Hi Roger, Reading your post, it seems like we have different definitions of "color sanding" . The basecoat on a 2-stage dries to a matte finish. any gloss comes from the clearcoat. I guess if you make a big mistake and get orange peel or a run in the basecoat, you would have to sand it down, but then, unless you were extremely lucky, you would need to reapply with more base. The proper thickness of the color coat on a 2 stage is 1.0 mil or less. That's not a lot of base to sand compared to the 2.5 mil or so on a single stage. To sand the body, you need to pull the car out of the spray booth, which invites dust and dirt everywhere else. The tech manual for the paint I use recommends "clearcoat (base) as soon as possible - after proper flash off (about 10 minutes) - to minimize dirt and other substances landing on basecoat" . In my experience, the "bumps and valleys" come from the clear coat, not the base.. Clear goes on to a thickness of 2.5 mils or so and that you DO sand. Sanding a clearcoat is not considered "color sanding", at least in my circles. You can get quite a finish with a quality finish sander like Dynabrade or National Detroit. I have seen Mirka Abralon (2000 and 4000) bring up a spectacular finish using one of those sanders - on clear. Roger Schaaf <obiwan10@xxxx> wrote: Some folks color sand their 2 stage paint. Apparently Mercedes and BMW do not. This is probably why their paint jobs look so crummy, as do most new car finishes, I do give Jaguar and Lexus somewhat a pass on this as they apparently do a fairly good job without color sanding or possibly they do some before shipping the cars to us. There are more bumps and valleys(orange peel) then in the Rockies. Most new car finishes look like we used to say about Platte River back in Nebraska where I am from. A mile wide and an inch deep. None of the manufacturers that I know of sand their paint jobs, unless there is a flaw, then only the flaw is addressed. If you are doing a darker color(red, black(especially black), blue, green like the 57's) I would suggest color sanding or the finish may be shiny but that is about all. In very strong fact I would have any excellent quality paint job color sanded thoroughly. I assume you are talking about single stage paint, not two stage. Will be the difference between a Miracle job and a job that you will do you and your painter proud. I purchased a kit sometime back(about 2 or 3 hundred dollars) that included a high quality air powered dual action palm held sander and sanding disks from 1000 to 3000 grit. I would recommend such a tool as a tremendous aid to a nice finish. Roger Schaaf 300 B Calif ----- Original Message ----- From: "Russ Vaughan" To: ; Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 4:42 PM Subject: Re: [Chrysler300] Paint advice > Hi, > > Most bodymen I know use 3M D.A.R.T tape. Round foam tape 1/2" or 3/4" diameter that covers the gaps and keeps the jambs clean and leaves no tape line. Whatever works I guess, but I've never seen a vehicle's jambs painted last. How would you paint the parts you can't get at like inner fenders, under hinges, etc? Also, since at least 80% of the cars painted today are two stage( base coat - clear coat) and you don't color sand two stage, they would have to jamb first. I would think people just don't change their methods when doing an occasional single stage paint job. > > Just another point of view > > Russ Vaughan > > > > dan300f@xxxx wrote: > Hi all: > > Just to get my 2 cents worth in here, I paint the door jambs, etc., last. If > they are painted first, then when the body is sprayed, the overspray gets on > the fresh paint on these areas. If painted last, then the overspray gets on > the body which will be color sanded anyway. No use making more work for one's > self. > > Dan Reitz > Northridge, CA > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > To send a message to this group, send an email to: > Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > For list server instructions, go to http://www.chrysler300club.com/yahoolist/inst.htm > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > Chrysler300-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > > > > Yahoo! Groups SponsorADVERTISEMENT > > > --------------------------------- > Yahoo! Groups Links > > To visit your group on the web, go to: > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Chrysler300/ > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > Chrysler300-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! 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