Hey guys, took off my front reflectors so I could primer and paint them. Should I sandpaper the reflectors before I do anything to them? Or can i just do without sandpaper? If I should, let me know what kind of grit, thanks.

 

Sand them with 600 then prime and paint

 

Some one suggested I use 1200 grit and then primer and paint. 600 is half of that. Not saying that you are wrong or not going to take your advice, but the two seem like a big difference. So should I just stick with 600 then?

 

use a green scotch pad

 

1200 is to fine a grit and the paint wont have anything to "bite" onto. With 600 grit it is corse enough to provide good bite but fine enough to not have scratches show through the paint.

 

agreed...1200 wont do much for you....600 would be fine...still fine in terms of sandpaper, but will give you enough scuff on there to do what you need it to do

 

For some reason my primer and spray paint dont tell me how long to wait before actually applying the paint. How long should I wait after applying the primer to spray the actual paint? I was thinking maybe an hour after a couple coats of primer because thats what I did a few years ago if I remember correctly,is that fine?

 

you should be sanding with 400 grit (dry sanding). clean the surface after you sanded with 400. spray the primer with 2 coats. take your 600 grit and wet sand to make the primer smooth and then spray your black paint. if you spray over the primer without proper prep and wet sand, youre reflectors are going to end up having an extremely rough surface instead of the smooth surface im sure youre looking for.

ive painted many plastic pieces in my lifetime with spray paint and this is the best way to make them look as original as possible.

 

How hard should I be sanding with the 400 and 600? For the 400, do I just sand till the surface is rough?

 

Btw, why is sanding required for the reflectors, but no one ever sands the headlights before blacking them out? If you use fushion paint is sanding not necessary?