I am looking closely at finishing off the internal cavity areas of my car body. I'd like to get feedback on what other people are doing in this regard and what products they use. I found a lot of info on what layer process should be used for the external finishing but internally things are not as clear.... I have given the insides of the body panels 2 coats of PPG epoxy primer. After scuffing with a red scotchbrite I was going to apply 2 or 3 heavy coats of uPol Gravitex. This would be applied to the insides of just about anywhere I can get to (inside rear quarters, inside door skins, pillars, front fenders), most of these areas would not get any other paint applied. However, areas that get seen such as inside the rear quarter panels (in the trunk area), would get colour/clear finish on top. So please share what you found works, what is best practice and products are junk and what works for you. Thanks,

Six months is enough time for the body filler to collapse to its final size, and making it ready for block sanding. Unfortunately, I didn't take photos of this process or of the application of the second epoxy primer coat. Before the second layer paint, the full body was sanded down using 120-grit Mirka autonet mesh. The second epoxy coat was allowed two weeks to cure fully, after which the entire surface was sanded with 320-grit autonet. I sprayed the surfacer (filler primer) over this sanded layer. PPG specifies a "G6" shade of surfacer for the official color (431/A), however, I knowing my car's original color, I know that shade too dark—it made the blue visible only in direct sunlight. So, after spraying test cards, I decided to go one shade lighter (G5). This was also convenient because I didn't have to mix two shades together, I could use the off-the-shelf shade directly. I applied the surfacer using an Auarita 898-2 LVLP spray gun with a 1.8mm nozzle. I had to increase the pressure slightly to around 2 bar, as 1.6 bar didn't provide sufficient atomization for that high flow rate. Next step is glue the windscreen and back window (tomorrow, I prepared the surface with color and topcoat on windshield frame last week). Then I continue with color.

The past three days have been a bit hectic, but I’m trying to keep my promise. For now, here are the next two parts; the rest will follow as things progress. Since I know you aren't interested in the painting of suspension and brake components, I’ve skipped that part—let’s jump straight to the exterior bodywork. The car had been repainted several times over its lifespan; I counted four pair layers (base and topcoat) in total while sanding. I sanded every panel (except for the doors and bumpers, which are being painted separately) down to the bare metal or the original factory primer layer. For this, I used a Milwaukee 12V DA sander with a Mirka Autonet 120-grit abrasive mesh. Naturally, I had a dust extraction system connected while sanding; my garage is small, so I can't afford to have everything covered in dust. After the sanding was complete—and before painting—came the degreasing stage. I refuse to let water near exposed iron, so I used isopropyl alcohol for this step. The first coat was the previously mentioned epoxy primer, the same one I used on the underbody, applied with the same Auarita K-400 gun (using a 1.7mm nozzle). Then came some body filler to smooth out minor imperfections, followed by a six-month wait. More on that in the next part.

I watched Aaron's review of the Porphis PRD-817 spray gun recently, and after he got it dialed in, he seemed to like it for clearcoat. I have pretty much zero experience painting. I do have the Black Widow HTE, but I saw some guys on YouTube talking about it laying down material more slowly. My current project is a 1986 F150, and I will be spraying the entire truck and that is a lot of surface area. Since I have a bunch of projects in my future that will need painting, I was wondering would it be worth it to get the PRD-817 to use as a dedicated clear gun? Also, I wonder where Aaron would put it in his rankings of guns he's used. I know he really like the Black Widow HTE. Should I just stick with that? Thoughts, anyone?