TECH(?) how to paint FLAMES... my 50s fridge gets a makeover

i gave a sneak peak of my ole NORGE (by Borge Warner) fridge a few weeks back, but i finaly got the final coats of clear on it tonight. this has been my project in my advanced autobody refinishing cl*** at the local community college. i've gotten so much more out of this cl*** than i ever imagined i would. i am no longer AFRAID of paint like i was. i've done some painting in the past but it was hit or miss weather or not it turned out ok. well, i'm no longer GUESSING, now i have a pretty reasonable grasp on the basics of automotive painting. i'm certainly no expert, but i feel much more confident than i just a couple months ago.

for this psuedo-tech i will ***ume you already have the body work and paint basics down and the base color and a couple coats of clear on the object to be flamed. the first thing i did was to wet sand the intire fridge with 600 grit paper till the orange peal was gone along with all the shine.

then it was time to lay out the flames. i layed out my design free hand with plastic fine line tape. once i got the design the way i wanted it i layed a piece of masking paper over the tape outline and with a pencil i shaded back and forth on the paper over the tape outline till i had completely transfered the outline onto the paper. then using a pounce wheel, and with the paper now laying on a piece of sturdy cardboard (i hear drywall works well too), i followed the flame pattern with the wheel leaving smal holes in the paper on the outline of the flames. then i layed the paper over onto the other side of the piece, taped it down, then with some chalk line chalk in an old sock i patted and rubbed the sock along the paper over the holes. once the paper was removed you could see the chalk outline, that was the exact reverse of my original design, on the part. you then lay yoru fineline tape right over the chalk outline and then fill in all the spaces with masking tape.



(more to come so be patient)...

 

the next step, once you have everything all masked off, is to start sprayin the flames. i don't have alot of in progress pics of this stage cause i was a nervous wreck hoping that it would come out ok. but here are the steps i took:

first i layed on the base color. in this case the lime metallic color with all the pearl in it (the lightest color). then i came in and with the spray gun set for a real small spray pattern and the pre***ure turned way down i cut in the edges with my medium green (a color i made by mixing the darker green i sellected and the lime green i used as a base), then i came in and did the edges again witht he dark green holding back just a little closer to the edge with the darker than i did with the medium green. one helpfull tip is to start your spraying on the masking tape and work your way out onto the surface to be painted. take it easy and don't put the paint on too thick.

the last thing i did was to get the airbrush out and go back over the lime green and bring a little of it back into the "licks" of the flames. the airbrush gives you so much more precise control and a much smaller spray pattern than the big spray gun can offer.

thats it. the flames are all colored in. well thats not exactly "it". in fact the stressful part has just begun. now (after the paint tacks up) you have to pull off all the tape. you must be VERY VERY VERY VERY friggin carefull when you do this. i find it best to pull the masking tape off and leave the fine line tape on, then remove the fineline tape by pulling it back over itself and slightly towards the flame color. you must go slow and watch that the paint does'nt start to lift with the tape. i had a couple small spots that did lift, but it was nothing the pinstripes would'nt cover.

so, all the tape is now removed and your ready for clear. well, actually because i was only working on this thing two nights a week the tape ended up sitting on the fridge for several days before i got to painting the flames. so when all the tape was removed there was alot of tape residue left behind from leaving the tape on so long. luckily a little pre-paint surface cleaner did the trick and got it all off, so then i mixed the clear and barried everything in it.

(but wait, there's still more...)

 

it's just about time to call in a professional now, but first i wet sand the entire fridge with 1000 grit. this helps to make the edge of the flames a little less obtrusive and it prepares the surface nicely for the pinstripes and the final coats of clear that will bury it all.

now it's time to call on my buddy Kritz for some of his stripes. we decided on orange around the flames and he did some freestyle designs in "imitation gold" and "purple" on the top of the fridge and on the door.

 

man,

this post is rock and roll. well done!

danny

 

ok. the one shot is allowed to harden up for a couple days, and then it is time for the final coats of clear. thats what i did tonight. got it all cleaned up, tacked off and ready to go. then i layed on 3 coats of clear. if i wanted to get real nuts i would probably wet sand it with 1200 then clear it with a couple more coats and buff it out then, but i think i'll call it good right now.

by some stroke of luck i managed to lay the clear on pretty damn nice, so there will be no more wet sanding needed. i will however give it the once over with the wheel and some fine polish just to get a little more shine out of it. my instructor said he'd leave it alone as it is, cause the clear laid out so nice, but i told him i'm just too damn picky to leave well enough alone so i'll buff it next week.

so, thats where we are now. i still have alot of work to do on the inner pieces, including making a new inner door (with the shelves and all that) from fibergl***, as the old one has become quite brittle with age.

so here it is, sorta "done", but not realy. well, the shell is painted anyway ... maybe in a few months when i get around to finishing the insides i'll post another update, but til then enjoy the pics and i hoped maybe you learned something along with me...

 

Nice work! Looks like Kritz finished it real nice too! Very good lookin flame layout, by the way.

 

excellent. Love the color choices

 

i've never been real good (or confident anyways) with picking colors, but i think i did alright this time. i'm happy with it. it has that early 60s feel i wanted.

you realy can not see how much the greens realy sparkle untill you see them in person. they realy jump off the panel, but you can't tell at all in the pics. well, if you want to see it it'll be set up in my office in the house once it's all back together (and probably before), so come on over and see it ...

 

Looks great- wish i could see that in person.

 

That's one cool 'fridge!


Sorry, couldn't help it.


G.

 

that clear makes all the difference in the world mike...looks good man.

man...i'm looking rough these days!!!!

 

Sure loooke better now from when we found it on the side of the road!!!

 

that thing is too kool

 

Very nice guys. Did someone say that it is going to be put up as a HAMB auction?

 

So, chances are that I can drink a cold beer that was actually cooled in THAT fridge when I come to the Rumble? Cool. Nice job Mike.

Charlie

 

Man, that turned out really nice. I have an old fridgidaire I want to paint up in the near future. Thanks for the tech. later shawn

 

i don't know. but if they did they were mistaken.

 

That is real nice work!!

 

Awesome post- the flames look killer

 

Looks great...All I need now is someone to come do the same to my 49 GE!!

 

Killer Color choices! and great striping! The freestyle work on the front of the fridge compliments the whole thing nicely!

 

OK so I have this old toaster...
Looks awesome man!

 

The commercials were cool for those old appliances...!

"Knock on any Norge...,"...!!!!!!!!!!

 

your showing your age there Wingnutz.

thanks for all the compliments. it's nice to make something shiny. primer is cool, i've always been a fan, but gloss is way under rated.

 

Hey, I have the spot for the fridge cleared in my garage whenever you are ready to drop it off.


Randy

 

Oh,

I guess I could come get if that's easier...

 

well ****. if i'm gonna GIVE it to ya should'nt i go all the way and deliver it too?? i could bring it right in the garage and set it up wherever you want it and even plug it in for you. i may as well stock it full of beer while i'm at it too. you'll prolly want to wait for me to finish the inside and put it all back together. right?

 

Awesome thread! I am the same way, I have all these projects in my head that I would like to start, but a little hesitant to start. I usually end up doing everything 3 or 4 times to get the results I'm looking for. One question, what materials did you use, I've been told you can't clear over one-shot. I have a good understanding of paint process/materials. I've done a few pieces, but never got over the "clear" issues, but I agree with you, the clear definitly adds that extra "pop". Nice work, and it has added another project to the list in my head

 

i've known tons of people who have cleared over one shot with all kinds of paint brands. i used Diamont. Kritz did add hardener to the one shot because i was gonna use clear. we also waited a few days before adding the clear. you want ALL the solvents to escape.