Epoxy Primer Question / Can I Do It Myself ???

[B5 Charger]

I have had several of my parts media blasted to bare metal so I could get a better idea of what was wrong with them.  I had a guy lined up to put them in epoxy primer for me to keep them from rusting while I finish all the sheet metal work.  That has now fallen through so I was wondering how hard would it be to lay on the epoxy myself?  I would need to buy a gun and so on but is it unthinkable for me to epoxy the car myself in my garage?  Any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated.   

[bull]

Yea, you can do it. It doesn't even have to look that good either because it's all going to get sanded down again. Seriously, just get a good gravity-feed gun, a respirator, put up some clear plastic in the garage and go to work. I'm planning on doing my engine compartment and door jams that way but with single-stage enamel.

[B5 Charger]

Bull,

Thanks for the reply.  I kind of thought the same thing but I know zero about painting cars so I want to be sure.  I'm sure I can lay it down relatively smooth but I'm sure it won't be perfect.  I just don't want to do anything that will screw up the finish later on when I take it to the pro body shop to be finished.

[mopar_madman]

I would use a liquid metal conditioner on the parts first to clean and etch the metal. (the first time you touch bare metal with your hands they get dirty and corrosion begins even if you can't see it) I use dupont 5717s but all the paint companies have one.

[mister bungle]

You can also use some zinc-spray. That way you don't have to sand it off afterwarts. You can put a ground layer on the zinc and than the paint...

[Todd Wilson]

Decide on a paint brand.

Get their epoxy paint.

Get their cleaner and wipe metal down.   Wipe with tack cloth

The metal needs to be CLEAN!!!!!!!  Oil from your finger tip skin will cause a little finger print rust area.  A sling of snot from a sneeze or cough can put little droplets of rust on the bare metal.  Over time humidity and polution in the air will give it a slight rust tint. Which is why you need to get epoxy on clean metal ASAP!

Spray epoxy on and let dry.


Do your body work and filler work.

When done respray with epoxy and then go on to the high build primer and eventually paint.


Todd






Notice after sanding the filler  there is some bare metal again. This is why when you are done you re spray the epoxy. It also could indicate more work needs to be done at that location as the bare spots could be a high spot. The way I understand it is where you get a ring of bare metal around your filler area then you are good to go. Theres a nack to this and if you dont get it 100%  you might be able to see it after the paint is on with the angle of the light just right.




Heres a link to more pictures of my epoxy and filler work.

http://www.chargerfever.com/71paint/index.html


Todd

[BlueSS454]

I've been using the Utech E350 Epoxy primer.  I like it.  it lays down nice and is very easy to work with plus it's compatible with most top coats on the market.  I have used it on 4 cars thus far and have had nice results.  It's inexpensive too boot, less than $100 for a gallon mixture and it lasts for quite a while.