Car Paint

Starting a car painting business is like starting any other kind of business: In order to do the job right, you need the right discount tools and materials. The following painting tools and materials are essential to starting a car painting business: a garage or similar enclosure, a water hose and cleaning agents, sand paper, a putty knife and body putty, sheet plastic, paint primer, black enamel paint, urethane base paint, clear coat paint, a full face piece spray paint respirator and a high speed paint sprayer.

Painting vehicles indoors is important for three reasons: it keeps insects, dust and other windblown materials from getting stuck in the paint; a windless space insures that the spayed paint will distribute evenly; and it prevents sudden rain from ruining a drying paint job. After you find a good indoor space for painting, make sure that the area is well ventilated to prevent the build up of toxic paint fumes. The area’s temperature should be at least 55 degrees F for the best paint job results.

Once your painting area has the proper ventilation and temperature control, you’ll begin the painting process by using soap, wax stripper and degreaser to insure that a vehicle’s body surface is free of all residues. Then you’ll use a hose to wash away the cleaning agents. After the vehicle dries, sandpaper is used to remove rust spots and scratches from the body surface. Rusty areas that can’t be smoothed away are filled with body putty that is sanded smooth after it dries.

Now you’re ready to use the paint sprayer, but first make sure that you cover the vehicle’s windows, tires, bumpers, etc. with sheet plastic to protect them from the primer and paints. Having made the necessary preparations for the actual painting of the vehicle, it’s time to put on your spray paint respirator, load the paint sprayer with paint primer and spray the primer across the entire surface of the vehicle.

After the primer dries and you’ve washed the sprayer, black enamel paint is applied to the primer coat to further strengthen it against rust. Before the urethane paint is applied, the enamel coat must be completely sanded away along with any uneven areas in the primer coat. After the first coat of urethane paint dries, a second coat is applied. After the second coat dries and the sprayer is washed, a total of three coats of clear coat paint are applied to protect the urethane paint and give it a resilient sheen. If you plan on painting a large volume of cars on a consistent basis, you might consider purchasing a spray gun washer to bring more efficiency to the painting process.

The car painting tools and materials mentioned in this article are basic to starting your own car painting business. To increase your range of services, you can purchase special stencils, decals and small paintbrushes to add aesthetic flair to basic paint jobs. These and other car painting tools and materials can be found online or at your local hardware supplier.

By: Mike Barone

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