painting help

[Calsonic_racer]

hey i just bought this acrylic spray paint from wal-mart. so far it looks hella tight when i spray it but when it dries i have all these bumps on it. are they air bubbles? i mean like tiny ones on the front and the bottom side skirts. anyone kno the problem? also how do u take it off cuz i want to re-do my car but its all mest up.

[crazydave]

Was it hot out? If you paint when it's hot out the paint will be bumpy. Also if you hold the can too far away, or lay your coats too thin that may cause a bumpy surface.

Or are they random scattered bumps. Pick one off see if it has air trapped under it. If so there may have been an oily residue left on the body, from fingerprints, or the molding process. You can strip the surface of oils with Denatured Alcohol, Mineral Spirits, Naptha(lighter fluid), or just wash with dishwashing detergent.

If neither of these sound like your problem, then maybe if you decribe the bumps more I could help. Could also be specs of dirt, paint will build up on the dirt as you add coats, making a bump.

[AUDI-TT]

i've never been able to successfully remove spray paint, the bubbles r probably do to putting too much paint, u have to sand the car very lightly then apply very thin layers of paint like 4 times and then put a clear coat on top, thats what i did and it looks sick

[Calsonic_racer]

i think they are air bubles i dont kno they are this small ........... and theres lots of them on the bottom of my cars like the side skirts and bumper and some on the hood. by the way im new in painting and i dont kbo wth primer is. can someone tell me wut it duz?

[ib311]

check out this painting mod Calsonic:

Painting Tutorial

there are others that may be helpful here:

Other Mods

primer is used so the paint sticks to the car. helps block out any greasy fingerprints from you touching the car and stuff like that.

[AUDI-TT]

i think its makes the surface more sticky so paint appl;ies to it better but im notr sure

[nrmcj]

hmm when i paint i end up with not bumps, but more pointy, small.. things sticking out of my paint... i think maybe because my car isnt all that clean when i paint... or maybe it's cuz i dont have primer...

when i spray paint, the paint turns out kinda... uneven... it's like a LOT of little dots... am i spraying too little...?
and when i brush paint, well you know how that turns out

hmm i guess practice makes perfect... but **sigh** my perfect aint gettin any better...

[DarkTari]

I know exactly what you're talking about.

First of all, you can't paint smooth with cold paint, to get the smoothest results straight from the can, warm the can a lil and shake it very well. Then when spraying, don't apply too far back. What's happening is you're laying the hundred of spray drops on top of each other and they're not going on smooth.
If you look at this paint job closely, you can see it. Very hard to tell because it's metallic and I applied 2 coats of clear which really hides the errors. This post only applies if you "can't" feel the bumps in the paint.

[DarkTari]

But if you look at this paint job, you'll see how smooth it is. I used the same paint on each car and you can really see the difference:

[Calsonic_racer]

thx guys it looks ALOT better now. all i did was put the can over my heater and i took it off when it got warm enough nut not 2 much so it burns my hand and x-plodes all over my room. next i sprayed it 5 inches away in an on and off technique while swooving(if thats a word) in circles. so far all there is are small bumps or spikes on the very bottom of my car but its not that noticable. thx guys!!!

[DarkTari]

Good Job! Post some Pics when you're done.

[DarkTari]

Originally posted by Pie
hmm when i paint i end up with not bumps, but more pointy, small.. things sticking out of my paint... i think maybe because my car isnt all that clean when i paint... or maybe it's cuz i dont have primer...

when i spray paint, the paint turns out kinda... uneven... it's like a LOT of little dots... am i spraying too little...?
and when i brush paint, well you know how that turns out

hmm i guess practice makes perfect... but **sigh** my perfect aint gettin any better...

I suggest using primer whenever you paint!
If you don't, you must clean the car thoroughly. Use a paper towel and alcohol. After that I use canned air to blow off the surface you're gonna be painting on and on the car, this will blow off any dust or particles from the paint surface which can jump up on the car when spraying the paint and off the car itself.

Good Luck!

[ib311]

also remember to keep from touching the car i use this technique:

i fill up a 20oz soda or water bottle with tap water (for weight) then i put the lid on and dry it off. i place the car over the lid, as if i'm putting a body on the bottle. the width of the bottle lip holds the car in place tightly. then i wipe the car off with a old t-shirt to remove my fingerprints. it aslo helps if you wash your hands before touching the car as the soap often dries up your hands so there's no excessive oils on your fingers.

follow directions from the tutorial link i posted above and your all set!

ALWAYS USE PRIMER! paint has a hard time sticking well to plastic. the primer helps smooth out imperfections and helps the paint stick. looks better and last longer. unless you have some Krylon Fusion, but even Home Depot can't keep it in stock.

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO REMOVE YOUR OLD PAINT FROM YOUR CAR TO PAINT YOUR NEW COLOR ON. if you use 2 coats of primer you can leave the old paint on. however, you may lose some detail on the car. don't spray you car with warm paint and then leave it outside to dry either. spray it and then bring it into the house immediately. the tempature and the humidity can cause damage to your fresh new paint job. causing bubbles and dots. if you get dots, sand lightly (i use hobby sandpaper), and then reapply paint.

brushing paint on always sucks unless you are super skilled. just stay away from brushes.

any other questions?

[Calsonic_racer]

THX IB311 when i read your reply i remembed i did my r34 skyline gtr in the outside when i painted and dried it. but at my last reply above right after i posted it i tried it again but it was 2 cold outside and hella dark n i didnt wanna freeze my ballz off in the dark so i did it in the garage. right when i read your reply i went downstairs into the garage and DAMN IM PLEASE WITH THE RESULTS. the paint...... IS CRYSTAL CLEAR.. yea sure there are a few big bumps from not using primer but now i kno what to do thx to you =) juss wanted 2 say thx ... peace out

[ib311]

np guy. glad it helped you out.