Got the frame back... Paint Question

[Whiplash]

I got my frame back this past weekend from the stripper. It came out great. They sprayed it with DP90 Epoxy primer inside and out and it really looks good. On the way home I stopped at a local body shop to see if they could squirt it with paint to finish it off.

Here's the question. The shop wanted $700 to paint the frame. The frame is fresh clean primer but they said there was 10-12 hours of sanding required before they could paint it. I asked if the sanding was to give it a nice finish or if it was required for proper adhesion. They said the paint wouldn't stick to the primer unless it was sanded.

OK, I can believe that the primer needs to be sanded. It didn't come immediately to mind but it does make some sense. My question is whether it's actually true or not. If so, how much sanding is required to get the paint to stick correctly? What grit paper and how do you know when you've sanded enough. Once it's sanded is spray paint a sound enough finish.

Alternative 2 - Leave it alone and don't paint it. The finish looks great in just the primer. It's the right color and has a really nice coverage. Can I just leave it as is and put the car back together? The negative is that it's not UV protected but how much UV is the frame actually exposed to? How long will it look good if I just leave it alone?

Maybe Paintdaddy can chime in or anyone else who has used DP90. I had already ruled out powder coating due to the lack of coverage inside the frame. It's too late to powder coat now that it's primed.

Thanks in advance. I'll post pictures once I free up some space on my web page. I'm maxed out right now.

Whiplash

 

[JohnZ]

I did my '57 frame with DP90 (flattened about 10%) ten years ago when I restored it, and it doesn't look any different now than it did then; no UV exposure unless it's parked upside-down.

 

[Whiplash]

I did my '57 frame with DP90 (flattened about 10%) ten years ago when I restored it, and it doesn't look any different now than it did then; no UV exposure unless it's parked upside-down.

John,

Thanks. I think I'm going to leave it as is and try to keep the wheels pointing down.

I'll probably get the suspension back on her this weekend now.

Whiplash

 

[rgtrough]

Hey Whiplash, in an earlier post you talked of alterations you had to do to your body dolly. Care to share with me. I'm pulling my body in the next couple of weeks. Thanks Bud

 

[Whiplash]

Hey Whiplash, in an earlier post you talked of alterations you had to do to your body dolly. Care to share with me. I'm pulling my body in the next couple of weeks. Thanks Bud

Bud,

I ended up cutting 3 inches off the length of the front section so it would clear the radiator cross member and fit in between the metal sections that bolted to the frame. Also the main square section didn't fit inside the rails the way I liked. The corner braces got in the way of setting the car down nicely I ended up removing the ones on the top and then stacking two rectangular pieces of plywood length wise down the side sections where the bolt holes line up for where the body mounts are. I would probably have put an extra piece of 2x4 in the spots where the body mounts are. Otherwise you end up with the body sitting kind of funny on the 2x4's on the side.

The other choice would have been to make the front section an inch or two longer so it would sit directly under the cross member section for the radiator.

One thing I did was make the height of the 4x4's about 8 inches taller than called for. I wanted the car a bit higher so I could get under the body. I probably would make them more like 10 inches higher if I did it again. By making it higher I am able to put the rolling chassis at a 90 degree angle to the body and push the body back over the top of the chassis. It allows me to keep the whole mess in one slot in the garage and still get the other 2 cars in the garage.

Also I put steel cables from under the dash (connected to the metal bars under the dash) to the rear hinges under the convertible top cover.

The one thing that bothered me was when I pulled the body the nylon straps put a lot of pressure on the back bottom section of the doors. It actually deflects the corners more than an inch in. I'll probably take the doors off when I put the body back on or put a piece of wood shimming behind the lower rear corner of the doors to keep them from bowing in.

Finally, the engine lift worked great for lifting but I found out that under load it actually lifted 3 inches less than when not loaded. We had a little trouble getting the chassis out from under the body because the distributor would not clear. The wheel dollies helped and we were able to jimmy the frame out but it was close. Just be ready to have a little wiggling to do.

Good luck.

Whiplash

 

[rgtrough]

Hey Whiplash, thanks for the info. I have lifted alot of odd shaped objects in my occupation and understand the effects of a single point hookup. I didn't like the looks of the sling the first time I saw it. I realy like the extra height idea. Besides being able to store the body over the chasis I need to make some repairs to the underside. Thanks for the info and support.
peace Bud