[VWFan]

Well, I had gotten all of my body work done on the Vert last year and it sat in Napa Martin Senour CrossFire 2K HB Primer (15222) for the winter in my garage... Last week I wet sanded my primer down with 400 grit to get it smoothed out. I went to my jobber to get some paint and clear so I could paint this weekend. Well, the guy really made me mad when he decided that I was not a higher priority than getting his inventory done, So I said fine, and went down the street to the PPG Omni dealer and bought a gallon of the epoxy primer, a gallon of base, and a little over a gallon of clear, and all of the reducers and hardners needed...

So, here is/are the question(s)....
1) Should I re-prime with the PPG? I figured it would be a good idea since I changed paint mfrs. Plus, the primer is getting pretty thin in spots.

2) If so, will the epoxy primer stick okay to the 400 grit sanded primer from before or should I sand it with something a little more aggressive? As I said, the primer is a little thin right now, so I don't want to sand to much more material off.

I have way to much time into this project to screw it up now.... So, any help on this would be really great!

Edit: Thought you might want to know...I am using a 2 stage acrylic enamel system...

[baddbob]

You can apply the PPG enamel directly over the primer you have now. Or if you're looking for a good solvent barrier put two coats of the Omni epoxy on then let it set for three to seven days and lightly sand with 600 followed by a good rub down with a grey scotchbrite and apply your paint. Before you apply anything to your exhisting primer rescuff it with a scotchbite to freshen the surface. Bob

[VWFan]

Thanks baddbob! I noticed I have a couple of spots the size of a dime that I ended up sanding to the metal. I assume that I would HAVE to re-prime...??? If so, do I have to wait that long between primer and paint? Not be a pain, but why? Does the new primer have to fully cure? Couldn't I just let it flash and then spray my base/clear? The reason I ask is that I have to transport my car to the booth I am using and I have a limited amount of time I can leave the car in the booth. It's not roadworthy right now, so I want to limit the amount of times I have to move it. I could even wait up to 24 hrs, but I have two days in the booth reserved already.... I am so frustrated right now...That jerk at Napa has caused me more problems!!!

Sorry, just a little venting there...

[Bee4Me]

What Bob said.

The gray scotch brite is the way to go after your 600 as you will tend to leave sand scratchs and the scotch pad will smooth it out nice.

You could just spot prime the sand thru's and shoot a sealer then bc/cc.
But you already have the epoxy and no sealer.

The main reason for the wait is shrinkage and possiable problems from it.

You can shoot paint after a 24 hr. on the epoxy safely.

[baddbob]

If I shoot directly over an epoxy primer I like to let it lock up good first to get the best solvent barrier for a wetter paintjob with a minimal amount of dieback, that's my only reason to wait till the epoxy is good and dry. You can spray directly on epoxy after it has flashed but your results won't be as good- the solvents in the paint will wick into the epoxy and later come back out through your paint causing some amount of dieback. You could just spot prime the cut throughs and paint directly on your urethane surfacer without any problems, your 400 grit final sand will be OK for most singlestage colors- 600 is better though.

[VWFan]

First off, THANK YOU for all of the quick responses!!!

Okay... Here is my plan... Let me know if I am going to kick myself later...

This week I will spot repair the metal spots (is the epoxy okay for this? or should I go get some more 2K?)

Friday night I will take the car over and prep the booth.

Saturday morning I will scuff with scothbrite pad, clean, and tack. Then shoot my paint and clear.

Do you think this will work okay?

Thanks again!

[baddbob]

You can spot prime with the epoxy if you're not looking to fill any imperfections- just for a primer over the cut throughs it'll be fine. You'll want to lightly sand the epoxy and it's overspray so there isn't any difference in texture before you lay the color on. A rub down with a grey scotchbrite will also help to remove any texture differences and also mellow out your 400 grit scratches. Metalics will highlight a difference in texture- solid colors are more forgiving. What color are you spraying? Bob

[VWFan]

Cool, I think I will be okay then... I am shooting white, nothing fancy, just plain GM Bright White. I hate to even ask this question, but I'm going to anyways... Can I get a rattle can for the small spots? I know this is usually a BIG If not I'll mix up some epoxy.

You guys ROCK!

[Bee4Me]

I have way to much time into this project to screw it up now....

I believe you answered your own question.

[myfamiliacc]

You know, you may get away with just laying down one wet coat of epoxy sealer, wiat till flash and contenue on with base and clear.

It depends on how you burn through to the metal, if it's featherd then you'r ok to go with the sealer, but if it has an edge to it, then might as well spot prime with regular epoxy then sand smooth.

Just a thought.

[VWFan]

Originally Posted by Bee4Me

I believe you answered your own question.

Good point. It will be well worth the time to mix up a little "real" primer and spend a couple of minutes sanding it than to mess up hours and hours of prep work!

Thanks guys! I will get some pictures taken when it's done and post them!