any bolts that will need to be color matched with the body. 

[bobs66440]

Generally speaking, I would never have considered taking any but the crappiest car to Maaco, but the local one here does fairly nice work. They actually did a restoration on a '67 Mustang that a local guy has including welding new complete quarters on etc. It came out really nice...even won at a show recently.

I suppose that the shop is only as good as the people working there. If they take their time and are skilled, I would think that it should be as good as any other (not counting the quality of the paint). I agree. Look at previous jobs that are out there that have been around a while.

[red79]

I agree with the general sentiment of this thread--any shop is as good as the people working there. MAACO has quality tools and materials available, so there's no reason they can't do a good job if they really want to.

A big point working in our favor can be the cars themselves. A few years ago, I got a $400 paint job from MAACO that was easily as good as competing shops costing 4x as much, to a large degree because the guys there were excited to be working on a classic rather than another insurance get-it-done-fast or some ricer's body kit. The most important thing when it comes to getting a good paint job on the cheap is scouting, and talk to the techs who will be doing the actual sanding/spraying.

[elitecustombody]

BASF is good brand, but you can spend $2500 on materials and still end up with crappy job. It's all in prep and experience of the person who is actually applyin the paint. I see MAACO paint work everyday, because my shop is right next door,their guy can make any car look slick and wet,but couldn't care less about blowing and tacking off,because usually there is a lot of trash, so as always,  you get what you paid for,at least at the MAACO next door

[GordonGriggs]

Ive never dealt with MAACO but back in 1985 I did make the mistake of getting Earl Scheib to paint my 66 Charger. They put a foot long run in the passenger side door, did NOT paint the section between the taillights and rear bumper, and forgot to tape off about 5 feet of trim. I had to carry it back 3 times for them to eventually get everything fixed.

[sanders7981]

Keep it coming guys!! Its really got me thinking that maybe this is the best alternative vice getting my wallet raped!  The guy appeared real genuine over the phone and I plan to run a few approaches on them in order to get them to take their time and make this a nice paint job.  I am making a trip out there in a couple weeks to see some of the work and being my recon.  I plan to address all my concerns and ensure that they understand what I am looking for as far in regard to finished work.  The hardest part right now is getting the body laser straight!  I will need to find a decent spary gun and compressor to lay down some slicksand once I get done with initial line work and blocking. 
     

[CDN72SE]

It certainly can depend on which MAACO you go to. The one surviving Maaco in my area is the one that outshined all the rest and they are willing to show off their work, they do an excellent job and I have contemplated using them myself.

[Patronus]

If you go SS you could wet sand it yourself  -just an option-

[sanders7981]

If you go SS you could wet sand it yourself  -just an option-

True, but I dont want SS.  I have heard/read that it scratches too easy.