Question on painting engine bay

[smercier]

I've completely stripped the front of my '65 coupe and have been sanding for a few days. 99% of the engine bay is bare metal but there are still a few nooks and crannies that I can't get to (at least not enough to get all of the paint off). Aside from sand / media blasting, what did you guys do? Just do the best job you could and paint over it anyway? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[danny clemens]

It depends on how good you want it. You could clean it good with a degreaser and shoot epoxy over it to seal it and then paint. You could maybe get a dremel and clean the small spots before priming if you want it better. They also sell small hand held blasters (I've never used one) that should be good for getting the small stuff. Harbor Freight usually has them pretty cheap.

 

[bnickel]

i used a 3m abrasive stripping wheel on my drill to get all the corners and stuff. you need a good etching primer or at least a primer sealer on the bare metal before you paint.

 

[smercier]

I'm using POR-15 on the bare metal, same as I did with the floor pans and the trunk. I'll probably do the best I can with the chemical stripper and my dremel and then just paint over what I can't get to.

 

[frost0100]

I found using a chemical stripper (spray on) took car of all the little corners.

 

[danny clemens]

The only bad thing about the chemical strippers is that when you spray it in those nooks and crannies you might not be able to get it all out. That may cause trouble down the road. If you use it I'd spray it good with water to try and get it all out.

 

[Homercidal]

I used Eastwoods Rust Encapsulator, which is a product similar (they claim better) than POR-15. Both claim you don't have to get every bit of rust off before using.

I've also got a portable blaster, and would probably use it in the right conditions (You don't mind getting sand EVERYWHERE!).

FWIW - The Eastwoods rust paint has been awesome for me. Many people swear by POR-15 too. Good investment as far as I'm concerned.

 

[zookeeper]

If it's the original paint, I used some lacquer thinner in a spray bottle and a bit of steel wool on mine and it came right off.

 

[mustangchris]

Harbour freight does sell small handhell blaster which would work extremely well for small tasks like corners, nooks, and crannies. In my exprience chemicals usually require more cleaning and prep then blasting and sanding and like stated before sometimes you just cant get it all out, and that will show up down the road as it peels your paint away.

 

[66 Tiger]

I used chemical stripper along with an assortment of wire-brushes , sanding-wheels, and yes the dremel too.

If I ever do this again I will definitely choose sand blasting over the above mentioned! Even if I have to go rent one for the day...

I also chose the Eastwood product because I liked the option of being able to spray it on versus brushing. ( I have heard a good deal of positive comments regarding the POR 15 product as well but have no personal experience using it )

Here's a description of what I have done so far:

http://max348.rob.googlepages.com/home

I just finished spraying the finish coats last weekend ( Eastwood Flat Black ) & am looking forward to beginning the reinstallation of everything soon. As I continue I will be adding more to my page as well so feel free to check back every so often.