Should I strip?

[stag36587]

Here is work in progress. I have just begun skim fill to outer body repairs.

Question is, should I strip back complete bodyshell to bare metal or looking at the existing paintwork, do people think that a rub down (for the car,not me)will be sufficient before I respray? Situation is complicated by fact that I have an unsympathetic neighbour so am keen to minimise angle grinder noise and I am not a fan of chemical paint stripper !

Also, is it essential to remove the door window frames before respraying or is it possible to do it with them in situ? I know what a horrible job they can be.

Thanks for all opinions[frame][/frame]

[bmcecosse]

It's a massive job to strip back to bare metal. I would just do what's necessary to get each panel flatted down and primed - and a thin coat of paint on each panel asap since primer is not 'waterproof'.

[lambrettalad]

Hi that is very good advice,no ned to strip right back ,key it well and feather the edges,and all should be well

ps make sure the "original" paint and the new are compatible
good luck

[kennatt]

yes a lot of work to strip to bare metal,but one problem you will have is that where the repair and original paint edges meet,if using celly(Which you should of course,again a matter of opinion),it dosen't matter how well you feather the edge,there will be a very high chance of the celly thinners sinking into this edge,so that you will see the join,even flatting the paint when dry will not remove it completely.Its not so bad with primer but the top coating usually has this problem.To avoid it I use 2 k primer when patch repairing,just one coat over the repaired area to bridge the joins( to mininise poisoning risk),then celly prime the whole panel after this has dried,then you don't get any sinkage.Good luck.(Unless of course you are going to use 2k for the whole job,but then your next door FRIEND will have a bit more to moan about)

[chickenjohn]

Sand down an area of the car to bare metal (please don't use an angle grinder! much too harsh) and see how many layers are there. If you are lucky and the car is in its original paint then just sand the whole car with 180 grit on a DA sander to key the paint for the primer.

As said above feather edge the paint into any bare metal areas and for the first few coats after the etch primer, just dust the primer on drier in the edge areas. That will minimise chances of lifting and continue to prime drier where the edges were to avoid solvent sinkage. Also, I find running the etch primer into the feathered areas helps avoid sinkage.

[ASL642]

I certainly don't think the neighbour would appreciate the DA sander! It'll take some time but do it by hand (quieter)!

[bmcecosse]

Wait till neighbour is asleep at 2am and then get on with it........

[MarkyB]

Alternatively do what you like until 10pm and tell them to get lost if they don't like it!
Even better, come to some compromise that you can both live with.

[peetee59]

What i would do is (highlight) every rust spot or blemish,in fact all of the bodywork that you can identify as having damage of some kind (my preference).You will of course be able to see the obvious places,and then have a close look and circle the areas with a black felt top pen!!After doing this i would address the obvious ones first,(like i am doing now ) Where there is bad penetrating rust,the only cure is new metal,do not bodge,remember these cars deserve better.Before i would talk about the paint,lets deal with the bodywork first!!This car of yours, like mine, needs lots of care and attention,are you going to strip it all down?,i think you should,including all windows,its surprising what lies beneath.Paint is expensive and do it right first,and it will last you a long time,and like kennat says,do it in cellulose,for one thing its original and secondly its safer by far,as 2 k contains icosyanate,which in high enough doses would kill you.I wish you well,i myself have had lots of help on here ,and i appreciate it so much.I hope you put up more pics to see the true damage you face.One thing i will say and the people will agree with me ,,,,preparation is 90% of the success of restoration,dont ever forget ,get your prep right and you cant go far wrong.....The very best of luck,,,,,,lets have more pics,,,,,,I have painted many classic cars,and they need your love of them to do the right job!!!
Pete

[stag36587]

Thanks for all the replies guys, very helpful indeed - and a bit of a relief to be honest. I stripped my Stag to bare metal several years ago and although it was a good result, it took ages and created mountains of dust and noise.

My neighbour will just have to put up with a little disruption, after all I only ever make noise for at most about an hour at a time and always during the daytime.

This project started five years ago before divorce remarriage and a new baby. I have literally welded the car from the transmission tunnel outwards with new floors, sills, chassis legs, etc. A bit of a marathon so it is nice to begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel - I will post some pics as the rest of this project continues.

Great advice on here as ever, I'm very grateful