GIT-R-DONE

I am getting ready to paint my truck. Truck has been completely stipped down to bare metal. I am starting out with an "Etching Primer". After that, another primer is to be put on. NOW. . . .

I am using a base coat clear coat paint. When one is painting the truck, how long do you wait between coats of paint? How long do you wait after painting the truck before you put the clear coat on? How long do you wait before you can put on mulitple coats of clear on? I dont want to rush it but am just trying to do it right.

How many beers is this gonna take?

Ideas?

Chrisreyn

spraying or foam roller?

Grit Dog

You'll find all that info on the spec/instruction sheets for the type of paint you're using. It will aslo depend on the temp range of the reducer and catalyst you're using and the ambient temperature. Typically, you can shoot successive coats of base as soon as the previous coat is dry to the touch.
CLear coat requires a certain amount of cure time on the base coat before shooting, couple hours usually min and not more than 24 hrs max. (again this will be spelled out for you on the instruction sheets).
I'm not a professional body man, just a shade tree painter, so I'm sure others will chime in w/ better info.
One thing to look out for is, make sure you don't get any runs in the base coat, because you can't sand them out w/o letting the base cure and then re-painting. Paint in thin coats w/ the base. 1st coat don't even look for complete coverage. 2nd coat should cover, and I usually give a 3rd coat of base just to make sure I haven' missed anything.
Also, base coat all the hidden edges, door jambs, etc first so you can be consistent in your passes painting the panels.
When clearcoating, you want to get a "wet" (thick) coat for at least your final pass. Thin coats tend to look "dry" and will require wetsanding and polishing to shine up (not an issue if you plan on wetsanding the whole vehicle when you're done anyway). If you get a run in the clear, leave it alone and keep going. You can sand and polish it out later fairly easily.
Good Luck.

dssimecek

Wet sand the primer, 600 grit or finer. Give a deeper closs to the base coat. Look over the primer for any pits, rough spots etc. Good luck and take pix of the work in progress.

GIT-R-DONE

I am spraying it. I got the etching primer on and it was THICK! I went by the instructions and did what it said. I did get a few runs in it but have to sand it anyway. I will get that done tomorrow and then re-prime the spots I have to fix/go over. Its a pea green color now . Glad I'm not going THAT direction! I'll post some pics in a few days.

fbx22

good luck with it. Take some pics for us all. I hate painting whether it be trucks, houses, walls, or fences