Aaron's 76 Type LT Project

8 minute(s) of a 383 minute read

And I assume I want to achieve something close to the below pic? I want to see the epoxy primer just start to peak through the Slick Sand, as if there was a slight, milky haze over the epoxy primer. As soon as you start to see any significant black color, then you can stop blocking that area of the panel.

I want to avoid burning through to bare metal, although that isn't the end of the world.

Oh, I am sure the doors will take time, but even then the 1/4 panels have some interesting curves to them as well. It took me a long time to address the back edges of the doors when I was getting the gaps and surfaces aligned.  

My original plan was to paint it in pieces and assemble, but I am now thinking of going another route. At worst I think I will paint the shell with the doors off, then paint the doors and install them and then re-install the front clip (after I aligned it once before) and paint the fenders and front nose at one time. It will mean extra masking, but that doesn't bother me. It's just tape and paper. I would paint the trunk lid and hood off the car and then install those pieces.

Re: blocks. I have a huge arsenal of blocks. I have Soft Sanders, Durablocks, and some other block sanders. I need all the help I can get. I really like those soft sanders, they are versatile.

One thing you can do with the Soft Sanders is stick sand paper about 1/8" away from the long edge of the block and then you will be certain not to sand past the edge in question, assuming you control the block properly.

10-27-2014

Not much to update, just been block sanding and getting the shell closer to spraying 2k primer. I need to do a little unexpected work on some high spots on the driver side rocker and then re-spray both rockers with Slick Sand to get them right. It shouldn't set me back much, if at all, but I need to do it or it would bug the crap out of me.

Below are some pics for any "noobs" like me who are going to embark on block sanding their Camaros. Pictures are always helpful. This is info I have picked up from others, so none of it is original.

Here is the roof after a 2nd round of Slick Sand. I sprayed Slick Sand through a 2.0 tip primer gun (Pneustream from tptools.com) at about 30 PSI. As someone else told me, this stuff goes on a bit transparent for the 1st coat but then covers up with the 2nd coat. Don't let this stuff sit in the gun more than 30 min or it can be a pain to clean. I use disposable paint cups to make life easier.



Take some of this dry guide coat (or another brand/color depending on the color of the coating you are sanding) and rub it over the panel being sanded





I used this flex sander for much of the roof, but having a variety of sanding blocks is a good idea since there are many curves and profiles to deal with on these cars, like Soft Sanders, Durablocks and others. Use a nice criss-cross pattern and apply even pressure on the block. Don't stay in one place too long. I like to vacuum the dust off the panel when it builds up so I can see where I need to sand some more.







I used 100 grit for the first pass to knock down most of the orange peel. Then I switched to 150/180 and will finish up with 220 to prep the surface for 2k primer. Below is a pic after some sanding with 100 grit. Others will attest that 3M "gold" sticky backed paper is good to use. I have used Dura Gold for coarser grits and it also worked well.

11-1-2014

I've been sanding, sanding and more sanding. I was going to spray epoxy primer on the bare metal for the driver side rocker but it's a little too cold, so I will do that tomorrow. In the meantime I am doing the final 220 grit sanding on the shell before I spray in 2k primer, which I hope will happen on Tuesday. I need to get the sheet metal installed before I spray 2k primer, which could take days or longer depending on what issues pop up.

Here's a few pics for your viewing pleasure. I didn't like the way my driver side rocker felt so I knocked down some high spots and skimmed it with filler. I will epoxy prime the bare metal spots and then spray Slick Sand over the entire rocker.



Nothing says fun like sanding the jamb areas. I sanded it with 220 grit right off the bat since I am not making the jambs look like the exterior panels. But I still want them to look good.

11-2-2014

BTW, nothing pic worthy to share, I was doing more prep work all day today. I am going to spray the bare metal areas with epoxy tomorrow and then I will decide if I need to spray Slick Sand on the driver side rocker or just go straight to 2k primer. I think I will end up spraying a few coats of SS just to be safe. In either case I will have to wait 48 hours for the epoxy to cure before I can spray so that will mean Wednesday is the earliest I can spray SS. That might work out well since it's supposed to rain Wednesday, which means I could spray 2k on Thursday and begin sanding that day or Friday and have the weekend to sand. I will begin fitting the front sheet metal tomorrow, so wish me luck.

11-3-2014

I did more prep work, sprayed some areas with epoxy primer and masked off all but the door openings.  

I started putting the front sheet metal on, which was a pretty big milestone for me. Just seeing the fender on loosely was a nice mental boost.

I am using PTFB solid bushings, so I had to enlarge the holes in the radiator support just a little. This radiator support is in great shape, although I will still strip it down and spray with epoxy primer for peace of mind.





I got the passenger side fender loosely installed. I was actually able to move the fender to where the body lines and gap look good, but I think I am going to need to remove a little bit of metal on the back of the fender so I can move it up a little bit. A small support piece is hitting the seam between the dash and door jamb. I think removing 1/4' to 1/2" will suffice.



The arrow identifies the metal on the back of the fender that I need to remove.