Topic: Painting apart vs partially assembled

[jtfx6552]

I tried searching as I'm sure there are threads on this topic, but because the words paint and assembled are so common, I got no useful results.

since these cars were painted with the doors and deck lid  on (and the rear valance hanging), is there any advantage to doing it that way?

What about front fenders, and hood, maybe on but "spaced" away from the unibody so everything is on the same orientation for matching?

[CharlesTurner]

If you're looking for all the paint to match perfectly, like putting the fenders on but spaced, you're probably getting into the over-restored area.  The fenders were originally painted hanging from the back rear, so pointed downward.  The hoods were painted with the front hooked and hanging.  If you ever look at original paint cars, you can actually see where small bits of trash were in the paint and the direction of the paint flow around. 

Most folks don't care about this kind of stuff, but since you're asking on a concours forum, worth mentioning.  So to answer your question about painting the car like it was originally has more to do with achieving the proper appearance.

[J_Speegle]

I tried searching as I'm sure there are threads on this topic, but because the words paint and assembled are so common, I got no useful results.

since these cars were painted with the doors and deck lid  on (and the rear valance hanging), is there any advantage to doing it that way?

Allot depends on what color your applying. Non metallic should be no problem nor have a differences that could be noticed. On metallic paint jobs the difference could be noticed by some but likely no more than if you painted the separate parts on different days.

The advantage of painting the unibody the way it was painted originally keeps you from having to go back over areas to try and make it look like items were painted on the car (repainting/touching up over bolts and sealers) and correct oversprays (like behind the rear valance) look original.

[jtfx6552]

Wow, two years and I still haven't painted the car...

I'm test fitting everything for about the 50th time and I think everything looks appropriate.

Going from memory, I can't remember seeing one restoration where the car was painted as they were originally. I spent some time pouring over posts here figuring there has to be at least pictures of one being done that way. That seems odd I haven't found one yet, especially with a group as dedicated to reproducing what was done at the factory as this group.

It's been so difficult for me to get everything the way I want, I'm really reluctant to take the doors off to paint. At least with them on, the rest of the line up is relatively easy. Plus, if I take them off, itsn't it hard to get the bolts in whatever side of the hinges were apart post paint without marking up something?

Same with the trunk hinges.

[carlite65]

the doors & trunk are installed prior to painting processes. as is the rear valance.

[jtfx6552]

Right, I'm aware, that's why I'm asking if anyone restoring them does it that way. I'm trying to find a thread somewhere that shows a restoration being done that way and get any reports of pitfalls.

[RocketScientist]

It depends on the skills of the person doing the painting. My car was painted with doors and other panels off and every panel came out a different shade and I am having to pay someone else to paint it again. So regardless how its done, the importance is painting all the parts at the same time so that paint consistency, gun settings and outside temperature is all the same. My car is white which shows that some people can get the simplest colors so wrong.

[J_Speegle]

Always run the risk of patterns, overspray and other paint patterns not making sense if a car is not painted like it was originally. Just my experience and I'm pretty sure some have gotten a system worked out after doing allot of cars. But of course all the ones that didn't accomplish this stand out in ones memory and at shows as well as in pictures

Hard to go back and fix many of the negative results of "trying" something different