Do you sand the inside of your lexan bodies before painting?

[choman2673]

Hey All,

I'm getting ready to paint my FIRST lexan body. I've read a LOT about how to paint bodies. I've read some articles thay say to sand the INSIDE of your lexan body with 1000 grit sand paper so the paint has something to stick to. But other articles don't mention anything about sandng the inside of the body. Just curious how many of you sand the inside.

THANKS!

p.s. Could I use a 3M brand Scotch pad rather than sand paper?

[LEADFOOT]

Do you sand the inside of your lexan bodies before painting?
nope...never

[Buggyracer28]

nononono that would be bad.... all you gotta do is mask and spray away! :D

[AudiTT-Quattro]

Hey All,

I'm getting ready to paint my FIRST lexan body. I've read a LOT about how to paint bodies. I've read some articles thay say to sand the INSIDE of your lexan body with 1000 grit sand paper so the paint has something to stick to. But other articles don't mention anything about sandng the inside of the body. Just curious how many of you sand the inside.

THANKS!

p.s. Could I use a 3M brand Scotch pad rather than sand paper?
Yep, every body I've painted, I've scuffed with steel wool first. Paint sticks better. Just an easy way to guarantee that your 6 million dollar paint job comes out without chipping.

[elcid4300]

Yep, every body I've painted, I've scuffed with steel wool first. Paint sticks better. Just an easy way to guarantee that your 6 million dollar paint job comes out without chipping.


Same here..All it takes is just a little scuffing with "000" steel wool. Obviously, don't scuff the windows ;)

[Farwar]

I don't scuff any of my bodies I paint. It doesn't hurt to do it though.

[choman2673]

Well, I just layed down my first color... And I did decide to LIGHTLY scuff up the inside of my body with steel wool... :(

It turned out GREAT!!! I sprayed black onto an area of the body that was scuffed with steel wool. It looks fine! :D The black looks REALLY shiney on from the outside. Can't see any of the scuff marks from the steel wool at all... THANK GOODNESS! :eek: :D

So in my opinion, YES you can scuff up the inside of a lexan body & it will paint up just fine!

[FreeRideJunkie]

I'm getting ready to do my first "good" paint job on a body for my new buggy. I son't have any steel wool or fine sand paper so I am going to paint it without scuffing. Hopefully it works out just fine.

[mikevillena]

I suppose it depends on what type of paint you intend to use, what effect you will be trying to achieve and if you will be glueing anything to the paint surface itself after it cures. If you are going to paint chrome, don't sand the areas that will be sprayed with Alclad II Chrome or you'll end up with "brushed stainless steel" look. I use Pactra Lacquers (for the most part) and I've always sanded the bodyshell very aggressively, something left over from my slotcar days. At the very least, you should wash the bodyshell thoroughly and keep your hands washed and clean as you apply your masking. Try not to walk over carpeting as you go outside to spray the bodyshell as this creates static electricity which will attract dust and lint. And if you intend to attach assemblies to the paint surface, go with Pactra Lacquers and use very, very thin coats to avoid peeling.

[FreeRideJunkie]

I did wash the body and my hands so that should help. I will begin applying thin layers of paint tomorow. As of now all that I can say is masking takes forever when you don't have window masks. I taped off all of the windows and a simple wing design down the sides of the buggy and it took me a LONG time. (Well I guess it is my first try at anything other than 1 color so I cant complain. Then my original 'flame like' masking looked like crap so I started over)

One more question... If I have light razorblade marks from cutting the tape in the body... will the paint fill them and make them disappear??

[FESTER2004]

i dont,i wash it real good n then paint!i only sand the areas of the body if i am using xxx main picture glue to attach pics inside my body!

[LEADFOOT]

Fester, that doesn't make any sense. If you feel the need to scuff the lexan, then you need to have some kind of paint behind it to fill in the gaps. Otherwise, you end up with a hazy appearance on the glued pictures.

I use a lot of chrome and usually mask off bodies when I get them, even if I have no idea what the scheme is going to be. So, I don't scuff the body at all. Also, you guys should look into the SpazStix surface prep. It comes in an aerosol can and all you have to do is spray it on the body before you paint. Big time saver.

[Piggy89373]

I don't paint lids that often, so when I do, I usually have an idea in mind. With that said, I scuff the inside with a fine grit pink emory board from Wal-Mart. It doesn't gouge the lexan and doesn't show through paint. I also don't use chrome (don't scuff before laying down chrome).

Lidz, I thought Adrc was the Spaztix pimp.

[LEADFOOT]

I'm just Str8 pimp!

[mikevillena]

Yo, yo, yo Leadfoot...you's be "Pimp Daddy"! :D

[hotrodda]

Hi all, quick question:
When a body is said to be 200mm, what part is 200mm? The wheelbase? the distance between the body posts? the width? i don't know.

[FESTER2004]

leadfoot-if u use the right sandpaper i believe 400 grit-the xxx main pic glue "fills" in the sand marks,this is what i was told

[knucklebusta]

Here's a tip. After I paint the bodies (I don't sand btw) I use 5 minute expoxe and mix it up and paint the entire inside of the body with it. Works like a charm. Paint never chips. Occasionally a corner will start to peel, but it peels in a big piece, not a chip. Just throw some superglue under where it is starting to peel and viola.

Kevin

[mikevillena]

Hi all, quick question:
When a body is said to be 200mm, what part is 200mm? The wheelbase? the distance between the body posts? the width? i don't know.
Hotrodda,
200 mm refers to the width of the bodyshell at it's widest point. Invariably, this would be at the rear wheelwell flares or wheelwell. :D