Painter Wants the Body On For Paint

[Papa]

I talked with my painter and he wants the body on the car for paint. I know there are opinions either way on this, but what I really want to know is how much of the interior should I complete before putting the body on for the "last" time and getting the car to the painter? It seems I should get the carpet in at a minimum. I plan to assemble the car (lights, wipers, windshield, etc.) and then take it all back apart, but are there any suggestions or advice from those that have had their cars painted with the body on?

Thanks,
Dave

[TheBabyBadger]

Make sure everything is installed and fit, then remove the items touching anything he will paint. it will be much better as you wont scratch the body trying to reinstall it. as far as trunk and interior... he will tape off what he needs to. My painter likes painting everything off concerning body panels. Jamming and painting leads to hard lines and such. I plan to get mine running and driving and complete my entire interior before disassembling for paint, but I'm going to paint the entire underside black single stage before I do ANYTHING to make painting easier down the road. Plus it will look clean, and it's durable. To each their own...

[edwardb]

I've had them painted both ways. Both off and on. For your specific question, I would not carpet before in either case. For painting body off, it's pretty much a no-brainer. Body work on the chassis with no carpet, body off for paint and chassis carpet, then finished body back on the finished chassis. If painting body on and waiting until after for the carpet, yes it's a little more work, but there's less chance of damage to the carpet. What I found is that the usual dust, etc. isn't that hard to clean up. It's the liquid and general sludge from color sanding that really makes a mess. Even with great care, it will seep into every body opening, around all the edges, etc. It stains and makes a mess. One small compromise you can make is to put the carpet on the outer and end footbox walls before the body is on and painted. Those are the hardest ones to reach with the body on. The rest really isn't that bad. The trunk is another subject if you're planning to put carpet there. Not too fun to carpet the trunk with the body on. But I would wait for the same reasons as already described.

Just a general comment about body on/body off. By far the most common is body off. The painter I've used has done a bunch both ways. For them it's kind of a mixed discussion. They feel like the body alignment is more consistent when not removed and put back on. Plus keeping the body on the chassis is kind of a built-in body buck and (according to the painter) more solid and easier to work on. But the trade off is major effort masking everything, including the bottom, to keep things clean. And to really do it right, the masking needs to be removed and replaced a couple of times during the process to keep things clean as it gets to the final color and clear. When I picked up #8674, painted body on, the painter said probably he would be going back to body off. He wasn't sure the extra work was worth it, and I tend to agree. I've not had an issue with the body getting back on in proper alignment.

[TheBabyBadger]

And there you have it.

[Papa]

Thank you guys. My painter's biggest concern is panel fit on the completed car. My biggest concern is keeping the cleanup to something manageable after the car is painted. I may be able to talk him into getting everything fit and then removing the body for paint.

Thanks,
Dave

[JRL16]

Mine was painted body off but he wanted it on the car for a lot of the sanding and polishing because it firms it up so much better for the work. I had a lot of interior work finished so I made sure to supply a big piece of visqueen to put over the chassis before he reinstalled the body. Kept it pretty clean but you just can't keep all the dust and mess from wet sanding out. I found the armor all cleaning wipes to work very well on the wet sanding residue.

[j.miller]

Well, we all know where I stand...... I'll just say, If he's more comfortable with it on, do it on. Don't do your carpet and take your seats out.....See, the thing is. If the panels fit before you take them off,,,,they'll fit when you put them back on. It's a lot of extra work masking and chancing a breech then it is to do them off the chassis. When I get a brand that you "can't" take off the chassis it's a grand more just for the hassle of masking and clean-up....but that's me...da Bat

[TPM3]

My painter did the stripes first with the body one so they would line up. Then took the body off for the main body. Body on included body, hood, and trunk lid.

[Jeff Kleiner]

Miller beat me to it but we agree.
I always do them body off. If you can adjust to fit prior to paint you can adjust to fit the same way after paint. Same applies to stripes.

Jeff

[Papa]

Well, we all know where I stand...... I'll just say, If he's more comfortable with it on, do it on. Don't do your carpet and take your seats out.....See, the thing is. If the panels fit before you take them off,,,,they'll fit when you put them back on. It's a lot of extra work masking and chancing a breech then it is to do them off the chassis. When I get a brand that you "can't" take off the chassis it's a grand more just for the hassle of masking and clean-up....but that's me...da Bat

Miller beat me to it but we agree.
I always do them body off. If you can adjust to fit prior to paint you can adjust to fit the same way after paint. Same applies to stripes.

Jeff

Thanks for the expert advice. I'll discuss it with my painter. Optimally, it would be great if I could get him to do the fitting with the body on the car and then swap my buck for my chassis so I could complete the interior while the car is being painted.

[j.miller]

Hey PAPA, I would be happy to have a convo with your painter if he would like. Don't worry. I'm much nicer on the phone then I am with you guys. Jeff Miller 951-676-0191. Might be able to save him a little headache and time.

[BEAR-AvHistory]

For what its worth Whitby Motor cars does it this way.



They have FFR chassis jigs they use. The plan is you get the body to them & they do their thing while you build the chassis. They can marry them or you can bring the painted body home & DIY.

[CraigS]

If your painter would prefer the body on the car, that is how I would do it. My painter had done a friends on the buck. My car had been on the road for 4 yrs and I wasn't interested in all the work needed to remove the body. His comment was, fine w/ me, I can't remove a body from a Miata or a Corvette.

[Bob-STL]

Well, we all know where I stand.......da Bat

Yep. And it came out great!

[Papa]

Hey PAPA, I would be happy to have a convo with your painter if he would like. Don't worry. I'm much nicer on the phone then I am with you guys. Jeff Miller 951-676-0191. Might be able to save him a little headache and time.

Jeff,

Thanks for the very generous offer. This kind of help is what makes this forum different from any other I've been a part of. I'll let my painter know he can contact you directly.

Thank you very much,
Dave

[Richard Oben]

We go the painter in the roller stage with the windscreen and enough aluminum so he can fit the body . He fits everything, then we get the chassis back. He Cleckos the door hinges assembles the hood hinge etc. keeps all of those pieces and then paints the car off of the chassis. He has his own buck with lots of mods to make it much more stable, rear supports, cockpit supports, nose supports etc. and does everything before assembly. No offense batman, but body shops are just filthy nasty dusty places. My opinion is paint it off.

[j.miller]

" No offense batman, but body shops are just filthy nasty dusty places. My opinion is paint it off.[/QUOTE]"

Why ya gotta go all personal ! Filthy ,nasty is how I identify myself.....THAT'S WHY THERE ARE SO MANY FITHY NASTY RESTROOMS ! I'm HILARIOUS !!! but I digress....I paint all of mine off...da Bat

[mlewis]

Hey all,

Wondering is anybody knows of an experience cobra painter in the New England area ?

Mark

[Driver_WT]

Jeff,

Thanks for the very generous offer. This kind of help is what makes this forum different from any other I've been a part of. I'll let my painter know he can contact you directly.

Thank you very much,
Dave

Jeff was a great help when I was getting my car painted (and we are on the opposite coasts of North America). Jeff's guidance for my painter was greatly appreciated.

[cnutting]

Hey all,

Wondering is anybody knows of an experience cobra painter in the New England area ?

Mark

My 289 is currently at Mike's Auto Restoration in Dudley MA. They also painted the red Gen III coupe and the 35 pickup for FFR.

[mlewis]

Excellent.

Thanks for the lead.

Based on this thread, does he prefer to work with the body on or body off?

Thanks again,

Mark

[cnutting]

They took the whole car and have done some work on the chassis, but did priming off. There are a couple pics on my build thread. Paint will be off the body. Then they will put it back on.

Peter is the contact over there, great to work with.

[mlewis]

Thanks!!

I check out his Facebook page. Good stuff.

Will definitely give him a call when I get ready for paint.