priming between work times

[chris mc bride]

Im having to do the body work on my panel a section at the time due to time and money both are short right now.
I wondering if I can just spray epoxy primer on each section as I finish repairs and then when all are done I can shoot another coat of epoxy over whole truck after sanding to remove any contminents that might have gotten on truck in mean time. I figure then I can do cpl coats of high build preimer and blcok entire truck And blocksand before spraying sealer coats.Oh yea the body filler between those two steps,sorry brain fart. hopefully it will be very little of it anyway so far the cpl panels I have repaired finished out very smooth. Then again Im probaly spending 3 times the time you pros would have to.
So if theres problem with game plan let me know your thoughts so I can avoid major FU's if possible. Doing full body off restro for first is probaly being little over gutsy,but then my second engine I built was blown injected 526 hemi making over 2500 hp. Can't say Im affraid to jump in full bore,hopefully smart enough to get all advice I can along the way.

[sizzle-fry]

I think that sanding panels individually may not be going to give you a quality finish. I've only got a few jobs under my belt, take this advice as an opinion please. I certainly hope paint folks pitch in also, there's probably alot of folks who can't do it all at once for whatever reason and could use a pointer.

Blocking panels without aligning them in the finished installation first could lead to a situation where you couldn't get body lines to look good no matter how well things were done. I think you will get better lines by blocking the finished installation. This is what I found while working on something with big areas - an 84 scout. I took the doors off and finished them seperately as you described. Because the doors were on a bench (horizontal) the way I worked them was different than the way I worked the fenders and quarters. This resulted in the top body crease and the trim lines not matching with the fender and quarters as well as they might have.

This may be just a nitpicky point, but there might also be folks who agree... Not everyone looks at how true the lines are when the rest of the paint just popped their eyeballs. Me? I like straight lines - it can make crappy paint look good... it can make an International SCOUT look good - lol.

If it was me I would do all your metalwork and filler on the individual panels, hit with the epoxy primer, seal, then hit with high build and let em all sit until you can put the panels together for block sanding. Block the thing after you align the panels as perfectly as possible, then seal again. Paint when you can, etc.

It can be cheaper than you think. You an use your epoxy primer and thin by another 50% - that should be suitable for your sealer.

BTW, here's a photo of the thing AFTER I rehung the doors, rebuilt with highbuild, reblocked, etc. (please ignore the trim, the clips were fooked after having to pop em again).

[chris mc bride]

Maybe I mistated it .I'm doing repairs and shooting epoxy on repaired panel after wards to protect it till I can get all panels fixed. I then pland to do and filler work and shoot the high build primer and sand the whole truck. I can guarantee the body will be straighter then anything that every left chevrolet., before any base coat is applied.
I believe that perfect if close to good enough if thats the best you can do.
Im just wanting to make sure that letting it sit with epoxy on it for cpl months till I can get all repairs finished isn't problem.Its under a shelter but its still exposed to heats and moister in the air.Also dont want any rust sneeking in behind me and showing up in cpl years. I plan to sale it when finished but figure might take while to get asking price.Plus I dont want to slae someone something that will not last

[Zeke]

I'm no expert but from what I've seen and read spraying epoxy primer on repairs to protect them is a good idea especially on long builds. I would think it would make it easier doing the final prep as you would not have to go back and repair the repairs. Just my thoughts.