fiberglass prep - gel coat or primer?

[56 Texas]

been shopping paint shops, one guy says he never puts primer on glass cars, just gel coat, works that smooth and paints it.. most I have spoken to prime, work it and then paint.. any opinions ??

 

[old-hot-rodder]

Primer or not to primer

You will hear a ton of different opinions on this subject. I will tell you that you need a 2 part type of sealer. I have been using featherfill for 20 years and it is still a good product on the earlier fiberglass cars. it is a polyester primer/surfacer. hope this helps.

 

[BarryK]

my '65 is in the paint shop now. My painter has 30+ years experience specializing in older Vettes and he never gelcoats. He puts on a sealer than primer coats.

 

[vette]

A polyester based primer is all you need if the body has a lot of work done to it. If the body is orig. glass and in real nice shape then you can use a urethane primer. Most people mistake polyester primers for gel coat. They are not gel coat. Feather Fill or Slick Sand are good polyester primers. I use one made by Fourseal. It is used on boats. Don't get all caught up in this gel coat thing. You do not need gel coat.