re-painting engine bay for b series swap help....

We may earn a small commission from affiliate links and paid advertisements. Terms

98civicproject

98civicproject

New Member
i have searched the forums and couldnt find any info. can some one point me in the direction of repainting/refinishing my engine bay. my motor is almost done and my bay is horrid nasty. i already have a spray gun and compressor but what kind or paint do i use for this. do i use 320 to sand it down or is it easier just to paint over the old coat. some one give me a list of what i need and how to do this thx. im keeping the engine bay black btw
 
as long as the paint isn't chipping or rusted, i'd just get some kork cleaner and see if you can borrow a pressure washer from someone. don't bother repainting it if you're gonna keep it the same color. a nice good wash will make you more than happy.
 
xcthc said:
as long as the paint isn't chipping or rusted, i'd just get some kork cleaner and see if you can borrow a pressure washer from someone. don't bother repainting it if you're gonna keep it the same color. a nice good wash will make you more than happy.
Click to expand...

:werd:

Spray it down with a de-greaser and pressure wash it first, then see if you still think it's necessary to paint it...you'll probably find that it's not really necessary...
 
Clean it up good, let it dry up and then just spray over. Ive done this twice, its worth the one gallon of paint that you won't even finish. Plus everything looks fresh.
 
I agree, you should just try to clean it up and see if it is worth it.. it is a pain to paint the engine bay correctly, and can be horrid if you don't. if you don't scuff or sand it the paint will not stick no matter how clean it is..it may for a few months but thats about it.... sherwin williams isn't the "cheap stuff" it is just another brand.. they even have thier own cheaper line... You can try to use PPG's Omni line or DuPonts Nason line.. which are both quite a bit cheaper then sherwin williams... but you get what you pay for.. as for sanding, 320 and a red scotchbrite pad will be good to start with.. you might want to wet sand with 400 or 600 grit where you will really be able to see such as shock towers.. or you might be able to see scratches from the prep work. i recomend that you etch prime any bare metal and spray a coat of wet on wet sealer before you base coat..
 
Its been...

well over 8-9 years since I last painted anything, but here are some tips from when I painted my engine bay.

I used about 2 gallons of Paint prep/alcohol based cleaner to get all the years of Oil, silicone spray, and I believe the original owner added Simonize to the paint...which turned to yellow. After the cleaning, my engine bay looked brand new, but since I was chainging the color, I repainted anyway.

Use red scotchbrite like someone mentioned before. Sanding in an area like an engine bay is very tought considering all the contours that are in and about that area. The red scotchbrite will form to whatever surface you are trying to scuff. its better to have a good scuff, than a mediocre sanded surface. Add spot primer to any bare exposed metal. Dont primer the whole engine bay, unless you want to resand the engine bay again. People may disagree about not primering the entire bay, but most cars never had the engine bay refinished before. The factory paint makes a good bond surface as it has already been prepped properly at the factory. Use 320 if you like, but nothing lower. Anything lower will reveal sanding marks. 320 and red scotchbrite will leave sanding marks as well, if you dont use a sealer. Paint sealer should be applied before base coat. Flash times will vary between different sealers.

Apply base coat, then clear the crap outta it. I too painted my engine bay black because at the time, I did not know what color I wanted to paint the car. A black engine bay makes it look deep and less cluttered. Add more cleared to more exposed areas like the radiator support (upper tie bar area), shock towers and fender rails. They will be the areas that are most viewed, so a high gloss finish there will show off more. Lower firewall areas, lower frame rails will be hidden by the engine and transmission.

Feel free to critique anthing I have written here. Again, its been quite a few years since I even held a paint gun, and Ive had a few beers before I wrote this. :p

HTH

- J

For the last time, this was about 8-9 years ago...so no talk about why I didnt do a wire tuck!
 

Attachments

  • IMG_0001.jpg
    IMG_0001.jpg
    151.1 KB · Views: 2,230
  • IMG_0003.jpg
    IMG_0003.jpg
    118.2 KB · Views: 605
  • IMG_0004.jpg
    IMG_0004.jpg
    139.6 KB · Views: 702
  • IMG_0005.jpg
    IMG_0005.jpg
    173.7 KB · Views: 842
  • IMG_0006.jpg
    IMG_0006.jpg
    169 KB · Views: 657
  • IMG_0007.jpg
    IMG_0007.jpg
    157.4 KB · Views: 609
  • IMG_0011.jpg
    IMG_0011.jpg
    161.3 KB · Views: 699
  • IMG_0034.jpg
    IMG_0034.jpg
    92.9 KB · Views: 503
  • IMG_0035.jpg
    IMG_0035.jpg
    131.2 KB · Views: 576
  • IMG_0053.jpg
    IMG_0053.jpg
    127.4 KB · Views: 3,219
well...

Im new here and felt like contributing. Plus, it was nice to go over the pics of my first car. I miss that thing....
 
never paint anything without sanding it! 320 straight colors! I would personally 400 and wet sand 600 any metallic colors!
 
sanding engine bays suck period! tape off hoses and use gental stream of a garden hose! if that is to much work for you revillisions your just anther hacker of car!
 
H2hatch2 said:
sanding engine bays suck period! tape off hoses and use gental stream of a garden hose! if that is to much work for you revillisions your just anther hacker of car!
Click to expand...

Hacker? Thats fine. I guess everyones an expert online...

Is isnt the fact that I had to run water for wet sanding...its the sanding with sandpaper in general that isnt ideal.

In a perfect world, I would have wetsanded the engine bay with 400 grit, but in actuality, the sanding surface came out better and faster with a red scotchbrite pad. You wil NEVER be able to sand every inch of the engine bay with sandpaper. If you have, show me proof.

I still stand behind scuff pads, then a nice sealer before base coat. I also applied my sealer with a 1.3 needle in my paint gun. Made for a much smoother surface for the base.
 
1.3 has nothing to do with the way it lays! and yes I agree with the pad just after you wet sand, better, smoother quaility. 1.3 is the fluid it can put out! as with 1.4 can do same smoothness if you know had to adjust pressure and volume! Its all about atomazation not about amount of volume!
 
thats right....

It has to do with volume. Less volume, more coats, with the right pressure will equal a smother surface coat.

You realize most people apply sealer with a primer gun. Are you saying with the right volume, you could lay on a base coat with a primer gun?

Whos a real hacker now?

Bottom line, you sound like you know something about painting. But realize this, everyone has different painting techniques which some will try and fail, then deem it as a bad method, while others have great success using the exact same style.

I did from the very beginning, state that I have not painted anything in close to ten years.

What I found funny is...this post was created because someone wanted tips on painting an engine bay. I responded and you only posted to criticize me. Put your money where your mouth is and post some pics of your engine bays.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top