VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - GENERAL Body - Sheet Metal, Paint & Wood Dangers of painting

I am brand new to this and hope to make it a hobby.
I have not done any auto restoration or painting.
I just read on Guild of Auto Restorers site that in this day and age the paints are too dangerous for the hobbyist to do his own work in his own garage.

I have read quite a bit about the precautions and required safety gear and thought I would be okay if I did it right.

Any opinions on dangers of auto painting for the amateur?

Thanks

Greg:
I'll take a stab at it but I'm sure others will have additional input.
In the "olden days" when we sprayed laquer the old-timers seldom used any sort of respirators for protection. These days with the urethane paints it's essential to wear breathing, skin and eye protection. Don't risk injury; it just isn't worth it. In my opinion the government is (intentionally or otherwise) trying to get this part of the hobby out of the hands of the hobbyists. Too bad, because pro's can misuse products as easily as an amateur.
Beyond personal protection is the danger of fire and explosion. You will need to ventilate the shop but don't use that old direct drive (universal motor) floor fan and stick it in a window. The open frame motor can ignite flammable fumes in a big way. Belt driven fans with explosion proof motors are the safest.
Read all the literature that comes with the paints. The MSDS (material safety data sheets) spell out all the contents and risks associated with the product. Even these precautions are not foolproof; accidents can and will happen.
One of the better developments in recent years are the HVLP sprayers. They use less paint, thereby releasing less VOC's, and reduce overspray. Still, wear all the necessary protective clothing and devices.

Since you are new to this you should start with a small project and get your confidence up. Grab a discarded fender from the local body shop and give it a go. Just be sure to be safe; we need all the hobbyists we can get!

Coach

Join any and all local car clubs if there are any in your area. There must be some car nuts around somewhere, great sources of information and help.

Use the same brand of product all the way thru, sometimes different company’s paints/primers/degreasers, etc. don't like each other and can cause you problems.

Another thing to remember is to use a little common sense, depending on where you live and family members. In other words, don't paint while the neighbors are having a backyard BBQ. I try to schedule my painting when the neighbors and family members are away. I'm fortunate in that I work nights, so can paint during weekdays when everyone is away.
And do follow the safety recommendations. Even with the cost of it all, you're still WAAAYYY ahead of what it would cost to have a shop do it. There's no way I could afford to have a GOOD shop do the work on a complete resto. Plus I enjoy doing things myself.

Bob

Greg
I am also without experience and I'm contemplating a paint job for my 37. I bought a book titled (what else) How to paint your car by Parks & Jacobs from motorbooks worshop. Its quite detailed although I wish it had a little more info on paint guns and compressors. The book directs the reader towards urathane systems and is adament about safety. Also, I've been looking at spray guns and after a limited search the DeVilbiss Finish Line 3 HVLP seems to be the best value. I still, haven't decided to take the plunge and do it myself or get a second job to pay a pro to do it.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I have read so much about restoration in the past month or so I am probably suffering from information overload at this point. But I am still determined to give this a try and its nice to know I'm not alone out here.
I am seriously thinking of getting some of the videos on painting and other resto topics.

Greg,
I am still a novice painter, but also wanted to do everything myself. I encourage you to do so IF you do things right. First, check out any local regulations in your area. I'm lucky that Kansas doesn't yet regulate where and how hobbyists paint. Many states and local communities do. Second, if you're going to use epoxy and urethane paints, a breathing system is a must! Don't limit yourself to a simple mask. Get a positive pressure breating apparatus that many of the auto restoration companies sell. I bought a very good one from autobodystore.net. It's a Neoterik system with external fresh air pump, hood, 50 feet of hose for about $325. Eastwood also sells them, but they're more expensive. I've found that as a novice, I'm prone to make mistakes. I don't want to make mistakes with my lungs, so the fresh air system is a great investment. Also with the HVLP guns, the particles in the air are greatly reduced (assuming you're using it correctly).
As mentioned above, the DeVilbiss Finish Line HVLP system is a great deal. I bought this set and have been very happy with it so far.
Finally, one investment that you will have to make if you don't have one already is a good compressor. There are lots of 110v compressors out there that have enough pressure, but pressure is not the only factor to look for. HVLP guns need VOLUME. My gun specifications state a minimum of 10.5 CFM, and probably should have about 13.5 or more. The smaller compressors are marginal, and rarely deliver more than 8CFM. You will run out of air on long runs, and be disappointed. I bought a larger 220v compressor that delivers 18cfm. Again, another substantial investment, but I was keen on doing it myself. And the compressor has come in very handy for many other tasks.
I have been delighted with the results so far. In my two-car garage, I have now painted the bead-blasted body and frame of my 36 Chevy Master with 2-part epoxy primer -- no problems. I have now also painted the frame with acrylic enamel with hardener. The body will get 2-part urethane (all PPG products), as soon as the front and rear end are fully restored. The quality of that final paint is entirely dependent on your skills. Painting the primer and frame was very good practice for me, and I think I can do the body now.
It's a rather big investment in money and time to get up to speed to do this. But if you want to try it, there are lots of people here with ready advice to guide you every step of the way.

Hey Greg! Check out other forums like hotrodders, they have a great section on body/exterior. Also the SPI forum Southern polyurethane idustries. This is probably one of the best paint companies out there for quality price and customer support. Keep on reading and asking questions. You will get a hundred diff answers but you just have to decide what will work for you. Where abouts in Canada are you. Good Luck. And whatever you do do not soda blast your car. PPg and dupont are now putting warnings on there labels about soda blasting.

Thanks Randy!

I am in Saskatchewan 46aero, nice to see a fellow Canadian :) . And I'll check those out.

I painted my 1981 Corvette in my garage. I had never painted a car b-4 but I found the Autobody Forum I read every thing on the site and then painted a freezer I had in the garage. After learning on the freezer I painted the car. I have to tell you it was a most rewarding experiance.

Gary

Preparation is 7/8 of any paint job, if the preparation is done properly you can get a good paint finish with a rattle can.
Tony

I've had mixed results using the rattle can. Small narrow pieces are a breeze. I have problems with streaking or paint lines for pieces that are more than about 8 inches square; those that require multiple passes to cover the item. Any tips on eliminating that problem? Or is it just inevitable?
Thanks, 37Blue

Some areas have technical schools that offer classes in auto paint and body repair. In addition to gaining the knowledge and experience, you also have the use of professional type equipment.

37Blue; I personally feel that rattle cans are for lawn furniture and likes like that. I treat my small parts as I do a fender or whatever. On a resto its bare metal epoxy prime then after that it depends on whats needed. Filler, high build prime,reg prime,base or ss paint. If you need to use a rattle can, try not spraying so far away and over lap you pattern 50% and spray at a bit of an angle towards where you are going to finish. You will find if you prime and sand a self etching prime in a can first you will have better results. I use a gavity feed mini gun with a 1.0 or .8 tip. for all my smaller parts. They are very reasonable to buy and small compressor works just fine. Hope this helps you out. Cheers

Rattle cans are for garbage cans, wheelbarrows and for small parts. They are not designed to be used for painting a car body. When painting large areas like a car body, there are many factors to consider, several of which are CFM, material flow, pressure, flashing qualities, and the width of the spray. And, the paint in rattle cans is also inferior to regular automotive paint materials as far as durability and oxidation are concerned.

A car club buddy or community/trade college are a great place for a novice to get help.

videoranger is right; I took the classes on auto painting thru CC adult night program also the classes on welding years ago, they were a great help.

Some auto paint shops will rent you their paint booth after the work day or on the weekend.

Some shops will let you do all of the 'break down' of your car and the sanding and prep work and all they have to do is the shooting of the paint. My brother did this for one of his cars and saved a lot of money. Just make sure you know how to sand the car right.

Good luck.

Thanks guys. From this, I have concluded the rattle can option is probably only for garbage cans and some other car makes, which for the later may be an upgrade

Yep, that is the usual thing,they try to train unemployed guys to work in the Collusion Repair Center, Ha!
However there are restoration classes for old gezzers from time to time, after all guess who is paying for the community colleges' existance?

unemployed Guys training to ......,guess again.

The rattle can is last resort for patch up purposes.But I was not joking when I said a good finish can be achieved from rattle cans, I have seen a couple of examples.
As a general rule there is very little colour (which varies between cans) and a lot of thinners.
Tony

I repaired the rustout in the fender arches of my 74 Dodge pickup, had the paint mixed locally and put in rattle cans, painted the entire box as well as the rockers on the truck. The finish was a little thin but looked very good in my opinion. I also just completed some rust out repair on my 91 S-10 Blazer and it looks okay as well. I would not attempt a complete paint job on a restored car though.I think that by the time you purchase enough paint in those little cans you could just about justify a professional paint job.