paint - professional or DIY spraying?

[Edward.21]

hello all i want to paint my moggy but should i get it done professionaly, should i diy it, how much does it cost to do it proffesionaly. any other advice about painting it would be greatly apretiated

[les]

If you do it yourself you need equipment, time, a bit of knowhow and somewhere to do it. If you get someone to do it you for you, you'll need money, the amount depends on how much preparation is needed and therefor the time involved, workmanship comes into it as well.

[LouiseM]

For full prep and a good quality respray you will be looking at maybe £3,500 - £4,000 depending on how long it takes and what the hourly labour rate is. If you do all your own prep and have a quick 'blow over' you will probably be able to get a respray for less than £1,000 but the finish probably won't be that great. If you plan on doing it yourself and haven't sprayed before it will take quite a bit of practice to get a decent finish and as Les says, you'll need to get the equipment and have somewhere suitable to do the spraying. Either way it isn't cheap! How bad is the paint work? Sometimes a good t-cut / clay bar / wax treatment will make the world of difference to faded paint.

(PS: I've edited your thread title so that it describes the thread contents better. That way you're likely to get more responses!)

[Edward.21]

first thanks for your help second someone has done a realy bad paint job ie they have only done the main areas and missed all the nooks and crannies so it definatly needs a proper respray

(p.s thanks for changing the title im always stuck for ideas as what to name threads)

[LouiseM]

Sounds like it might need quite a bit of prep work. There are plenty of people on here who have sprayed their cars themselves with very good results so it is possible with a bit of practice. I'm sure someone will be along soon with some tips for you

[bmcecosse]

Plenty of threads to read on the subject. It is perfectly possible to DIY the job - just doing one panel at a time. The Minor is nicely broken down into small panels to make that easy. Even the roof isn't too large. A compressor from Aldi and a spray gun from ebay and you are on your way. I do all my spraying outdoors now - you need a warm sunny still day - after making myself quite ill with fumes working in a closed garage. The paint and thinners will cost ~ £200/£300 including primer etc. Stick with cellulose - don't even think of using 2k paint. But you should find out what's on the car right now - if it's already 2k - it will all need to be rubbed off!

[Edward.21]

Thanks for your reply what is 2k paint?

[Neil MG]

Thanks for your reply what is 2k paint?

This is going to be a long journey....

2k is short for "two pack" or two component paint, meaning that a hardener is required to be mixed with the paint in order for it to dry (or cure). Thinners is still required. 2k paint is more harmful to health, but is tougher and easier to get a high shine than cellulose, but takes longer to tack off (surface dry) and so is prone to dust etc. if not sprayed in a booth. Cellulose is very easy to use and easy to rectify, but cannot be sprayed over some other paints unless you use an isolator. With an isolator coat you can paint over any type of paint but the surface has to be completely flat first as you cannot sand the isolator.

[MGs]

I have resprayed several cars and am now achieving reasonable quality, although it takes some experience. Be prepared to make some mistakes. Most of it is down to preparation. Sand down to get a good flat surface, varying grades of wet and dry.
If you are spraying the same type and colour of paint (I agree that sticking with cellulose is best - 2 pack requires an air fed mask), then flatting and respraying is all that is required. If you are changing colour, then flat it or sand back to bare metal, spray the primer (flat/key that) then spray the top coat. Don't worry if the result doesn't look all shiny. It often looks good when spraying but gets dull or matt when dry. This can be cured by light use of wet and dry and rubbing compound. Using the
rubbing compound is probably the hardest part, it requires quite a lot of elbow grease. The hardest bit to get a good finish on is often the roof. Most spray guns work best when used a right angles to the panel, which isn't always easy on the roof.

Try to spray as many parts as you can, off the car. Doors, bonnet, boot etc. This allows you to get in all of the hard to reach
parts, not only on these panels, but also in the gaps where they come from (around the hinges etc. )

[bluemoggie1970]

Hi, I was in the same situation as you are.
I had a quote for a respray, for only about £600, think it was a quick blow over, but I know that I'm really picky and wouldn't have been happy if hadn't done a really good job.

So I decided to do it myself. I have a garage which I'm currently doing the spray job. Many people on here suggest getting or hiring a machine, but I have found the fan style spray cans from bull motif absolutely amazing!!

I'm a Painter and decorator, so I have used sprayers before and for me this is equally as good if not better, as its so much less mess. I've set myself the goal of doing just one panel at a time, one a week really, really taking my time, fully preparing it, and I'm having the time of my life! Its so much fun. A bit geeky i know.

I was really nervous about doing it myself as she's my pride and joy, but I'm soooooo pleased with the finish!!

Anyway this is just my opinion, but I'm sure whatever you do, you'll be happy.

Luke

[bmcecosse]

Yes - I absolutely agree. When I first got my car I cheered it up with the BM spray cans and they worked very well, didn't cost a fortune (bit more now - but still good value) and the finish can be really really good. Helps if you warm the can in hot water before use - and have the garage warm and dry - but NO naked flames or glowing elements!! And of course - lots of thin coats is the way to do it! Also useful if you can pick up cheap cans of spray paint at autojumbles which are 'nearly' the right colour for your car - slightly lighter is best. Do a few coats of this slightly too light paint - and then finish off with the expensive correct colour can from BM.

[dalebrignall]

my mate resprayed hs mini cooper with spray cans i think he used 100 of them ,you would never know the finnish is fantastic .

[chickenjohn]

my mate resprayed hs mini cooper with spray cans i think he used 100 of them ,you would never know the finnish is fantastic .

That is an expensive way to spray a car!

[MGs]

That is an expensive way to spray a car!

Agreed. Even top quality cellulose is less than £100 for 5 litres which is more than enough for most cars

[dalebrignall]

the place wasclosing down he got them for 3 pounds a can 300 pounds i think thats good for a respray he had no labour to pay he did it him self .

[bmcecosse]

The BM cans are BIG - and if warmed up can easily spray ~ 2 panels each.

[RobMoore]

Plenty of threads to read on the subject. It is perfectly possible to DIY the job - just doing one panel at a time. The Minor is nicely broken down into small panels to make that easy. Even the roof isn't too large. A compressor from Aldi and a spray gun from ebay and you are on your way. I do all my spraying outdoors now - you need a warm sunny still day - after making myself quite ill with fumes working in a closed garage. The paint and thinners will cost ~ £200/£300 including primer etc. Stick with cellulose - don't even think of using 2k paint. But you should find out what's on the car right now - if it's already 2k - it will all need to be rubbed off!

wow thats expensive paint Roy, I gave mine a spray last year and spent only £55