click above image for a gallery showing the paint job's progression
I'm a big fan of the flat-black rat rod scene. A 1930s-era Ford with minimal aesthetic improvements contrasted with a beautifully-tuned flathead is my kind of thing. That said, however, there are some collector cars that truly need that glossy sheen to look their best. And as part owner of a 1965 Mustang in dire need of paint, I know how much it can add to the cost of a restoration.
The guys at Jalopy Journal also know about pricey paint, which is why they too were impressed by this guys' ability to paint his 1966 Corvair in his driveway for $50. The ingredients include two quarts of Rustoleum, mineral spirts, and instead of an expensive spray system, foam rollers.
Yup. Dude painted his Corvair with paint rollers. In his driveway. He said at first he worried about the bugs fatally stuck in each of the seven coats, but sanding took 'em right out. Step-by-step instructions encourage others to do the same.
The final product looks good in pictures, and an eight-month update from the owner shows the paint smooth and shiny even without the first coat of wax.
If anyone tries their own DIY paint job, let me know how it works out. The Mustang's red paint gets closer to pink and the bank account closer to red every day. You can check out some shots of the paint job's progression in our gallery below, or click the Read link to see the whole thing with captions.
[Source: rickwrench.com via The Jalopy Journal]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Avinash machado @ Jul 3rd 2007 1:58PM
Wonder what Nader would think about this?
Jhon @ Jul 4th 2007 2:37AM
see http://hotshadow.com/Need_a_paint_job_$50_will_do_it.aspx
MCS05 @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:03PM
My uncle painted the roof of his '64 white Corvette with a spray bomb from the auto parts store, it came out great. I suppose if you are patient enough you could pull off about anything.
Jay Evans @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:08PM
"but it turns out they pretty much vanish during wet sanding."
I don't know about others but that's a lot different than "took 'em right out."
bmoredlj @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:08PM
The grilleless face of the corvair always unnerved me...like staring into the eyes of an automotive axylotol.
Chris D @ Jul 4th 2007 3:39PM
Hmm...a fellow biologist? Btw, that's axolotl ;) That connection is somewhat funny though, but I DEFINITELY see it now that you mention it.
Mike @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:09PM
I know someone who did this when i painted cars, it actually looked decent. I know of another guy who supposedly did it as well but I never saw his ride. If you were just looking to get rid of an old junker and wanted to get every last penny out of it I think this would work well.
F451 @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:31PM
If the guy is happy, so be it. It is much better than simply letting the paint oxidize into oblivion and damaging the car's metal. At least he gave it a go.
geo.stewart @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:38PM
use some Westley's rubbing compound to restore color in oxidized paint jobs...
Naysayer @ Jul 3rd 2007 2:53PM
Once I finish dropping in a small block Chevy in my MGB(!!), I will be doing the same thing with the paintjob. My car is beyond a resto-rod status; it's just going to be the "fast-fun" car I wanted it to be. If the paintjob (color not finalized yet) turns out nice, good. If not, I'm only out a few bills. Either way, I'm still gonna drive the thing.
felipe @ Jul 3rd 2007 3:05PM
your to submit pics when complete
AUTOBLOG will posts right guys!?!
Napalmgod @ Jul 4th 2007 11:42PM
HERETIC!!!!
Thou has desecrated the Temple of Abingdon!
Steve C @ Jul 3rd 2007 3:01PM
The best paint guy I know of is Bill DeCarr, who charges a small fortune to do a paint job for those who want to win concours or street rod shows.
His theory has always been it doesn't matter how you get the paint on the car -- brush, sprayer, roller, doesn't matter -- so long as you get enough paint on it to start with.
In his case, that's when he spends maybe 100 hours wet sanding with progressively finer grit sandpaper until he winds up with paper that's about the same grit as a baby diaper.
So the best paint job is probably something like 2% paint cost and 98% labor. If you do it yourself, it's almost free.
Don @ Jul 3rd 2007 3:14PM
Holy crap, that DOES look good.
Clarence @ Jul 3rd 2007 3:25PM
Old guy report. I think that new cars manufactured in the teen's and 20's were brush painted and then sanded. In the 70's I remember advertisements in the British Autocar for brush paint touch up and repair kits. I have an 89 Jeep Cherokee beater that needs some help in the paint department. I had thought of doing it this way. Now I know I am going to do it.
John P. @ Jul 3rd 2007 4:09PM
NICE! the driveway paintjob alive and well. I remember painting my brothers old datsun 510 in the driveway and having it come out great. I used a Binks Spray Gun instead of a roller though.
That corvair looks really nice. Interesting to see how the rustoleum holds up over time.
jyunderwood @ Jul 3rd 2007 4:14PM
I painted my 65 Mustang in the driveway and it turned out alright. I just used the cheapest paint that was still the original color and it cost about $120. I used an air compressor with a moisture filter on it and worked in small stages. It took about 4 coats.
You can see the project from start to near finish here:
http://homepage.mac.com/jyunderwood/mustang/
Justin @ Jul 6th 2007 10:47AM
nice car. hope the blue wheels are just a step torwards some torq thrusts and not the final choice. paint look nice too.
GP @ Jul 6th 2007 8:46AM
Wow! Your mustang came out great.
Jaymez @ Jul 3rd 2007 4:14PM
I've done the spray can trick, as well. My cousin had an 80s Mercury Marquis (Not Grand) that he used to use as a winter crasher. About ten years ago he asked me to fix some rust holes in the doglegs so it would pass inspection. After some welding, a little bit of body filler, and some semi-gloss Krylon black, you couldn't tell any work had been done. It was a perfect match and was still unidentifiable 10 years later when he sold it.