Last week I was finishing up a 2015 Ford Focus, rear quarter panel damage. Got the primer down, looks good, then I lay the base coat and it all crinkled up on me. Turns out I didn't let the primer flash long enough after the last coat, maybe 5 minutes too short. Took me an extra hour to sand it back down and start over. Anyone else had paint lift from rushing flash times?
I was spraying a 2018 Chevy Silverado hood and the gun just stopped mid pass. Took me 20 minutes to disassemble and find a dried chunk of hardener in the cup. Everyone says to strain your paint every time but I never bothered. Now I'm wondering if I'm the only one who skips that step and pays for it later.
I've always stuck with solvent because the old-timers swore by it, but the waterborne laid down so smooth I didn't even have to sand between coats. Has anyone else had better luck with it on aluminum panels?
The shop I work at usually uses PPG, but I decided to try Sherwin-Williams on this silver 2019 Camry because the rep gave me a deal on a gallon. It sprayed nice and covered well, but two weeks later I noticed the clear coat had a little orange peel I didn't see before. Customer didn't complain, but it bugged me. Has anyone else switched brands on a job and regretted it or been happy about it?
The Mirka didn't load up nearly as bad and left a way more consistent finish with zero pigtails, so is anyone else finding that higher-end discs actually pay for themselves in time saved or am I just getting lucky?
I had a guy at the shop, been doing this 30 years, tell me primer was just a waste on plastic bumpers. Said the paint would bite in fine. So I tried it on a 2015 Civic bumper last month, and the paint started peeling off in sheets after three days. Has anyone else gotten burned following that old school shortcut?
Was reading a PPG tech bulletin last night. Found out new clear coats are only supposed to be 1.5 to 2.0 mils dry. Been laying mine on way thicker for years thinking more protection was better. Anybody else get surprised by a spec like that and have to change their whole process?
This guy rolls in with a 2015 Civic that had a dent the size of a dinner plate on the quarter panel. I quote him $650 for the repair and paint match and he just laughs at me. Says his cousin's buddy up in Springfield will do the whole job for $200 cash. I told him good luck and watched him leave. Three weeks later he comes back with the same dent still there plus a terrible rattle can job that looked like he used a brick. Did I charge him more the second time around? You bet I did. Anyone else get people who think body work is just slapping on some paint?
Walked in and all the techs were using those mini belt sanders for feathering instead of the old DA grinders we used to run. Made me wonder if I'm just stuck in my ways or if that really saves time on getting the metal prepped.
Stopped by a body shop off I-10 near 35th Avenue to grab some paint codes and the place was a disaster zone. Dust everywhere, tools just sitting on car hoods, and this one guy was sanding a panel without even taping off the trim first. I get that production shops get busy but how hard is it to keep a basic clean workspace? Anyone else run into shops like this or am I just being too picky?
So my uncle Bob, who's been doing this since the 80s, told me to skip the metal prep and just slap filler straight on bare steel to save time. I tried it on a 2015 Civic in Louisville last Tuesday and the whole patch popped off after two days. Had to grind it all back down and start over with proper etching primer. Has anyone else had an old timer give them advice that seemed smart but totally backfired?
I was dropping off a fender at our local Maaco in Akron and saw a tech just spreading filler right over flaky rust like it was no big deal. Anyone else run into hack jobs like that from chain shops?
Grabbed a 10-pack for $6 last week expecting to toss 'em after one use but they're still going strong after 12 panels and the flex is way more consistent than my metal spatula, has anyone else had luck with the knockoff tools or did I just get a freak good batch?
I was in the middle of replacing a quarter panel on a 2012 Civic in my shop in Akron. About 4 spot welds in, my old HTP welder just stopped sparking completely. I checked the ground clamp, the tips, everything. No luck, it was just dead. Had to call around to three different shops before I found a guy who could let me borrow his welder for the weekend. Lost a full day of work on that job and had to push the customer back. Anyone else had a welder crap out on them in the middle of a repair? What did you do to get moving again?
Now I'm actually thinking about ditching my glue-pull setup for one of those, has anyone here made that switch and regretted it?
Sprayed a whole Mercedes bumper with waterborne on a 90% humidity day and watched it blush so bad I had to strip it back down - has anyone else had better luck with urethane in the deep south?
Was at a shop in Phoenix last week helping a buddy with his booth. Three different cars came in with fresh paint on aftermarket bumpers and all of them had fisheyes within a week. The problem is nobody is using the right adhesion promoter or even wiping down with wax and grease remover before they spray. I learned this the hard way on a 2018 Civic bumper I did in my garage back in March. Has anyone else noticed this getting worse with all these cheap Amazon replacement parts?
I've been mixing my own paint colors by hand for like 8 years (you know, eyeballing it and hoping for the best). Finally broke down and got one of those $300 digital mixing systems last month after a customer complained about a slight mismatch on their Toyota Camry. The color match is so much more consistent now, and I'm saving about 20 minutes per job. Anyone else held out on a piece of equipment forever and then regretted not getting it sooner?
I was working on a 1992 Ford F-150 two years ago at a shop in Akron. An older guy named Chuck walked over while I was about to lay down color over a rough primer job and just stopped me. He said "son, that paint will lift faster than a cheap toupee in a windstorm" and made me wet sand the whole thing down to 600 grit. Took an extra 90 minutes but that finish still looks wet today. Anyone else had a veteran teach you something that saved your butt later?
I was pulling a fender off a 2018 Civic in the shop when a lady told her friend that the big crease in her door gave the car 'personality.' She said she was going to leave it because it matched her 'rough and tumble lifestyle.' Has anyone else had a customer refuse a repair because they liked the damage too much?
My first shop in Denver back in 2003 had this old timer who could match a faded Honda pearl white just by eyeballing it and adding a few drops of toner. Last month I watched a kid scan a fender with a $10,000 device and the color was dead perfect first try. I miss the craft but I sure don't miss repainting a whole quarter panel because I was off by half a shade. Anybody else feel like the old way taught you more even if it was slower?
I bought a $60 gun off Amazon just to try it on a small bumper repair. The clear went down okay but the midcoat came out blotchy and I had to sand it back and respray. Took me an extra 3 hours on a job I quoted for 2. The paint match ended up fine but my profit margin went out the window. Has anyone else had bad luck with budget guns on pearl or tri-coat paints?
I spent 8 months trying to make the clip-on style work at my shop here in Austin because everyone online swears they stay put better. But after my third scratched hood from a clip slipping off mid-repair, I switched back to magnets and haven't had a single issue. Anybody else find that the popular choice isn't always the best for your particular setup?
Took off the old carpet and found 3 inches of rust dust underneath. Told the guy it would cost more than the car's worth to fix. He just nodded and said "figured that out when the passenger seat fell through last week." Anyone else get cars that should have been scrapped years ago?