Expert: William Forster - 10/16/2007

Question
My son is 15 and we purchase a  1968 Datsun 2000 Roadster to restore
together as his first car.  

The body is rust free and my son stripped it stripped.  I have primed
it with self etching primer and the sanding primer.  We are now blocking
it out and finding the low spots.   Amazing how many are popping up.
 Polyester filer was applied to the low spots(Would this be easier with
those spring steel applicators?).  

Should we re-prime with both primers again?  Are we taking it down too
far when we see the metal?  Also, do we need to put a finishing sealer
on before the paint?

Any suggestions on grade of sanding paper?  We are using 180 for the
initial  sanding then I was going to go to 320 and the final with
400.......not sure how these things have changed over the years.

Thank you
Chris  

Answer
Spot prime bare metal with the metal etching primer, then re-prime with primer surfacer. I really suggest re-blocking the car if you have a lot of low spots that required you to apply body filler. Spreading filler is more about talent, less about the spreader. Less is better in your situation. For small spots, I suggest a glazing filler like USC Icing, PN 26006. It's sort of self leveling and sands easy. Use 180 to block sand, followed with 320 to take the edge off. Re-prime. Then, spray a guide coat- just mist coat the entire care with a rattle can of a different color than the primer. The, wet sand the car with 600, or dry sand with a DA sander and 400 grit. Bill