Blending on enamel/laquer

[richiea]

Hi all,

I've got an old Triumph which will one day be repainted entirely, however in the short term, I'd love to touch up in some areas. I apologize in advance for my ignorance on painting in general. I have previously had great results with base coat/clear coat paint jobs in engine compartments in the past, but have never ventured out onto exterior body panels!

The previous owner had resprayed the car with an acrylic type paint - but from what I've read up on, I am unsure whether or not it is enamel or lacquer.

I'd ultimately love to spot paint some trouble areas with a rattle can (if possible) and ideally blend it into the "good" areas. I intend on bringing a sample of the paint to a shop to match the color, however I am unsure to the type.

So my questions are
- do I need to know what the paint is right now, or can I go with either enamel or acrylic?
- do these even exist in rattle cans from paint stores?
- can I realistically spray over the good area and sand/wet sand the areas until the finish is physically smooth enough and then compound & polish a decent finish back out of it?

Thanks very much!

 

[TAZ]

Hello,

You really don't need to know what type paint is on it if you plan on just using a spray can.

Also, I don't think you'll be able to take a sample to a shop to have them match it for a spray can.
I think your best bet is to buy a sprayer that resembles a spray can and fill it with your own paint.
The sell these in which a aerosol sprayer is attached to a canister that you supply the paint for.

The above is not the best way to do it, but if this is your only option, I would suggest the above then.
Normally, you should blend the bad areas using a pro spray gun, then reclear the complete panel.

I would suggest buffing the areas you are going to blend. Then sand the area slightly bigger than the area you intend to spray. Spray the area, let it dry real good. Then buff the area.
Make sure your sanding scratches are not too coarse, otherwise by the time you buff these out, you'll be buffing your new paint off.

 

[richiea]

TAZ,

You bring up an interesting point - re-clearing the complete panel. My concern with that is you will then have two different types of paints in near proximity - acrylic and base/clear, wouldn't the polish of the two panels be dissimilar? I've attached a photo where the trunk panel is the clear coated panel - the color is also a little off which I was also told by the body shop that this was due to it being clear coated

Finally, the photo should help explain what I'm trying to accomplish. I've removed the bumpers which used to hide this transition between the original paint job and a touchup that was done below the bumper. I want to fix it!

Thanks again,

 

[TAZ]

The reason the color is off is because the actual color is off. "Good" clearcoats are 'clear' and won't discolor the panel next to the other.
It WILL make it have a different gloss or sheen, but if you buff both panels, it will be extremely close.
If you are good, you should even be able to get the orange peel (or lack there of) the same.

I can see the 'edge' of the paint that was below the bumper, but I really don't see the difference between the deck lid and the valance panel.
If you are unhappy with this, the way I would do it is just sand the deck lid, and the valance, blend it into both. Then clear both panels.
Looks like you have a great break point under the taillight for the valance.

You could always panel paint the valance which is also very possible, but you have to have other paints/tints to get it exact, so it sounds like your best bet is to blend and clear.
Don't spray can it, this won't get you anywhere.


"When it doubt, blend it out" lol

 

[bondofreak]

Only to add.....some clears are different. Some are more yellow.
If an adjacent panel is shot clear on your single stage it could look different. When looking for a clear in this case buy a "water clear" clear....just wanna point that out.
I striped a hood that was single stage with base coat stripes then buried it all under clear. The hood is a shade different than the rest of the car. You have to know what you are looking for (shade difference) to notice.