NineMeister

Marc has mixed the colour base coat, so not long to wait now, Graham!

JPP

O.k., now I'm paying attention. Here we go, Graham ....

grahampeterm

And ........ I'm waiting! As are, I suspect, a few peeps on RL ! Have I made the right choice????? Should we have gone lighter ..........Fountain........Azzuro.......Wakeboard (find that one if you can!) or 'std' Cobalt............
Graham

alpinadvl

Here's some support for you :

I want to see a cobalt blue speedster !


(ps: you can always go thru the whole paint-stripping process again at a later time if you get bored ! )

ps: great job by all involved. certainly is top notch workmanship ! (keep those pictures coming!)

Barty964rst

Thanks Colin, was a great article from memory. The fact I remember it proves that statement! look forward to pics and thanks.

brucec59

That car could be any color and it will be absolutely stunning, I'm sure.

NineMeister

Nearly there boys!

To get the shell ready to colour paint the underside and engine bay the lads have flatted off the surfaces to be painted with scotchbrite, cleaned off the residue and are now applying soft edge masking (foam tape) to the wheel arch lips to make it easier to blend in the top coat when the outer panels are painted. Once the soft edge is on, the rest of the car is masked and bagged to keep off overspray.

The lads are having lunch whilst some other parts are baked in the booth, then the shell will be rolled in and colour painted this afternoon. You can see a sneak preview of the Cobalt on the 964 rear bumper section test piece which is in the foreground of one of the shots.

Anyone spot the two RHD yellow 993RS's in the background?

Nollie

OH WOW that is going to be stunning!

NineMeister

It's Cobalt Blue!!!!

Sneak preview of the waterbased basecoat mid-application from outside the booth; another couple of coats to ensure full coverage, air dry & then hit it with two coats of clear lacquer. It's only when the lacquer is applied that the metallic in the base colour will start to come alive.

grahampeterm

Guess where I gotta go tomorrow!!!

JPP

So, the does the foam tap create a 'rolled' edge situation which allows the paint to fog/blend at the edges instead of creating a ridge?

NineMeister

The foam soaks up the paint and naturally feathers out the paint edge over a narrow band; you usually use it in door gaps so that you can paint straight across the quarter panel and door without having to paint the door shut and door frame.

H.H.Chinn

Excellent work!!! The Cobalt blue is absolutely stunning! How many coats of clear are you planning to apply in the end? I've seen up to five on a C coupe with incredible depth in the color.

NineMeister

Oh yes, it's definitely blue .....

All laquered, solvents have flashed off (evaporated) so it's ready to bake. That's Marc in the paint suit and his oldest son Reece who's come in to work with his dad today to stave off the boredom of school half term.

NineMeister

There are many different types of clear lacquer, the latest specification from Lechler is a high solids version which gives full coverage with two coats, a tack coat to seal the surface and a wetter finish coat which flows out to form a level finish. On outer panels we would leave the second coat of lacquer wet for as long as possible before baking to give the paint a chance to level. Obviously if you can get full coverage in two coats you are going to use a lot less solvents in the painting process, so the later thicker paints have less impact on the environment.

That said, on the outer panels I suspect that Marc may lacquer it in two coats of high solid as normal, then dry flat the whole car and hit it with a third coat to achieve the additional show quality paint depth that you mention.