Sanding advice needed - grits to use, and when

I'm ashamed to admit this, but I'm only starting my first model that's getting sanded, and have at least 30 others that never saw a piece of sandpaper!

So, I bought some paper this morning, and got down to work on a shell that had some automotive 'plastic' primer applied to it - which turned out like crap. So I'm going to be sanding it all down/off, including some putty (Squadron - don't knock it - I like it :)) used to fill in door handles, gas gap. Oh yeah - I've also filed off door mouldings, and badging.

Now, the car is a mess, and needs to be sanded. Rather than just jumping in - I thought to ask the EXPERTS, here at AF.

I have the following grits available: 150, 280, 320, 400, 600, and some really high stuff (3200+)

What grit should I use to sand the body, and after what grit should I be ready for primer?

After priming, what grit should I use on it?

After the first coat of paint, do I sand? Or add another layer or 2?

Then, sand? Or gloss clearcoat? Sand that? Or a few layers of gloss, than use the really fine grit?

Thanks for any help and advice!

hope to god its not a 91 Revell Mercury Cougar XR7 or i will cut your hands off.

on to the question i sand the body with 2000 grit prior to adding primer once primered i sand it down with 2000 again. before adding color i wash it in dish soap let it dry. but if you trashed the body with deep scratches work your way from 400 to 3200 and use plasticote filler primer to cure up the body.

Sounds like you need something middle, like 800, 1000, 1500 and 2000.
1000 will be too fine, so I suggest starting from 600 for the puttied areas, but use 1000 or above for the areas without putty.
It depends on how rough the surface is, and if finer paper doesn't smooth the surface, just use coarser grit.
After priming, use something like 1500 or 2000, and polish it lightly.
If you don't polish the surface after all those heavy sanding work, scratches will show up after body color is applied.

Lownslow - you're only off by one year! It's a 90 XR7 :).

I'd post pics of it, but don't have a digicam.

Thanks for the info on the sanding steps and grits. I guess that my skill level is still novice if I don't know this stuff... Hopefully it turns out nicely.

So, sand the body up to 2000 grit, prime, sand with 2000, then paint.



What do I do once it's painted?

Do I give it a sand job again before the gloss? After gloss? It's the finishing that I'm not sure how to do now.