Body Prep ?
 

Hi Gang

Whilst I am waiting to find a money tree to buy bit's of bling for the Cobra. I thought I would throw out what seems like a simple question but I know will get quite complex. :eek:

I want to start preparing the body and was wondering, what others have used? What's good and what's not good? My Fibreglass experience is limited to damaging surfboards when I fall off and hit them with my melon :JEKYLHYDE

What did you do first? What process did you use for sanding and smoothing? What products and process did you use for the bog? Or did you use bog ?:confused: :confused:

I have no idea when it comes to body prep, but would like to do the majority myself, rather than pay somebody to have a pimply apprentice do the hard yards. :D :D

Thanks
Mark

Churchy, read every post 0n this site:

http://www.ffcobra.com/cgi-bin/ultim...=0;DaysPrune=0

That'll keep ya busy awhile. :JEKYLHYDE

Hey Les,

I have read through a lot of that forum, and Ive noticed that they repeatedly talk about grinding out the seams to remove all traces of gel coat from the joint. Do you think this is something specific to the way they assemble the FF bodies? From what I can tell (and I could be wrong here) the FF body is first layed up in the separate segments of the mold, then the mold is assembled and then addiitional layers added. This way the gel coat extends quite deep into the joint, whereas most the local kits have the bodies layed up from the first layer with the mold fully assembled. (Like I say - I could be talking\typing- out my arse here)

I dont think the guys painting the CR bodies have been as severe on the joints, just sanded them over to knock off the ridge then a coat of filler feathered either side of the joint?

Cheers. :)

Tenrocca, correct again mate. :)

That seam grinding process is not required for any of the Australia made bodies. It is, as you say, a process needed because of the sectional molds FFR used.

However, on most of the Australia bodies I have noticed a very slight "Flat" on top the front guards. Leastwise I've noticed it in RMC,s, Older G-force, BRD's and Harrisons. It is hard to pick but can be felt.

Best felt with a piece of cloth between the palm of your hand and the car when checking for it.

Because it is a very slight flat, it is often not noticed until after painting and then it is too late.

It tends to give the cars a flattish look to the front and makes the guards look wider than they are. ( normally a good thing but not in this case)

Have a really good feel for it and use a blunted hacksaw blade to get the curve when you bog it up.

You'll be cranky with yourself if you paint without fixing it cuz thats exactly where everybody looks when admiring a good paint job.

They might not notice it but you'll be conscious of it.

Hows your glasswork going now?, you happy with the rolled edges you did?.

It's a bit mis-leading when they talk about "removing all traces of gel coat". The thing they are essentially removing, is any mold wax/release agent that may be squeezed between some of the gel coat at the joins.
Gel coat in itself can be sanded and painted (as nearly all of these Cobra's are done this way). Wax, release agent or any foreign substance will wreak havoc with paint, (as I found out, the hard way).

Yeppers Plum...to a point

The main reasons for grinding all the gel coat out was not only to remove whatever parting agents were on the surface but also to remove any voids under that gel coat. It was mainly these voids the painters had troubles with.

The way the earlier FFR cars were molded allowed for the possibility of a multitude of voids under the gelcoat at the seam . If these weren't removed then they would erupt through the paintwork at some time in the future.

Professional painters then had to repaint these cars ( no cost to the owners) so they developed this procedure to ensure it didn't happen.

Later cars are molded in a different way so don't require the grinding of seams.

The early RMC cars had a similar problem at the curlunder at the bottom of the rear guards.

Frankly, all caused by poor workmanship when laminating the glass.

You are very lucky to own a G-Force as it is one of the best bodies around...specially those from his new mold.

Good point with the voids, I didn't think of that :confused:

You are right, the G-force body is pretty good. I didn't use any bog at all, I just sprayed a couple of coats of primer on all of the seams then blocked them back to get them right, (well it looks ok to me anyway)....

Found Gold...
 

Rage gold, which is the body filler most recommended on the FF site. Not a lot of places have it but found it at mourans paint at wetherill park. $42 for a 3.4 litre can.

Les, that tip with the hacksaw blade is possibly the single best body tip Ive come across - One run across with that formed a perfect smooth curve over the top of the front fender...brilliant! :D

RE the rolled edges. I still have some work to do but the basic shape is right and I think it makes a huge difference to the finish of the cockpit - as did a few fellas who dropped in the other day. I think some are planning the same mod.

Yeah, we also glassed on some rolled edges to front & back edge of the cockpit on our first Cobra(DRB). Made a huge difference.

us the back of a flexibl knife along the seams to scrap off most of the seam

There's a nice article in the latest issue of Kit Car magazine...it covers much of what you asked.

Can anyone give me a run down on modern auto paints and safety. I plan to do all the body work and primer myself, then send off to get the colour done by a pro. Im confident I can do a decent job on the body work, and as the primer\surfacer get block sanded anyway Im guessing (hoping) spray technique wont be too critical. I will be using a catylised (2pak) primer\surfacer. Obviously not wanting to poison myself and or my wife, dog or kids - Is this somethign that can be done safely at home ? What products would you recommened (I know the FF site recommends featherfill, which I havent found locally) - and what safety aperatis would be required.

Cheers
:)

Andrew,
I work with quite a few spraypainters and I am sure you will find that you will need to decide (I know its hard) who is going to paint your car.
Different paint brands require different prep products.
PPG will use a different type of primer to lets say House of Colour.
At the end of the day to reduce costs and prep time, your painter is going to want a particular base to work with. Talk with him and I'm sure he will not only specify what you want, but sell you the paint and give you loads of help too.

Great advice Gav...first step is to chat to the fella who is going to blow the final coats.

ask him:
1. What brand of paint he will use
2. What primer/surfacer systems he prefers you to use.
3. Check his recommendation against the paint manufacturers recommendation.
4. Any discrepancies discuss with the painter.
5. Don't guesstimate the ratios, use measures.
6. Make sure you use a compressor capable of keeping up with the gun.
7. Use better than average air drying systems/filters.
8. Use the right size gun tip for the paint your using.
9. Practice your wet on wet spraying technique.
10. On sanding primers/surfacers use a guide coat.
11. When sanding use a pad or block. Don't use your bare hands.
12. Make sure you have adequate ventilation in your spray area. Use a air supply hood if possible.
13. Use disposable outer overalls and no loose clothing which may hang onto your job.

Finally, ask the painter what he wants to receive. ie. Does he want a sanded car ready for base coat or does he want a car with an unsanded finish for him to finally finish prior to his base coat. ie. he may identify some areas needing extra attention.

Be very careful as this stuff is dangerous.... especially the catalysts, they contains isocyanates and can be absorbed thru the skin.

Frankly, I have seen many excellent paint jobs where the prep work was done by owners then some when the whole job was done by a professional. Mind you...I have also seen some shockers done DIY without a pro involved.

cheers

Tenrocca, the rolled edges give the car a really good look. I know they are hard work but well worth the effort. I wish I had seen it earlier so I could have copied you.

Regards.

I JUST finished spraying mine. Did ALL the work with a friend (he actually sprayed, as he used to own his own body shop). Here's what we did...

1) sanded down all seams and completely removed ALL traces of gel coat
2) Used 2 gallons of Bondo filler to make the lines and curves as perfect as possible. Of course, we sanded off about 1.95 gallons during the process..."wipe on, sand off" was my mantra!
3) Altogether, we sprayed 12 (yes TWELVE) coats of primer. This was the thick stuff that fills all errors! After every two coats, we rubbed it down again with increasingly fine grit paper each time. We started with 80, then went to 150, 220, 400, 600 and then 800.
4) We actually did all this in a regular garage (now VERY VERY dusty!!) and then moved to a paint shop for the final prep sanding and spraying in a booth we 'borrowed' over a weekend from a friend who owns a body shop. Friday night, we taped the whole thing up (3 hours) sprayed the stripe color (Porsche Wimbledon Green Metallic) and one coat of clear and 'baked' it in the paint booth overnight. Saturday morning we taped up the stripe (90 minutes), and painted 3 coats of Jaguar British Racing Green Metallic, followed by 3 coats of the best clear we could buy. Baked it overnight again, and then on Sunday afternoon, rubbed it down with 1500 and then 2000 grit, followed by 4 hours of buffing!
5) Probably took 200 hours of prep work by two completely anal retentive idiots, but the finish is stunning! I will issue sunglasses during the summer for envious people who want to stare at the car...LOL.
6) The paint we used is supposedly one of the best you can get...Spies Hecker
7) I probably spent $2,000 US on paint supplies, sandpaper, Bondo, primer, 'kitty hair', fiberglass and resin, paint, clearcoat etc. etc., and I gave my buddy $2,000 for helping me and doing the actual spraying, but I spent $4,000 and got a $9,000 paint job. Learned an enormous amount, gained a HUGE amount of satisfaction and had a LOT of fun doing it.
7) Do NOT undertake 'painting it yourself' lightly, particularly if you are anal retentive about quality, but GO FOR IT. The 'bragging rights' alone are worth it!

Photo's please,
Mine is to be painted British racing green too!!