DeVilbiss, SATA, Sharpe, Astro Pneumatic, Binks

To paint your car only once and have it last for a very long time is the goal. You need care, proper equipment and practice and you can do an incredible job for yourself. Yes! we have had 1st time painters use our superior equipment and do amazing jobs on their very first try. It is very important to use professional top of the line tools that experienced mechanics and body shop people use to help you do a great job. You will find them at spraygunworld.com and spraygunindustry.com

*7 Processes involved in painting an automobile:*
	*Choosing the correct system*
		You must choose the paint you are going to use. Common paints are Single Stage (1 coat paints) and Base/Clear (2 coat paints a base coast followed up with a clear coat covering). Most modern cars use Base/Clear Method.
	*Cleaning and Degreasing*
		DEGREASING 2 Steps: You need to clean and degrease between all steps in painting to remove all contaminants. Sometimes you need to use soap and water, sometimes a strong solvent, sometimes a nonflammable degreaser. 1st) Clean with Soap and water will remove salt and skin oil. For tough stains remember each contaminant can only be dissolved by products of the same family. Don't touch the surface with your bare hands. Acetone won't dissolve salt. 2nd) Solvent based degreaser Then a degreaser for painted surfaces with clean cloths. If you see the degreaser bead up on the surface then it isn't clean. The surface should allow the degreaser to make a smooth film over it. If not then you need to keep degreasing. Note: After sanding with the correct grit you need to clean with soap and water again because your hands contain salt and oil which will cause a defect, unless you sanded with gloves or were careful not to touch the surface. Then a degreaser again. Use clean new cloths. Use one cloth to put it on and one to take it off. Don't let it evaporate on the surface. Make sure you remove it from the surface. Do this until the cloths come up clean. If the cleanup cloth is dirty then you need to degrease again. The surface is ready for the next step. Note: Degreasing plastic parts. The only difference is the degreaser used. It must be nonflammable because plastic parts will store a static charge from any sanding or wiping just like a nylon rug and it can catch fire.
	*Sanding*
		SANDING: Sanding is done for one purpose only, to provide the correct size scratches for the next product to adhere to. Scratching the surface removes some material and increases the surface area. The larger the surface area the better the adhesion. This must be done according to the specs of the next product to be applied. PRIMER - A product like primer may have particles in it that are 3 Mils. in size. If the scratch is too big or too small it won't adhere correctly and will eventually fail. Bare aluminum - needs to be sanded only with a red scotchbrite Bare Steel needs to be sanded with 120 to 180 grit sandpaper for some bodyfillers. NOTE: Read the directions very carefully. Using the wrong size scratch (sandpaper) leads to many problems. if you use an 80 grit piece of sandpaper it means you only put 80 scratches per square inch. So if you used 240 grit you would be adding 200 percent more surface area for adhesion of the next product. When sanding use a hard backing with the paper if you are trying to level a surface. If you are sanding contours you need to use a flexible but firm backing. Change sandpaper often. If you use sandpaper after it's usable life it will actually be coarser and ruin your paint job by leaving too deep of a scratch.
	*Applying bodyfiller*
		Only use fresh bodyfiller. The shelf life is six months. It's too cheap to even take a chance so buy fresh stuff. Don't overharden it. The ratio is three percent hardener maximum. The hardener is only a catalyst. It generates the heat necessary to allow the two components which are already mixed together to react with each other. Yes, bondo will harden by itself if you apply heat to it without hardener. If you add too much hardener it will eventually get to the topcoat and bleach it a lighter shade. Peroxide is the hardener and also what is used to bleach hair. When applying the bodyfiller make sure the surface is clean and force the first coat into the metal with the spreader as much as you can for good adhesion. Do not use a cheese grater! Let the product harden by itself completely. A cheese grater only works when the filler is still soft so you may actually loosen it from the surface because it doesn't reach full adhesion until it's hard. Also a cheese grater removes the wax that is in the bodyfiller to shield the filler mixture from reacting with oxygen in the air which weakens the bonding of the filler. After it is hard use a wax and grease remover first to remove this coating and your sandpaper will not clog up when you start sanding. Apply the filler from the center out. This tends to make less ridges in the repair. It's best not to put bodyfiller on paint even though you can do it with some fillers. Don't put more filler on than the recommended thickness. It's on the can. It can be as little as 3/8th's of an inch.
	*Choosing the correct reducers, hardeners and surfacers for the conditions*
		CHOOSE THE CORRECT PRODUCTS, REDUCERS AND SURFACERS FOR THE JOB: Read the tech sheets for all products or ask somebody who knows.
	*Spray Gun Application of the coatings*
		Spray Guns - No better way to learn than to actually DO IT! Practice yourself, take courses from any major paint company, or find a painter.
	*Correct equipment and maintenance*
		MAINTAIN THE EQUIPMENT: Every single piece of equipment should be in top condition. Clean filters, correctly sized equipment, clean spray guns, clean tack cloths, etc. When you go into a booth to spray a car most of the work has already been done so there should be no surprises of any type if all equipment is maintained according to it's specifications.