How-To: Body work for dummies

[2g Talon]

Ok all, we’ve all seen FazdaGT’s thread on the basics of painting, but if you were like me and had just a little experience doing body work, you probably had no idea where to start. Now keep in mind this is my first “how-to” article, so I will try to make it as painless as possible, and I will also include pictures along the way. So let’s get started.

LIST OF PRODUCTS YOU WILL NEED:
-220 and 320 grit sanding disks
-Orbital Sander (not required, but recommended)
-1 Pint Duplicolor Self Primer
-1 Tack rag (can be found at local parts stores)
-1 Can of wax/grease remover (I used aerosol, but actual bottles are good too)
-Bag of clean rags (as many as you can find, lol)
-1 Paint gun (HVLP is preferred, but not required)
-1 Gallon can of Paint or Lacquer thinner
-Air compressor (10 gal minimum or it wont even be worth painting)
-Spot putty or Body filler (2 part mix or 1, doesn't matter)
-putty knives (plastic preferably, as metal will damage the panel)
-1000 or better sand paper for finish sanding.


I started with a hood off of a 1997 Eagle Talon TSi. Not the hardest of hoods to do because of its curvature, but the little hump makes it a small challenge. First step is to pick yourself up an orbital sander; this will save you TONS of hours of trying to hand-sand. I also picked up 120 and 220 grit orbital sanding discs to kick it off. NOTE: some say to go 600 or higher, but in the body work interest we want to get as deep down to the metal as we possibly can so we can fill them in properly

Once you have sanded the clear coat down on whatever panel it is your working on, you should have something that kinda looks similar to the picture below. Now granted the hood and bumper were painted black, so mine has a darker gray tint to it as part of the base coat still remains. Now the important thing to remember when sanding, is any area that has a ding or a dent in it needs to be taken down as close to the metal as you can possibly get it, so that you can fill in the groves in the metal and allow the filler to properly bond.

IMAG0493 by talon 2g, on Flickr

Once you’re done sanding, make sure you give the panels a GOOD wipe down with a degreasing agent. NOTE: DO NOT let the bare metal sit overnight unprotected, all it takes is one single water molecule to begin the oxidation process and ruin your hard work years down the road, protect it with a piece of plastic pressed onto the area or a clean terry-cloth.
I used a typical Grease and wax remover aerosol that dissolves quickly, and a clean rag. This is important if you want to get to filling in the same day as you did the sanding, as it will air dry in about 1-2 minutes. Once you have that finished, you can move on to the filling part. As you can see in the picture, the panel is going to look like something out of a Picasso painting to an extent. You’ll need body filler or something similar, I used a Bondo “stage 3” brazing and filling putty simply because it cures quickly, and makes a noticeable color difference when it’s fully cured; but any body filler will do, just make sure you mix it correctly.

When you are filling in the dents or imperfections (those little rock chips you noticed at car shows? Now’s the time to get ‘em :D ) And simply work your way top to bottom I say this as because with paint, it will not cure right away, so leaning in it would be a bad thing. When you are filling in a dent let’s say, it’s important to make sure you have JUST enough to fill in the dent and maybe ½ inch of area around it, too much and you’ll be sanding for hours trying to get the excess off.
Try to only put just a tad bit of pressure on the applicator when applying the body filler as you don’t want to squeeze all of it out of the dent and around on the panel, but enough to smooth it all out and get a nice flat surface. This is one of those things that you need to actually do before you can get the hang of it, everyone’s technique is different.

This is one those times in this process that you should take great care and have a ton of patience for, because for anything you miss here (rock chips or other dents) you’re going to notice it later after your done primering and/or painting and it’s a huge waste of time to go back and have to re-do it, so take your time. If it takes you all day to get all of it done, then so be it, the finished product will thank you; when your all set and done filling you should have something that looks like the picture below.

IMAG0497 by talon 2g, on Flickr

Now as stated above the bondo I was using was changing color, and I’ll give you guys a shot of what that looks like as well. You’ll start to notice it curing and with those of you that used 2 part mixes, you’ll be able to feel heat coming off of the patch (as it bonds using a chemical reaction) which will alert you that it’s beginning to dry. It’s important to allow the FULL curing time before you begin sanding!! (if you don’t you’ll ruin your sander by smearing semi-hard filler all over the place, it creates a HUGE mess) reference the back of the instructions on your filler to see what its average cure time is. This was a shot of mine after just 10 minutes, so it all depends.

IMAG0499 by talon 2g, on Flickr

Once you’ve let the filler cure, it’s time to sand. I broke out the 220 grit paper for this part, and then finished with a 1000 Grit sanding block. Remember when sanding body filler you do NOT want to press down too hard or you will create a divot in the work you just did. Let the sander sort of glide over the area, using your hand as sort of a guide for it, but do not apply any real pressure to it. The aim here is to feather the filler to match the contour of the panel you’re working on, so by the time you’re done you should only be able to see about ½ of the filler that you started with as most of it is just excess and sands off as you go. So with this just as with the last step, take your time and let the sander do the work. When you’re finished, you should have something that resembles this.

IMAG0500 by talon 2g, on Flickr

So now your ready to primer your work. This is the moment of truth per say, as most imperfections if not caught before will show up now and I have an example of that as well. Primering is pretty straight forward; it’s the same aspect as painting, where dialing in your particular paint gun is half the battle. I picked up a Kawasaki HVLP gun for relatively cheap at my work (under $40) and put it to the test, but any type of gun should work for this. Start off by mixing up your primer, the primer I bought was a Dupli-color auto shop primer, which was already mixed so all I had to do was shake the hell out of it. Make sure you follow the manufacturer’s directions for this, or your primer coat will not turn out properly. How your coating turns out is dependent on your painting technique, it simply takes practice. This was my first time spraying and I think I did pretty ok. After your first coat, it should look something similar to this. DO NOT spray it on too thick or it will cause runs and they are a PITA to sand out, go slowly, and paint at your own pace, this is not a race 

IMAG0501 by talon 2g, on Flickr

IMAG0503 by talon 2g, on Flickr

And so on with your second and third coatings, enough to make any body filler not noticeable. I gave it a solid gray coat and dries something similar to this..

IMAG0505 by talon 2g, on Flickr

IMAG0506 by talon 2g, on Flickr

Then once you are done with the primering, allow the piece to fully cure. Most manufacturers suggest 10-15 mins to tack, which means 10-15 minutes until the surface becomes tacky to the touch. I would personally let it sit overnight just to be sure. Then once you finish that you can either choose to wet-sand or catch up on blemishes, or you can go straight to paint. I’ll make another chapter once I can find my cars paint color in a 1 gallon size that I can actually get. As I mentioned prior, you’ll notice imperfections at the end of the primer stage, and here is an example.

IMAG0507 by talon 2g, on Flickr

You can choose to go back and tackle these now, as once you add paint and clear to the mix, you won’t be able to get at something like this chip without destroying the paint job you just worked so hard to accomplish.

Thanks for checking out my how-to guys, it is my first so I hope it was somewhat informative. As usual I’ll be available to answer any questions via the thread here, or you can PM me as well and I’ll try to answer it as best I can. Stay tuned for my write up on painting! Thanks! :D

[scott8989]

come do my body work haha. you will crap a brick when you see how much body work my car needs

[2g Talon]

pics or it didnt happen rofl.

[scott8989]

o i will post some on facebook for you to see haha. ive been getting to it slowly

[2g Talon]

yea let me see the extent and I could maybe offer some assistance, only if you get a chick to post my name on her boobs like in your pic lmao :D

[scott8989]

haha that was an old gf. im sure i can get a crack whore to do it for 5 bucks if you want lol

[scott8989]

posted and tagged you in the photos of the body work

[2g Talon]

Sweet, well talk more about it when we meet up sat.

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[scott8989]

alright sounds good to me

[IBLIS]

That is Junk Bodywork...

[TROLL]

Originally Posted by IBLIS

That is Junk Bodywork...

Can you elaborate so that this post contributes something valuable?

[scott8989]

what troll said

[slowZ]

I wouldn't say it's junk but I also wouldn't hire u at my shop! My only real advise is you shouldn't finish your bodywork or prep work off so fine 1000 grit is not coarse enough for primer to stick. Most shops finish in 220/320 if your lucky to have a nice body guy also 1000 grit will take forever and it will also almost garuntee it be wavy. And as for paint finish your prep work off in 600 if your coating whole panel 1000 is only for blends and even that is some times a Lil extreme. After clear coat and your ready to buff if need be then take 1000/1500 or even 2000 wet sand then buff it

[2g Talon]

Yea lesson learned with that, the one part filler was the issue here. I'm going to invest in a good 2 part like evercoat feather filler. The filler was acting against the primer, so I switched to an acid etch primer for the bare metal areas then filled in from there. Seemed to work. And thank you for the vote of confidence slowz.. rofl

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[IBLIS]

Originally Posted by TROLL

Can you elaborate so that this post contributes something valuable?

He is my friend, just pulling his chain there Troll.

[slowZ]

I didn't mean anything by it sorry if I offended you I was jut trying to let you know you were making it harder on your self with to fine of grits but what u did would work just isn't the practical way

[2g Talon]

I was just messing with you slowz. I'm an amateur at bodywork, just figured Newbs could benefit from at least a tad bit of knowledge from this. No harm done though, I had heard 600 was the max, but 1000-1500 is best for feathering which is what I wad going for, a good feathered coat to primer.
But I appreciate your advice though, something for me to keep in mind in the future.
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[92awdtsi]

When I do bodywork (at work) sand the panel with 80. Or strip to bare. Apply filler (I use 3m platinum) block (this is important) block...once again block the filler about 80% of the way flat with 80grit. Follow with 180 then finish with 220. Prime the area leaving soft edges if possible (easier sanding). After applying a tracer coat ( a mist of basically spray paint) Wet sand primer with 320-500 your choice with a block (again important) until no more tracer is present( shows you the low spots) once happy with flatness prep for basecoat. I've already primed and blocked cars 3 separate times sucks but good work takes time

[2g Talon]

Matt is that you? Lol

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[Gamble]

The guys are correct on this one. typical rule of thumb is 180 grit scratches will cover with three coats of primer. 90% of shops push it to 220 in case the primer lays on a little thin. but 80, fill, block with 80 until almost smooth, then block with 180, finish with 220. also when using 2 part fillers, there are very distinct things to know, things 90% of body shops dont do, but hold the possibility of saving you some trouble in the future. when mixing filler, use a Pad of heavier paper. (construction paper) this way you can rip off the dirty used sheet and start with a new one every time. also, get yourself a small scale and a calculator. the proper way to mix 90% of fillers is a 2% mix ratio. as in 1 ounce filler, .02 ounce hardener. yes it takes longer to harden, but if the filler is guarunteed to not crack, and it does, and you mix it by weight, the company will compensate you for the repairs. (ive only seen it crack when overusing hardener) but, the hood looks good, and i cant wait to see the rest of the car!