Liquivalli

Immediately after putting a coat of paint on, I made a habit of scurrying out for some fresh air. Then once the paint had dried sufficiently, it was time to start the long process of sanding it flat, ready for the next coat. This was made a lot quicker and easier by getting a good finish from the gun in the first place, with no orange peel or runs (admittedly there were a couple to deal with over the 9 or so coats, both occurred right at the very end of the spraying session when I was loosing judgement fast).

Still, the sanding process was important, and a perfectly smooth surface was required ready for the next layer of paint. 800 grit was used for all but the gloss coats, and this was used on a rubber sanding block for large flat areas, and by hand on delicate bits and edges where the risk of sanding through was high. Lots of water and soap (not washing up liquid, that is full of salt) and just a case of getting down to it! The panel area is quite large, and it takes many hours to complete the car. Fairport Convention in the tune machine, and rock away into the early hours, to be ready for the next coat a few hours later! With all smooth, all traces of soap were removed, the compressor and filters were drained, and all ready to repeat the process again! The overspray and sanding dust was not a problem, as long as the walls and floor were dampened it stay put.

This was repeated for the five coats of high build primer. All was well, the only point worth noting is the care required so as not to sand back too far on corners or edges.

High build primering in process... the interior is all sheeted off, and the sunroof frame has been masked with paper.

Another hazard when sanding these areas by hand, is not to sand through your fingers. You don’t notice it until too late, then it hurts. Oh well, wrap fingers in duct tape and carry on.
Any tiny flaws in the paint finish were filled in using paint stopper then sanded back, to give a flat uniform finish. Once the five coats of high build were on and flatted, she was really beginning to look the part. The last of these grey coats was sanded with 1200 grade wet and dry, and all was ready for the gloss.

Looking good at the back... light apatures have been masked off to stop overspray getting in, then getting blown out all oven the place once dry.

Ahh, note the cunning plan to allow the scuttle to be painted right up to the edge, while still having the wing in vaguely the right position...

All Bondaprimered inside, and grey outside.

Glacier white, mmm nice. It’s actually very light green! All whites are off white, but I hadn’t realised just how greeny Glacier white is until I poured it through the filters. These are white paper, the paint looked worryingly green! Very careful preparation was necessary, and mixing the paint with the high gloss thinners had to be done precisely, taking into account the air temperature which makes a big difference to how the drops atomise and dry as they travel through the air, let alone how they build and amalgamate on the panel.

Logic time. The engine bay and boot area would be painted white first, then onto the outer panels. That way I could get used to the thinned out gloss, quite a difference after the user-friendly high build primer. These areas of the car had been painted in red Bondaprimer, any imperfections were sanded out and the gloss was just blown over the top. I was not too concerned about getting it perfect, after all they are not often seen, however two coats of gloss and the engine bay and boot were looking rather smashing.

The boot area, engine bay and door frame/top of sill after the first coat of white. At the same time, the doors were being painted around the edges.

With the bonnet replaced, I moved on to the outer panels. As soon as the first coat of white was finished, she was starting to come to life again, after all this time as bare steel and primer. The gloss coats were flatted in the same way as the primer, only this time using 1200 grade wet and dry until the early hours. Five coats of white were completed, and I was happy to leave it at that.

Most of the interior was left in primer. A waste of expensive paint, that would not have been seen anyway.

Chrome bumper wings! You couldn't tell any different.

All looking rather good now.

Have a look at the reflections in the bonnet... this was straight from the gun, after the paint had dried and the fumes left the garage.

Cutting and polishing then began in some areas, but as reassembly commenced, there was less time for this and it happened as time allowed (often late at night, when noisy jobs were antisocial). Farecla cutting compound was used, by hand with a damp cloth. And a lot of effort. It did a splendid job though, the depth of the gloss was impressive and the paintwork looked liquid.
The wings and bonnet were then removed, and put into storage for later.

Because now at last, it’s reassembly time!