I realize that most shops or painters have a manner of doing things. I'm not sure I understand the principle behind "prepaint" and I have heard thier painter say they use single stage for the engine compartment and jambs, they use this prepaint as a base for a 2 stage finish work.

Opinions and info of the technique welcome.

i am a PPG certified painter with 30+ years of experience.
i am just giving my OPINION on the subject.

i USED TO "pre-paint" cars in the past.
i did this because the lower solids, cheaper, materials would soak down.
by soak down i mean they look glossy after the paint job, but after a few months or years exposed to the elements the paint would loose it's gloss.
if you painted it, gave it a good bake job in the booth, then repainted it again. the gloss would really hold up.
the problem with doing it that way is if you use cheaper under coats the top coat looses it's durability. like building a really nice house on a sand base. no matter how nice the part you see is, it's only as good as the foundation it sits on.

now after using the very high solids modern products for over a year now i don't see the need to do it that way anymore.
i just repaired the first car i painted with the newer products a week ago. the owner really didn't take care of the car just drove it. he visits a commercial car wash every other week. never waxed it. just drove it like most people do.
i honestly have to say the area where i repaired looked as good as the day it left the shop last year.
i don't know the cost of them, i haven't tried to buy any yet. but the really high solids under coats, water based colors and special clears made for the water based colors are really nice. they are extremely fast compared to the old stuff. and they are much more durable.
the down side to the newer products are needing the proper equipment and properly equipped shops to use them in. if you mess up the water base colors they are significantly harder to repair than the solvent colors.

just giving my OPINION on the subject.

Thank you guys. I wondered the same.

I'm not a painter by trade and do only my smaller stuff and will eventually do my car. Maybe that's why I understand the point of using single stage on the engine compartment - and also the underside, interior, small parts, etc.. The advantage is that with very little effort you get a nice glossy finish that requires no wet sanding and buffing. Just imagine doing an engine compartment in base clear, wet sanding and then trying to buff the thing !!

All true in my experience. We have always used single stage under the hood and in the jams for those same reasons....AND....more importantly to me is the ability to touch up the minor mishaps that seem to happen.

Reading Mr T's opinions and looking at where the single stage is used, I have to ask if it's in "protected areas" like door jambs and under hood/truck areas wouldn't that resolve most of the issues mentioned?

Of course I don't have show cars, I drive the snot out of my stuff so losing some gloss under hood or such don't bother me.

The last time I base/cleared an engine compartment was at least 10 years ago and no wet sanding or polishing was needed. It's not necessary with todays materials is it? Can't you spray the whole shell at once and just polish the exterior?

Sheldon

Agreed,....I started painting in the mid to late later 70's, I've done it all; by trade or hobby/sideline, pinstriping, flames, air brush, lace, murals, sprayed flake, candies, pearls, metallic, lacquer, enamels, polyurethanes,etc, etc, along with countless restoration, collision repaints, panel blending, etc, etc...so after 4 decades I think I know a little about "painting"

The "trend" to paint the underhood/compartment, door jambs/trunk/etc in single stage, then finish the body in 2 stage started around the mid to late 80's when 2 stage started to make an appearance on the market, by the early 90's as 2 stage became more accepted, so did this practice, surprisingly even still accepted...This started out as a cheap alternative, "why waste 2 stage under the hood/jambs/trunk/etc, when single stage was cheaper, no ones going to see it", I never catered to this practice, whatever type of paint that was going on the body, was going on the jambs/engine room/trunk/etc (Brand X excluded)

This practice has carried over thru the decades, some have no clue as to why, it's just "what everyone else does"...It might look good when fresh (to an amateur)but as it ages, it just screams cheap amateur paint work...

As far as GYC, as I've said before their work borders on 2nd or 3rd rate bodyshop quality when seen in person, TV editing has too many smoke and mirrors obscuring the viewers eyes and minds with the steady flow of BS and drivel to be of any real world value, hence this tread

base / clear no buffing

No matter how good the job is there will always be someone who will find flaws or thinks they can do better. But the plain and simple fact is that it all boils down to dollars and cents. Personally I'd rather a "less than perfect" paintjob so I'm not afraid to drive the car when and where I please as opposed to a $20,000 paint job I'm afraid to drive out of the garage.

And need I remind you that factory original paint jobs were far from show quality.

Next time you see one of these 2nd or 3rd rate jobs as you so call them, ask what the investment is. You'll probably find that the price was reasonable and the owner is happy.

When I say 2nd or 3rd rate work, that extents well beyond just the paint for GYC work...

Pre-painting is silly. I use to buy the philosophy, but why invest in multiple materials? Modern clear coats are tough and flow out nicely. You don't need to buff out the engine compartment or the jambs.

The idea of painting all the hidden areas first, then assembling the car to paint the car whole sounds good.....Except for the overspray. Paint and clear will get through the gaps between the fenders/doors/hood, etc. So now what? Do you attempt to mask off the door jambs? Sure, masking an engine bay isn't that hard, same goes for the trunk.
How would a painter be able to assemble a car and shoot it all themselves? I'm talking about every area, no "Pre-paint" type of technique. Can this be done by one person without getting dry edges?
I've always painted metallic cars in whole in the effort to get consistent color match. I am not a good enough painter to do otherwise with a metallic.

I've been a pro painter for over 30 years and can also offer some opinion's. painting the underside,trunk and engine compartment with SS will not get that clearcoat haze from light scratches and scuffs. it can be more durable depending on the quality of paint. you can also wet sand any small imperfections before painting with BC/CC and you might achieve better hold out on the BC/CC job.
BUT your jambs and such won't match the BC/CC paint.
the number 1 reason I think they do it is for cost. the SS is cheaper and you need a lot less BC to achieve proper coverage.
for a nice driver it's not a bad idea to paint the trunk,engine compartment and underside with SS IF the color is close. the exterior not so much.
Sounds like they are cheaping out on the job and spinning it as a high end technique.

One thing GYC claim is "affordability". So if you want affordability you better have the common sense to knock your expectations of quality down a notch or two. If you look at the restoration business its pretty much saturated with shops that charge top dollar and crank out masterpieces that will seldom see the light of day. I think Mark has a niche ... he buys everything he can lay his hands on as cheap as possible so he has parts to scavenge without paying top dollar. He then cranks out "decent" restos at affordable prices. No high end trailer queens ... DRIVERS!

As I said previously, you can pick them apart all you want but ask the owner if they're happy. They're the only one's that matter!

I don't think I have ever heard GYC say how much any of the "restorations" that they do cost . . . I don't think they are cheap/affordable !!! Personally, I can't comment on his paint practices - I will leave that to those with the experience. . . . I just don't get his "Attitude" where he thinks ONLY he can build these cars back to OE ?!?!?! What has everyone else in the hobby been doing ??? So sick of all these edited tv shows with made for tv "Drama" about getting things done on time, etc . . . the only thing GYC is good for, is showing Mopars (in my mind) . . .

Just my 2 cents (and that's what I can afford) . . .

Cheers

I have prepainted many cars. The reason is usually the owner wants to drop his motor in and use the car as he finishes the body work. Usually a slow resto. It all comes down to time and money. If you can spend the cash all at once and do a proper resto I cant see a need to do it.

You just don't get it do you ?!? After all these years of reality shows you still don't get that "attitude" and "drama" are what sells. No attitude or drama ... just go post your snoring "how-to" videos on YouTube. Seriously, if you want to learn how to do something, YouTube is your friend. If you want entertainment you watch reality shows, but you sure as hell won't learn anything.

Ed China (Wheeler Dealers) never needed the "drama" BS to try to make the show exciting. MUCH better without all the staged crap. If I'm watching a "reality" show & they start pulling all the staged arguments & other BS, I never tune it in again. People that fall for the BS staged drama are the ones who don't get it.