MG-Cars.info

Welcome to our Site for MG, Triumph and Austin-Healey Car Information.

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Great day for painting

Sprayed boot floor of Frogeye with high-build primer today. Haven't sprayed in a while so got a few runs but it's in a place which won't be seen so no problem. Easier to paint now before rear end is welded on. I use a cheap eBay gun for primer with a 1.8 nozzle whose adjustments seem to do very little. Better one for colour which does have far better adjustment and proper fan. Some progress anyway. How long should I wait before top coat in this weather? Is 24 hours enough?
Bill

W Bretherton

Can't answer your question, Bill, but your picture gave me a lot of pleasure. I love that stage in the proceedings, however large or small the bit I've been working on.
Nick and Cherry Scoop

That looks very tidy Bill.
What prep did you use before the High-Build or was that direct onto bright metal?

No seam sealer? - or does that come next? I am never sure about the best sequence for these things!
Guyw

Looking good Bill. It's great when you finally get things painted all one colour, even if it is just primer. It makes everything look a lot tidier and near completion.

The weather is good for painting, as long as you are keeping out of direct sunlight (as you are in your garage). I finished and painted my passenger wing this past couple of weeks. It has been in primer for 12 months so it's great to finally have a car that is all one colour!

With regards to drying times, it depends really, check the data sheet. The primer I used said to re-coat within an hour or after 24 hours @ 20 deg C. If re-coating within the hour I would leave to go touch dry, clean it with a tack cloth and just spray colour.

If leaving beyond the upper limit, the primer develops a bit of sheen which maybe affects adhesion. So, if it's an area not really seen, I scuff it with a fine abrasive pad to give a good key. If it is was a visible outer panel I would flat the primer with 600 - 800 grit after 24 hours, then shoot colour.

Hope this helps.
Malcolm
Malcolm Le Chevalier

Thanks Nick. Guy, the shell was supplied in etch primer so rubbed it lightly with 320 paper as it's a year since it first came, then panel wipe. Didn't think to seam seal yet although I've done it underneath. Better do it next or maybe after colour, never sure myself. Of course you can't see the boot really so I'm not too concerned about sealer showing.
Malcolm, thanks, I might put colour on tomorrow although humidity is forecast to be higher.
Bill
W Bretherton

Bill,
I use seam sealer on every seam I can as there are likely to be areas of unprotected bare metal inside seams, and even condensation on cold metal surfaces will eventually get pulled into seams by capillary action and over the years will instigate rusting.

I find it helps to use masking tape parallel to the seam to be sealed, apply the sealer by brush working it into any gaps and the remove the tape
Guyw

Yes, agreed Guy, I suppose all seams should be sealed. Worth the effort. I have some brush type and your masking tape ideas makes sense as it can get quite messy. I've also formed one of the rear beads using a wooden mallet,my hands and the vice as you did. It's not perfect, part of bead top flattened, but good enough I think and I didn't slit the flange. Took me a few hours.....
Bill
W Bretherton

It looks nice... well done

prop
Prop and the Blackhole Midget

OP are you using cellulose ?
if so then going for colour 24 hrs later I would have thought would have been OK. Did you go more than one coat ?
As a test I would try one of the runs, with your fingernail and if it leaves a mark then wait a little longer.
It looks good to my untrained eye.
P Bentley

Yes it's cellulose. I decided to go for it as rain forecast tomorrow and weekend variable. I seam sealed it this morning and sprayed colour this afternoon. It's BRG - not original colour for Frogeye but my choice and good price from Jawells. I get a bit of orange peel with my small 50 litre compressor and cheap gun (and technique....) but it's ok for the interior. Hope it doesn't shrink.

Bill

W Bretherton

Orange peel is difficult to avoid unless you are spraying super thinned paint. But then if you are spraying thin paint you are a lot more likely to get runs. That is where the real pros show their skill.

Looking good though. I found painted seam sealer took aaaaaaaages to dry, so watch out!

Malc.
Malcolm Le Chevalier

Malcolm
My seam sealer is brushable rubber based and tin states one hour to dry. I waited about 3 hours before painting over it and it did seem quite dry. Very warm today though.
Bill
W Bretherton

Sorry, I wasn't very clear on that. I meant that the paint that is over sealer takes ages, not the sealer itself. I don't know why, maybe it was just the paint I used.
Malcolm Le Chevalier

Malcolm,

I disagree about orange peel, it's basically a problem when people don't spray the paint on thick enough to allow it to flow out and go smooth. I have a viscosity cup to check the paint viscosity but quickly learned that the manufacturers recommended 50% paint 50% thinner worked fine and chosing the correct fast/medium/slow thinner for the conditions helped. I'm an amateur sprayer but have had various comments from pros or semi pros about the quality of finish I get straight from the gun, basically no need for further work unless you want a really high end finish. When mixing schemes and cellulose were more common you could often pick up cheap wrongly mixed paint for practice purposes. Basically I see orange peel as a must practice more issue for the sprayer.
David Billington

David
I assumed orange peel was a result of the paint being too thick/ heavy or not atomising properly e.g. which might be more likely with a low cfm hobbyist compressor, like mine (SIP 50litre, 2.5 hp, 5.4 cfm at outlet) and cheaper spray guns (mine is a LVLP "fast mover" off ebay). I'm still not sure what fan size to use, was playing around with it today as the boot floor isn't too critical.
Bill
W Bretherton

One other thing to consider in the great orange Peel debate, is the quality of the paint.
I painted my car at home, and the paint came from Brown Brothers ( a fews ago now, might have been the brand HMG) and more recently I painted the Innocenti Mini I am doing with paint from a supplier in Aldershot. As I write this I don't remember the brand, but even I could tell the difference from the gun.
The paint is much smoother when mixed, and to date I have one run on the car and trust me I am a have a go enthusiast rather than experienced amateur.
It came in at £45 a litre IIRC for a mixed colour, and I am sure that there are much more expensive brands still, but as with everything you get what you pay for, so it might be worth looking around OP at recommended paint brands if you haven't bought the External paint just yet.

Having said all of that, orange peel in your finish sure leads you to becoming highly competent with flatting and polishing !! ask me how I know
P Bentley

Bill,

I think it's more down to technique than equipment as I sprayed my frogeye and a few other cars back in the mid 1980s with a cheap low end suction feed gun and a 1hp compressor and I still got an excellent finish straight from the gun without orange peel. Regarding paint that would have been International or PPG from the local factors that supplied the trade.
David Billington

I have to add without wanting to side track the thread, or cause offence that there is something about equipment quality. Sure a poor technique will limit results, but poor technique and poor equipment is going to make painting to a good standard harder still.
I am not saying it cannot be done, but if you have ever tried a more quality orientated gun, you should notice how much better it sprays.
I noticed a difference between my first gun a Devilbiss something or other to the later style Devilbiss something or other (might be an FLG5. . .
Of course really high end stuff and the right environment still wont turn even an average Jo like me into a Chip Foose worthy employee, but there is a reason they use the good stuff.
P Bentley

This thread was discussed between 17/08/2016 and 22/08/2016

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

This thread is from the archives. Join the live MG Midget and Sprite Technical BBS now