Quote:

Hey all,

I was referred to this thread from Customtacos.com
I have a 99 Tacoma that has red oxidized paint and is faded to hell. I have just a few questions. I'm completely new to this stuff and was wondering if you used your hands to sand or a machine. Also, how do I "wet" sand? I'm about to go to home depot to pick up all the stuff I need to do this. I don't know if I'm going to use a test piece. I just want to start painting after prep. So I prep my truck by sanding it down with 800 grit sandpaper first, then I can immediately start painting. Please give some tips for a complete noob.

Thanks



I don't think you need to finish sand with 800 grit, you can probably go to 320 or 400 to save yourself some time. Maybe even 240. You should do it by hand because machines can gouge if you're not careful. To wetsand, have a container of water and a spray bottle. Run the sandpaper (wrapped around a foam sanding block) through the container to get it wet, and spray the surface, then go back n forth till the surface is smooth and the dust/hair is gone, spraying water on as you go and rinsing/wetting the sandpaper as you go. It's very wet. When it's still wet, before the sanding slop has had a chance to dry, wipe it off with some highly absorbent material, rinse it, continue..

If you're going to paint it red, be prepared to put more than 6 coats to completely cover what's underneath it.