joe80055

Dude, you seen pictures of my engine bay with teh covers on... that's walmart paint for ya

VoLLy

iTrader: (8)

Can you post some pics?

02TLSfan

I will very soon, been very distracted lately...women...

orgnlprankster7

i know what thats like

02TLSfan

I posted a crapload of pics in this thread I started.
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=155924

VoLLy

iTrader: (8)

Wow it looks really nice. You followed ALL of his instructions? or did you do something else of your own to make it look that good?

02TLSfan

Thanks, I didn't follow them to the letter, I couldn't find 2500 grit sandpaper. I used Duplicolor Metalcast, the primer allows for the pieces to be sanded after each coat, but the base coat does not. I put on 3 coats of primer, sanding with 1500 grit each time. The base coat says to apply 3 coats, one every 10 minutes, an hour to dry and 7 days to cure for more coats, so I sanded it once with 2000 grit. There is no way I have the time or the patience to wait 7 days between coats, it may not be necessay but I wasn't taking any chances.

The dark area was Metalcast as well, didn't turn out quite the way I thought it would, but I like it. The cap was like a dark chrome, like the badging on the Lexus Platinum editions if you've seen one. That's what I was going for.

The silver lettering was going to be blue but I forgot to paint it before I ran out of the blue, so I left it the primer color, it comes pretty close to matching the car and makes it stand out more.

fsttyms1

You do NOT need to sand between every coat unless you get imperfections (IE.. Runs or dust/dirt) that needs to be removed. Also sanding between coats isnt recommended if your using a enamel finish. The only sanding you need to do is the final primer coat and the final paint/clear coat<-- (if using a 2 stage paint). Also the desired effect can be accomplished with 1500 and 2000 grit as well but if planning on attempting this you will need to buff afterwards with any grit you use

02TLSfan

There were a few imperfections so I had to sand between coats, it was my first try painting anything but a house.

fsttyms1

Even then i still wouldnt. You dont get a good uniform base for the next layer. I would be more inclined to wait till like the 3rd coat of paint. then wetsand the entire piece so that its all uniform, then 1 final coat of color then clear it.

02TLSfan

The Metalcast made no mention of a clear coat, I assumed there was no need for one. Next time I paint something I'll keep that in mind.

fsttyms1

With that there is no need to clear, as with all enamel paints. You would ONLY clear coat it if it mentioned to clear it or if it was a 2 stage paint (basecoat clear coat system)

02TLSfan

That's what I thought you had said before somewhere in this thread. At least I know I didn't forget something. I tried to follow any advice you had given, guess I missed the sanding part.

laxplyr52

Since metalcast is almost like a candyapple did you use a duplicolor white primer?

fsttyms1

I used the gray primer that they recommended when i used it

laxplyr52

pissed off!!! yea so I decided to try the duplicolor metalcast on my battery box before I did the engine cover to make sure i liked it and get the technique down and Im glad I only did the battery box. Does anyone know why the paint would dry with a white haze to it? I cleeaned, sanded, used adhesion promoter and then a primer and then 3 coats of color, everything worked fine but the last coat of color dried with a white haze, what a waste of time.

TLsMD

anyone in the md/dc do this for a price?
I would rather pay someone lol.....just so i dont fuck up...anyone ?....

fsttyms1

Sounds like you applied it too dry

horsepowercrzy18

ok so i just painted my engine cover silver. i used three coats of silver and one coat clear coat. i forgot to use primer. will the paint melt or chip off since i didnt use primer?

burnerjunky

i already got my duplicolor paint with my super secret cool colors but im wondering if i can put like 20 clear coat layers on it to make it super super glossy, or if it will just look like crap?

fsttyms1

More doesnt mean better. You want it to look super glossy afterwards dont apply it to wet or to dry,apply it just right and wet sand and polish when dry

nevets31

Hi HawaiiTL,

I am new to this forum and I would like to paint the engine cover as you have done in the future. What brands of paint did you use? Where did you buy them from? Were they all spray cans?? Will the paint fade over time when the engine is hot??

Thx for the help!

bluedevil1550

I did mine a couple weeks ago, and I used the Krylon Fusion paint which is designed for plastic. I used it for my other car and it held up for the 3 years that I had the car.

nevets31

What would be a great looking color for a SSM 04 TL? Maybe blue or red??

nevets31

What would be a great looking color for a SSM 04 TL? Maybe blue or red ??

Blaze.45

Maybe you can post it a third time in 2 mins... :p


Paint it SSM.

nevets31

Does Krylon come in SSM color? Should I then just use Silver??

Blaze.45

Krylon has silver, but not SSM.

To get the exact color match, try the "Tower Paints" internet store like previously suggested in this thread. They can mix up a custom batch of SSM in a spray can for you.

-Chris

fsttyms1

Use the above suggestion and order your stock color in a spray can or pick up your local phone book and look for your local Auto PAINTS (not parts) store and head down to one of them. Many will put paint in spray cans for you.

Or get the material (nothing more than a pint is needed) from the paint store and use one of these. They can be found at most paint stores and Home Depots etc...

2000tlrjm

Nice, I especially like the red stripes on the VTEC badge. Looks very JDM-like.

VoLLy

iTrader: (8)

2000tlrjm

Okay, well here's my engine cover painting project. Sorry I didn't start with the sanding/scouring process, I didn't think about photos until I got done with the first primer coat.

I used 2000 grit sandpaper, but you can use basically any grit sandpaper. It is just plastic though, so nothing incredibly rough is necessary. And no, sanding between each coat is not necessary. In fact, if you do sand after every coat, unless you apply close to 10 coats, the paint will begin to fade, not chip, after a few cleanings. **Please remember that when you clean your engine bay with degreaser after this, not to spray and rub the painted parts!** Degreaser is highly effective cleaner and will therefore slowly eat away at the paint. If you want to clean the painted areas, use a hard-surface cleaner (such as Windex) or just a rag to wipe it off and then polish (I personally use Honda's Spray Cleaner and Polish, which is easily found at your local Honda/Acura dealership; costs around $5.00 - $8.00) afterwards.

Here's a before photo.



I cleaned each and every individual par under the hood that had any dirt/grease/grime on it. I then removed the bottom portion of the engine cover and the battery cover. I'm doing this in small steps, to make sure everything gets done right, the first time.





Here's a pic of after I applied the 1st coat of Primer. I do plan on sanding after this dries, but only because there's a couple of corners and edges with a few overspray areas. Otherwise, I would just apply a 2nd coat of Primer and continue. I used Rustoleum's Professional Primer, which I found at Home Depot for $3.79 plus tax.

It's now drying time. More posts to come later today.

2000tlrjm

Where the hell did you find those headlights? I have got to get them. I've looked everywhere, including ebay for projector/jdm headlights for my girl, but I've found nothing but factory sets. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks Volly, for bad-ass pic!

VoLLy

iTrader: (8)

Haha, of course you cant find them anywhere, they are custom retrofitted TSX projectors with MDX bezels. I recently sold this set of headlights, im going with a different setup.

1osunut

Its not that expensive to just have a body shop paint it for you. Take it two a shop that does alot of Honda or Acura's (maybe the dealership bodyshop). They will have the paint you need already mixed from other jobs. Im sure you can get it painted and cleared professionally for about $60. I happen to work at a dealership so my buddy painted mine (for lunch) but he said it was nothing to shoot it and clear it. Having the cover cleared and baked makes maintainance and clean up a breeze.

bigeshorte45

iTrader: (3)

i was just bought a can of Dupli-Color Engine Enamel thats "dyno heat tested 500 degrees" blah blah, if i paint my engine cover by just cleaning it out real well and not sanding anything, will it look alright??

bigeshorte45

iTrader: (3)

also, i don't have a clear coat or anything

bigeshorte45

iTrader: (3)

......somebody? i'm so bored right now i wanna go paint it unless i need to get the sandpaper primer and clear coat.... i just painted the battery cover and it looks pretty nice even though i just cleaned it and sprayed 3 coats

DAVERUBINO

I would rough it up a little if you want it to stick. I just used a steel wool pad that you can get at Home Depot or somewhere. NO SOAP PADS!!!

fsttyms1

You really need to scuff up the surface after washing it with dawn. Without sanding the paint has nothing to really bond with and will be alot more prone to flaking off.