Question about painting and mixing, please help

[camaroguy89]

I bought a package that should cover my whole car... it is 3 quarts clear, 2 quarts dark metallic blue, 2 quarts kandy cobalt blue, 3 quarts primer, one gallon reducer, one quart hardener, 2 pints epoxy primer activator.. is this going to be enough to do my whole car?? also does anyone know the mix ratio for this? if not i can find it elsewhere... i have painted a car before, but this will be the first time i do it from beginning to end.. thanks for any help

[CMsecretary]

That will be enough paint to do your whole car. You might need more clear depending on how many coats you want. It tells you how to mix it on the cans. example: 4:1 That means 4 parts paint, 1 part reducer. You need mixing cups and filters to insure the paint is free of contaminants.

[CMsecretary]

nevermind...you dont need more clear...didnt see it said 3 quarts

[mike@af]

I say you need more paint. I usually grab about 2 gallons, yes you will have extra, but its not like you cant use the extra.

[Markgase2000]

Mike is right on that statement , you can use the extra on impact zones like inner fenders me personally I would take the car apart as much as possable cleaning would take most of the time and paint the removed peices indavidualy prep and paint the body and frame parts as well. Sounds like a fun project.

[mike@af]

And when I do grab 2 gallons, thats for a paint job that doesnt involve ripping the whole car apart. If it were something like a show rod, I would get 3-4 gallons.

[CMsecretary]

I didnt think you needed that much...I worked at a paint shop, and they didnt use that much. But then again, I guess y'all are right since it is project that big.

[Markgase2000]

The fact of the matter is , body shop paid by the hour. Body Men make flat rate , prepping takes a long time , takes time to paint carefully and properly and then they cook it or let it cure on its own. Takes a lot of time when you gotta follow all the steps. So what body shops do to save on some steps is minimized prep time(less prepping), less surface coverage (paint only whats visible) and some shops allow customer to leave with it before it totally cures. This way they cut there time and cost and allows the body men to do more jobs and make more money. Then its all based on money , the more money you spend the more time they spend in prepping and painting and dry time.
The reason I take my car apart is the driving conditions out here are dirt roads and salt/sanded highways. If I paint my car (unless it were a beater) those lil nooks and crannies gotta be brand new clean inside and out. I would also take advantage of this time to do any little metal finish repairs I could in places you cant normally see. After all the peices are painted I reassemble them and good as new. I never painted the newer cars with aluminum just classics with good ol steel however the aluminum really intrigues me.