prepping plastic?

[AnthonyF]

I am wanting to professionaly paint my interior parts. I was thinking of sanding it, primer, and then single stage paint, and clear over it. Would that work? Or is there a special way to prep plastic? I'm not doing the stupid spray paint crap. Appreciate it.


-Ant.

[i4_garage]

Factory plastic have to be baked to make the chemicals to evaporate then it is ready to be prep and paint....

[Bishop]

umm single stage is basically base coat (your color coat) and clear coat combined. dont know why you would want to clear of that.

[AnthonyF]

they have to be baked? any chance I can clean with chemicals? with umm...I think it is wax remover. we have it at the shop. any chance I can do that instead of baking? And if I don't have a paint booth to bake it in. Can I just stick it in the oven for a little while? and at what temp? THANKS!

[i4_garage]

i usually use a heat light to bake them....or a heat gun....but heat gun can damage them if u are not careful....but i have painted plastic before...and i first clean them , then wet sand, and use wax remover ....and paint then clear them....works fine for me....but for longitivity.....i recommend baking the chemicals off first

[AnthonyF]

does Home Depot sell these bulbs? also appreciate the help!

[sebastianHoff]

heat gun will get most of the crap out. be sure to use plastic specific paint, cause the plastic is gonna keep sweating and it will flex too.

[i4_garage]

yup wat he said......and u can also use a first coat of BullDog to make it stick.....u can get bulldog form any body suppliers or i have some......

[AnthonyF]

ok...tell me if this will work...

1.clean mirror with wax remover
2.bake under infa. light
3.prime
4.paint with single stage base coat
5.clear over

no dice or dice? this will be done with a paint gun not spray paint.

[i4_garage]

after baking u should re wax it again.....just to get a cleaner surface....

[Cool Cat Racing]

I use SEM Sand Free to prep plastic. I also bake them, gone both ways and it definately lasts longer. Don't sand too much because then your back into the release agents and you have to start over, not to mention you lose some of the texture. If your using true automotive paint, which is what I recommend, it really needs to be primed. Just be sure to use a flex agent in the paint or it will start to crack in the summer. The interior on one of my cars is almost 3 years old now with next to no chips or flakes. If you spend enough time in prepping it the finish will last as long as any other painted parts.
Ryan

[lowjack]

I am wanting to professionaly paint my interior parts. I was thinking of sanding it, primer, and then single stage paint, and clear over it. Would that work? Or is there a special way to prep plastic? I'm not doing the stupid spray paint crap. Appreciate it.


-Ant.

That is how my parts are done. I have painted using base clears from the cans with all sorts of primers and find that they will either chip or start peeling after time. The method below takes time but the outcome is excellent. Hope this helps.

I sand them to 320 grit. (80,120,180,easy 320)
Use paint grade cleaner to get rid of oil etc.
Mix Rubber-Seal Primer with Rubber-Seal Flex Agent and reducer. Spray parts.
Wet sand with 600 and 800 grit. (Primer again if needed, but this stuff is thick.)
Use paint grade cleaner to get rid of oil etc again.
Spray PPG base coat 3 times over.
Spray PPG clear coat 3-4 times over. (The more clear you use the darker the color will become)

Let it dry then buff if needed.

Things to remember. gettign rid of oils and fingerprints is very important, if keeps fisheyes from occuring.

Make sure that the primer/base are dry before shooting clear. If they are not then the paint could seperate from the primer and you will have a orange peel type of problem. And lastly, most shop grade paints require you to shoot the clear within 24 hours of shooting the base.

Using heat lamps or other heaters are fine as long as you check on it often and turn it often.