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Ooooo.M.G

K

Kats66Pny

Active Member
So I might be taking Gertrude to get media blasted and shot with primer this week or next!! I got the OK from the husband! :yah

Of course if I do that, then... it's going to be even longer before I can drive her. I was going to get her alignment and exhaust done this week and drive her again all ugly and multi-colored and was all tickled pink about it since it's been over a year, but then hubby had to go in and say I could get her blasted and primered if I wanted.

Ahh!!!!!!!! :rant

Maybe I'll just get the alignment and exhaust done, drive her for a week then take her in to the shop and get her stripped down. :confu
 
Ummm....media blasting of a car really requires everything removed: windows, engine, interior, trim, suspension, brakes, etc. You simply do not want to get media in those parts. Once media blasted, you'll see every rotted piece of metal and you'll be disheartened at the amount of work it will take to fix it before you can begin re-assembly.

Media blasting (and immediate priming) is not for the faint of heart, and is only done when one starts a full restoration. I do not advise you, Kat, to go down this path right now.
 
"Midlife" said:
Ummm....media blasting of a car really requires everything removed: windows, engine, interior, trim, suspension, brakes, etc. You simply do not want to get media in those parts. Once media blasted, you'll see every rotted piece of metal and you'll be disheartened at the amount of work it will take to fix it before you can begin re-assembly.

Media blasting (and immediate priming) is not for the faint of heart, and is only done when one starts a full restoration. I do not advise you, Kat, to go down this path right now.
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:stu
 
Yep, should be stripped down completely before media blasting. And when you get back, you can see all the rust damage, where the bondo was, etc., etc. Even with a healthy bank account and commitment of time, you're talking a couple of years.

 
More I think about it, my desire to drive Gertrude is out weighing my want to get her stripped/primered. Maybe I'll just drive her now, ugly and multi-colored... and this winter get her stripped and body work done.

Off to go sit in Gertrude and make vroom noises! Ok so I might go steal some gas out of the can for the lawnmower and start Gert up.... :roll
 
"Midlife" said:
Ummm....media blasting of a car really requires everything removed: windows, engine, interior, trim, suspension, brakes, etc. You simply do not want to get media in those parts. Once media blasted, you'll see every rotted piece of metal and you'll be disheartened at the amount of work it will take to fix it before you can begin re-assembly.

Media blasting (and immediate priming) is not for the faint of heart, and is only done when one starts a full restoration. I do not advise you, Kat, to go down this path right now.
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What he said. Except, if you are really committed to getting her painted you need to go this path eventually. The sooner you do it the sooner you can really finish her. Judging by what you have found already you need, however, to be prepared to face what I would expect could be a lot more metal work.

You need to decide which path to take. Plunge head first and commit to do it all or make it drivable and probably never go this path before you now because as others have told you, doing it right means stripping it to a shell prior to media blasting. Will you really take time to put it all back together only to take it all apart...again...to start over with even more work in store for you? That is really what you need to ask yourself today.

There is also the $$$ part to consider. Stripping it down and fixing what you find will not be cheap. If you are not prepared financially your project can be stalled long enough that life steps in and...well you know what can happen. Hell, even if you have the cash life can cause things to change. Ask me how I know!

If you are truly committed to it I say get her stripped and settle in for the long haul. In the end it is worth it.
 
I agree to not blast the car until you are ready to make it a rolling chassis, which is a shiat load of work. Here's a pic of me with Shag trying to remove the tons of blasting media. Look how tired I was...........

MediaBlastingB.jpg



MediaBlastingC.jpg
 
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Judging by what you have found so far and your budget, I would not blast the car. I would make it a nice driver and enjoy it. You have impressed me with all the hard work you have done but it's been nothing compared to the can of worms you will open. If your goal is a really nice car that will last a long time, then think about what Horseplay said but if you want a driver you don't need to go into it that far. Maybe after this car you will find one that is "the one" you just have to restore but I suspect this one is a toy and a learning experience and it is still pretty decent. Something you can still be proud of
 
I agree with the majority here. Spend some time behind the wheel and have some fun. Once you decide to strip and blast you won't be driving it for a while. Life has a way of getting in the way of these projects. This spring I'll finally be on the road, after 6 long expensive years. Was it worth it? Ofcourse......but it wasn't easy.

DSC00376.jpg
 
"tarafied1" said:
Judging by what you have found so far and your budget, I would not blast the car. I would make it a nice driver and enjoy it.
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In order to make it a nice driver, she needs a paint job or at least covered in a long lasting primer so she isn't 3 colors. lol She still has exposed primer around the windshield, and the cowl that was put in is still black, with no primer. The rest of her is red. I didn't plan on blasting the interior, engine bay, trunk. I already cleaned the aprons inside and out when I cleaned up the engine bay. I was thinking just the exterior to remove the paint.

I figured it would be easier to remove the paint with media blasting instead of by hand with a sander. :shrug
 
Doesn't matter if you are only blasting the outside, media will get everywhere - interior, engine bay, cowl vents, doors, etc, etc.

With some of the new abrasive pads, you can strip paint pretty quick.
 
I don't know about you guys, but the guy that painted my car would not let them blast anything but the door jams, undercarriage and engine bay. All the body panels were sanded, he didnt want the heat from the blasting to warp anything.


This is what it looked like when it went to blasting

2_10_08_09_11_15_22_1.JPG
 
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"Kats66Pny" said:
In order to make it a nice driver, she needs a paint job or at least covered in a long lasting primer so she isn't 3 colors. lol She still has exposed primer around the windshield, and the cowl that was put in is still black, with no primer. The rest of her is red. I didn't plan on blasting the interior, engine bay, trunk. I already cleaned the aprons inside and out when I cleaned up the engine bay. I was thinking just the exterior to remove the paint.

I figured it would be easier to remove the paint with media blasting instead of by hand with a sander. :shrug
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If you're going to strip it to metal for paint I personally can't see why you would not go all the way and do it right the first time using the same logic I alluded to earlier. Do you really want to spend all the time and money only to have to go back and do it all over again later?

If you just want a "driver" then go at it in that manner. That is don't strip it all down to metal. Just do the necessary work to lay on a low cost paint job and get to driving it! In all honesty, this is the direction I would tell you to take. It's MUCH quicker and thousands cheaper. Done well, you could have a good rather than great car possibly years sooner and probably $8-10k cheaper.
 
"Fast68back" said:
I don't know about you guys, but the guy that painted my car would not let them blast anything but the door jams, undercarriage and engine bay. All the body panels were sanded, he didnt want the heat from the blasting to warp anything.


This is what it looked like when it went to blasting

2_10_08_09_11_15_22_1.JPG
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Rick,

I don't know how long ago this was but with the equipment and blast media today, in the hands of someone who knows what they are doing, warping is not an issue. I'd bet your painter had stuff brought to him in the past that had prejudiced him against it.
If you have a car with rust this is THE way to go to get into all the pitted areas and hard to reach spots that other methods cannot touch.
 
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soda blasting is pretty safe and won't generate much heat. It won't remove bondo or bad rust but does take off paint. Still very messy though.
 
So what are my options then to remove all that old faded ugly red paint? Keep in mind I have no air compressor, no sander. No fun tools at all other than some wrenches and screw drivers. Oh I do have an angle grinder! lol

What if I just bought a good air compressor and sander and other stuff to get the paint off myself instead of spending $1300-1500 on media blasting & primer? That way I could do sections at a time - fenders one weekend, roof another weekend, doors another.. etc, but still keep her drivable. :confu
 
Yes, elbow grease goes a long way. My car was painted (albeit years ago) by having a dude hand sand down to the metal every panel. It's a time consuming process but it works. There are some chemical paint strippers that I'm sure someone can recommend that can certainly help the process along but u may have to check with your local laws on certain disposal issues. I've used them in the past with great success.
 
Unless the paint is in poor condition (cracked, peeling, 12 layers of paint, etc) it doesn't need to come off for a driver paint job. Sand down where it needs it, smooth it up and go. If you're gonna be driving it, that's what it needs.

IF the paint isn't sound, you can take off only what is necessary. I had a car once that the roof was peeling, the rest was old and looked bad but was sound. Sanded down the roof, scuffed the rest (smooting out chips, etc), shot it in single stage urethane and it looked great the day I sold it six years later.
 
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