Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi
I have a morris minor which I had sprayed recently by a so-called professional- so he's now looking a thousand times worse than he went. The cause has been cited as a silicone reaction, in spite of extensive use of grease and silicone remover. Now I'm stuck with a car that looks like he has goose-bumps! I have used a buff to take the worst of it off, and will take more off during my holidays. However, Morris is now quite dull- not the high gloss I expected. It has been suggested to me that I should spray him with wood varnish (he has the old style enamel paint). Does anyone have an opinion on this?
Help!

PS how do I add a picture?

Are you sure that the problem is with silicon or just a waxy residue. they can give the same reaction. If its silicon then the paintshop will also have a problem if this has been made airborne.
Was the car taken in ready to paint or did the body shop do all of the prep. If its the latter then the problem should have been picked up in either the etch or primer stages, and in no circumstances should the top coat have been applied if there was a known problem. If the bodyshop saw no evidence of silicon/wax in the primer then the problem clearly lies with their premesis or someone has contaminated the primed surface. Believe me silicon can shut down a paintshop as its so difficult if not impossible to remove from a spray booth. You can decontaminate to an extent with anti silicon aditives in the paint but really once its there its there for good.
You should return the car to the bodyshop immediately and demand an explanation if what I describe above has been the case. Really you should not have touched the car, and definately not cut back the paint. Still, if the bodyshop cannot explain why the silicon/wax could not be removed with panel wipe, and /or if it was present in the primer then I would be suggesting that they might have been negligent in the final prep.
Reading back through your description I assume that the paintwork has lots of sink marks/small craters in the surface, this is wax, if you have raised parts in the surface then this is dust or airborne particles. Can you clarify which problem you have. Once this is clear I may be able to shed a bit more light on the matter

seems to be a continuing topic simialar on the wanted.

of course why pay if you are not happy though at the time.

I didn't pay the spray shop- but I did supply the materials, which obviously I couldn't get back! They did the prep, I just drove the car there. But they will not fix the car now, which is why I cut him back, because I was actually getting him sprayed ready for the RAC car rally on the following Saturday!
Jonathon, it sounds like a wax reaction to me- there are lots of craters, not raised bits. At first I thought he's sprayed it on without enough thinners, but he had followed the instructions on the tin, and had even called the manufacturer when it became clear there was a problem. Unfortunately he lacked a predilection for common sense and didn't stop spraying- consequently he ruined the whole car. So what should I do now? I don't want to strip the whole car because I'm going down to our farm for the holidays and won't have the facilities there. That's why a fellow WA minor enthusiast suggested buffing him back and spray him with wood varnish- apparently it won't react, and will give a very high gloss finish. But I'm not sure this is a good idea- how long will the varnish last, will it really not react etc?
What do other people do in this situation?

Hello Morris53,

I don't like the sound of wood varnish at all.
To the best of my knowledge the only cure is to flat back the paint and re-coat. You can try a small area using very fine wet and dry paper, 1200 grit or finer and see if the 'fish eyes' disappear before you get back to primer, if so you are lucky and the paint should then compound bact to gloss. But the chances are that there will not be enough paint thickness.

Alec

Yes, I agree with Alec, the best result is to strip it back again and have it done properly. If the bodyshop was of reputable status then is should be done again free of charge as its clearly a case of poor prep or a
contaminated paintshop. Was the fresh paint applied directly onto the original top coat or was it primered, It sounds as if the original paint was not keyed and degreased properly and the sinks 'fish eye' is a result of the polish off the original paintwork.

I don't know why, but the subject mix of silicone, bodywork, and reaction gave me a quite different impression of what the thread was going to be about !

So so funny Simmitc!
But anyway, I think you are spot on Alec and Jonathon, and it probably was a paint reaction due to poor surface preparation. The bloke was supposed to put on a primer and then paint, but safe to say this didn't happen! On the other hand I don't want to have to give Morris back to the same painter, because I have no confidence that he will come back any better than before. Also, I'm taking Morris down to our farm for the summer holidays, and since it is 450km away from the spray painter I really want a solution that will work from home. Another suggestion from a VW enthusiast (I also have a beetle) was that I sand Morris down with 1200 wet, then 2000 and 4000 and then use a cutting compound and swirl remover and hope for the best. Does anyone recommend this?
I tried a bit of varnish over the paint too, and it worked out quite well- except that I had exactly the same problem with the reaction, although I scrubbed the car with wax and grease remover. Help!

Once you have wax or silicon in the paint the only option is to remove it. I would suggest that the car is taken to bare metal, as the ptospect of contamination will always be there. The problem with flatting back is that you do not know how much paint has been applied and the chance of going through the top coat is too great. I always insist that who ever sprays the car flats and polishes it, as they know the job they have performed. Sorry but realistically you have no other option. Tell a lie! you could use a barcoat but the sensible option is to go bare metal and be meticulous in your prep. Good luck!

Cheers Jonathon