Phoenix8990

I'm wondering what the average cost to do a BC/CC do it your self materials cost would average. My car was stripped and painted single stage but I am not happy with the outcome. Too many minor waves. Many I can sand out using a flat board sander. I think it could use a filler/primer to smooth out some minor imperfections, then I guess a primer sealer, a base coat, then the clear coats. At least I could make sure the panels are perfect before the final clear. The color is Burgundy Mist and it is a metallic it that effects things. Maaco who did it the last time is running a special BC/CC for I think $1200. But would need to go over it closely before painting. I would not accept anything less than close to perfect. If it will cost me 1k in materials I should probably once again take the chance. I would need to get a compressor as well, but am confident that I could get all panels perfect and don't mind block sanding and buffing it out afterwards.

Steve

nicks1966

You wont be anywhere close to 1k in materials , I just paid 425.00 for a gallon of RM epoxy primer and hardener. By the time you add all the materials you need and a good compressor I would say you would have 3k to 4k spent easy.

joe_padavano

^^^^THIS. Yeah, you can buy BC/CC paint kits for as little as $249 or so, including primer, base, clear, and reducers. That's not what I'd use on a car that I cared about. Add in everything else (filler, glaze, sealer, sanding media, compound, polishing, backing plates, masking paper and tape, etc, etc, and the actual cost goes up rapidly. Now figure that a quality paint job is 90% labor, and you begin to understand why it's easy to pay $10-20K for a top-notch paint job.

Yellowstatue

I paid $900 or so for a gallon of base coat six years ago.

chopolds

Bought paint for a 66 Skylark I'm doing for a friend. 1500$. That is just paint. No primer, sealer, sandpaper, tape, masking paper, color sanding paper (expensive), compound/polishes.

Olds64

That's a problem. You aren't going to get anything close to perfect from Maaco.

I don't know how much BC/CC costs but I sprayed my 71 98 with Nason urethane SS paint and only spent about $2000 on paint, materials, etc. and an auto body class 2 semesters in a row at the local vo-tech. You should check your local vo-techs and see if they offer evening auto body classes again despite this virus. It's one of the best investments I made restoring my Olds.

joe_padavano

^^^THIS. Do the math. 90% of the cost is labor, and quality materials will cost at least $1200 and likely a lot more. My Maaco experience is that they'll paint over mud and rust (and by "mud" I mean real dirt, not bondo).

Phoenix8990

No question the prep is where the labor is. If they had spent a day or 2 blocking it out and using some guide coat prior to painting I probably would have been okay with the job. But they didn't and that was my disappointment. They really are looking for cars to be in and out not projects that will tie a guy up for a month or whatever. I took a course at the county Tech school 20 years ago and would be comfortable spraying it. I'll have to give it some thought and see if I'm up to it.
thanks for the feedback,

Steve

oddball

You can spend as much, or as little, as you want on materials.
If you want a shelf color, then you can see what Eastwood or any other supplier has and what they run.
If you want a specific or a matched color, then you need to go to a local jobber and see what paint lines they carry and which lines can do the color you want. My local jobber does most of their matches in PPG DBC, which is pricey, but good stuff. They also have PPG's Omni line that can match simpler colors.
You generally can mix-and-match. e.g, I do BC in DBC, CC and primers in Advantage. I use Omni colors for repairs on my other cars and black stuff on the Cutlass.

classicmuscle442

Not a paint guy, but can tractor paint be used, not as many color choices for sure.

oddball

Sure. House paint can be used.
Eastwood even has a "roll-on" product now.

RetroRanger

what about car paints that arent bb cc like laquer (disclaimer i barely know anything about paints) but i saw some other members used laquer and had good results. ( i guess it partly depends on expectations) I recall back in the 80s my friend painted my mustang w centari enamal for under a hundy, Back in the day i used to get compliemtns on the paint all the time. (maybe they had seen the car in multicolors before LOL). i just looked and some colors are still availible in centari.

joe_padavano

Lacquer is a very forgiving paint for a beginner - IF you can buy it. Most jurisdictions have limited lacquer sales to quarts or even smaller to discourage the use by auto refinishing companies. Of course, lacquer requires color sanding and buffing, and will be nowhere near as durable as modern BC/CC paints. Then there's the question of the substrate lifting if it isn't compatible with a lacquer topcoat. Yes, GM used lacquer well into the 1980s, so if the paint is original, that's fine. Any repairs or repaints with enamel over the last half century will have to be completely removed first.

chuck_royle

I'm too close to Toronto as well, I paid 800$ for top quality clear and base. That was also trade price at my work. I wish I could remember the name. I do know that the painter says it's better than Nason. Crimson 52, 1969 post 442

edit: glasurit???

chopolds

The quality of paint is a huge influence on it's cost. It runs the gamut from god-awful cheap stuff, to insanely high priced good paint. The cheaper brands suffer from: it doesn't cover well, so you use twice as much, to stuff that lasts a year, and starts to break down. "Used Car lot" paint. The high priced stuff is made to last, and if you are a reputable shop, the manufacturer even give you a guarantee. A hobbyist won't get one. But the reality is, they make it good enough to guarantee. I use House of Kolor exclusively, for EP-2 epoxy primer, and for all custom paint. I use Dupont/Axalta for stock colors, using the mid grade clear, with the good basecoats. Never had a real problem with materials. The only time I did, was when I used activator that was opened, and/or old.
If you put in a hundred or more hours into prepping for paint, I would never use cheap materials. Do things right, and you'll have a finish that will last for many years (I have a friend whose Camaro I painted for his brother, in Centari, over 30 years ago. It still looks like I did it last week)