How far to go building a driver

[KingAir42]

Just got a 62 bug I’m working on. This car will be a driver, not a show car. My main concern is paint, I have removed the fenders, hood, decklid, removed all seals from doors, wires etc. The plan is to paint the interior/exterior, as well as the trunk. I haven’t started sanding or prepping yet. I am not trying to impress anyone with the car, but I want it to look decent and not ghetto. I’m not sure where the line is between going full blown show car, or half assed prep and paint job. Any suggestions helping me find a happy balance ?

[iowegian]

I would not paint it with a brush.

[mukluk]

[KTPhil]

Most of the expense in a paint job is the prep and assembly. You are doing that and saving big. I'd shop for a local paint shop to spray primer and color. Keep in mind since they didn't do the prep they may not offer much of a guarantee.

[KingAir42]

The trunk area for example, after the paint, I am going to use the trunk liners and cover most of it up anyways. I am wondering how someone building their car to drive vs building for show, would differ in their paint procedure ( trunk)

[KingAir42]

[SoCal66Bug]

A friend of mine works in a very large dealership body shop here in SoCal. When it came time to paint his S-10 Blazer he prepped it and took it to a One-Day type shop to have it painted. It turned out great. His reasoning was that all that guy does all day is spray cars. Most of the work is in the prep.

[wayne1230cars]

There are just so many variables here. Does it need rust repair? Certainly, as has already been suggested, doing disassembly, prep work and reassembly can save major dollars. Are you going to pull all the glass and reinstall with new seals? Masking the car is another important step.

Even then it will still cost you. You will have to decide if you want the underside of the trunk and deck lid painted and the door jams. Everything adds up. Ultimately it’s your call (and your wallets).Tough to pinpoint a cost. Good luck and post some pics.
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1960 beetle
1970 beetle convertible

[KingAir42]

[Danny604]

As said above the majority of the cost and the final outcome are in the prep assembly. With that being said, I painted a couple of motorcycle tanks a few years ago using rattle can off the shelf from home depot, then a 2 part spray can clear. I spent the time to get the prep work done and make it really smooth. Then a couple coats of primer, let it dry, wet sand it out to remove all orange peel and dust (I painted it in my backyard, outdoor). Then 2-3 coats of color (I did black), wet sand again. 2-3 more coats, wet sand again. Then the final 2 part clear, wet sanded again. Then I had to polish it, I did it by hand, but you would need a polisher. I had lots of time in my project for the multiple days of drying time between each stage, but with a spray gun and proper 2 part paint you wont have to worry about that. My thought was that with enough paint on the tank I could sand out the defects. It turned out excellent.

Depending on your ability. You could build a basic spray booth in a garage, buy or rent a spray gun, get the proper air supply parts, then just buy the materials. My brother bought all the materials to paint a bay window bus and I think he said it was about $1800 Canadian all said and done. I think you could probably get the car painted for less than $2k Canadian including the booth costs.

[panicman]

I don’t think anyone is going to advise you to do a shabby or rushed job. If you’re pulling the windows and seals you are getting serious about doing a decent job.

Likely, if you took your time and did the finest job you are capable of, you would still wind up with some blemishes and imperfections that would prevent you from using the car as a ‘show car’. Guys who get very good results have built on experience and know how over years.

Have you ever painted a car before or done metal work on an old car?
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Plate of shrimp

[TDCTDI]

A $10,000 paint job & a $500 paint job are both destroyed by a door ding or stone chip. A daily driven car will see a lot more of the wear & tear, how pissed do you want to be when it happens?
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Do something, anything, to your project every day, and you will eventually complete it.

[Zundfolge1432]

Rollers? Just buy some beer and take over to one of the hack shops like Earl Sheib or Maaco. You won’t pay much and you won’t get much. Win win.

[KingAir42]

[KingAir42]

Here where I’m at so far

[aa390392]

Think your going about the right way, check forum paint and body to get good advise.
I have taking a few cars to Macco, if you prep it right, they do a good job..after all they paint 200 cars a week. the painters sometimes bring their own equipment, and seem to be conscientious about their work, get to know em a bit. If you mask that helps as well. I hope you pick an og vw color.
Good luck
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getting grumpy & less tolerant!


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[wayne1230cars]

Looks like you have a pretty good car to start with. I’ve always liked the anthracite colour.
To do a headliner you need to pull the side and rear windows. When I painted my ‘60, I replaced all the window seals including the chrome trim. A year later I decided to replace the vinyl headliner that the PO had installed with a correct mohair liner. It was easy to remove and reuse the one year old seals. Older seals might present more of a challenge especially with the trim insert.
Keep posting pics and keep us informed of your progress.
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1960 beetle
1970 beetle convertible

[KingAir42]

[Acab77]

You should be able to order paint using the code and have it be a VW color, if that's the route you want to go.
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[67ctbug]

I can say in 99% confidence, that that car was never ruby red.
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