Hardtop prep?

[amaurer]

It may be too late as I've forged ahead, but...

I'm respraying the roof of my hard top (just the fiberglass bit) with some rattle can enamel (from towerpaint.com, cygnus white). I'm not after a *great* job, or i'd pay to have it done, but I don't want to do a shitty job if it can be helped...

I sanded off the shitty PO paint with some 400 grit, added bondo to an area with a poor fiberglass patch (also the PO), and cleaned and sanded the whole job with 400.

Sprayed with Rustoleum grey primer and sanded with 400 after the first coat and 800 after the second (sanded dry, about 8 hours after spraying).

Whats the right way to put the enamel down?

[85+92]

just clean it off as well as possible, use a tack rag if you got it.

if you've sanded it that much with that grit you should be golden to go ahead and spray. You'll want to put some sort of clear over it also. Rattle can or any color w/o clear will fade very fast

[Boogie]

Just make sure that when you repaired the fiberglass area that there were no cracks in the fiberglass. If there were and you just put bondo overtop it will eventually crack thru the paint later.

The proper procedure for repairing cracks in fiberglass is to "V" the crack completely and at least a qtr of an inch beyond the crack. Then fill with fiberglass and resin. Some people just fill it with resin as it will get extremely hard, but for the "correct way" you can use a "fiberglass" bondo for a lack of better words. It's a can that looks like bondo and has fiberglass in it vs. the fiberglass sheets. Forget the name, jsut know what it looks like after many years of using it. Anyways, hope there were no cracks or they will show up later.

My 2 cents & Good luck!

[amaurer]

what the proper procedure for the color coats? spray and sand with... what?

what grit do I use for final sanding? I assume I'll need clear to get shiny, do I sand the clear too?

[Boogie]

The clear coat does not need to be sanded unless there is excessive orange peel or lots of trash in the paint after being sprayed.

Example: let's say there is a piece of dust or bug that got into the panel when spraying the clear. Take some 1500 grit sand paper and "Wet Sand" the area. Do not sand alot as too much may go thru the clear coat. Once you have sanded out the inperfection you can proceed with buffing the area with a buffer and compound. You can also wet sand the entire area that has been cleared with the above procedure and buff it afterwards. It will make for a nice and shiny smooth finish if done correctly. Not hard to do, just do not burn thru the clear with the buffer and do not sand excessively. Sanding and buffing can also resolve a not so good finish as a result of poor painting by the painter. Do not wax any of the panels until 30 days has gone by after refinishing the exterior panel. This suggestion only applies to certain manufacterers materials used. But in General, do not was for 30 days.

Side note: Do not hold the buffer in that one area when buffing. Move the buffer from side to side and do not hold it at full speed or throttle (whichever you prefer). Holding the buffer in one area will result in a clear coat burn that will go thru to the paint resulting in unprotected paint and having to respray the top. Also do not "Dry buff" any area. Always use compound when buffing.

Hope this helps.

Rick

[amaurer]

cool thanks!

how do i sand the color coats?

[85+92]

with a hand block and nothing lower then 800. 1000 is a safer bet. wet of course

[amaurer]

ok, so i sand the colors wet with something in the 1000's... and then what? polish and done?

sorry, never painted something "nicely" before.

EDIT: ok, i gather that I apply all of my enamel and then do a final sanding only with something supa-fine. thats what I'll do....