sicma99ot

today after work i went to the local paint and body shop to see how much it would cost to change my EBP into NHBP. this guy is the best in the county. i took a look around his shop. he has about 25 employees and all the cars he had there looked like they were show worthy. i asked him how long he has been doing this, he told me for 30 years. anyway, he looked over my car and showed me 6 dents i didnt know were there before. i told him i wanted my door jams painted, and the gutters in my trunk and under my hood.

we got back inside and he did his write-up. he gave me my copy and told me the cost is going to be around $5000!
i told him i was thinking itd be no more than 3k. but 5 is a good price for the work he does. i asked him if i could shave a couple thousand off by doing the sanding, filling the holes and prep work myself. he said i could and it would be a good way to save money. but he would have to inspect it when i got done, so its right for paint.

i am confident i can do the job right. ive been thinking about doing this for a while since my paint is scratched and faded. (and for the simple fact that i like black)

so since ive never done this before does anyone know what kind of material id need. i.e. what grit sand paper, steps to sanding, rotary or sanding block, tips? anything is most helpful.



and just for those guy who are ganna tell me (and i know it'll come up) to just sell my car....well, its financed and if i were to sell it, the money i COULD get wouldnt pay back the loan.

my only option is to hope i wreck my car and have insurance pay for it, or save money by sanding and prepping myself. in a normal situation i would leave this to a pro, but i dont have 5 grand and am in desperate need of new paint.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

prep is alot of hard work, but doable by almost anyone. search for info online but the basic process is the same. are you primering too or just prep? a machine sander will make life alot easier, but you may end up spending alot of $ for equipment you dont have

sicma99ot

i dont plan to prime it. i dont have a gun and the only air compresser i have has a broken motor.

i do have a rotary sander tho.

[on a side note]
i am lined up to buy a 1970 gto from a guy(for a steal!) and using it as my project car, but it seems like now that i would rather use my vic as a project car and using the gto as a daily driver. because theres more than just paint id like to do with it like: motor, coilovers, camber kit, interior (bc i gutted it today), ect.

ajhdragon

iTrader: (5)

Dude honestly. 5 grand for a stock Honda color? I can understand if it is a super sick paint job. I have friends that are painters. Why not go with something other 7thgens dont come with. That or just buy a NHBP vic.

Albertross

iTrader: (2)

True, 5 grand is hefty, though I understand you'll be getting a top-of-the-line paint-job. But if you're planning to spend that much, then work with something that makes everyone say "Wow, that's a good paint-job" rather than "Oh, it's black".

ciVictoria

Go for Phoenix Yellow or Laguna Seca blue that would be two of my top colors, why go get plain ol' black?

sicma99ot

right now ive only gotten one quote. i ran out of gas yesterday before i could go anywhere else, so i figured i go to the best first to see what he'd say. really nice guy. he said if i wanted to i could come to his shop to do the prep work myself with him kinda supervising me. i thought thatd be cool.

but im ganna go out again today to get some other quotes.

ajhdragon

iTrader: (5)

Thats why I'm asking why NHBP? people are still going to say "O'h its black" because there are 1000's of NHBP 7thgens out there.

sicma99ot

i was thinking about going with an si blue.
but im not really into crazy colors.
so id like to stick to a honda color

sicma99ot

or i could just save the paint until last. bc like i said before there is more than just paint i need. i have a bent intake valve, so im ganna replace all the valves and upgrade the camshaft to maybe a stage 1 or 2na. ive also been putting off getting new front tires and im afraid if i dont soon there ganna start falling apart because they have almost no tread.

i have a couple grand saved up, but it seems im ganna have to spend it just to keep the vic running.

TRIZ

iTrader: (14)

DUDE... thats so dope. I would totally take him up on that. I'm kinda in your shoes. I can do really good work, but dont have the professional know how as to what is the best combo of products to use. Its kinda like an internship for free, working on your own car. I really think you should do this, it seems like a great opportunity.

If you replace the valves, you should replace the valve guides as well. I have a set from honda (still in the packaging) that I was going to use for my build, but havent got around to ever doing... get at me if you need some. Also, if you plan to swap the cam for anything other then a stage 1, you will need an engine management system. Kpro will run you about 1300 before tuning. It gets pricey, but it will be a bad *** car when your done with it.

sicma99ot

he was cool. as soon as i told him i was going to school to do this kinda stuff, his words were, "if you wanna come in and get your hands dirty, do the prep work yourself, i could help you out and give you a little guidence".
i was like "man your kidding. that'd be great. im most likly ganna call you and take you up on that offer".


yea i saw your diy about the valves.
im prob only ganna be stage 1 because im auto. sucks

sicma99ot

[QUOTE=TRIZ;4354034]Also, if you plan to swap the cam for anything other then a stage 1, you will need an engine management system.[\QUOTE]

i thought you only need and ems upgrade for stage 3 na?
stage 2 na only says you need valve uprade?

DeepBlueC

i agree fully with the guys saying not to go with a stock honda color. get something with a little more "umph" to it. like a metallic black, or something. not just plain ol' NHBP.

oh and.. TRAITOR! going to the dark side! evil do-er! its ALL about the EBP!

.... then again, id swap out to an Si Blue if I could, lmao.

sicma99ot

lol nah i like the blues but i like black better.

he did say matallic would cost less than a pearl

Eyger

You could write a book on how to prep a car for paint. Damn dude, I've been doing body work on my own as a hobby for the past five years, and I still learn things.

Here's the formula, sand, sand, sand, primer, sand, sand, sand, hi build primer, sand, sand, sand, sealer, basecoat, midcoat, clear, sand, sand, rubbing compound, polisher.

PM me if you want me to break it down for you, I could go on forever about how to prep. Also, there are tons of books out there, as well as articles on the net.

there was a guy on here that posted for a lil whie that had a white civic, he claimed he worked for a body shop. I do not, I just screw around in my free time.

sicma99ot

yea i check out some of you threads on your progress


this has been helpful. so im ganna have to buy a gun, new compressor and primer? shot ya a pm and some rep.


ive read a few articals but i feel unclear on the steps to take.

Eyger

PM sent back.

You don't necessarily have to get a gun and compressor, I've done this before, and the issue becomes having a safe place to spray the product.

What you can do, which is exactly what Im doing, is prep the hell out of the car, then bring it in to a shop and say, can you please lay down primer for me. That's the last thing ive done with my car so far, they did two layers of epoxy primer, cost 140 bucks total for the labor, Seems expensive, but at the shop I went to its 68 bucks an hour for paint time. Granted it didn't take two hours to lay the primer on, but the material disposal and clean up is calculated in the price as well.

Prep the car, and bring it in to get primer, get the car back, prep it more, take it in, get it back, prep it more, take it in for paint.
That's how Im approaching it.

HOWEVER, if you live like in the middle of no where, where no one is going to care if you prime your car, go right ahead and do it. It is illegal though, of course, because of air regulations. You could just prime and paint your whole car in the middle of a field if you really wanted to. Don't know how well it would come out. If you have a garage you can paint in, hang up plastic sheeting and primer away.

It all depends on your situation.

sicma99ot

i live in suburia hell. i dont think the neighborhood would want me spraying. i do have a garage but like i said, my place isnt the place for spay. lol

Eyger

Yeah I wouldn't risk it, just prep and bring in it.

You do have one other option though, and yes I've done this before too, and it works brilliantly, but I moved away where I can't anymore.

In some cities, there are "rent-a-booth" paint booths. Where you can pay like 70 bucks for 3 hours and shoot whatever the hell you want in a real paint booth. So you COULD prep and take it there for primer. Then when you're done, take it to this guy to paint.

When I did it, I actually did all the sanding and prep and home, I also sprayed primer at home, it was crazy, anyways. After all that was said and done, I took it to the paint booth and painted it with a single stage acrylic, it turned out ok, but not perfect, that's why I'm doing it again. Whatever, now I live where there isn't a rent a booth anywhere. If there was I would probably consider doing the whole thing start to finish myself... maybe one day!

sicma99ot

im ganna sand in my garage, then ill take it to him before i lay on the first primer to see what he says. im calling him tomorrow to see if i can rent out one of his booths to spray primer and sealer. and leave the paint for him.

youve been most helpful. im hoping you get your paint done so i can see what a sick job you did. ill have to take a trip to cali to roll with you

Eyger

That's not a bad idea, you should do it.

I hope I get it done soon too!!

Hell ya, CROSS COUNTRY TRIP!!
ha ha, I live really far away though!

good luck!