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Hit an obstacle, primer cracking.

3K views 5 replies 4 participants last post by  Chuck_Neste 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I started re-doing one of the control arms since the pressing machine scratched the crap out of them (which I should of known). I roughed up the remaining paint so I could lay primer down and well, the primer starting cracking. I thought I roughed up the paint enough so it would stick but I guess not. I don't know what to do and I got little time before I lose the garage where my bird is staying. I want to get a sandblaster but i'm afraid i'll blast the poly-urethane bushings off. Really don't want to hand sand 8 layers of primer/paint off lol. Any ideas or am I going to have to go down to bare metal again? Any help will be appreciated!
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#3 · (Edited by Moderator)
Looks like when they pressed out the old bushings and installed the new ones, the piece flexed, causing the primer to crack. I'm sure that, as careful as you've been on these, that you eliminated all sources of oil, dirt or grease prior to priming them. You might need to use an elastomer in your paints for these parts, similar to the way you have to do the flexible nose pieces. Either that, or strip them down to be powdercoated instead.

Also, if you're worried about the bushings, don't blast them with sand - use crushed walnut shells instead. They do a good job of removing paint without damaging anything else. It's what they use on Corvettes to prevent screwing up the fiberglass.
 
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#4 ·
Thanks for the help Dan and Jim. While at work last night, I realized i'm a freakin' idiot. I had used etching primer over the roughed up paint and that was why it cracked. I re-sanded that control arm down to the paint and I used reg 'ol metal primer... no cracking or flaking this time. I've never heard of the crushed walnut shells before, i'll have to look into that. Can a sand blaster take that? I'm looking into sand blasters since i'm just about ready to restore my Rally II's.
 
#5 ·
#6 ·
I am curious about walnut blasting myself. I bought the walnut shells from HF along with a 90 lb sand blaster /portable attached to a 60 gallon compressor. Anyone want to take a stab on how many pounds needed to do a car (body paint). I am about to do this myself in the next week or 2. I need to remove some more hardware.

Chuck
 
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