I have a '70 Charger shell that needs quite a bit of work. I've never really done much paint and body work but I think this is a good project for me to learn on. I figure I can start on some of the parts that arent so noticable like the floorpans and engine compartment, and if that goes well, I may try to do the rest of the car myself. I just can't afford to pay someone to do all the body and paint work on another car.

So what I need to know is what order to do things, like primer, plastic filler, sealers, etc. Planning on basecoat/clear finish. I want to start in the engine compartment first. I'm replacing one inner fender and welding up the A/C holes in the fire wall. Should I do all the metal work first, then epoxy primer, then filler, or filler on the bare metal, then epoxy over that? Do I need to use an etching primer on any bare metal or will the epoxy be enough? Any guidence is greatly appreciated.

I prefer:
Bare metal
Body filler
Epoxy primer
Fill primer
Block the car
Base/clear (or single stage as applicable)

THere are a few schools of thoughts on the matter...
First you'll have to be comfortable qith a MIG welder before moving on.....practice on rusted pieces that have been cleaned just to see how thin you can wled without making holes....

As for the engine compartment, what I've been doing for years is this: repair all sheetmetal, sand blast every thing, spray a THIN coat of Zinchromate primer from PlastiKote, then within 3 hours, apply base coat and clear..it is not something they teach, but hold and works like a charm !! and you save hours of sanding and cleaning....just remember to blow all the sand before...

Daniel

I did my engine compartment like this: thoroughly cleaned with lacquer thinner to remove grease, sanded with 220/320 and scuffed with 3M scotch-brite, blew off suface real good, masked anything left that wasn't removed including all holes in the firewall(from behind), cleaned with a good solvent based pre-cleaner, blew it off again, tacked entire surface and applied my epoxy primer. It was a primer that could be mixed as a sealer or a primer. I used it as a sealer since I had very little bondo to cover. I had 3 days to 'recoat' (paint,not sealer) but did it the next day after scuffing it with a grey scuff pad and blowing and tacking it off. Then basecoat followed naturally by the clearcoat. It seems like a long process, and it is. If you want the job to come out nice you MUST prep it the right way. NO SHORTCUTS! A great paitjob is 90% preparation and 10% application. Trust me, I have been doing this for 22 years. There are websites online that are pretty detailed about how to do your own painting. Check them out too. Jim.

Thanks for the replies. This is going to be a lengthy project for me. If the car sits for an extended length with epoxy primer, will that cause me any problems? Can I just scuff it when I'm ready for the next step?

Also whats the difference between the epoxy primer and the epoxy sealer? Is the sealer just thinned more?

It's fine to let epoxy primer sit so long as it's inside and out of the weather. It's moisture resistant, but not water proof.

Planning on doing this at home in your garage?

Been there, done that, bought the tee shirt.

First off, what type of vent system do you have? What type of spray gun? What are your neighbors like? Some of them are quite b holes which depends on where you live and what home owners association you happen to a part of.

Good advice given here as far as paint is concerned. Get a good mask and a good spray gun. Make sure that you are SAFE and vent the area well (if it is in a garage).

I have seen 'paint tents' put up in driveways though but, then again, it depends on where you live and who's going to or not going to complain.

I am getting ready to paint again Myself. Black on black. Maybe a 'ghost stripe'? I have plans that include 'bats'. I am going to remove the vinyl top and paint the top.... wow, I have a great story about how I got that top so cheap. I helped put it on Myself. I'll..miss it I suppose but I digress,

I don't look forward to this chore and neither does My husband.

Sigh. I'm in your corner and hope it all works out.Please post pics of your progress.

If you get in a jam? Come on back, We are here to help.

My hubby knows more about this than I do, but I know how hard and difficult it can be at times to do a job yourself for the FIRST time.

I came here too.....just like you asking questions.