Burma Shave

[QUOTE=
I know clear coat is tempting but you shouldn't put it on any color that will get oxidized or take UV damage, like red. Because it will turn pink, and you won't be able to polish it! Waxing monthly is the ticket........

Just IMWO.
Either way good luck and have fun![/QUOTE]

This is simply wrong. Urethane clear, applied properly with the correct film build prevents oxidation and provides uv protection. Waxing monthly will cause an excessive build up of wax which will cause damage to a paint job. If you have a personal need to wax monthly, then the car should be cleaned first with a grease and wax remover. At the very least, waxing monthly is a waste of time.

alordofchaos

So, if I thoroughly remove all the wax from my paint - which I think is a single-stage - urethane clear would be a good thing to put on?

Thanks!

Relaxed90

Thank you!!!

Clear the car if you're using basecoat for a bc/cc job! Marc, you've seen my car's paint, and that's a cheap paintjob with hardly any post paint buffing!

As far as your question Chaos, if it's a single stage job, I would not apply clear coat to it. Good thing with single stage is if it gets damaged, it can be buffed out to pretty much new. Clearcoat jobs...if the clear is ruined(ie chipped, faded, etc), the car has to be re-cleared. That's the advantage with single stage paint, it's simple. The advantage of bc/cc paintjobs is that they will outlast any single stage paintjob.

For the record, single stage jobs and bc/cc jobs can both be made equality beautiful.

harrisonrick

To snub it...remove the badge panel, then drill out the bumper shocks, prepare to be sprayed with shock oil (WARNING MESSY), push bumper in to desired location. simple.

I think the snubbed look is better suited for a darker coloured car too...the larger gap is very noticeable on my red car.

IMO after seeing the snubbed bumper vs. the euro...the euro is the closest to a turbo look an NA can get without using something like a Fiberwerks or GT Racing bumper cover replacement.

That's why I bought one. Stay tuned for my euro bumper update thread...

Burma Shave

No where near that simple. While you could (in theory) clear over your existing paint, chances are slim that you could prep it properly without breaking through somewhere. Better to repaint it completely.

Burma Shave

Obviously, clear is required when using b/c. The downside to using singlestage is that it is harder to repair successfully. Lets say you have quarter panel damage that requires refinishing...on our cars there is no good place to stop the repair on the rear of the car so you are forced to blend or refinish all the way around the other side. There are few painters still alive that can successfully melt a singlestage blend edge. Clear however, is a piece of cake. In addition, single stage will fade (especially red) making color matching more difficult. With bc/cc I can blend color in the middle of a panel, w/ ss you cannot...you have to panel paint. If you have clear peeling or chipping excessively it has to be reifnished, so would ss in the same situation so I don't see an advantage here. All that being said, the best shine on a solid color is achieved by using ss, and then putting clear on top of that. Cost is a detterent though.

Marcquito

Guys,

For not checking this thread in 12 hours, I'm impressed on what advice has been handed to me. Paint is something I have NO experience with, so I'm listening to all of you and taking notes. So far, I think a clear coat might be for me. I can see the advantages and disadvantages, but the advantages for outweigh the bad. I plan on actually taking care of it, so the sun will not be a problem.

Thanks, Harrisonrick for your response to the snub-nose mod. I'm definitely doing it since euro bumpers are hard to come by.

::update::

I continued sanding (I took pictures, but left the camera behind and forgot to upload shots) and I have 3/4 of the car complete. I removed the taillights and found that the PO caulked the tail lights to the body to prevent leaking. I see no gasket on the tail light assembly. I took some detailed shots of the 'problem', but for the most part I scraped most of the rubbery glue off and sanded away. I'll see if the tail lights need any gasket or maybe I need a new set all together.

Mark, thanks for you offering to help with the reflector delete. I'm definitely thinking about doing it. Only problem, I have never seen a car with this mod done! Any pics? Also, I want to weld shut the antenna hole and put a 968 antenna atop the car. Do you feel like welding for me? Ha!

Thanks a lot guys, I will update with pictures after this weekend when I get the camera back.

500

The tailights are normally sealed to the body with a black, rubbery sealing cord. Someone may know the name of a commercially available substitute. I ended up ordering it from the dealer and got this huge roll (I can also mail you some when the time comes, let me know). It is relatively easy to clean out. I painted right to the edges of the sheet metal.

If you don't put the sealing cord on, you may have water getting behind the lenses.

FWIW I used base/clear for my car, very happy with it in all respects.

alordofchaos

Thanks, guys!

I wasn't planning on clearcoating, unless it were simple and foolproof I'm hoping my current single stage will last (it's in good shape) until I have time/money to redo it right

Marquito, sorry for the hijack
Thread hijack over

Marcquito

So that's factory? Whoa. I would have guessed that was someone's brilliant idea! How strange... it sort of reminds me of how the rear seats in a 928 are just glued there. The reason why I wonder is because it seems over time the black sealant started 'oozing' from between the body and the tail lights. This may happen due to age, I suppose, but I guess that is just one more thing about maintaining one of these cars.

amjf088, I'll take you up on that when it's time to re-seal the lenses. Thanks!

harrisonrick

I havn't seen many 944s that DON'T have that black stuff "oozing" from the tailights. I think its an age thing.

Marc....I started my euro bumper mod thread...check it out.

DarylJ

3m Strip Caulk. http://www.levineautoparts.com/3m08578.html

GTSilver944

Yeah, I used 3M window sealer and it works well/looks exactly like the original stuff.

Marcquito

Cool thread. Wanna send me the euro bumper?

Marcquito

Guys, do any of you have any "Body Work" links or anything you are willing to shae with me? Searching (Rennlist and Google) I have only found limited help. Ultimately, I'm trying to find the best body filler for all of my dents & dings.

Also I would like to read the advice of others: best filling method, best sanding method, which grit to end with, which paint supplier to purchase from, blah blah... etc, etc.

I'm continuing work today/tonight. More pics later when I'm finished.

Also, does anyone make a front lip for the n/a bumper? Just wondering.

Thanks!