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Start of DIY paint YJ

9K views 45 replies 16 participants last post by  harleydragon 
#1 ·
So after reading a post about a guy doing his charger, I decided to try this out myself. I decided to go Rustoleum Hunter Green for color. My YJ had bad clear coat and was pretty eaten up by the salty air of NC. So..... I am trying this roll on method with wet sanding. I figured I will keep posting results as they come in the event someone wants to try this. Keep in mind, I am a novice painter and the YJ will require some additional body work.... But, for a budget, initial results are promising. It has also given me a chance to pull off all the accessories and spray paint them OEM color. Hopefully my 4k toy will turn out nice when it is all said and done. Like I said, this is day one (one coat). Day 2 is drying now...


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#2 ·
So after reading a post about a guy doing his charger, I decided to try this out myself. I decided to go Rustoleum Hunter Green for color. My YJ had bad clear coat and was pretty eaten up by the salty air of NC. So..... I am trying this roll on method with wet sanding. I figured I will keep posting results as they come in the event someone wants to try this. Keep in mind, I am a novice painter and the YJ will require some additional body work.... But, for a budget, initial results are promising. It has also given me a chance to pull off all the accessories and spray paint them OEM color. Hopefully my 4k toy will turn out nice when it is all said and done. Like I said, this is day one (one coat). Day 2 is drying now...


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Also, in these pics I have not wet sanded yet....
 
#5 ·
One thing I should mention is the amount of time it takes to do this..... The original posts makes it seems as if only a few hours here and there.... false. I unwittingly committed this entire week to this project. You for sure need the 24 hour cure period for the paint. My initial wet sanding proved this thought process.... Also, I am not doing the inside of the tub since I will be doing that later with rhino liner. I am not convinced that this will come out as good as the original post made it sound... but he was also a pro painter outside this type of project. I am watching YouTube videos for techniques (esp wet sanding), which I highly recommend.

It was about 90 today in eastern NC.... so about 120 in the garage (it felt like). The humidity seems like it is slowing the drying process, I have no idea though...

Next project is replacing the slow leaking RMS....

I just got this thing..... it has been nothing but hard work but I cannot wait to get it on a scenic trail or take it hunting once I get to CA.
 
#10 ·
Easy. Budget number 1 (military doesn't pay all that great). Second, I am limited on supplies. Maybe one day I will have the coin to get it done right. Or, at the very least, I will get it done right if I mess it up too bad. :)
when I went in at the tail end of nam my pay as an e1 was $326 a month before taxes so I can remember..but,when I was in ,most every base had a hobby shop..most of ours in the navy had paint boothes as well as sanders,paint guns and most everything you needed for free.all we had to furnish was materials and supplys..me and a buddy supplemented our navy pay by doing paintjobs for others
 
#23 ·
Day 2 prior to wet sanding. I am starting to think this is going to look ok, but not great. Who knows once I buff it out. But I am not sure how one could make this look similar to a rattle job like the original thread made it sound. I kinda wish I would have taken the fender flares off, but oh well.... the paint dries crazy slow even with a good amount of thinner. Could be the NC humidity, who knows...

Anyways, sometime this century I will be done. Only a couple more coats or so...:punk:
 

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#24 ·
Day 2 prior to wet sanding. I am starting to think this is going to look ok, but not great. Who knows once I buff it out. But I am not sure how one could make this look similar to a rattle job like the original thread made it sound. I kinda wish I would have taken the fender flares off, but oh well.... the paint dries crazy slow even with a good amount of thinner. Could be the NC humidity, who knows...

Anyways, sometime this century I will be done. Only a couple more coats or so...:punk:


I really like that Green. If you get Crazy and decide to sell that Grille I would buy it. I am in Ensenada.
 
#25 ·
Day 3 results

So..... It looks pretty decent for the price. I am not 100 percent convinced someone with time constraints or a genuine disdain for painting should take this on.


I do have a question for someone out there.... I have been wet sanding as directed. However, it seems to dull the finish and make a cloudy appearance. I am using 1000 grit. Also, it is rubbing off some paint. I am letting it dry the full 24 hours as directed on the can. Is it possible the heat, combined with humidity, will require longer drying? I am afraid to give it a total sanding.... I am following the sanding directions to a T. The paint looks good as is, but who can see some roller marks and orange peel effect.

Any suggestions?
 

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#26 ·
it is rubbing off some paint..that is the whole idea of the sanding,to smooth the surface.to try to get rid of the cloudy look you can try polishing compound after you have it sanded smooth but it will take a lot of elbow grease and probably will never have a really good shine..all this is why I tried to talk you into doing a traditional paint job in the first place
 
#27 ·
back before urethane we used lacquer to get that super shine and mile deep look.because it involved so much sanding I didn't use it on cars but have done many paint jobs on motorcycles with lacquer..first you would paint the color paint and sand it perfectly smooth with 1000.then you would start stacking clear on it.I would spray 3 light coats of clear,let it sit until the next day,then sand it perfectly smooth and put 3 more coats on it.of course the sanding took the majority of what I had sprayed the day before off but it left a little and it was perfectly smooth for the next coats.I might do this day after day for an entire month.I would have sanded the majority of the paint off but by stacking the coats on absolutely smooth surfaces is what gave it the shine and the depth.I guess that is the reason I dislike sanding any more than necessary so much.with urethane you can get near that same finish with much much less work plus it holds up better than lacquer..I love it
 
#29 ·
your grit is to rough...for a flawless finish ( used to work in a body shop ) apply your coats one by one, sand it with 1600 grit, you want it to be smooth and not rough when your sanding to keep it from clouding up. once you get the disired look pass one more time with your 1600-1200 grit sand paper, you can use a rotary sander as long as you dont press to hard to tear the paint. afterwards you should be fine to buff and polish it.
 
#31 ·
Hey man, I think youre doing a good job...let the paint cure longer than the 24 hrs because of the humidity....if you have a heater in your garage, turn that on at night.

Like ddtt225 said, 1200-1600 grit then another coat. The dullness you have in your paint should come out after you polish at the end your paint job. Good Luck
 
#34 ·
Paint job complete

Well gents, I am done with this project. I still need to buff a few more times to really bring out the shine; however, I am going to let the coat harden a bit more.

Overall, I am pretty happy with it... Honestly, I did not follow to instructions to a T and melded other similar jobs together...

The first picture is a crappy pic of what it used to look like... 2 weeks later, here were are! I am truly enjoying this YJ and look forward to working on it some more.

Thanks for looking fellas!
 

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