Advice/Progress Thread, update on pg4, 5/26/10 Options

[captb]

Hey guys, if you have restoration experience i could really use your help.

The paint job and all the dents finally put me in the position to sell the 6g. problem was i couldnt find a car that can match the 6g's "feel" if you know what i mean. Since having a shop repair her is so expensive, i figured ill tackle restoring her on my own. After watching alot of youtube videos and reading how-to's on restoration, im confident enough to try it, but still have a few questions and would appreciate your opinions.

(1) money and quality wise would you recommend i do a maaco job or tackle painting on my own(either rent a booth or enclosed tent)?

(2) are there any considerations/advice for using bondo or other recommended products on non-metal surfaces such as the bumper and sideskirts? will the flexibility of the bumper be a problem?

(3) Im pretty much gonna sand/bondo the entire car and am considering a bodykit. If i were to get a cheap one off ebay, will getting the thing to fit be the same as sanding and bondoing the thing, or will i need to do some fiberglass work? Id love the gt-four look, have any recommendations on where to get bodykits for cheap?

(4) I am also having problems with rust below both doors. Rust cant be seen from the outside, but looking from the inside, it is definitely a problem. Would u recommend i restore it myself by cutting and welding or just replace the door entirely?

(5) When i do paint it, would you recommend i remove different parts; hood, trunk, doors? also, would it be worth my while to remove things like the lining and windshields? id figure sanding and bondoing would be nicer with the linings removed.

(6) Any videos and/or websites would you recommend i check out before i start. most of the videos i watched seemed to be from the 80's. any videos with more modern techniques? or has restoration been pretty much ageless.

This is alot of info and questions but i would appreciate any input on 1, 2, or all of my questions.

Thanks,
-Joel

This post has been edited by captb: May 28, 2010 - 10:13 PM

[CastrolCelica]

PS: If you do decide to paint it yourself, please don't be an irresponsible twat and do what youtubers do and paint the car outside.. with the bugs.. IN GRASS.. and letting all the fumes escape into the atmosphere. There's a guy specifically who painted his car orange on youtube this way, and it ticked me off to no end. I hope the guy had bugs stuck under his clear lol. What sickened me was that he wore a mask to protect himself, but let the fumes drift off across the street to poison the lungs of people having nothing to do with this.

As said before, make sure your ground is wet to prevent paint particles from floating in the air for what seems like ever. I personally wouldn't recommend doing it yourself. I CERTAINLY wouldn't recommend looking at youtube for "lessons" as most people don't even start in the correct first spot, have the spray gun the right distance from the car, or paint in the correct non-stop motion that they're supposed to.

Besides, after paying for the paint, the equipment, the tent..ect.. you're looking at about what it would be to just have Maaco do it for you. Do the prep, take off your trim and learn to use bondo and you'll save money, have a great paint job, and won't ever have to lift your finger on the paint itself and worry that you do a cruddy job.

This post has been edited by CastrolCelica: Oct 23, 2009 - 12:36 AM