Determinating When Body is Ready for 1st Application of Primer/Surfacer

[vettnut]

I am getting near the end of the final inspection and being as anal as possible on my 1960 Corvette. Double checking for any missed stress cracks, divits etc. This car sat under trees/bushes for years. The beating on the body was minimal. That said it left many divits/depressions. I have scratched out these divits with either 36-80 grit and filled with filler.
I will be using Evercoats Featherfill. The last corvette I shot was 5 years ago. Before I apply Featherfill, the entire body will get blocked with 80 grit for teeth.

Questions: How perfect are your car's bodies before shooting your first coat of primer surfacer? Is there a rule of thumb, before moving onto the primer surfacer???
Thank You
RG

[rons]

Questions: How perfect are your car's bodies before shooting your first coat of primer surfacer? Is there a rule of thumb, before moving onto the primer surfacer???
Thank You
RG

One method for the perfectionist is to get everything as level as possible. Then shoot
a coat of white primer. Then mist over the primer with black paint. Now block sand
the black down and you will be able to see the imperfections and make corrections.

[baubau]

i believe you are ready to shoot Evercoat Featherfill.....you said that you have fixed all the dents and imperfections with body filler....and sanded the whole car surface so that Featherfilll will adhere properly...u dont need to strive for 100 percent perfection when using Featherfill, but i am assuming you will apply quality 2k surface primer after it...

Evercoat Featherfill is like a sprayable polyester putty, it provides high buildup , great thickness and it will cover and even out small dents.....i assume that you will apply quality 2k primer surfacer after Evercoat Featherfill.....

when i do body work on a vehicle for a complete paint job, i will spray Evercoat Featherfill over the whole car if there are large areas covered with body filler, many imperfections or if i am dealing with long , possible wavy surfaces....i will try to fix all the dents and small imperfections using 40 grit, 80 grit and finishing with 120 grit paper...however, i will not strive for 100 percent perfection because i will be apply 2k primer over featherfill later on.....for featheredging or sanding, i will use 220 grit...when i sand FeatherFill, i might apply 3M guide coat, then send it with 120 grit , then with 220 grit just to minimize 120 scrathes and then apply 2 coats of 2k surface primer , which i will sand with 320 grit....

however, if i am doing a car that is in fairy decent shape, with panels that have less body work done on them, i will use more "carefull" approach, i will not use Evercoat Featherfill, i will just strive to apply 2k primer surfacer once.....
i dont need to sand it twice, the body work will be finished with 180 grit and all featheredging and paint prep work done with 320 grit prior to primer....and i will carefully check the car with my bare hand for the "wavy feel" or any small dents....

this is how i usually approach to do prep work on complete paint jobs and the rule of thumb regarding primer surfacer depends on the shape of the vehicle , labour involved and money that i am getting out of it ...for a better job, you get better work...

[vettnut]

Thanks for the replies.
The last Corvette I painted in my Garage, has Featherfill applied directly over a Bare Glass body blocked down with 80 grit for teeth. When I finished blocking the Featherfilled body down using guide coat up to 400 grit, I then sealed with DP90 then painted. I still own this 65 corvette. It looks Great after 5 years. Evercoat supplied this recipe to me years ago. No mention of 2K or sealer for that matter. However, I did apply DP sealer the day I painted.
Can you share with me why I need 2K primer over Featherfill?
What PPG 2K will work for this car over the Featherfill?
Thanks for the help.
RG

[another2centsworth]

Thanks for the replies.
The last Corvette I painted in my Garage, has Featherfill applied directly over a Bare Glass body blocked down with 80 grit for teeth. When I finished blocking the Featherfilled body down using guide coat up to 400 grit, I then sealed with DP90 then painted. I still own this 65 corvette. It looks Great after 5 years. Evercoat supplied this recipe to me years ago. No mention of 2K or sealer for that matter. However, I did apply DP sealer the day I painted.
Can you share with me why I need 2K primer over Featherfill?
What PPG 2K will work for this car over the Featherfill?
Thanks for the help.
RG

that plan will work fine with DP as long as you don't run it right before top coat

[baubau]

when i apply and use Featherfill, i treat it like a polyester putty, therefore, i sand it with 120, 180 or 220 grit paper to get all areas blocked and smooth as quickly as possible...it is a lot easier for me to sand , block and get surface straight using rougher sandpaper grit than 320 or higher...i find it less time consuming that way and i get better results.....

for a better paint holdout, to cover all those scratches and for better final sanding characteristics using 320 and 600 grit wet sanding, i will apply 2k primer , usually one or 2 wet medium coats, not really thick...