Priming a car panel before spray painting is essential because it prepares the body for adequate paint adherence. Additionally, priming helps protect the metal beneath after spray painting. However, newbie auto painters struggle with priming, resulting in substandard paintwork. If you want to be good at spray painting, you must get the priming step right. This article highlights a few critical tips for priming your car panels.

Only Spray on Bare Metal

One of the first things you learn as an apprentice spray painter is that excellent paintwork depends on proper primer application. Generally, experts recommend that spray painters apply the primer right down to the bare metal. It means that you must first sand down the car panel in question until you reach the metal below. If you leave some sections unattended, spray paint will not adhere to the surface as well. Sanding a car panel to the bare metal creates a rough surface for the primer and paint to hold on to. After reaching the metal surface, clean it to eliminate grease and metal fillings since impurities affect the quality of paintwork.

Use Two Cloths to Clean Prepared Surface

Sanded car panels leave metal dust and oily remnants on the surface. Notably, applying a primer on a dirty metal surface is counterproductive since the grease creates a thin layer that separates the paint from the primer. Besides, metal fillings protrude through the primer and spray paint, leaving a rough surface. Therefore, when cleaning a sanded car panel, use two cloths to achieve a spotless surface. With a soap solution, use the first cloth to clean away grease, metal dust, and debris. Then, use the second cloth to rinse the surface and keep it spotless.

Let the Primer Cure

Once you have applied adequate primer on a car panel pending spray painting, you need to let it cure adequately. As an apprentice, the last thing you want is to spray paint on a wet primer. If you make the mistake, car panels assume a wrinkled appearance after spray painting. It is mainly the case if you use fillers since they take time to cure. You might be tempted to use a heat gun to cure the primer and filler faster. However, it is the last thing you should do since the primer or filler will begin to flake over time. In this regard, let the primer and filler dry adequately before spray painting.

For additional tips, contact local spray painting services.