1971 Triumph Spit6 Project - Introduction

I have been scouring the internet for months to come up a method to paint the car myself. I wanted to share my conclusions in the hopes that I may receive feedback on any folly of my proposed method and at the same time maybe shed some light on a method to consider.

I have a 1971 Triumph Spitfire with a 1968 GT6 straight six engine (aka Spit6). I spent the last 2 years getting all the mechanicals working. New brakes (front and rear), new shocks, replaced the rear bearings and axle, flushed the radiator, changed the transmission fluid, fixed all electrical issues, redid the dash and interior, etc…

There aren’t many mechanical things left to take care of, so I am chomping at the bit to get it painted. The current state of the paint can be classified as “I can’t make it any worse.” This makes attempting a roll-on paint job a win-win. Take a look at the before photos.

The way I see it there are three main decisions to make: what color, what paint to use, and what application technique. These decisions were made balancing time constraints and cost of the overall project.

My goal is to turn this


Into this



WHAT COLOR?
The car is currently red. After reading numerous blogs, I decided changing color especially to a lighter color was going to be more work than it was worth. I thought about some more exotic colors like orange and yellow, but decided to go with red as a classic sports car color.

WHAT PAINT TO USE?
It came down to a choice between Rustoleum or Brightside

Brightside Pros and Cons
Pros
Better paint - UV protection & Longevity
Fewer coats

Cons
Limited color selection
Not widely available
A little more expensive
The odor is much stronger
No matching rattle can
Reported difficultly spraying with a gun

Rustoleum Pros and Cons
Pros
Cheaper
Available at most hardware stores
Less odor
Easily sprays out of a gun
Matched color available in a rattle can

Cons
Not as good quality as Brightside - No UV protection & questionable longevity

Paint Decision
In the end I went with Rustoleum. The two primary reasons: I have an attached garage and the Rustoleum paint smell is bad enough, so I thought I wouldn’t push my luck with the wife with Brightside. “Happy wife happy life?” Also, I liked the convienience of using the rattle can to do the door, hood and trunk jams. One other consideration was that I do have a compressor and a paint gun, so I like the option of attempting to use them if I choose.

In all honesty I will probably try all methods (roll-on, brush, rattle-can and paint gun). Initially I will use a rattle can for door, trunk and hood jams. If that turns out to be a disaster, I may use my compressor and paint gun. Realizing that this is going to be time consuming, I wanted to use the method that requires the minimum amount of work. I read a web site that makes a great case for the foam brush technique. http://www.stylusscustoms.com/poormanspaintjob.html He proposes that the brush technique limits the amount of orange peel because it lays down less paint than the roller method. This makes it so that the only sanding you need to do is prep before the 1st coat and after the 3rd coat. You can let the last coat you put on the car be the final product! We will see. I bought the rollers as a backup just in case.

Here is the detail of the method I will use:
-Do Body Work as needed
-Wash areas thoroughly with dish soap and water
-Dry Sand using 100 grit to metal
-Clean denatured alcohol or mineral spirits, wipe with tack
-Bondo (10-20 minutes dry time)
-Dry Sand 100 by hand
-Wet Sand 320 by hand
-Clean denatured alcohol or mineral spirits, wipe with tack
-Spray primer

Paint Hood, Door and Trunk Jams
-Wash areas thoroughly with dish soap and water
-Sand Down with 220
-Wet Sand 600 by hand
-Clean with mineral spirits, wipe with tack
-Tape for spray paint
-Spray Paint – 3 thin coats
-Let cure – 3 days
-Wet Sand 2000 (if needed)

Paint the Car
-Remove all parts
-Wash thoroughly with dish soap and water
-Use a wax/grease remover and clean car again
-Sand Down whole car with 220 (use orbital only on flat)
-Wet Sand Whole Car 600 by hand – Long/Soft Blocks
-Clean denatured alcohol or mineral spirits and glass cleaner
-Tape for brushing
-Base Coat – 50/50 mix Paint Coat 1 & 2 & 3 - panel by panel – use brushes same stroke direction – 6 hour dry time between, wait 24 hours before wet sand
-Wet Sand 600 – take out imperfections not smooth
-Clean denatured alcohol or mineral spirits, wipe with tack
-Final Coat - Paint Coat 4 & 5 (6 if needed)
-Let cure – 3 days (If needed Wet Sand 2000 & Polish)
-Wax

Not quite a $50 paint job. Probably closer to $100.



In addition I have some bodywork to do which includes re-doing a scoop that is currently grafted on the hood using rivets.



Wish me luck! Given that time is in short supply, the project may take a while. I will post my progress.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

sounds like you have it covered - good luck and post lots of pics!!

I wouldn't worry about the longevity of the paint. My first Rustoleum job is 2.5 years old and with periodic waxing looks like new.

You don't have to go clear to metal unless the paint is really bad. The best undercoat is sanded factory paint. I don't understand the "3 sprayed coats", and then later more brushed or rolled coats. Three or four sprayed coats should be good and then a color sand with 1500-2000 grit and then buff. You might even get lucky and not have to sand and buff depending on the final coat.
Also, I wouldn't use anything under 320 grit after the first coat of primer, Anything coarser than that may leave scratches that will be hard to fill. Prep work is 90% of the job. If you can see it before finish paint, you WILL see it after.
Just some ramblings from an old man that has done this as a hobby for over 40 years and everybody has a different take on what works best for them in their situation.
Good luck and we love pictures. Just my .
Mike

Thanks for the feedback.

I was planning on using only "3 sprayed coats" using a rattle can for the door, hood and trunk jams only. The rest of the car I will brush on the paint.

I am only planning to use 100 grit to metal to prep for small sections of body work. On the sections I apply filler, I will dry sand with 100 then wet sand with 320. I will then spray the primer over the body work because I have read it helps soak into the filler. After the bodywork is complete, I will do the whole car with 220 and then wetsand with 600 to prep for paint. Does that sound like it will work?

I understand now. Sounds like a pretty good plan to me. Good luck.
Mike

Great plan!
Just remember, the paint cannot be too thin! Way easier to apply one more coat than to sand out the orange peel. Keep us posted!
I am very happy with my Rustoleum paint job. Agree that you need to sand the car to get a smooth surface but not necessarily all the way down to bare metal.
Marc in SF
63 White Comet (used to be blue....)
The White Comet Rustoleum Site

Good choice sticking with the red, it's going to look great, just take your time and be patient.

Prep begins... starting with the trunk


And the body

Looks great so far-keep us posted!
-Marc in SF

Liberated riveted scoop from hood





Underside of hood has rubberized paint... what should I do with it Sand it all down or paint right over it?

Not sure what I can do with this. Any advice?

form a piece for it, then cut it out and weld the patch in, or use panel bonding adhesive.

What 2.3 turbo said. Nothing else will work for that. Go to the wrecking yard and try to find a fender with the same curves and get it. That will save you a lot of headaches. Then cut away the bad metal and cut the jy fender 1in bigger all the way around and glue it on. They make a flanging tool that puts a recessed step in the parent metal so the added piece is flush. I say glue because you don't have to mess with welding distortion and this panel is not a stress bearing area. You also will want to address the inner rust also.
If the rubberized stuff is adhearing well I would just wash it down real good witk laquer thinner and see if it will scuff a bit with sandpaper and then paint it
Mike

You could use por 15 on the uderside of hood or get some undercoat in a can so it will be nice an black again. ?

By the way, real nice car!!!!

Progress! That is what unemployment gets you. Life with 2 kids makes it tough to get the time. Anyway... grafted the scoop on the hood, painted the frame, welded the patch panel (that wasn't easy), welded and filled some holes on the side, and took care of the rear. Next step is to paint underneath the hood and then bolt it back on. After that final sand of the body and then paint! Wish me luck!

Wow, that car's normally hidden mechanical workings are almost as beautiful as the design of the body which covers them.
If you detailed it out to the nines under the hood, it would look killer! Some nice new red where that yellow is showing, and a good cleanup would really enhance admiring the tubular header and coil-over suspension, and the dual (Weber sidedrafts?) carburetors.

True sports cars are ALL about the chassis...

Edit: I just noticed the non-vented rotors! They do have a lot of diameter though.

Ok so I got the whole thing masked and final wiped.

Saying outloud as I spayed a 50/50 mix of sunrise red "Light Coats, Light Coats, Light Coats" I ended up with lots of runs!

Argh! I opted to treat the first coat as a "primer" coat. I will go back and sand down all my runs as well as take the opportunity to sand down other imperfections highlighted by the red paint.

My question is how long do I need to wait before wet sanding? Dry sanding?

Thanks in advance

I sanded down the first coat with 600 wet the next day... luckily it was warm so it was good to go. Then I started laying down coats. I think my gun was crap... took at least 6 coats to get full coverage. Should of primed the dark spots. What a pain. Only two runs that I can see. A good amount of trash but very little orange peel. I am going to let it sit for a week and than take it down with 1000 then 2000 grit wet and buff the paitn out. Overall happy with how it turned out. The only upsetting thing is that my garage has a hue of pink everyehwhere. Not sure why, maybe the excitement, but I neglected to cover the garage with anything. Live and learn.