Paint & Body Special Section
Any paint job involves decisions, and one of the most important decisions you will make in painting your Corvette is just how far you want to go. Here, there are extreme ends of the spectrum. There are plenty of quickie paint shops that will scuff the existing exterior paint, bust out the tape, and spray away. That barely rates as a bare minimum pproach. On the other hand, perfection means pulling the body off and down to a bare shell, stripped of the last nut and bolt, and kicking off the paintwork from there. Most of us will end up somewhere in the middle. The condition of the car plays an important role in the decisionmaking process. Indeed, if the car is otherwise mint and is being resprayed in the stock color, a scuff and exterior respray may be quite acceptable.
Wiping compound into body...
Wiping compound into body.
We began disassembly of some...
We began disassembly of some components while the bumper caps were off. the complete front headlamp assemblies were removed while the front caps were off. there is no way to completely detail paint these without removal, particularly in a color change.
Likewise, the side marker...
Likewise, the side marker lights were removed from their recesses. We couldn't live with ourselves knowing there is the old white paint in behind there if we simply taped them off. Save all the stock hardware, and catalog it for reassembly.
For our project C3 Corvette, there were several factors that set the direction. Overall, the vehicle is in decent condition, but the fact that the exterior paint was heavily checked (surface cracking) meant the paint would have to be stripped completely off. The visible cracks in the paint common to these cars will typically go right down to the bottom layer of primer. Just sanding and burying the checked paint with more primer will only temporarily hide the problem if it is not dealt with by stripping. In fact, our car had already received one respray over its original finish sometime in its past life, and, needless to say, the checking was not dealt with then.
Another factor that helps define the direction of our effort is the fact that we will be changing colors from the factory white to a custom orange from Planet Color. Since we don't want any trace of the original paint peaking in, the color change necessitates substantial disassembly. We removed every bit of exterior trim and components from the exterior body. Before it's all done, the doors will be removed, as well as the hood for a seamless repaint in the new hue. Essentially, all the areas that will be visible, and many that will not, will be repainted in the new color, with no taped edges hiding or revealing the original white.
Our '76 corvette has a key-lock...
Our '76 corvette has a key-lock for the factory alarm system mounted in the left front fender, retained by a clip like a door lock. We debated whether it will go back in or not in our custom corvette, and still have not decided. the "Stingray" emblems were in their last year for 1976 and are retained by adhesive. We pried carefully to remove.
There is no way to get a clean...
There is no way to get a clean finish inside the gas cap area without removing it. four screws and it's out, so it should be removed for any detailed paint job.
The radio antenna mast unscrews...
The radio antenna mast unscrews from the base, and the base is retained by a large nut that is sometimes stubborn. We worked the nut back and forth with penetrating oil. Once it was loose, the mast was unscrewed, and the base was dropped through the fender.