The Re-sprayThe
complete re-spray was done in a farm very close to me that is owned by my partners uncle, for which I am very grateful. All the sanding down was done in a massive barn, and all the spraying was done under a massive tarpaulin cover held up with massive haystacks, although it didn't rain all week this 'knock up' served me brilliantly.
- 06-08-98. (Saturday) Believe it or not all Saturday was spent stripping the car down, this included windscreens, seats, mats, in fact everything excluding the engine and surprisingly the steering wheel !, this was because some bright spark decided it would be a good idea to weld the nut to the thread?. (10 hours)
- 07-08-98. (Sunday) Started to remove Henna Red paint using 480 grade wet and dry, lubricated with a splash of fairy washing up liquid, once I had removed a small square of Henna Red I found there to be a liberal coating of Carmine Red, this was when i knew i was in for a long haul. Today was the only day I had help with the re-spray, my friend Simon King and my brother Alan Brown both lost their fingerprints in a hectic day of rubbing. (11½ hours)
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- 08-08-98. (Monday) Long, tiring and very tedious day of rubbing down, by now, in some parts, I was starting to see the original Ford Lagoon Blue under the disgusting reds, this gave me the will to go on, by early evening I had started to use 800 grade wet and dry in a few places to get a smooth finish. (13 hours)
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09-08-98. (Tuesday) Anyone who has done this kind of job will tell you that by this stage your fingers are very sore. When I woke up this morning I had no fingertips, couldn't hold the soap, and refused to consider going to the toilet!. The first six hours of the day was spent getting a smooth surface with 800 grade paper, I then decided that all traces of red had gone, although down to bare metal in most places, there was still some of the original Lagoon Blue paint left on the sills and a few spots on the valences, but time was catching me up , so I decided then to put my first coat of spray on. This spay was something called Uni-binder, Its designed to enable any kind of paint to adhere to any other. I was actually spraying cellulose paint onto a bare metal (except for a few spots!) surface but thought, I've spent all this time so better safe than sorry. (12 hours)
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- 10-08-98. (Wednesday) The first couple of hours was spent smoothing down the uni-binder, then it was time to start thinking about primer. The primer I used was cellulose 'High Build' primer, it only takes half an hour to put on and half an hour to dry, but unfortunately it takes a hour or so to sand each layer smooth with 800 grade paper. I managed to get 4 layers on in one day. (10½ hours)
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11-08-98. (Thursday) Spent all day smoothing down again in preparation for the paint, started with 800 grade for the coat of primer i had left on overnight, then used 1000 grade to get a beautiful smooth finish. Don't forget, all this painting and sanding is very time consuming when you do the car inside and out!. (10 hours)
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- 12-08-98. (Friday) Today was white roof day, 5 coats in all of Ermine White and I was finally seeing some of the fruits of my labour. Finished early today, decided i needed the rest so bought some beers and watched rugby league on Sky Sports!. (8 hours)
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13-08-98. (Saturday) Today was Lagoon Blue day, 5 coats all round, outside and in, even the dashboard, pillars and inside the boot, a quick rub down between each coat, and of course push it out for the photographs. This was probably my most enjoyable day of the re-spray as I could see light at the end of the tunnel!. (10 hours)
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14-08-98. (Sunday) Putting the car back together I thought would be one of the easiest jobs-it wasn't. Each component that was put back in was given new screws, washers and nuts and a good clean. The seats came up sparkling with stardrops, all chrome was gleamed, and then the major hurdle, putting in the new screen rubbers, at one point i was considering calling out Autoglass to come and help me!. Getting the windscreen into the nice, new,stiff screenrubbers was one thing, but, getting the new windscreen into the car was another, I then called on the services of my partner Clare to give a little weight to get them in!. Then came the chrome windscreen strips, another easy job- or so I thought -this is one job that is nearly impossible. Just before sundown everything was back on and i was ready to make the 3 mile trip back to my home, this was when I realized it was all worth while, the old Cortina got a few looks before the re-spray, but now it was definitely the centre of attention on the roads around Warrington. (9 hours)
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10-09-98. (Saturday) It was time to buff the car up. This was done first of all with 1200 grade wet and dry, then cutting compound, then wax on an electric buffer (the only electrical tool used during the re-spray). It brought the shine up great, then I added my brand new front bumper and the car looked gleaming!!
Before doing my re-spray i had had quotes of over and above £1,500 to have it done professionally, so I thought I'd have a go myself. I have to say I'd seriously consider a paid job next time because the blood, sweat and tears were too numerous to count, but saying that, it was a great experience, and i have the peace of mind of knowing that I did all the work to the best of my capabilities and nothing was missed. If you're thinking of doing it yourself then take my advice, get all the friends you can, pick a panel, and go for gold. Hope you enjoyed my story, comments appreciated. Bye.
