Painting the Grizzly

[4x4Dalton]

Hey yall.Been talkin about it for a few days now. This summer I am going to repaint the Grizzly. What I am wondering is what type of sander to use to get spray paint and clear coat and all off that is on there now. Plus what grit sandpaper to use for that and once I prime it what grit to use? I am painting it Black and Red so no Green ideas(). Hope yall can help me on this want to start gettin everything ready for the project.
Plus here is the idea for the paint scheme....Black from bottom to top of fenders and red from there up. Let me know what yall think of that as well. Going with either this on hood or this
So come on yall know alot of yall have some painting info to share.
Bear

[OverEasy]

That sounds like a good scheme to go with, the black bottom and the red upper I think will look great! As far as sanders go, I just used my orbital sanders. One is a 4x4" one and the other is a 4x6" one for the bigger areas. Right off hand I can't recall the paper I used . . . wait. . . OK, so I just looked at my sanders and they both still have the sheets I used last time and it looks like I used 40grt to remove all the old spray paint and knock down some of the factory paint as well. It worked great, I do remember that.

[BlueXJ]

If you want to you can use chemical paint remover to get the old stuff off. It is less work and will be faster than sanding.

[4.3LXJ]

Another option, if you have good paint on there to start with is just to rough it up a little so the new paint will stick to it. I currently use a screen type sandpaper used for sheet rock for it.

[Jamie Lynn]

I say go with the Bear picture on the hood when you get to that stage..

[LizardRunner]

use any sander for the first passes orbitals are ok for this, I have an air powered jitterbug for painting prep. it's best to use wed/dry paper and have the hose running so you don't have powdered paint all over. start with 80 grit and work down to no finer than 320 and try to stop before you get to bare metal. If you do you will need to use either an etching primer or metal prep then primer. if you have any imperfections, go with a high build primer for a few coats, then block sand by hand with 220 or 320 so you have nice flat surfaces to paint. the last coats of primer should be primer/sealer this is so you won't have any possibility of moisture soaking into the primer and ruining your paint on down the line. block this final primer coat with 320, wipe down so no loose paint is on there to mess up your color coats. The better you prep the better the paint job will be, and flat, smooth surfaces give the best look for any paint job. Be sure to use at least two color coats before the clear coats, 4 clear coats will make the paint last longer. Go with the bear for the hood bro, it's your totem after all.

[4x4Dalton]

Thanks yall. Some good info said by all.

[jccatt]

Go for the bear. And what Lizzard said is good. Dont strip the paint if you dont have to.

[XJ4IV]

THe best way to get a good coat... do what I SAY not as I DO... is sand with a decent Dual Action sander or a palm sander... be careful on the back hatch and the header panel as they are fiberglass and are susceptable to fast damage. on the initial sanding use a 180 grit or even a 100 grit...
Second step hit that with a primer coat and then whats called a guide coat... the guide coat is a opposing color of the primer and its just a light coat over the body not intended to cover the primer in any way...
this is what a guide coat should look like!

using THAT paint to "guide" you through the next part of sanding
use a 280 to a 360 grit and HAND sand it at this point... use a quality wet dry sand paper and a sanding block like this

this is where the guide coat comes in handy, basically you sand down until the guide coat is gone THEN you should have sanded the whole vehicle and LEFT a smooth primer coat.
At this point your ready for final color, this is a crucial point to be VERY patient!!!
use the paint sparingly with each coat to avoid runs and DONT be affraid to hit that thing with 5-7 coats the more coats the more durable the paint will be!
If you get runs dont clear coat it yet but hit that runny spot a few more times AFTER the runs dry about 5 more times THEN sand it out again but THIS time DRY sand it with 250 grit then a final sanding on this spot with a 360 grit dry, then wipe down with denatured alcohol... or regualr ole rubbing alcohol will work but what ever you do dont use vodka... that would REALLY piss bigjim off!
once you have sanded it back down you can hit that spot a few more times with color THEN do whats called a color sanding, this phase is a VERY LIGHT scuffing on the color using 1000-1500 grit feels like a brown paper bag more than sand paper... this gives you a LITTLE bit of scratch for the clear coat to hold on to...
Looks like this once this part is done

once this is done give the jeep an AWESOME wipe down... at this point pretend its the worlds most EXPENSIVE car and your wiping it down to see if your teenager has driven it from here your ready for clear... hit that sucker with SEVERAL coats of clear and again thorough inspection for imperfections
once this is finished polish it up with a NICE maguiars wax and show that thing off...
Dirsctions for an offroad paint job
1. Wash jeep
2. attempt to sand with a green pad from the kitchen sink
3. give up on sponge buy a home depot sanding sponge and go that route
4. Attempt to tape off what ever you DONT want painted like door handles and window seals
5. realize its too much of a PITA and "try to be more precise" with the 2.50 can of rustoleum paint from home depot
6. paint the jeep using swift side to side strokes NOT arcing
(be sure to let go of the nozzle at the end of each stroke... this makes runs less frequent)
7.remove what tape you left on
8. buy a BIG ASS SHARPIE to hit those spots that you over sprayed!
Your done!

[jccatt]

Or put jeep in paint booth, place paint tins at all corners, place small amount of semtex under each tin, wire, stand back and BOOM instant painted jeep. Note camo or two tone paint is not possible with this option.

[steph74]

make sure it had not been waxed before by the previous owner too... you will want to remove traces of wax.

I know some years didn;t have a clearcoat (I an;t remeember where I read that)

I also read somewhere that you have better chances to have your spray paint stick better if you do not remove the factory paint/primer so go easy on the sanding

[4x4Dalton]

Thanks yall. Gonna use these ideas for sure wanna make sure its done right.

[xj4life2]

Hey bear if your gonna use the bedliner on the sides a quick rough up with a green scrubbie pad is fine. Bed liner is very forgiving. For the red use the block shown above with the wet dry as you daddy said. Then a nice even coat of primer (use the ruddy brown best for red) then clear coat or if you have the cash get paint with the clear mixed into it . This will actually save you in the long run and give a deeper look to the paint.

[xj4life2]

Directions for an offroad paint job
1. Wash jeep
2. attempt to sand with a green pad from the kitchen sink
3. give up on sponge buy a home depot sanding sponge and go that route
4. Attempt to tape off what ever you DONT want painted like door handles and window seals
5. realize its too much of a PITA and "try to be more precise" with the 2.50 can of rustoleum paint from home depot
6. paint the jeep using swift side to side strokes NOT arcing
(be sure to let go of the nozzle at the end of each stroke... this makes runs less frequent)
7.remove what tape you left on
8. buy a BIG ASS SHARPIE to hit those spots that you over sprayed!
Your done!
youve oviously been to the Mark school of painting

[bigjim350]

For a nice paint job I would follow alot of the prep work given. But for a cheap spray can job, all I have ever done was wash the jeep very good with a scotchbrite pad.