Cost to get car painted?

[Trutrax]

Pretty much as the title states. Going to be getting my S13 painted. Full colour change, but NOT inside/strip interior to paint kinda colour change. Hell even the door jams could be left I suppose. I'm looking to get it painted a crystal white pearl. I would leave it to the shop to prep it aswell as spray. Roughly how much would I be looking at for it to be done?

Cheers

[rb25crazy]

haha a lot =X like 2-3k for a "good job" that's what i get quoted for.... and that's normal. just do it yourself that's what i'm doing right now. one panel at a time and going to use spray paint you buy at kragens in the cans =X

i'm sure someone will flame, but it's cool. this is just something for me that's all not looking to impress anyone.

[boske]

Prices are going to be all over the place, start talking to some local shops. Everything from the types of materials used, to the quality of work, amount of prep needed, etc. will work into how much you pay.

[Taniguchi_Is_#1]

Prices are going to be all over the place, start talking to some local shops. Everything from the types of materials used, to the quality of work, amount of prep needed, etc. will work into how much you pay.

yes. the best thing to do is go to a shop and get a quote. if you don't plan to get a shit paint job, expect to pay 1500+.

[Trutrax]

oh yeah, I fully expect to be paying 2k+ between 2 and 4 I think.

[s13tilldeath*]

If you have that much cash then why ask? just do it then....

I would say 2k and up but it will vary....

I would do it yourself if you want to save some green .... but you said you had the cash.....

[Trutrax]

I would love to try it myself..or atleast do the prep work. Just seems a little intimidating.

[CrimsonRockett]

It can get costly, but we're talking about REAL paint jobs.

No Maaco, 1 day paint, or rattle can.

So, 2-4k is average for a good paint job.

Shop around, but make sure to ask for some examples of their work before deciding.

[s13tilldeath*]

If you want to do it yourself then go for it.... its really not that hard or bad......

you just need patience.... It can be done just dont get lazy and half ass it....

[az_240]

I would love to try it myself..or atleast do the prep work. Just seems a little intimidating.


It depends on how picky you are.

I suggest taking it some place since it sounds like you don't have any experience with body work.

They have the experience and proper equipment to get the job done efficiently.




I decided to paint my s14 kouki black 6 months ago since I was strapped for cash. I was inexperienced when I started but wanted a good job.

IT WAS A BITCH! I had to redo the JDM aero at least 6 times due to solvent contamination and moisture in the air lines. I basically learned everything the hard way.


I am in the process of putting the car back together and god does it feel good.

[silpena]

expect around 1k just for the paint since a crystal white pearl your looking for is a 3 stage. Itll either be dupont, ppg, sherwin williams which are the top 3 paint companys shops use excluding euro paint shops that use sikkens/valspar(sp) and other companys.

just shop and see what happens. there will be a shop desperate for some work. Going to a good shop/cheaply priced will be kinda hard since you need to get reference but mainly look for stuff like i-car gold certifications for the painters, see if aaa, state farm, geico, allstate use them as their network in collision repairs. Best would be to go to a hot rod shop but expect to pay a butt load since they dont mess around when it comes to quality and craftsmenship. they take thier time and get the car perfect where collision/restorations are made to get cars out fast and cheap. Not macco cheap but "lets save the insurance some money" cheap.

main ppoint is shop around or look for someone whos a retired body man looking to side work. Dont look for back yard shops unless they have a good rep.... most that have good rep get shut down.

[Trutrax]

I see. All very helpfull information. Thank you all. As for my exp with body work. I've only done small stuff like shaving my 3rd brake light, spoiler holes and rear windshield wiper. It's honestly all the different steps to the paint...mixing with the correct ammounts, etc that make me feel I should just leave it up to the pros. hahah

[jspecusa]

price varies depend on quality.
5ft paint job(good from 5 ft away)
10ft paint job(good from 10ft away)
20ft paint job(always look good in pictures)
tips I'm going to give you.
1. inspect the car before the spray(prep work is the key)
2. make friends with the labor guys(6pack would do)
3. don't pick exotic colors.
good luck,

sam

[lightsource]

I got quoted $1,600 for a pearl white with door jambs & body work for all of the dents.

SO... ~$2,000 for you (CAD).

[az_240]

If I knew then what I know now I would have saved up my money and paid someone to properly paint the car black. My car still turned out pretty good.... but I would have had it back on the road waaaaay sooner if I had taken it to a proper shop.

I ended up spending around $1200 to paint my own car including all the materials, fittings and filters I had to get for the compressor. $550 just for paint and clear coat.

The amount of time you spend trying to figure out how to do it correctly and learn things the hard way is not worth it IMO

[lightsource]

If I knew then what I know now I would have saved up my money and paid someone to properly paint the car black. My car still turned out pretty good.... but I would have had it back on the road waaaaay sooner if I had taken it to a proper shop.

I ended up spending around $1200 to paint my own car including all the materials, fittings and filters I had to get for the compressor. $550 just for paint and clear coat.

The amount of time you spend trying to figure out how to do it correctly and learn things the hard way is not worth it IMO

Not for a one time job anyway.

If you want to make it a career then by all means...

[ixfxi]

2k gets you nothing nowadays.


if you care about your car, expect to pay much much more than 2k. my materials alone were 2k.


a good job will run 4k out the door including materials. a decent job will cost 3k. a shit job will cost under 2k.

[lightsource]

2k gets you nothing nowadays.


if you care about your car, expect to pay much much more than 2k. my materials alone were 2k.


a good job will run 4k out the door including materials. a decent job will cost 3k. a shit job will cost under 2k.

Price doesn't necessarily guarantee value. I'm speaking for myself when I say that I don't really need a paint job on my car that costs more than $2,000 to $2,500. Then again I'm only 19, I don't want to get a super expensive paint job and something beyond my control happens to it like... someone parking next to me and opening their door on my car.

I'm probably speaking for myself entirely but it's just my point of view. I can't justify spending $4K on a paint job if the car isn't like a hardly driven. I drive my car every day, too many possibilities to roll around w. a $4K paint job.

Just my opinion.

What do you think ixfxi?

[az_240]

You can get a shop to do it with decent materials for around $1500. If there are any problems such as dust nibs or orange peel sand with 1500 or higher grit and apply a rubbing compound and glazing compound.
It will look like a $4000 job if done properly.

4k is better spent on engine/suspension mods anyway.

[Trutrax]

Alright, cheers guys. Appreciate your help. I think I got a good idea of what to expect to pay and things. :D

[ixfxi]

I'm probably speaking for myself entirely but it's just my point of view. I can't justify spending $4K on a paint job if the car isn't like a hardly driven. I drive my car every day, too many possibilities to roll around w. a $4K paint job.

Just my opinion.

What do you think ixfxi?

you make a good point, which is why i had stock paint for many, many years.

if folks here are talking about doing a full-on color change, good luck. full color change needs to be done right and isnt cheap. do it right or go home.

if you're just talking about repainting the exterior a different color and leaving the interior and engine bay stock, then that means you have carefully thought and accepted that your car will be different colors. i would never own a red car or blue car and have a different color exterior, thats god awful. but if you have a black car, then you MAY be able to barely get away with this type of job... assuming you dont do an extreme color change and keep the car a dark color. at least this is acceptable in my book.. but barely. you pop hood or lift the carpet and see black, thats fine.

best solution is keeping your car the original color and having the exterior "refreshed" and this is the least cost effective of all the aforementioned. most douchebags here dont keep it the original color because they want to be temp-ballers and show that they have money to paint their car, yet they dont take it to the full extent.

if you're doing a simple repaint, you could get away for 2-3k.. easy. maybe less with the right shop.

as for painting it yourself? good luck.

[drift freaq]

You can get a shop to do it with decent materials for around $1500. If there are any problems such as dust nibs or orange peel sand with 1500 or higher grit and apply a rubbing compound and glazing compound.
It will look like a $4000 job if done properly.

4k is better spent on engine/suspension mods anyway.

Ah I see you have no real experience with good paint work. Seriously ixfxi speaks with knowledge. as does jspec. Truth be told with paint you get what you pay for.

3-4 years ago you could get a pretty damn good job for $1500-2k. These days? Everything has shot up in price. Paint and materials cost a lot more. They only way you will get a $1500 job looking like a 4k job is if your really greasing someones palms and they really don't like making what they are worth. LOL

Now if the OP paints his car the same exact stock color the car was he can indeed get a better deal. Especially if he does not do jams or does not remove glass.

Fact is you want your car to look really nice and not cheap? Glass out is pretty much a requirement. Doing Jams always makes it look a lot better as well.

Now if you go custom color? Prices start to go up unless your going to 1 day paint, Maaco , etc... Of course unless you do all prep work ahead of time, and you are prepared to fine color sand to eliminate orange peel which is pretty much a given with a cheap job.

Now if you go custom color done right? It will cost anywhere between 1k-2k in materials guaranteed. I have first hand experience with this. :D

My color is 3 Stage. I paid for it. I also did glass out. and I did my under hood,core support all jams and just about everything short of repainting my cabin interior. My cabin interior actually already had another treatment done to it.

Honestly what I am doing with my car and what I have done to it warrants the level of paint I went to. Its not for everyone. unless you are building a car to keep and or something real special, redoing the stock color is the a good way to go for most current 240 owners.

I honestly have never bought a car for myself without picking a color I wanted it to be. I was very close to repainting my car the stock color which would have saved me some money. Until I discovered its current color and had to have it.

About the only way a person can save going custom colors is if they buy the paint themselves and spray in their garage themselves. This is of course requiring you to have semi decent to decent skills with a paint gun. Not for everyone.

I am not a fan of rattle can jobs or roller jobs.

[r6_240sx]

Listen to ixfxi, I spent well over 2k on materials alone to do it myself.

A full on color change will need a type of sealer like epoxy primer, so add that in. Not only that but if you're doing a REAL PEARL WHITE, that is a tri-stage coat so add that in also. So the coats going on your car is going to be:

Epoxy Primer to seal up any bare metals
2k high build primer on parts you want to block sand real well
epoxy primer thinned down a little bit as your final sealer
basecoat white
pearl coat
and then clear coat

You probably chose one of the most expensive paint jobs to get.

ixfxi is a little more extreme then me, I believe you can get away with painting the exterior, door jambs and the trunk trim just fine. Just as long as you have the rug and the interior still in, it can always be done later. Same goes for the engine bay, it's not painted from factory anyways (unless you have oem white), but totally cool when you do have it painted. This can always be done later too. The door jambs are the hardest to do to get right, there's a perfect line that you can mask, but you can only get to it if you remove all your door linings which is more work than you think. As for the windows, you can buy those window masking trim, where it has a piece of plastic on the tape so you can lift the seals, so when it gets painted the paint seeps in. Tape is not cheap though...

Your best bet is to gut the interiors so you don't get dust all over your shit, sand it down yourself, remove all the panels you can (bumpers, etc), mask it, then get it towed to a bodyshop. They will love you for doing this, trust me. Shops nowadays don't have much workers due to the economy so the painters have to prep the cars also. Every painter I know hates prepping a car, it's a waste of their time and skill. They love being in the booth doing what they do best, it is their sanctuary. If the body shop lets you, ask them if you can do the block and wet sanding yourself during the primer stages. They will love you more because they can bring in another car while your doing that and get that painted also. More cars flipped in a day equals more $$.

By doing this you can knock off a couple gs for quality paint job, depending on how good your block sanding is. You would probably spend around 2.5-3k doing this, 3.5-4.5k if didn't. These are pure ball park estimates though. Then again, I'm not adding the amount of money it takes to prep the car before you go to the body shop...

[ixfxi]

^^ you make really good points BUT, forgive me for saying... the majority of people I know are LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZY mother fuckers... they wouldnt do the sanding or work on their own car if they're life was depending on it. I mean, did EVERYTHING....

get this, I pulled out ALL the sound deadening, ALL the dynamat (which I had installed) was painstakingly removed... much more difficult than just dry-ice. I removed all that shit myself, my fucking hands. What a pain in the royal ass, which I why I say NEVER dynamat a car.. its like tar-and-feathering your vehicle. If you will have interior, MAYBE.. but being that my car is stripped, that aluminum foil covering the dynamat is only paper thin and the tar will seep and run on hot days....... its fucking NIGHTMARE.

With all that said, I removed ALL the fucking panels.. hood, bumpers, everything. I went through TWO body shops, got ass-raped, bound, and fucked after spending 3k. Down the fucking tubes. The 3k got my sunroof closed and welded, the chassis wetsanded, rough primed, upper body seam filled, and the entire chassis stitch welded. Plus my demon camber wheels and RE01 tires got stolen, and they were all refreshed and the tires were new. Not fucking fun.

Fast forward 2.5 years, I pull my car OUT of the evil body shop in Downey and take it to my body shop in Van Nuys. I paid a hefty sum ~4k in labor alone, I purchased and brought my own paint/clear/promoters.. used Glasurit paint. That alone was ~2.5k. And after thats all said n done, I fit and reassembled my car's body panels myself. Alignment is completely underestimated.. no one values the detail that goes into making all the panels match.

If you guys think painting isnt that big of a deal, no prob... go for it. Bite the low-ball offer like I did and prepare to get worked. When you have paint flaking off like your car has dandruff, or when shit starts fading... dont complain. When you see a nice 350Z driveby and you're the guy with the shit-old-S13, dont complain.

I'm not saying that high-end paint jobs are required, I am not saying that at all. I am just saying that if youre going to paint, focus MORE on a quality job than doing with some crazy fucking paint-scheme that is unrealistic to paint. Keeping it original is less work than doing some crazy custom job.

--------


And for those wondering, my customer Mark's car was fully painted exterior-wise when we did the J-spec facelift. Glass was left on... but they his body was in fantastic shape and everything was OEM aero. Fitment was good, but as you know all these valences, skirts, and small mouldings take time to not only prep, paint, but also fit and align. This is why I feel sorry for people with aftermarket aero, fitment is NEVER good.. NEVER. It always requires pre-madonna labor and care.


Mark's S14 before (on right):
http://clearcorners.com/products/nissan/240sx2/imgs/featcarB10.jpg

Mark's S14 now:
http://clearcorners.com/products/nissan/240sx2/r_full2/image2.jpg

[VROOOM]

good paint jobs ain't cheap and cheap paint jobs ain't good.
words to live by.

[CusCo_S14]

pretty soon mid april im getting the exterior of my car repainted. i had the front end repaired due to collision i had and then getting it painted is gonna cost me roughly $2800

[edsones14]

Alot of good info out there and for the most part u will pay over 2k for a decent job. Been doing this painting biz since 88 and its alot of work. I would say 90% is prep work which is time consuming, but the end result is awesome provided u can lay down some base and clear or hell even a single stage might be an option. Some decent single stage paint out there that looks real good and will give a high quality finish. Basically like everyones been telling u, shop around for price and check some of there work out before hand or even someone that does it on the side that will give u a good deal. As far as buying your own materials well it can get pricey, but those same high price name brands also sell lower lines of paint and u can get it much cheaper. Just cuz its cheaper paint doesnt mean your shit will look busted. Good luck bro!

[silpena]

there is ways to cut down the cost of a 3 stage paint system but you have to know hwo to paint to do it. Lets say u pick a white sealer before u ur base. By choosing a white sealer you are gonna use less white base and get better coverage. I do this when i choose high end paints. It can be cheaper or more expensive. You just have to go to different jobbers and see what they have. Luckly i have a good relationship with my jobber and an account so i get hella discounts on materials and i can make payments just in case my client runs out of cash or wants to post pone their body work.

Why not just go oem?? it'll retain its value more, require less materials, less preping work and most of all.... its oem! unless u like doing body work as a living or for fun and dont mind painting ur car over and over like me then stick to oem and get it done right the first time.

I like to make a point here. You dont need an expoxy primer. The cars corrosion protection is good enough as it is. Just dont grind into the metal too much. It has a zinc coating. Also you dont need primer where there isnt bare metal and a repair being made. Its a waste of money and labor. A good expample is ppl stripping the car down to bare metal with air craft stripper becuase they think thats the right way to do a full color change. Just using a d.a. with 180 grit will get enough material off. Once u see primer then stop. Thasts the best corrosion protection you will ever get.

[72nismo]

I just had my wifes Black G35 clor changed to Pearl White for $3000.00 bucks. They stripped the whole car down and re did it. Very nice job. I actually know the paint shop so I got hooked up in my opinion.

3-5k for great work

http://http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p235/72nismo/IMG_1147.jpg

[Real**Fresh]

a Friend of mine went from this to
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/mikeishellafresh/DSCN2914.jpg
to this for a little under $800 dont quote me on the exact price but close to that. I dont know the color either sorry.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/mikeishellafresh/IMG_0594.jpg

[koukimonster139]

lol search through my posts ive answered this extensively like 12 times.


you get what you pay for.

[drift freaq]

a Friend of mine went from this to
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/mikeishellafresh/DSCN2914.jpg
to this for a little under $800 dont quote me on the exact price but close to that. I dont know the color either sorry.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/mikeishellafresh/IMG_0594.jpg

ya but honestly that picture is hiding a lot. IMO. See the problem is the resolution of that pic is low. Its also taken from far enough away to hide shit. Sorry but I don't trust that paint to last more than a couple of years at best. It may look good now, but its probably a single stage without a clear coat. Which basically means it will break down in couple of years and start to fade.

[koukimonster139]

that pics not fair


that car could have be painted flat baby shit green in a wal mart parking lot and it would still be hot

[whyteboy]

Goddam i never realized how much they actually were. im so happy i got a very good friend thats painting mine for free but im paying to get my body work done by a shop i kno, i have some rust and dings. im good friends with the bodyshop supply owner also so im getting a sick red metal flake:ddog:. but dont cheap out on paint either it definately shows. and do it right the first time otherwise your just going to be redoing it all again.

[WISH ONE]

ya but honestly that picture is hiding a lot. IMO. See the problem is the resolution of that pic is low. Its also taken from far enough away to hide shit. Sorry but I don't trust that paint to last more than a couple of years at best. It may look good now, but its probably a single stage without a clear coat. Which basically means it will break down in couple of years and start to fade.

Southern Autobody painted it. They used to do some of the work for my old dealership.
3 stage paint M3 carbon black with custom pearl, i had some of the Blue pearl variant replaced with violet pearl while mixing. I never got it color sanded, but honestly it will probably see a cone or a haystack before its gets too much use.
materials ran me about 400 and 350 labor to shoot/prep it. I helped a bit with the prep. Same guy shot my friends car Lexus Glacier frost mica and came out Prestine. I will try to get photos. Honest truth I dont see the point in spending 3k plus on a 500 dollar chassis. If you are local to so cal (OC area) and need to be painted let me know. The guy always wants the side work and a 6 pack lol.

[silpena]

ya but honestly that picture is hiding a lot. IMO. See the problem is the resolution of that pic is low. Its also taken from far enough away to hide shit. Sorry but I don't trust that paint to last more than a couple of years at best. It may look good now, but its probably a single stage without a clear coat. Which basically means it will break down in couple of years and start to fade.
sorry to tell u, single stage is more durable then a 2 stage system. It'll fade alot less. Ever seen a single stage white paint job compared to a 2 stage paint job same color? 2 stage yellows out faster since the clear is intergrated with base solids. ON a 2 stage the clear gets eaten out quick then the base.


I highly doubt that paint will last more than 2 years without chipping and flaking. 3 stage paint for 400? wtf??? where in the hell can u find that so cheap. I call b.s. No way can u find a 3 stage for less than 1k minimum in materials and i mean just the paint/hardners/reducers. Oh and m3 carbon black is not a 3 stage. Its a 2 stage. Base/clear coat. I know becuase nason carries it and i am guessing that is what they used. I was gonna use it on a customers car and if i remember a quart of it was around 80.00 so time 2 is 160 plus another 135.00 for the nason clear and add up the hardeners for both which would be around another 50-65.00 i siad u paid the right price for it and was told it was a 3 stage becuase he added a "flake"? Im not trying to an ass but i know the prices run about since i paint cars for a living and do body work.

[WhiteTE72GT]

WISH ONE, you will be hearing from me once I'm ready.

[koukimonster139]

sorry to tell u, single stage is more durable then a 2 stage system. It'll fade alot less. Ever seen a single stage white paint job compared to a 2 stage paint job same color? 2 stage yellows out faster since the clear is intergrated with base solids. ON a 2 stage the clear gets eaten out quick then the base.


I highly doubt that paint will last more than 2 years without chipping and flaking. 3 stage paint for 400? wtf??? where in the hell can u find that so cheap. I call b.s. No way can u find a 3 stage for less than 1k minimum in materials and i mean just the paint/hardners/reducers. Oh and m3 carbon black is not a 3 stage. Its a 2 stage. Base/clear coat. I know becuase nason carries it and i am guessing that is what they used. I was gonna use it on a customers car and if i remember a quart of it was around 80.00 so time 2 is 160 plus another 135.00 for the nason clear and add up the hardeners for both which would be around another 50-65.00 i siad u paid the right price for it and was told it was a 3 stage becuase he added a "flake"? Im not trying to an ass but i know the prices run about since i paint cars for a living and do body work.

lol your post pissed me off


mainly because you have no idea what your talking about


secondly because you probably work at some half ass hole in the wall chop shop that skeets single stage bullshit on every car that rolls through the doors


seriously why are you in here

[WISH ONE]

sorry to tell u, single stage is more durable then a 2 stage system. It'll fade alot less. Ever seen a single stage white paint job compared to a 2 stage paint job same color? 2 stage yellows out faster since the clear is intergrated with base solids. ON a 2 stage the clear gets eaten out quick then the base.


I highly doubt that paint will last more than 2 years without chipping and flaking. 3 stage paint for 400? wtf??? where in the hell can u find that so cheap. I call b.s. No way can u find a 3 stage for less than 1k minimum in materials and i mean just the paint/hardners/reducers. Oh and m3 carbon black is not a 3 stage. Its a 2 stage. Base/clear coat. I know becuase nason carries it and i am guessing that is what they used. I was gonna use it on a customers car and if i remember a quart of it was around 80.00 so time 2 is 160 plus another 135.00 for the nason clear and add up the hardeners for both which would be around another 50-65.00 i siad u paid the right price for it and was told it was a 3 stage becuase he added a "flake"? Im not trying to an ass but i know the prices run about since i paint cars for a living and do body work.

Im not going to argue with anyone, that is what i payed. On a super hookup through a legit body shop i Watched all my paint being mixed and the whole deal. I wont argue with you about the 3 stage piece you probaly know more about it then i do. I saw one color shot first that looked like matte blackish blue with a pearl and then another variant of it that was a bit more gloss/black was applied on top of that and then the clear so I guess thats a 2 then? Iono anways. Cheap and looks good. I wont cry over it if i F#ck it up.

[ixfxi]

I like to make a point here. You dont need an expoxy primer. The cars corrosion protection is good enough as it is. Just dont grind into the metal too much. It has a zinc coating. Also you dont need primer where there isnt bare metal and a repair being made. Its a waste of money and labor. A good expample is ppl stripping the car down to bare metal with air craft stripper becuase they think thats the right way to do a full color change. Just using a d.a. with 180 grit will get enough material off. Once u see primer then stop. Thasts the best corrosion protection you will ever get.

any good paint shop will tell you what this man just said: there is NO better coating than factory. taking your car down to metal is bogus attempt at selling a better job (which it is not). there are imperfections in the metal that have been already smoothed from the factory. the minute you hit metal it starts oxidizing, once you know that you'll understand why you dont want to take a car down to metal.

[ixfxi]

Southern Autobody painted it. They used to do some of the work for my old dealership.
3 stage paint M3 carbon black with custom pearl, i had some of the Blue pearl variant replaced with violet pearl while mixing. I never got it color sanded, but honestly it will probably see a cone or a haystack before its gets too much use.
materials ran me about 400 and 350 labor to shoot/prep it. I helped a bit with the prep. Same guy shot my friends car Lexus Glacier frost mica and came out Prestine. I will try to get photos. Honest truth I dont see the point in spending 3k plus on a 500 dollar chassis. If you are local to so cal (OC area) and need to be painted let me know. The guy always wants the side work and a 6 pack lol.

your car is what you make it. if you want a cheap car, put a cheap paint job, cheap wheels, cheap motor, etc etc....

if you spend big money on baller wheels, baller parts.. then skimping on paint, labor, etc.. is not worth it.

do as you guys think is right based on your budget and standards.


as for the single stage white being better than 2 stage white, you're comparing apples with oranges dude.

[CrimsonRockett]

your car is what you make it. if you want a cheap car, put a cheap paint job, cheap wheels, cheap motor, etc etc....

if you spend big money on baller wheels, baller parts.. then skimping on paint, labor, etc.. is not worth it.

do as you guys think is right based on your budget and standards.

My car is right on up there with Dave's and yours.

"Expensive" paint job coming soon, a couple hundred in weather stripping/gaskets alone, everything suspension related being replaced with either new bushings or adjustable arms, spare motor being completely torn apart/rebuilt...as detailed as I can get with every aspect of the chassis.

That's just what the car is worth to me.

I've never seen it as just another "$500 chassis". Hell, I hate buying shells because your average "dorifto" kid has already fucked with various sections of the chassis.

Paid $2,000 for my current S13 with 62k miles and $2,500 for my "project" S13 with 40k miles. Both original owners.

After working at a body shop and actually seeing how difficult/time consuming body work can get, $4,000 doesn't seem like much anymore.

This is what all paint jobs should look like:

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y53/doohopark/DSC01221.jpg

[QuickSpoolSR]

its going to cost you about 800 in supplies at least for quality stuff, you might be able to find someone to do the labor for like 600 cash if you have all the tools an air compressor, a good bay and everything, that would be about the cheapest you can get it, if you do it yourself it will be obviously around 800, or a shop will be at least 2k, unless you want a really shitty paint job, it also depends a lot on if the car is clean, if it has problems it iwll cost a lot more to straighten everything out

[silpena]

lol your post pissed me off


mainly because you have no idea what your talking about


secondly because you probably work at some half ass hole in the wall chop shop that skeets single stage bullshit on every car that rolls through the doors


seriously why are you in here

oh really how did i piss u off? did u think i work for macco and i try to sell single stage paint jobs?

I do know what i am talking about! I am here becuase i think my opinion matters and i am trying to help the op on his options. I may have gotten out of subject but i am just throwing in my opinion on other ppls statements. I am not here to look down on others.

seriously tell me what it was that pissed you off. I wnat to know(respectfully). I know that single stages last longer than 2 stages. Ask any veteren body man. I dont want throw this around but all of my experience and training was under i-car standards so no i dont half ass work.

[ixfxi]

http://www.clearcorners.com/temp/door2.jpg
http://www.clearcorners.com/temp/door1.jpg

not color sanded.

close up of paint (dont ask me the code, i wont tell):
http://www.clearcorners.com/temp/closeup.jpg

dave is on the right track, an expensive one, but he'll be happy when its all done.

the biggest problem with all of this, is that when its all said n done, you really need to have a proper place to store your car. this is why i think its important that people dont over-do their project, because then you have to baby everything you do with the car. at least if you stick to stock color, keep stock aero... risks and damages are much less.

[silpena]

^^^ that looks great! even without the colorsanding. You paint it?

[Colorado S14]

What would you guys guess for the cost of materials (paint, clear, primer) for enough paint to do a body kit.

[Troof]

All depends who you know imo. When i smashed up my e55 last year a homie of mine in hawthorne hooked up my whole front end for Cheap and quality as F*ck! When my lease was up i returned the car and the dealer didnt say one word about it. as far as my 13 is concerned 3k paintjob or not its still an s13 but i love the hell out of it so id do it again, but have my boy in hawthorne do it up.

[r6_240sx]

I like to make a point here. You dont need an expoxy primer. The cars corrosion protection is good enough as it is. Just dont grind into the metal too much. It has a zinc coating. Also you dont need primer where there isnt bare metal and a repair being made. Its a waste of money and labor. A good expample is ppl stripping the car down to bare metal with air craft stripper becuase they think thats the right way to do a full color change. Just using a d.a. with 180 grit will get enough material off. Once u see primer then stop. Thasts the best corrosion protection you will ever get.

any good paint shop will tell you what this man just said: there is NO better coating than factory. taking your car down to metal is bogus attempt at selling a better job (which it is not). there are imperfections in the metal that have been already smoothed from the factory. the minute you hit metal it starts oxidizing, once you know that you'll understand why you dont want to take a car down to metal.I think you guys misunderstood me a bit. I never said to strip the car to bare metal, but lets be honest here. How many times have you guys sanded shit down and then oops... too far. It is best that the bare metal is spot epoxied.

Same goes for plastic, I never use a high build primer on plastic. I always use epoxy on plastic because it has a better flex and strength.

I don't know about you guys, but on my metal parts I spot epoxy the accidental bare metal spots, shoot it with 2k high build so I have a nice thick primer to block sand, then seal it with reduced wet coat of epoxy.

Yes you may shoot over a high build, but I like using the epoxy as a sealer because it has a solvent barrier and it has always given me less problems.

Hell, I've seen people skip the high build and use straight epoxy for everything.

Not only that, but all body putty work is done OVER epoxy. The days of doing body putty on bare metal is a thing of the past. I say this because body putty doesn't have any corrosive protection so anything trapped in between the bare metal and body putty can cause problems.

Sorry for going off topic, but I just wanted to clarify things up and why you DO NEED epoxy primer.

That's my 2 quarts for the day. ;)sorry to tell u, single stage is more durable then a 2 stage system. It'll fade alot less. Ever seen a single stage white paint job compared to a 2 stage paint job same color? 2 stage yellows out faster since the clear is intergrated with base solids. ON a 2 stage the clear gets eaten out quick then the base.Dude you have to be kidding me...

If you're running into yellowing on your clear, you're probably using a shitty clear. If you're running into problems with the clear hitting the base, you're either not letting the solvents air out on the base long enough. There's a reason why all the high-end cars are NOT using a single stage... Not only that, but the standard on most cars is a bc/cc.

Clear coats provide UV protection and also scratch protection. If the scratch is not that deep it can be buffed out, with the base coat untouched. Can't do that with a single stage. Try polishing a metallic single stage, hell metallic single stage isn't even a standard anymore in the automotive industry. Metallics don't even gloss without a clear coat.

Stop spreading misinformation.

[silpena]

sorry to tell u buddy the reason they use 2/3 stages is becuase of the colors and depth and clearaity you can get with them. Its not the clear that is the problem or the quality of the clear. hte only advatage is control of the gloss and mettalics dont fade as fast. Oh i want to make a point i meant SOLID colors not mettalics. Sorry.

Having the clear integrated with the pigments and solids in the base make it more resistant to fading away. Ive seen single stage last alot longer. Sure u cant buff it out and yeah if it scratches you have to completely redo the area but the point is single stages are more durable in the long run. Ask a veteran painter. They'll tell you the same thing. ive been tought by guys who run hot rods shops that do 100k and over in cars and body work.

Yeah, you need to cover bare metal. I wasnt dogging u on that but expoxy primer isnt that great. WEll, not how it used to be back in the days. They took all the zinc out. Back in the day you could spray a bare shell in expoxy primer and leave if for a year and wouldnt rust. Now thes days you cant. Expoxy primer these days acts as a good corrosion protection to oem standards and gives body filler greater aheadsion but you to put it before or else you will see swelling in the filler and chemical issues.

im not mispreading imformation. Check it up one time. Oh you know you can apply a clear coat over a single stage paint after it has cured right? All you need to do is wetsand it with 800-1000 grit. SO if you want the buffing and all that then just lay some clear over it. No biggie.

[91tofordee]

wow you guys are paying a lot. there is a local guy here that does GOOD work for cheap. i can get my car completely painted for 1k.

[r6_240sx]

im not mispreading imformation. Check it up one time. Oh you know you can apply a clear coat over a single stage paint after it has cured right? All you need to do is wetsand it with 800-1000 grit. SO if you want the buffing and all that then just lay some clear over it. No biggie.Whoa, If you're talking about integrating S/S with clear than I guess I misunderstood you. I would have to agree with your there, but to me I don't really consider that a "true" single stage anymore.

The only reason I would use a single stage (w/o integrating C/C) is for deep solids (esp black), $$, and it's easier. For durability? No way. BC/CC standards came into play to increase durability from the old acrylic single stage days.

Anyways, this is my last post about this debate. I've already posted out of topic. I'll stick to my 2+ stages, I don't like how messy my buffing pads are with s/s. :D

[silpena]

ha ha ha yeah i hate buffing too and i know it ruins its purpose of single stages but some ppl perfer to do it like that if they cant afford the clear and want to add the clear later. To me its more work and stupid but some ppl do it.Acrylic is shit and i would never use it. Its hella cheap but i would never use it. Plus u cant evern add urathane clear over it.

The urathane single stage is really durable and better at resisting chipping than 2 stage but it depends on the prep and how much material you put on. Too much and you lose flexibility and too little and you lose durability to fading and you cant buff it out as much. I like to put hella clear(on my car) so i can keep buffing it as the time goes on. The only place i dont put alot of clear is on front bumpers and hoods since those areas are subject to alot dirt, gravel and flexing(bumper). Yeah im gonna stop too becuase i seem to have gotten off topic way too much.

If anyone wants to debate just pm. Ill be more than glad too. I like talking about this and i am open to all opinions. You allways learn something new from another perosn.

[ixfxi]

All depends who you know imo. When i smashed up my e55 last year a homie of mine in hawthorne hooked up my whole front end for Cheap and quality as F*ck! When my lease was up i returned the car and the dealer didnt say one word about it. as far as my 13 is concerned 3k paintjob or not its still an s13 but i love the hell out of it so id do it again, but have my boy in hawthorne do it up.

wow you guys are paying a lot. there is a local guy here that does GOOD work for cheap. i can get my car completely painted for 1k.

you guys are talking out of your ass

i hate hearing about "oh my hommie hooked it up, i just had to give him a cheeseburger and a blowjob" ... its all bullshit.

here is how it works: things like tires, gas, paint - everyone needs them. this means that gas stations, tire manufacturers, and body shops ALWAYS have business.

so if you bring your car to a body shop, they MAY take your job on the low price... and you think you got a deal. in the long run, your shit will wait on the back burner and never get done right or done in a realistic time frame.

the "i deserve a hookup" mentality only gets you so far, and thats not far at all. you've gotta pay for good work, period.

ps: the word "good work" is completely subjective, whats good to you may be shit to me. anyone can colorsand the fuck out of a car and remove the imperfections. this is why i am happy about my paint job, not even color sanded and the shit looks like glass. it will only get better when i decide to color sand it later.

[Trutrax]

um, is there a link to a little tut on prep work involved? I'd atleast like to attempt some of it before handing it off to a body shop because like stated above, if I take on some of the grunt work it may pay off. :)

[hahajoey]

ive heard of people getting their cars done at a good shop(not a one day or earl scheib) for like 1k

[r6_240sx]

The word "good" is very subjective like ixfxi said. If you've ever painted a car in your life the definition of a "good" paint job is very very different.

Hell, good paint alone cost roughly 1k, none of that Omni or Nason stuff. I'm talking about paint approved by automotive manufacturers.

But w/e this is getting nowhere. People will believe what they want to believe.
---------------
Trutax just buy 100, 150, 220 grit, DA Sander, some W&G Remover, masking tape, masking paper and start sanding that bisch down (after it's gutted). Sounds pretty easy, but it's labor intensive.

[lightsource]

I'm talking about paint approved by automotive manufacturers.

Like PPG, AMIRITE?:mepoke:

[FRpilot]

Hell, good paint alone cost roughly 1k, none of that Omni or Nason stuff. I'm talking about paint approved by automotive manufacturers.


Like PPG, AMIRITE?:mepoke:

you're sort of right. fyi, Omni and Nason are PPG and Dupont's value lines.

PPG or Dupont is good stuff, but what r6 240sx is saying is you shouldn't cheap out on any materials or labor if you want a good paint job. you can't half ass prep your car and then apply best paint on earth, or vice versa, spend 9 months prepping/sanding your car and then use cheap paint and expect your car to turn out nice. even if you get good paint from a good manufacturer such as PPG or Dupont, you should get their better paint. ie. PPG, the DBU lineup.

[ixfxi]

The word "good" is very subjective like ixfxi said. If you've ever painted a car in your life the definition of a "good" paint job is very very different.

Hell, good paint alone cost roughly 1k, none of that Omni or Nason stuff. I'm talking about paint approved by automotive manufacturers.

But w/e this is getting nowhere. People will believe what they want to believe.

btw my customer came by my shop today with his black NSX. car looks pretty good, he paid a paint shop to repaint the entire car (included removing the glass). car was fully painted and he did a 02-05 facelift.

overall, car looks OK but the funny thing about it.. he paid over 6k and i still saw sand lines in certain parts of the car.

all depends what you want to do. paint is paint is paint, unless your picky. if you just want a shiny car, you can get that for a thousand or two. if you want OEM-like quality (or better), be prepared to pay.

[boske]

One thing that really sucks about doing your own paint work, is the markup on materials. I think my shop pays about half of what they would charge any random guy on paint. We bill our customers at the marked up price, I really dont like that system but thats how auto shops work too, with markup on parts.

[r6_240sx]

btw my customer came by my shop today with his black NSX. car looks pretty good, he paid a paint shop to repaint the entire car (included removing the glass). car was fully painted and he did a 02-05 facelift.

overall, car looks OK but the funny thing about it.. he paid over 6k and i still saw sand lines in certain parts of the car.

all depends what you want to do. paint is paint is paint, unless your picky. if you just want a shiny car, you can get that for a thousand or two. if you want OEM-like quality (or better), be prepared to pay.The saying paint is paint is true to an extent. No doubt you can still make an "economy" brand paint turn out good, but when it comes to colors like black or red you really need a nice brand paint. An el cheapo black will look gray and for red it will look orange/pink. Nothing looks better than a deep deep black it almost looks unreal.

But without the proper prep work, a good brand paint will be a complete waste.

If I were that NSX dude, I would send that back and tell them for 6k I want it looking like glass when you redo it. But, I'm guessing he didn't notice, so that's his own loss.

One thing that really sucks about doing your own paint work, is the markup on materials. I think my shop pays about half of what they would charge any random guy on paint. We bill our customers at the marked up price, I really dont like that system but thats how auto shops work too, with markup on parts.Of course, gotta pay for the rent somehow, LOL.

[silpena]

hmm i never pay the markup on materials hmm idk what other shops use but i seem to get decent rates with dupont/nason/sherwin williams. Now that i wonder, i get discounts from my jobber. I wonder if thats the shops savings.... oh well i dont care. Im saving money.

[lflkajfj12123]

what do candy paint jobs cost

just materials, no prep or labor.

[VNG704]

do your own prep.

[mrflip69]

NSX--aluminum? Isn't there a special process, like anodizing, to paint it properly?

[silpena]

^^ wat do u mean? are u saying aluminum as in the bodys composite? if so then no. There is no special anodizing to paint it properly.

[r6_240sx]

NSX--aluminum? Isn't there a special process, like anodizing, to paint it properly?lolwut. If it was anodized they'd be looking like ipods.

what do candy paint jobs cost

just materials, no prep or labor.
Go to the House of Kolor website.

Be forewarned, shit is ballin. I wouldn't recommend painting it yourself unless you have some experience.

[Om1kron]

2k gets you nothing nowadays.


if you care about your car, expect to pay much much more than 2k. my materials alone were 2k.


a good job will run 4k out the door including materials. a decent job will cost 3k. a shit job will cost under 2k.

Yes but you also have a super pigmented 3 stage paint job.

[silpena]

lolwut. If it was anodized they'd be looking like ipods.


Go to the House of Kolor website.

Be forewarned, shit is ballin. I wouldn't recommend painting it yourself unless you have some experience.


HOK is balling but if your on a budget and unexperienced in paint then go to dupont and use their hot hues line. I know there is a couple of colors that are great. Ive used them and the coverage is awsome. About half the price of HOK. I think they used the color plum crazy on the show where they get junkers and turn the cars into show cars on barry jackson auction. 100k cars so i think it speaks for itself in the paint and of course the body work makes it perfect.

Try that. Another think you can use nason as a base or sealer to help save on money. You can cut the amount hok paint u need but need to find the right colors or else youll be dispointed in the turn out. It can be darker, lighter, or the wrong shade, or just be completely awsome.

[GSXRJJordan]

This thread rocks.

I appreciate the people that actually have paint experience bringing their no-bullshit estimates and qualifiers into this thread, but it comes down to someone wanting to do a good job on your car, and you paying for good paint. Usually the way to motivate painters is with money, but like Mike's NSX buddy shows, paying out the nose doesn't guarantee a good job (and as the other Mike's - WISH ONE - car shows, getting the hook up and paying less than a grand doesn't guarantee a shitty job).

The good news for me is that I've found the paint that's the exact color I want my S14 to be from HOK, and it's not really that expensive (for a 3-stage). I just have to figure out how much flake I want, and what stage to spray it in, and I'll have a pretty good idea of what it will cost to get it to look juuuuuuuuuuuust right.

When talking about a 3-stage "Kandy" job, with a black base on an already black car, you think I can get away with a gallon (4qts) of black, and a gallon and a half (6qts) of "kandy"? How much clear, 4 qts for 5 coats or so, when you add reducer?

All my paint quantity estimates are based on how much I've used on bikes (with a lot left over), and then doubling it... maybe that's not enough?

[kuramaya]

Well not that this price helps you over there...but my car is in for Paint right now.
The color I decided first was white pearl. Then I got around to thinking and saw a 1,000 white cars and figured if I am gonna pay to get it painted I might as well paint the car a new color. The color I chose is 2008 Honda Sorrento Blue Metalic. Same color as on the 2008 4 Door SI's in the states and I the Type R's over here. I am getting (3) Coats of Paint, taking care of a rust spot under the driver mirror, getting the rear fenders pulled 10 more mm's, patching up the front aero where I have fixed it half assed about 5 times over the last 5 years, pulling out all the cone dents, shaving the rear wiper mount and the antennae mount, and painting the top jet black. The Price I am paying is 130,000 yen. With the shitty yen rate, this is well over $1,300. If the rate was like last year, It would be around $1,000 Bucks.

Here is the Blue it will be:
http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com//media/roadtests/firstdrive/2008/honda.civic.mugen.si.sedan/honda.civic.mugen.r34.500.jpg
Here is a before shot, I will post back when it is done
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3188/2912599619_b844251cbb_o.jpg

[silpena]

This thread rocks.

I appreciate the people that actually have paint experience bringing their no-bullshit estimates and qualifiers into this thread, but it comes down to someone wanting to do a good job on your car, and you paying for good paint. Usually the way to motivate painters is with money, but like Mike's NSX buddy shows, paying out the nose doesn't guarantee a good job (and as the other Mike's - WISH ONE - car shows, getting the hook up and paying less than a grand doesn't guarantee a shitty job).

The good news for me is that I've found the paint that's the exact color I want my S14 to be from HOK, and it's not really that expensive (for a 3-stage). I just have to figure out how much flake I want, and what stage to spray it in, and I'll have a pretty good idea of what it will cost to get it to look juuuuuuuuuuuust right.

When talking about a 3-stage "Kandy" job, with a black base on an already black car, you think I can get away with a gallon (4qts) of black, and a gallon and a half (6qts) of "kandy"? How much clear, 4 qts for 5 coats or so, when you add reducer?

All my paint quantity estimates are based on how much I've used on bikes (with a lot left over), and then doubling it... maybe that's not enough?

hey, are u just doing the outside or jambing the whole car and engine bay? If your car is black then u can get awa with 2 qts of black easily probably the same for the candy, whats the candy color? are tryig to make it subtle or real strong and deep? a gallon of clear will be enough to put 2-3 coats add another 2 qts if your gonna jamb everything and do the engine bay also.

[r6_240sx]

When talking about a 3-stage "Kandy" job, with a black base on an already black car, you think I can get away with a gallon (4qts) of black, and a gallon and a half (6qts) of "kandy"? How much clear, 4 qts for 5 coats or so, when you add reducer?

All my paint quantity estimates are based on how much I've used on bikes (with a lot left over), and then doubling it... maybe that's not enough?Good lord a gallon and a half is alot.

I would go w/ 3 quarts of black, 3 quarts candy (depending on color and how deep you want it). You can get away with 2 for both, but if you haven't done it before, you'll need some extra paint to practice with and also account for the paint wasted (unless you have one of those cool 3m paint prep systems). As for clear it's cheaper to buy by the gallon. It would be best to take off all the panels and spray the body first and see how much paint you have left. Last thing you want is running out of paint during a run cuz you wimped out trying to save couple bucks. Good thing HOK's stuff is all off the shelf so it can easily be attained at any jobber.

I'm only accounting for exterior and door jambs, btw...

[gregfarz78]

Quotes are going to be all over the place from 1k up to 4-5k probably depends what kind of quality you want...and why spend all that money and not paint the door jambs? Do it right not half assed

[WISH ONE]

Jefe, just out of curiousity who is painting your 14??

[91tofordee]

you guys are talking out of your ass

i hate hearing about "oh my hommie hooked it up, i just had to give him a cheeseburger and a blowjob" ... its all bullshit.

here is how it works: things like tires, gas, paint - everyone needs them. this means that gas stations, tire manufacturers, and body shops ALWAYS have business.

so if you bring your car to a body shop, they MAY take your job on the low price... and you think you got a deal. in the long run, your shit will wait on the back burner and never get done right or done in a realistic time frame.

the "i deserve a hookup" mentality only gets you so far, and thats not far at all. you've gotta pay for good work, period.

ps: the word "good work" is completely subjective, whats good to you may be shit to me. anyone can colorsand the fuck out of a car and remove the imperfections. this is why i am happy about my paint job, not even color sanded and the shit looks like glass. it will only get better when i decide to color sand it later.
well my good is better than your good. a buddy of mine's 08 mustang gt got hit and he took it there got it fixed and painted for 500 dollars. he has done plenty of nice cars.

[GSXRJJordan]

hey, are u just doing the outside or jambing the whole car and engine bay? If your car is black then u can get awa with 2 qts of black easily probably the same for the candy, whats the candy color? are tryig to make it subtle or real strong and deep? a gallon of clear will be enough to put 2-3 coats add another 2 qts if your gonna jamb everything and do the engine bay also.

Going to be painting jambs, but not the engine bay.

Good lord a gallon and a half is alot.

I would go w/ 3 quarts of black, 3 quarts candy (depending on color and how deep you want it). You can get away with 2 for both, but if you haven't done it before, you'll need some extra paint to practice with and also account for the paint wasted (unless you have one of those cool 3m paint prep systems). As for clear it's cheaper to buy by the gallon. It would be best to take off all the panels and spray the body first and see how much paint you have left. Last thing you want is running out of paint during a run cuz you wimped out trying to save couple bucks. Good thing HOK's stuff is all off the shelf so it can easily be attained at any jobber.

I'm only accounting for exterior and door jambs, btw...

Haha I always use 2 quarts for bikes, I figure I'd at least have to double it. If I can get away with 2 quarts of black (my car's already satin black), I'll probably do 3 quarts of candy and a gallon of clear, depending on where I add the flake - HOK says for this application the flake might better be added below the candy, with a metallic black... thoughts on this? I want there to be a lot of fairly large flakes, but all one color (the color of the candy), so instead of spraying more flake of a similar color on top, they say I can just do a metallic on the black first, if that makes sense. I dunno.

I figure clear is cheaper than metallic, so I'll probably just do it the 'conventional' way.

Werd on the 'off the shelf' aspect of HOK though, that and the fact that saying you have "house of kolor paint" = $$$ when you sell the car are the main reasons I'm willing to pay a little more per quart vs. having someone mix up a similar color.

Jefe, just out of curiousity who is painting your 14??

Not particularly attached to any single painter - might have the guy at Boso do it (did Jack and Alex's cars pretty well), but I haven't talked to him about it. Everyone I know that does bikes is mucho expensive. Maybe I'll have to see your guy :)

[r6_240sx]

I'm kind of confused on what you said, LOL. What color is your candy?

It's expensive to paint bikes cuz those all those crevices are a bisch to paint!!

Edit: Oh yeah, you know about the new LA/OC/Riverside VOC Regulations right?

[GSXRJJordan]

Sigh, trying to keep paint color on the DL, but w/e - this is what I'm planning:
http://www.houseofkolor.com/hok/images/speedshapes/KBC11_BC25.jpg
Candy Apple Red over black.

Would I want to spray metallic over the black, like this:
http://www.houseofkolor.com/hok/images/speedshapes/MBC02CF_BC25.jpg
... and then spray the candy, with no flake, or do it the "normal way" and mix the flake with the clear at the end?

[silpena]

SO you want the flake ontop of the candy and black? i think its a waste becuase thats the reason people use candy in the first place. Candy has more depth than flake or mettalics will alone in the clear. the flakes are gonna be over powering unless u use a mica in the clear. When you choose a flake and i would use one from hok also. Make sure you have the right tip size. Too big of a flake with a tip too small and its gonna clog up or spat all over the place giving you an uneven flake. Itll also cuase the flakes to bounch off ur wet edges giving u funny stripes

I wouldnt go the flake in the clear route or even put it in the base material.

If you want to put the flake in the base then the candy over then i think it will look tacky and funny. It'll make the candy look all freaking nasty....low rider nasty.

2 quarts should cover ur car and jambs considering you know how to spray well enough. Your car is allready black. You dont need much to get what u want. Its like saying i want to spray white over white but a slightly differnt white.... its not gonna bleed through or affect the color. Ive gotten away with one quart of paint(lemon glow from hot hues) on a car..a little smaller than an s13/s14 but i jambed it all, inside and out/engine compartment and i used half a gallon of dandylion yellow from nason. I had some lefted over.

[GSXRJJordan]

^^^ Yeah, that's what I was thinking - flake under the candy... or even in the first couple layers of the candy? Would I use silver flake, in/under the candy, or still use red flake? Or just shoot the base with a metallic to start with?

You guys rock, btw.

[r6_240sx]

Flake under the candy should give you the look your trying to achieve.

Having flakes under the candy will tint them giving them the color of the candy. To deep of a candy coat might negate that though.

It's really hard to visualize what you exactly want. I would get some small panels to test where to put the flake in (one in the basecoat, another in the first coat of candy, etc.) to get that depth and flake you want. That way you know for sure. It would suck if you didn't get the paint job you imagined.

[GSXRJJordan]

Flake under the candy should give you the look your trying to achieve.

Having flakes under the candy will tint them giving them the color of the candy. To deep of a candy coat might negate that though.

It's really hard to visualize what you exactly want. I would get some small panels to test where to put the flake in (one in the basecoat, another in the first coat of candy, etc.) to get that depth and flake you want. That way you know for sure. It would suck if you didn't get the paint job you imagined.

Amen to that shit. I'd be so bummed.

As far as which color flake to get, should I stick with a bright red, or go with a silver? I know for sure I don't want rainbow or color-change, and I want a "fine" size (which is huge for HOK, their biggest size).

I want the car to look black off-axis, red on axis, with a shit ton of flake if you shine a light on it/look at it directly in the sun.

[r6_240sx]

Go with silver. The whole purpose of flakes is to be contrasted. Having red flakes in the base/1st coat of candy and shooting red candy over it will darken the flakes. It will look like ass if you ask me...

Are you trying to go for a look like this, but more brighter and flaky?
http://www.houseofkolor.com/hok/images/speedshapes/UK11_MBC01CF_BC25.jpg

That's red kandy over this:
http://www.houseofkolor.com/hok/images/speedshapes/MBC01CF_BC25.jpg
Pale Gold