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Package Deal Part XII
Sacramento Vintage Ford's Mail Order F-100, Time To Shine
February, 2009
By Grant Peterson
Photography by Classic Trucks Staff
Wet and wild! This month the Package Deal '56 F-100 is getting sprayed in a brilliant water-based paint. Water-based, you say? I know that doesn't have the best ring to it, and it probably brings to mind all the past attempts by the paint industry to make this actually work. Water-based usually sounds like a shot in the dark to make things environmentally friendly instead of making them work. Auto-Air Colors is doing its best to make the most of all of these aspects jive. Whether anyone likes it or not, water-based paints are here to stay, and will be the future of automotive finishes. What Auto-Air has done is to use the latest in water-based technology and make it durable, easy to use, safe to clean up, and available in a plethora of custom colors, including pearls, pearl-flakes, metalflakes, metallic colors, chameleons, chameleon-pearl flakes, candy colors, iridescent colors, and more.The color choice for Sacramento Vintage Ford's Mail Order F-100 was Auto-Air Color's 4500 Series Sparklescent Rock Star Red. They also let me be the first to tell you how it "pops" in the sunlight. Auto-Air's paints not only look good while standing still, but they can hold up going fast, too. Just look at the Worsham Racing's C.S.K. NHRA Nitro-Class Funny Car that Jerry Sievers at Paint 'N' Place splashed Auto-Air Colors on. You don't have to worry about this stuff coming off while going down the highway. Basically, there is plenty more where this came from and it might be sooner than you think before your classic truck gets hit with some of Auto-Air Colors water-based paint. Follow along as we step into the future of automotive finishes and stay tuned for more breakthroughs from Auto-Air Colors.  Tools of the ever-changing...  Tools of the ever-changing trade. Here's Jerry's SATA RP HVLP (high-volume, low-pressure) spray gun that has seen more paint through its 1.2 tip than you can shake a paint stick at. Most of that paint is now in the form of Auto-Air Colors water-based paints. |  We left off last month with...  We left off last month with everything being ready to seal and paint. Here is our gallon of Auto-Air Colors 4000 Series Base Coat Sealer in white. One cool thing about Auto-Air's water-based paints is that you don't need to mix several components together, like adding an activator or catalyst, into their paint products, and then pour everything straight from the bottle to the gun. |  The gallon of sealer will...  The gallon of sealer will be enough for two coats on everything. Paint 'N' Place starts with a light first coat followed by a medium second coat. The wait time between coats depends on many things, like if the spray booth has heat or the humidity and temperature outside if it doesn't. The main thing is not to rush it, NEVER spray heavy coats with any of the Auto-Air paints, and make sure each coat is fully cured before applying another. |  Just seeing things change...  Just seeing things change colors gets your blood going, and knowing the progress being made. Since Paint 'N' Place's booth has heat, it was only necessary to wait around 15 minutes between sealer coats. |  Now it's time to really get...  Now it's time to really get things going. This is a gallon of Auto-Air's 4500 Series Sparklescent Rock Star Red water-based paint. Again, just as with their sealer, pour the paint straight into the gun. Being able to eliminate adding all of the extra products saves you around fifty bucks a gallon! |  Starting here is the first...  Starting here is the first of what wound up being five light coats of the Sparklescent Rock Star Red, which is typical of the "glamour" shades of paint... |  ...Again, there is NO need...  ...Again, there is NO need to spray heavy coats of color; multiple light coats work the best. Try to use an even spray pattern to avoid modeling or blotchiness. Remember, it's not a race. |  Here is a closeup of the first...  Here is a closeup of the first coat of color. It's almost like you are dusting the truck with the paint. Sievers sprays with and recommends SATA RP spray guns. Yeah, they're expensive, but you get what you pay for. With the rapidly changing world of paint, it's good to have the right tools. He also recommends spraying Auto-Air's paints with a 1.2 tip. |  You can use any other urethane...  You can use any other urethane paints on top or underneath Auto-Air's for graphics. This also means that to clear the Sparklescent Rock Star Red, you can use any quality urethane clearcoat. Jerry uses PPG #4010 Hi-Solids clear. Once the last coat of color has been sprayed, you need to wait at least four hours in a booth with heat or at least 12 hours without heat on a warm day to clear the parts. Now is the time to spray heavy coats; three good ones should do it. Another bonus with Auto-Air's paints is that you can clear over them at anytime, unlike urethanes, which if you wait more than eight hours you would have to scuff them up for the clear to stick. |  To start color sanding, you...  To start color sanding, you need to wait about the same amount of time you waited before clearing everything. All of the big areas of the F-100 were hit with the D.A. sander using 1500-grit paper followed up with 2000-grit, all of which was done dry as opposed to wet sanding. |  This is where patience is...  This is where patience is key. You don't want to burn through that new paint; you just want to get the top of the clearcoat roughed up with the same uniform dull look to it. It's easy to get carried away with the D.A. and take too much off... |  ...To help avoid burning through...  ...To help avoid burning through on the edges and corners of the body, masking tape was used to outline and provide a thin "oops" barrier for potential problem areas. Finish any exterior areas that couldn't be done with the D.A. by hand. |  This may be the trickiest...  This may be the trickiest job of them all and is often better left to capable hands. Buffing everything out to final gloss is done with a variable-speed electric buffer with several different pads and compounds. |  If you choose to try your...  If you choose to try your hand at "cutting and buffing" don't be afraid to still ask for help. Don't cut corners on the products to buff the paint, either--you've come this far, now follow through. Paint 'N' Place uses 3M and Meguiar's compounds, polishes, and waxes. |  Wow, what a difference! You...  Wow, what a difference! You can see the reflection of the building and all the clouds in the sky in the rear fender of the freshly painted and buffed '56! |
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Package Deal Part VII
Sacramento Vintage Ford's Mail-Order F-100 Specialized Coatings Dresses Our Chassis for Success...
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Package Deal Part X
Read the Classic Trucks tech article on repairing fiberglass on a Ford F-100, brought to you by the experts at Classic Trucks Magazine...
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Package Deal Part V
Read how Classic Trucks and Vintage Ford get together to put in an enigne, transmission and a fuel cell in a packaged truck....
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Package Deal Part VIII
Read the Classic Trucks tech article on assembling a Ford F-100 chassis, brought to you by the experts at Classic Trucks Magazine...
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Package Deal
Read the Classic Trucks tech article on installing sacramento vintage ford f-100 parts....
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