97 Tacoma Partial Restoration Engine/Paint

Looks like this week she will be getting her coat of primer/sealer, then 4 coats of primer/surfacer.

The primer/sealer is used when you are dealing with either bare metal, a large number of repairs, or when changing colors. It locks the appearance underneath the sealer, so that when you paint, nothing underneath can show through, ruining your paint job's appearance.

The primer surfacer is used to fill in the small imperfections, such as tiny pinholes, and scratches from some of the coarser grit sandpaper. It builds up a little thick, so that when you wet sand it smooth, the surface is as near perfect as you can get it. Once I get the final surfacer coat dried, we will wet sand the entire truck, looking for any imperfections. Those imperfections will be fixed, and once all is as close to perfect as we can get it, I will shoot a final sealer coat, then color, and finally clear. The new color is a metallic, but I am adding additional flake for a nice affect. The base color is Dodge Viper Blue Pearl, to which I am adding .004" Patriot blue flake, and .008" Cobalt blue flake for a dual-flake look that I think will look awesome!

 

Cant wait!

 

I came to see the restoration. I stayed for your sig. Lol good work man(on the truck).

 

I swear my sig gets more attention than anything. lol I guess I will keep it, and not rotate it out like I used to.

Truck has been sealed in paint booth, and final prep for primer is completed. this Saturday, God willing, she will get the sealer, then the high-build primer. I plan to have it video-taped, and maybe a time-lapse made of it.

 

Well we now have 3 coats of high-build epoxy primer sprayed on! I will post pictures some time tomorrow!

 

Well after all the body repairs were done, and imperfections were located and fixed, we were ready for primer! I used Kustom Shop's 2K urethane epoxy primer. This product, like most primers of it's kind, can be used two different ways. It can be used as a high-build primer, or as a sealer.

To apply the primer you will need a decent quality HVLP spray gun. HVLP stands for High Volume Low Pressure. You will use a high volume of materials versus a low pressure of air. This improves the quality of the finish. Below is the spray gun I used. For primer I used the 1.8 tip. When painting and clear coating, I will use the 1.4 tip. The tips are interchangeable.



We will first cover the high-build, then when the sealer is applied, I will go over that. To mix it into high-build primer, you mix 3 parts of part "A" (the primer) to 1 part of part "B" (the hardener or 'catalyst'). After mixing the two parts, this primer has a "pot life" of about 2 hours as long as you keep in stirred occasionally. After that it is no good. (this pot life is reduced quickly the higher the ambient temperature) This primer is used to build up the surface, filling small imperfections. You want to apply it in multiple "coats" to get a uniform coverage. After each coat wait approximately 15 minutes before applying the next coat. I applied a total of 3 coats. When the final coat is sprayed you must wait a minimum of 2 hours before sanding. I allowed it to sit overnight. After drying you can then carefully wet sand with 400 grit sandpaper, or finer (600 grit, 1000 grit) You don't want to use anything coarser than 400, as many paints will allow the scratches to show through. Once sanded smooth, you will have a beautiful base to apply your sealer, paint, and clear coat. The photos here are after the high-build has been applied, but not sanded.












As you can see it came out pretty well. What you cant see in that the surface is actually pretty rough, a result of the "high-build" that builds up layers of primer to allow a uniform sanding to be done. If you were to run your hand across the truck it would actually feel like rough grit sandpaper right now.

You also may have noticed that the front fenders are not in their bolt-on location. I off-set them to make it easier to get the primer into the door jam areas in front of the door hinges.

NEXT: Wet sanding to smooth out and prep for the paint!

 

Lookin' good Bill!

 

looking great bill will def be show room by the time you complete it

 

Thanks! I really think she will be looking damn near brand new when I get done with her. The frame and the dash will be the only things not really changed and/or replaced.

 

wanna paint mine

 

Sure, if you have enough money! lol

 

Looks good man. Can't wait to see the finished product.

 

WOW!!! So jealous! I can't wait to see the finished product Bill!

 

At this rate I am gonna look like Popeye with those huge forearms of his with all the sanding down of the primer...lol. My arms HURT. hahaha

 

Anyone can paint. It's the prep work that makes a paint job last.

 

After seeing all the work you're doing to your truck, makes me feel guilty for not doing more to mine. Went out to look at it this evening and now have a short list of little tweaks to do (relocate the gps, etc). Also have to give it a good wash and wax. For larger projects, thinking about an OEM roof rack, painting the bed toolbox, and perhaps shiny new wheels. Undecide on all, so just thinking at this point.

The flat gray primer on your truck reminds me of the navy trucks I used to see years ago. None were that clean, however. The blue you've selected, assuming you're still going with that, will definately look much better. Anyway, enough reading this - get back to work on that primer.

 

Can I have that shiny thing on top of your tank??????? lol That will save me some moola!!!

 

Sure.....for the right price....lol

 

I couldn't resist this afternoon, so I shot the fuel door with the base coat to see what it would look like. Now remember that there is NO clear coat on it, so the shine is not quite as good as it will be. The glare and discoloration in the lower left is because of the angle the sun was hitting it.

 

I like that better then i originally did. The color looks better sprayed on then it did in the sample.

Can't wait to see the whole thing sprayed that color!