spyke

Me and my son took an old rusted cutlass cleaned it real good and did some satisfying body work to it since this is his first car we decided to paint it ourselves, funds were low so we used the same paint we used on our tractor. From tractor supply gloss black NOW before anyone starts to knock this paint job it came out almost perfect but what we want to know is does lacquer require hardener and reducer because even though the paint already has a mirror shine he wanted spray it with a clear coat and since . They sold a ( clear coat LACQUER) we bought a gallon but it doesn't say weather you add hardener or reducer to it what do we do?
?

Macadoo

I don't know the answer to your question but I think it's awesome you painted your own car, and with tractor paint! I'd love to see some pics.

Kyle's 77 Cutlass

X2 for photos

ent72olds

Lacquer could use a good quality lacquer thinner to reduce it if needed to achieve proper viscosity. It does not take a hardner as it is a 1k product as opposed to a 2k(2 component)...

Rocketowner

If it's like the lacquer that was on cars originally it did require thinning with lacquer thinner (usually 20 -25 percent) , but did not use hardener.It's hard to say that this is the same kind of lacquer,because it usually required lots of sanding and buffing to get much shine,but I've sprayed many custom bikes with lacquer Base then put at least 2 coats of DuPont Imron clear,and they had a beautiful shine and would hold up for years! The Imron which was polyurethane did require a catalyst (activator/hardener). Larry

oldcutlass

X4 on the pictures.

steverw

Ok wait!
Is the black also lacquer? Check before you spray. If the black is enamel the lacquer will lift it, it will ruin it. You cannot spray lacquer over enamel paint. Of course if the black is lacquer then no problem. But you say it dried to a mirror shine, lacquer dries to more of a matte shine that needs buffing. So it sounds like enamel paint, if its tractor paint i would think it is enamel.
And as stated above lacquer needs no hardner just lacquer thinner. There are different thinners, fast for cold weather, medium, and slow for hot weather.
Steve

steverw

You can spray clear enamel over it if its enamel, you can spray emamel over lacquer but no lacquer over enamel. Urethanes im not sure how they come into play on this check with an automotive paint supply. There is also a fairly specific window of time that it has to be cleared, if you wait too long there is a chance the clear wont bond to the black.

spyke

No the black isn't a lacquer its an enamel and since the clear coat we bought was the brand we thought it was equivalent to the paint , well at least that's what they told us in the (TS) store then I called the 800 number and the guy said not to then it and don't add any catalyst hardener to it but I keep herding the same things over and over again that the lacquer clear will cause either bubbling or wrinkling. We really want to add some type of clear that will protect the paint for a lil while and keep the glossy look what should we use?

ent72olds

Return the clear, and tell them you need a compatible clear for the paint they sold you....it must take a hardner/activator, as others have stated, it will reverse and lift if lacquer is used.

Rocketowner

Repeat,"DO Not Put Lacquer Over Enamel", It will react just like "PAINT REMOVER",and cause you to do it all over again! Larry

Eddie Hansen

X2

some excellent advice up already you can not put lacquer over enamel as was said... I would think the enamel will hold up well on its own, up to you, glad it worked well...

dc2x4drvr

I know that shops apply a clear over enamel all the time, just need to buy the correct clear.
TS paint is a heavy duty paint that is great for frames, I talked to a guy who thinned the paint with acetone, then painted several frames, he said it came out practically bullet proof..

spyke

I also thinned it with acetone and used the hardener that came with it so today I'm gonna take back the lacquer and get a clear enamel right? I appreciate everyone's feedback because this is my boys first car its a classic and he really likes it I justvdont want to take away that glossy finish that's why I'm trying to find something glossy but will protect the paint .

tecar442

If you're going for driver quality, not show quality, just let the enamel cure completely and buff it. Tractor enamel is tough stuff. It should shine for along time. There is a specific window during which you can add a second coat, after that you'll have to scuff the paint before painting or the clear may not adhere properly. Congrats on taking on a project like this. This is how you learn. The next attempt will be even better. Have fun!

spyke

Thanks a lot for the encouragement I'm trying.g to teach my son that you can do anything you put your to if you try and if it doesn't come out right so what you tried and didn't spend a tremendous amount of money trying, but we noticed this morning that on the trunk its not as glossy as the rest of the car I'm not sure why it did that but we do need to spray the trunk if nothing else will any clear enamel work long as its exterior because I don't mind wet sanding it to get it to adhere

69442C

X2 on skipping the clear and leave it as is or just buff it. If the deck lid needs to be painted again, I would wet sand it with 800 or 1000 grit paper and put a couple more coats of the same paint on it. If you use another brand of enamel, it may not get along with what you applied. It's best to stay with the same brand TS paint especially if you are happy with the rest of the car.

Brian

spyke

Yeah I think that's what I'm gonna do because everything's fine except the trunk lid and really its not the black that's not glossy I used some smoke gray first and then taped it off for some ralley stripes, so I just may pull the lid off and start from scratch with the the trunk lid but I appreciate all the advice that I received from everyone I like this forum because not only can you learn things but there are people willing to help.

Macadoo

I'd love to see a write-up on this. In case those of us who can't afford a 10k paint job might want to try it. Pics, tools, processes, stuff like that. If you're up for it spyke.

spyke

You gotta be a lil more specific what do you mean

spyke

How can I post pics of the car

RetroRanger

click go advanced to reply to this thread
click manage attachments to add pics
follow pic size guidelines if the pics are to big they wont post
or host the pic externally and link to them here

last resort get the kid to help its his car !!!

spyke

I tried to post a pic I hope I did it right.

coppercutlass

I did this for my girl friend about 6 years ago when I was 19. I hung new quarters , used rust free doors , china stamped fenders. We spent 1800 all said and done and use eastwood boulevard black. Bout 100 bucks for 3/4 of a gallon. not too shabby for a 3 month project done in a drive way. I sprayed it in borrowed shop space.

coppercutlass

spyke that car don't look too bad. Even if you had to do a few things over material is relatively cheap time aint and that's when willing to learn goes a long way.

spyke

We sprayed that car right where its sitting had one quart of kitty hair a lil bond and about three days of sanding and filling this is the result now other than, the stripes on the trunk lid not being as glossy as the black on each corner we have some small imprints that came from the car cover it was dry to the touch so I covered it because my neighbors have about a million cats and they walk all over my vehicles and since I'm out here in the woods we sometimes have raccoons and possums on our vehicles the imprints aren't that big but if your close enough you can see them and feel them to I was wondering since this paint takes a while to completely cure could I use some rubbing compound and a buffer to get those out or just wet sand those areas and repaint them?

coppercutlass

you probably have to atleast give the paint a nice light [ wet sand ] cut with 1500 grit wet to get all the minor dirt out then I would use 3000 grit wet it cost more but it cuts the buff time in half then buff it with a light buffing compound then polish it out with a foam pad. I could not imagine painting a car in the woods lol. did you guys use anything to shield it from falling leave or acorns lol ? Just kidding I gotta give you credit body work is like a taboo to many car enthusiast but the way I see it you really cant say you restored a car if you didn't do the work your self.

spyke

No its cool we didn't shield it because we have like 3 pecan trees in the yard and all of the pecans have fallin off and the leaves are on the ground so we took the water hose and wet everything on the ground about 5 feet wide all the way around the car so no dust would fly up I was told it is gonna take that paint at the least 7 days to fully cure you think if I get some of that turtle wax rubbing compound I can rubber it out because I'm so scared of messing it up I just want to repair this lil parts and let him drive it . You know teenagers spot every lil flaw he goes back to school on the 7th and I want it to be like we just sprayed it. I'm having so much fun with it I have a 79 I may spray it black also

coppercutlass

My rule of thumb is if I press my nail lightly into it and it leaves an imprint it's too soft if not have at it lightly. Most of the times in the shop I buff stuff within 20 minutes of it leaving the booth which is usually still somewhat soft. but with enamel I don't really know as I have never messed with it. But the nail method can tell you if it's still soft or not.

spyke

Right and that's what I did even though I don't have very much of a finger nail it did make an imprint like I said I was told its gonna take this paint at least 7-10 days before its fully cured so like I said I want to just tape it up again and spray those spots or try some rubbing compound which ever works the best because I was told that rubbing compound is so abrasive that it will rub out a paint run so that's the reason I'm so stuck on using it.

Macadoo

I was just thinking you could make a small outline, not an essay on bodywork. The internet has plenty of that. But I'd be curious what kind of sprayer you used and anything particular to spraying enamel. It looks great to me

spyke

Well the body work was pretty easy if consider the way I did it I will send you an email and tell you how I did it but I promise you it was as easy as making a cake, and I had a 25lb. Compressor by craftsman I bought 2 HVLP guns from HF with oil and water filters on them and I think I had 35-40 psi coming out of the gun. The first coat didn't go on so smooth because I had to much paint coming out of the gun

RetroRanger

Looks like it came out pretty good I'll bet your son is happy

Macadoo

My email was compromised and I had to change it last night. Sorry if you already sent. Good info though, thanks dude

spyke

My son is happier than a wolf in a chicken coop he drove it today to show it off to some of the guys on his basketball team , really his lil girlfriend but we have one small problem there are small imprints in the from the car cover I got some rubbing compound because I was told it was as abrasive as sandpaper and would remove deep scratches so these imprints aren't deep at all so I wonder if this will help?

coppercutlass

Just be careful. Just like sanding a run or a dirt nib. If you polish/sand it the area around it usually becomes thinner and you can burn through. Even if it's still slightly soft. Hit it with some 1500 wet or even 2000 wet just to smooth it out a little bit then hit it with the compound.

starfire

I was told to not cover a freshly painted car for at least a month.

spyke

Well the only reason I covered it was because like I said earlier I stay in the woods and we have raccoons and all sorts of animals that like to walk on top of your vehicle then my neighbors have about 100 cats (lol) and they do the same thing and not to mention the Fay after painting it it rained and since I have the 79 under the car Porch with the motor hanging over it I couldn't put the freshly painted car under there so yeah I did make a small mistake but again the imprints aren't really big its just that once you get close to it you can see them actually they look like orange peel

ent72olds

If you can post a close up pic it would help. I hope for your sake that it isn't little pimples or bubbles.....if you have a hair dryer, heat up a spot and see if it "heals" itself.

spyke

No its not pimples I'm pretty sure it came from my car cover and their really not that deep there just noticeable up close and someone told me in this thread to be careful with the rubbing compound because its like sand paper and if that's true then the rubbing compound is what I'm gonna use I'll try it buy hand and see if it works if so I'll use my buffer on the rest