Prepping truck for paint

Hey guys...

So I recently bought a 2001 Extended cab in the Jade color. The paint is peeling, fading, and rusting in areas. I've been going back and forth on getting it painted since I bought it.

I went around and got a few quotes... And it seems a lot of the cost is in the prep work. With that being said, I'm considering doing all the sanding to bare metal myself. Im leaning towards Maaco... yes, I know. Everyone rips on Maaco. But from my research it seems like if you do all the prep work yourself, the paint job is just fine. Ill be doing their premium package with 2x base coats + 2x clear coat layers.

So... If I am going to be sanding it all myself, can I get some tips? Ive got some scratches, chips, dings and rust. So I was planning to start with 60 or 80 grit and move all the way up to 600. What intervals should I increase grit? 60 - 120 - 220 - 400 - 600?

I plan to pull everything off the truck to make access easy.

Is there a thread all about painting these trucks? I couldn't find anything as I searched.

Any input / tips would be appreciated!

 

@Superdave1.0

 

Most shops aren't going to sand it down to bare metal. That just makes for more unnecessary work/materials. Prep work is super important. Priming and blocking the car is not easy to do right. Could end up with waivy panels, low spots, etc. If you were to do all the filler and primer for the shop, I doubt they would warranty the job. Best to let a professional do the work from start to finish.

What I do recommend is removing everything you can off the body panels. Lights, bumpers, door handles, belt moldings, mirrors, flares, emblems, everything. That way the shop can take the paint all the way to the edge of the panel.

Maaco paint job is only good for a couple years and is poor quality. I'd shop around more and find a mid grade body shop to do the work.

 

Prep work is time consuming and that is why the prep work is expensive. Anything you can do may or may not help depending on your skill level. Honestly unless you have the ability I would let the shop do the work.
As for Maaco I used to work for them before they fired me because I took to long sanding the cars. I could never get it in my head that I was to only sand above the belt line and not touch anything lower as they demanded.
I thought their painter was OK but the prep work was a joke. You get what you pay for unfortunatly. I was always curious if the paint stayed on those cars we never sanded.

 

Nail on the head right here.

 

Short term flip to a rookie, maybe.

Application/final look depends on the painter and his work ethic/skill.

Regardless, it's still a subpar paint product and will not last as long as you'd hope for.

Exception: Since these are franchise shops, if you are tight with the owner, you *may* be able to sweet talk them into prep and product upgrade for some differential. Assuming he has a tech who can do it right.

 

Dang. Guess all this is good info. Maaco quoted me 5800 to strip to bare metal and paint. Could reduce that by like 300 if I take the stuff off myself, which I’ll do.

 

That is an INSANE price for Maaco. You can get a much higher quality paint job for that much.

That price may be high because you asked them to strip it. That's a complete waste of time unless there's some special scenario here that we aren't aware of. You only need to take it down to metal for areas that need extra metal work - like where there are big dents, rust...etc. Otherwise, all you need to do is sand, prime and repaint. Taking the time to take it all down to bare metal provides no benefits - only extra work and more potential to create other issues.

 

so when you say a shop won’t want to sand to bare metal, is there a reason that would make them? Maaco told me I had some deep scratches and it needs to strip to metal.

 

gotcha. I didn’t ask for them to do that. But the roof is rusty. The hood has clear coat peeling. And there’s scratches on just about every panel, some deeper than others. She said they would want to sand the entire thing to get rid of the scratches.

 

They will sand the repair areas or deep scratches to bare metal. Then feather edge around that. Would take all year to sand your whole truck down to bare metal.

 

These are all great replies here.

That quote from Maaco is crazy high. A higher end body shop with a full warranty and complete detrim of your truck prior to paint should come in around 4500-5500. You do not need a full strip on each panel or they would just have your truck media blasted and repair the dents prior to paint. I would shop around for sure. Are you asking for inside the bed too?

 

A thought to consider.

Are you changing color? If so, MAACO likely won't be doing door jambs, sill plates, inside the hood, door edges, door inside........ Think of it as a 5 foot paint job.

To do a tight proper job, the truck needs to be disassembled. Stripped.

Then complete prep, no shortcuts. Strip the existing paint (media blast), repair all rust, remove dents, smooth body lines.......
Prime, color, clear. Minimum 2 coats each. Remember, there is cure time between each layer.
Much sanding between to remove any nibs, bugs, dust, etc that may have settled in the wet coat.
After the clear, then wet sand

A proper job will be in the $7-9000 range.

In 2011, I was quoted $750 for a body shop to strip, prime, paint and clear a motorcycle gas tank. This was a small part compared to truck panels. I'm sure prices have risen in the last 10 years. Last summer, I restored the truck wheels. Just the paint material alone was almost $500 for the small quantities I needed.

 

Sounds like time to part out!

 

Superdave already answered. It just isn’t necessary. They’ll take it to bare metal where needed and leave the rest alone. Then just blend it all together so it’s even. Completely stripping every panel is a HUGE amount of work and in most cases has no realistic benefits. That’s why they won’t take it all down to bare metal.

For some projects, yeah, strip it. Media blast or acid dip the entire thing and start fresh. But that’s for gnarly restoration projects, race cars…etc not your daily driver Tacoma.

 

okay, so if there is a deep scratch on a panel, is it protocol to sand the w tire panel or just around the scratch? I have plenty of scratches, being a 20 year old truck, there’s plenty of scratches.

yeah I’m going to keep shopping around. They quoted me for a 100% strip to metal and paint. Not painting in the bed.

not changing color.

 

Going to bare metal isn’t needed unless there is an actual repair and needs it. Good tip for scratches is, if you can feel it with your nail it needs clear for sure and maybe base. If you can’t feel it, it may just need scuffed and painted.

Its a different process to prep based on each need that needs addressed.

If there’s no repair and just faded or whatever you’re gonna be like 320-400 grit. Anything under that you’ll wait her gonna have to spray sealer to get scratches out.

 

DIY with Monstaliner. Get a green close to the OE color and your jambs and such won't be as obvious when doors are open.

Look over their site and see some pretty cool projects folks have done. More durable than paint will ever be. Can be applied one panel at a time if you wish.

Get your application practice by doing inside the bed first with the black or a gray.

www.monstaliner.com

 

Get several estimates and opinions as to what needs done. Ask people you know who had done work for them and were they happy.
If you want a rush job that is what you will get at Maaco. With me restoring cars for 35 years I know who is good in my area and who is not. Also know who is reasonable and who is not. Thats the things you need to learn before you decide. Its better to go at this informed than taken advantage of.