MY first paint job

[gusz280]

I just wanted to share this with you guys/gals, Ive wanted to paint my car since the day I bought it. Finally this summer I had some time and did it. It took me about a week to prep and 2 days to paint. Im supper happy with the outcome, specially considering that it is my first paint job EVER. There are a couple of spots that have orange peel and overspray, but fortunately they are not very noticeable.
The paint shop that I bought all my supplies from was very helpful and gave me great tips on what to do and what not to do, also youtube is your best learning tool as far as getting ideas on spraying.
thoughts?

[Blue]

WOW! Great report and photos. Nice to see DIY with superb results.

[tlorber]

The car looks good in the pics. I'm sure there was a lot of prep work involved. You can wet sand and buff out the orange peel if it is noticeable. Just don't sand through the color.

[rossiz]

fantastic! love to see a home-brew project with such great results.
the color looks really nice in the pics - it looks like there might be some metallic in there? share a few shots in the sunlight

congrats on having the huevos to take on such a big project by yourself - inspiring!

[rcb280z]

Looks really good. I would definitely color sand and buff, she will shine bright then.

[olzed]

Wow!!!Thats a sweet job.

[gwri8]

Nice work! Did you use acrylic paint or base coat with clear on top of it?

[gusz280]

fantastic! love to see a home-brew project with such great results.
the color looks really nice in the pics - it looks like there might be some metallic in there? share a few shots in the sunlight

congrats on having the huevos to take on such a big project by yourself - inspiring!

Yes the color is from the 2009 GTR

The car looks good in the pics. I'm sure there was a lot of prep work involved. You can wet sand and buff out the orange peel if it is noticeable. Just don't sand through the color.

Im afraid to wetsand it I might use a cuter on it.

Looks really good. I would definitely color sand and buff, she will shine bright then.

Thanks

Wow!!!Thats a sweet job.

Thanks OLZED

Nice work! Did you use acrylic paint or base coat with clear on top of it?

I used acrylic for the spoilers and base/clear for the body
to be specific 2 coats primer, base and clear. I heard that doing more than 2 coats can lead to trouble for the inexperienced painter Plus it was raining and as you can tell this was done in a warehouse so moisture was a concern.

[gwri8]

Also, I noticed that there are no seams around the headlight buckets. Did you fill those in and why? Maybe I'm not seeing it correctly. The reason I ask is because I'm thinking about getting paint for my 77 soon and your Z is giving me many ideas.

[gusz280]

I didtn fill it in, it was previously filled in by whoever did the last paint job, I like the way it looks filled in, gives it a smoother look.

[Oiluj]

Nice job! I'm impressed.

Much better results than my first try at painting a 1953 Willys jeep! Better than my 2nd and last try painting a 1970's NOVA when I was in college as well.

[Freez74]

Really impressive transformation, it looks great to me.

[rcb280z]

Hey Gus, what size wheel and tires are you running? They look good.

[rcb280z]

I think I like the no seam between the finder and headlight case. Im no purist as you can tell by my avatar but still like it to look like a Z. I have a stock hood that I'm going to start on soon. I have to work the metal and I may paint it myself. Have always wanted to try it. If I screw it up, its only a hood and I can sand it back down.
I'm a stickler for orange peel in paint. No sure if I would have the guts to do a whole car either but, I could try it on the hood. Hmm........ Keep the pics coming Gus. How's the interior?

[gusz280]

I think I like the no seam between the finder and headlight case. Im no purist as you can tell by my avatar but still like it to look like a Z. I have a stock hood that I'm going to start on soon. I have to work the metal and I may paint it myself. Have always wanted to try it. If I screw it up, its only a hood and I can sand it back down.
I'm a stickler for orange peel in paint. No sure if I would have the guts to do a whole car either but, I could try it on the hood. Hmm........ Keep the pics coming Gus. How's the interior?

The wheels are Koning rewind 16x7 in, tires are 205/55R16 front and 225/50R16 rears. The interior of the car is ok other than the seats and dash, Im thinking about putting a new cap on it. but money is being put aside now for a stroker build . Im very undecided whether to put a 383 with an auto trans in it...or just stroke the l28 to a 3.1.....so undecided that ive bought all the parts for the stroker already....and I have the v8 sitting in my garage staring at me every day.....but that can be another whole thread later . As far as orange peel, IF you have never painted anything before...expect the worst. I did and I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome. Its not perfect but few people can say they have painted their own car.....just take your time and think of the

[rcb280z]

What offset on the rims, 0?

That is what I used to run for tires. Then I decided to run the 225/50-16 up front.

The dash caps have to be worked to make fit right. There are a few threads on this subject. Haven't heard anyone not have fit issues. I had to use my heat gun to get it to fit better but I'm not happy with it. As soon as I don't have anything else to do (yeah right!) I will try restoring my dash.

[gusz280]

I believe the offset is 0
I had to buy a 5mm spacer and extended studs when I upgraded my brakes last week (4 piston 4 runner calipers )

[Patcon]

Painting on a really humid day can give you the orange peel issues because the paint flashes slower. So if you don't give it some time to lay down and flash off, the next coat can cause build up, sagging and orange peel...my 2 cents. I love the transformation and even with some flows the car looks really good and infinitely better.
C

[grannyknot]

Well done Gus, I have to admit that I really like the seamless look (headlight scoop to fender) You just don't see it done well very often, yours is the exception. It does make the front of the car look longer.
Chris

[gusz280]

offset is 0 and the wheel spacers where not machined properly so I have to figure something else out.

[71Nissan240Z]

Did u bondo over some rust? Don't be afraid to say yes because I have some pin holes on my door that bubbled through. Was wondering if I could por from the back and front then paint over it. The rust is in a spot on the doors and fenders that would make it hard for me to repair with metal

[rcb280z]

Hey Gus, have you done any color sanding and buffing yet?

I started sanding the stock hood I have for my Z and its a lot of work! If these things were plentiful I would have scrapped this one because its loaded with little dents and one huge one in the middle near the latch. Not sure how to fix it yet.