Best way to paint a driver fixer?

I'm getting a project truck that the drive train is done on, but it still needs a little basic body work. No rust repair, just some miner dings and such.

Right now its several colors and I would like it one uniform color. I want to be able to drive it while I'm poking away at the body, but I don't want it to look like total ****.

Can I just paint the whole thing with some sort of "regular" primer that I can match with a spray can? Work on it on the weekend, shoot primer over it when I'm done kind of thing.

We do get some ****py weather at times up here in Washington state, and Ive read primer doesnt care for the rain. But maybe that doesnt matter since it will all be stripped down this winter for a nice paint job.

A basic question for you painters I'm sure, and maybe Im over thinking it, but I do appreciate the input me being a novice painter.

 

I wouldn't waste the time, if you're gonna repaint it soon... get all the body work done, then shoot it once and done!

 

ive had good luck with the red oxide primer and the flat black , get a name brand that you can duplicate from multiple sources , when a panel is done shoot it give it a day and hit it with paste car wax , when ready to repaint......... wipe down with dewaxer degreaser and rinse fininsh sand and paint , big thing with primer is no sealer to keep water vapor out so wax it or hit with a clear flat lacker,

 

The problem with regular primer (non epoxy) is that it ****s up water like a sponge and the metal under it will rust. You would be better to leave what paint is on it there and then work on one section at a time. When that section is done shoot epoxy primer on it and the body will remain rustfree in that area, just like if it had paint on it.

Don

 

^^^x2^^^

 

If you are going to paint it one straight color you could bodywork and paint it a fender at a time..... Ive done that before with black, it is easy to match

 

****gy has the best idea.

Epoxy primer is just that, primer. Although it will hold up longer than sandable primer, it has no UV protectants. It will soak up moisture and deteriorate over time.

You would have to strip it off before you paint. There goes your bodywork...

 

If you're just worried about sealing the areas you're fixing until you can paint, just spot shoot the area with some cheap Tremclad..as long as you are willing to sand it all off prior to proper priming..or prepare yourself for a polluted paint job that will lift in no time. If you are not willing to sand it all back down to nothing before priming..then as previously stated, do all the body work at once and prime it properly..which is definitely the advised method.

 

Years ago when I had to depend on just one car,,my daily driver,,I would work on it one panel at a time on weekends and shoot some red primer on the area that had been repaired and use spray cans of enamel to cover the primer,,usually black.

Everyone does not have the option of letting a car sit until it is ready to be painted,,,plus driving the car or truck while working on it is TRADITIONAL! HRP

 

I guess things work different in AZ, I drove my car for years with urethane primer on it, never rusted anywhere, then I eventually finished the bodywork and painted it. There are no problems with the paint. Yes, it was exposed to summer rains, etc many times and parked outside for about a year.

I also did the same thing with my truck many many years ago, but started with lacquer primer over bare metal, then did bodywork and covered it with spray can primer, this took about 8 months, then I got paint on it. It has not lifted anywhere, and this was done 30 years ago.

 

Right now its part primer, part original paint, and part bare steel. So I do need to put something on it so I can drive it. I do plan on taking whatever I put on it off this winter so we can do a quality paint job.

Thanks for your responses so far. There really is a ton of stuff to learn if you want to do this sort of thing correctly.

 

John Deere Blitz Black...cheap and it will protect the body while you are doing the repairs. $26/gallon?

 

Make sure whatever you use now will be compatible with whatever type of paint you use for the final coat or you'll be removing it---again.

Bob

 

Local paint guru (he does awesome stuff) says no to rattle can primers. 2k primer (I think) or some sort of epoxy.

If you are going to end up sanding it off anyway though, whynot rustoleum the thing. Mine looks okay, and I know it's pretty well sealed.