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New Paint Job - Painting the PurpA new coat for this Camaro From the September, 2012 issue of GM High-Tech Performance By Justin Cesler Photography by The Author
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There are few things more gratifying than a brand new paint job on your pride and joy. Like the finishing touches on any project, a paint job can take a regular 10-footer and turn it in to a real showstopper. In the case of the Purp, our on-going NMCA LSX Real Street project, any paint would have been better than what we started with, but since we’re not sure how competitive the car will really be (thanks Preston…), we had to be sure it looked good while attempting to make the show. Plus, it’s always fun to have a fresh color on your project, especially after pushing it around for so long wearing the dented, faded body that we started with. To be short, this car was in really rough shape when Editor Parker pulled it out of a Craigslist ad. A ‘95 V-6, it came with a stock flat hood, a mangled front bumper and driver’s fender, lots of cracked paint, and a dented rear quarter panel. It was, for all intents and purposes, a car we probably should have passed over for a nicer one, but we got a good deal on some replacement body parts from Hawks Third Gen and we know a couple of really sharp body men that we could count on to get us all squared away for the big dance. Plus it’s pretty cool to see an LT1-style front end on a Camaro these days, as even the faithful LT1 brethren have started to convert them over to the LS front. Of course, if you’re going to go through all of this trouble to spray some color, you might as well add a little additional style in the process. To that end, Editor Parker was tasked with replacing the stock hood, choosing to run the world famous VFN Fiberglass Sunoco extended cowl hood, which shipped to us without the body line in a bolt-on configuration. The tall cowling will allow plenty of room for a large intake manifold on our nitrous motor and give the car the aggressive appearance we’re after. According to Robby, the VFN fit great, needing minimal bodywork to get it near perfect, which is always what we like to here. Otherwise, the rest of the body was left stock, although everything was straightened, tweaked, and massaged to perfection before hitting the booth to be slathered in several coats of gorgeous Matrix Systems paint. The color is essentially the same as a stock ’05 GTO in Spice Red Metallic, which gave the Purp a classic color scheme that should really stay current throughout the life of the project. Anyhow, let’s get down to business and show you what goes into a quality paint job with the crew at North Deland Auto Body.  1 When the Purp hit the ground...  1 When the Purp hit the ground at North Deland Auto Body it was bombed out and depleted. Our Camaro wore a cracked front bumper, a beat up rear quarter panel, and several different colors of old worn out factory paint. To put it kindly, it looked like it belonged in a demolition derby instead of a magazine.  2 Robby Novak and his father...  2 Robby Novak and his father take high-performance body work seriously and they wasted no time at all getting the Purp straightened out. A little crack in your front bumper may seem like a big deal, but for pros like Robby, it’s just a little bit of work with the plastic welder and some epoxy away from looking as good as new.  3 While Editor Parker is...  3 While Editor Parker is a huge fan of music, he won’t be listening to anything but the engine in the Purp, so it was up to Robby to patch the factory antennae hole. With the stock parts removed, a metal circle was cut and spot-welded to the factory quarter, before having the welds ground flat and filled over with Everglass short strand fiberglass body filler.  4 After letting the front...  4 After letting the front and rear repairs set, Robby spent countless hours sanding, smoothing, taping, and prepping the body work before pushing the Purp into the North Deland Auto Body downdraft paint booth. Note how well the VFN Sunoco Extended cowl hood fits, which is typical of all of the VFN products we’ve used in the past.  5 With the windows, headlights,...  5 With the windows, headlights, wheels and underside properly taped off (this takes a long time to do and is absolutely critical to a quality paint job), Robby got to work laying down the Matrix Ultra High Build 2K primer. While the high build takes a little longer to sand down, it builds a nice base to work from, which is what Robby was after.  6 A couple of coats later,...  6 A couple of coats later, Robby was happy with the primer and he got to work re-masking off the interior of the Purp. Every time you go down this road, it takes a couple of hours and it is oh-so-tempting to skimp out, but you can’t even think about that if you want a quality job without a bunch of overspray everywhere.  7 This is where things got...  7 This is where things got interesting… For whatever reason, Robby thought it would be a good idea for me to lay down a couple coats of black paint over the Camaro’s halo bar, under hood, and rear “Berger panel” area. Trust me here; if I could handle this, you can do it too. Plus, it was a ton of fun trying to figure it out and since it wasn’t my car, it made it even better!  8 The color we’re using on...  8 The color we’re using on the Purp (wait for it…) requires a base silver dusting to be laid down over the surface to help get the brightness just right. Using a smaller paint gun, Robby laid down the silver coat, paying attention to keep over spray away from the outer portion of the bodywork.  9 Quality craftsmanship goes...  9 Quality craftsmanship goes hand in hand with quality supplies. Without both, you’re going to end up with a subpar paint job. North Deland Auto Body uses everything from the Matrix System catalog and you can see just how many parts go into a job like this.  10 After months of pondering,...  10 After months of pondering, Parker chose to stick with a color close to the stock Camaro but with a little bit of flare. What you’re looking at here is a slight variation on the ’05 Pontiac GTO color called Spice Red Metallic. Matrix calls this version Shanghai Red Metallic and it’s got a ton of pop over a bright red base.  11 Coming out of the paint...  11 Coming out of the paint gun, the Matrix SRM looked a little darker than it did in the can, which is to be expected on the first couple of coats. Note how Robby positions the gun parallel to the surface, running long extended swipes across the sill to ensure a nice even coat. A little over spray here is okay, as long as you make sure to get all of the jams done evenly.  12 Stepping back in the booth,...  12 Stepping back in the booth, you can see just how much of the car needs to be painted to “jam” the project. Both doors, the inner hatch area, the underside of the actual hatch, and the underhood portion of the fenders must all be done, using the same care that one would take on the outside portion of the car. A couple of coats is all it takes, just make sure to double check the hard to reach areas!  13 A couple of days later,...  13 A couple of days later, after the jams had dried and Robby had time to work over the entire car again (sanding and smoothing the Ultra High Build Matrix primer), it was time to get back in the booth to knock out the exterior. On an LT1 front end, it’s always cool to black out the headlight pockets and grill area, which is what you see Robby doing here.  14 For the final paint prep...  14 For the final paint prep it’s all about cleanliness and perfection. Not wanting to take any risks, Robby removed the Purp’s wheels and taped off the entire underside of the car (including under the hood), along with the top halo area, the lights, grill, and mirrors. It’s at this point that the Purp really started to look like something!  15 Over the primer goes the...  15 Over the primer goes the sealer, which Robby liberally applies over the entire exterior of the Camaro. The sealers job is to lock in the primer and provide a solid foundation for the final paint color. It will also help the color appear much “deeper,” which adds to the overall look of the Camaro once out on track.  16 Over the sealer, it was...  16 Over the sealer, it was time again for Robby to lay down the silver base, which helps lighten up the final color. Over that dark sealer, we would have had a really dark, deep red, while the silver will help brighten up the overall color and add some pop to make it sparkle.  17 After a professional laid...  17 After a professional laid down the first coat of SRM, I jumped back in to give it a try. If you’ve never painted large panels like this before, it can be quite difficult, as you have to remain parallel to the panel while keeping a safe distance and work the two-stage trigger on the gun properly. Note the lack of safety gear (suit, pants, etc.) – that’s straight from the “do not try this at home” manual.  18 After the fourth and final...  18 After the fourth and final coat was laid down, Robby and I stepped back to admire my – I mean, Robby’s – hard work. The Matrix SRM paint really took the Purp to the next level. Along with the smooth, flawless bodywork and slick VFN hood, the SRM was the perfect color choice for a car of this caliber.  19 Of course, with the addition...  19 Of course, with the addition of the clear coats, it really took the Purp over the top. Even here, with the clear being laid on for the first coat, you can see just how shiny and deep the paint job really is. While we still need to wet sand and buff, you can really get a good idea of the final project. Of course, it’s always better to see a job like this in person, so hopefully you can catch us at a race to check it out for yourself.
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1999 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am - Street Heat
Almost no other GM model pulls off the aggressive look quite like the fourth-gen Trans Am, and when you modify one like Nathan Turjillo from Las Vegas has, well; you end up with a real showstopper....
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