Best way to paint Center Console?
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Joined: Mar 2013
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From: Springfield Mo
Best way to paint Center Console?
Does anyone have any suggestions to painting the shifter and center console? I am wanting to sand it down smooth. Then primer, Paint, Clear. Was wondering the best sand paper for this and the possible steps in sanding and prepping for paint.
320 grit is best. You can go less, but I definitely don't recommend going less then 220. Even 220 leaves a rough surface when your getting ready to prime. If you were to prime twice you could get away with sanding the console with 220 then following it up with 320. Because you would identify all of the rough areas you missed the first time. All you would have to do is sand them out with 320 plus the rest of the area, then re-prime.
So basically this is what Id recommend:
1. Take the time sand smooth with 320
2. Adhesion promoter. Bulldog Adhesion Promoter is a pretty good choice. Although you have to follow the directions or you'll run into problems. But its needed for the first coat of initial paint to stick to the plastic better. After that you don't need it as it will have a mechanical adhesion to the primer.
3. Lightly spray with a guide coat. Which is basically a flat black spray paint. By this I mean just enough where it sprays little specks of paint all over. This is used when sanding to make sure everything is nice and flat when done. If you don't see any potential problems you can wet sand area with 400. If there is problems, sand everything with 320 until smooth then re-prime. Then 400 grit wet again. You want to sand with 400 or 600 wet for sealer. Sealer goes on before your color. After your sealer it just depends on what route your wanting to go on where you go from there.
4. But even if its a flat black or base/clear. You'll have to wait until it flashes then move on to the next step.
I can keep going with the procedure if needed.
I tend to over explain things so if you have any questions you can pm me
So basically this is what Id recommend:
1. Take the time sand smooth with 320
2. Adhesion promoter. Bulldog Adhesion Promoter is a pretty good choice. Although you have to follow the directions or you'll run into problems. But its needed for the first coat of initial paint to stick to the plastic better. After that you don't need it as it will have a mechanical adhesion to the primer.
3. Lightly spray with a guide coat. Which is basically a flat black spray paint. By this I mean just enough where it sprays little specks of paint all over. This is used when sanding to make sure everything is nice and flat when done. If you don't see any potential problems you can wet sand area with 400. If there is problems, sand everything with 320 until smooth then re-prime. Then 400 grit wet again. You want to sand with 400 or 600 wet for sealer. Sealer goes on before your color. After your sealer it just depends on what route your wanting to go on where you go from there.
4. But even if its a flat black or base/clear. You'll have to wait until it flashes then move on to the next step.
I can keep going with the procedure if needed.
I tend to over explain things so if you have any questions you can pm me
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Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 14
Likes: 0
From: Springfield Mo
320 grit is best. You can go less, but I definitely don't recommend going less then 220. Even 220 leaves a rough surface when your getting ready to prime. If you were to prime twice you could get away with sanding the console with 220 then following it up with 320. Because you would identify all of the rough areas you missed the first time. All you would have to do is sand them out with 320 plus the rest of the area, then re-prime.
So basically this is what Id recommend:
1. Take the time sand smooth with 320
2. Adhesion promoter. Bulldog Adhesion Promoter is a pretty good choice. Although you have to follow the directions or you'll run into problems. But its needed for the first coat of initial paint to stick to the plastic better. After that you don't need it as it will have a mechanical adhesion to the primer.
3. Lightly spray with a guide coat. Which is basically a flat black spray paint. By this I mean just enough where it sprays little specks of paint all over. This is used when sanding to make sure everything is nice and flat when done. If you don't see any potential problems you can wet sand area with 400. If there is problems, sand everything with 320 until smooth then re-prime. Then 400 grit wet again. You want to sand with 400 or 600 wet for sealer. Sealer goes on before your color. After your sealer it just depends on what route your wanting to go on where you go from there.
4. But even if its a flat black or base/clear. You'll have to wait until it flashes then move on to the next step.
I can keep going with the procedure if needed.
I tend to over explain things so if you have any questions you can pm me
So basically this is what Id recommend:
1. Take the time sand smooth with 320
2. Adhesion promoter. Bulldog Adhesion Promoter is a pretty good choice. Although you have to follow the directions or you'll run into problems. But its needed for the first coat of initial paint to stick to the plastic better. After that you don't need it as it will have a mechanical adhesion to the primer.
3. Lightly spray with a guide coat. Which is basically a flat black spray paint. By this I mean just enough where it sprays little specks of paint all over. This is used when sanding to make sure everything is nice and flat when done. If you don't see any potential problems you can wet sand area with 400. If there is problems, sand everything with 320 until smooth then re-prime. Then 400 grit wet again. You want to sand with 400 or 600 wet for sealer. Sealer goes on before your color. After your sealer it just depends on what route your wanting to go on where you go from there.
4. But even if its a flat black or base/clear. You'll have to wait until it flashes then move on to the next step.
I can keep going with the procedure if needed.
I tend to over explain things so if you have any questions you can pm me
Awesome, thanks for laying the steps out. Your not over explaining, that's what I need really, never done this so I need all the help I can get. I will message you for sure when im about to start on this.
Im probably going to use dupli-color black spray paint
KornerCarver- Sweet, ill keep my eyes open for ya, im sure we will run into eachother. Im on Republic Rd
Ok, are you using an aerosol primer spray paint also? If so I'd recommend using nothing but 320 dry to sand then lightly with 400 dry after that to make sure you're nice and smooth (nothing feeling too rough). This is because aerosol primer is a lot thinner than your typical urethane. Also let the primer dry a full day just to be safe before sanding, minimum 5-6 hours.
When painting your topcoat, are you using the Dupli-Color spray paint by itself? No sealer? If so I'd recommend sanding the primer with 320 dry then follow it up with 400 or 600 with water. The water acts like a lubricant to make it less abrasive. Let the sandpaper soak in the water for several hours to absorb the water before use. When sanding primer its recommended to use 320 because you don't get too aggressive with the primer leaving heavy scratches and it still has the ability to sand the primer flat. 400 and up is not quite as effective. But I used to work on classic cars all day where everything had to be perfect. So who knows, lol. And lastly when spraying any paint try to not spray heavy coats. If you spray to heavy you'll get runs, or build up. But if you spray too light it'll feel dry to the touch, and have a dry look. So with that said good luck!
When painting your topcoat, are you using the Dupli-Color spray paint by itself? No sealer? If so I'd recommend sanding the primer with 320 dry then follow it up with 400 or 600 with water. The water acts like a lubricant to make it less abrasive. Let the sandpaper soak in the water for several hours to absorb the water before use. When sanding primer its recommended to use 320 because you don't get too aggressive with the primer leaving heavy scratches and it still has the ability to sand the primer flat. 400 and up is not quite as effective. But I used to work on classic cars all day where everything had to be perfect. So who knows, lol. And lastly when spraying any paint try to not spray heavy coats. If you spray to heavy you'll get runs, or build up. But if you spray too light it'll feel dry to the touch, and have a dry look. So with that said good luck!
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From: SoCal
Stay away from the duplicolor interior paints, they're garbage.
The best interior paints are made by SEM, the line is called "Color Coat." A good, cheap source for them is:
http://www.tcpglobal.com/autobodydepot/semccaero.aspx
They make special prep sprays as well. Depending on the material, they have ones for plastics, as well as vinyls and leathers.
The best interior paints are made by SEM, the line is called "Color Coat." A good, cheap source for them is:
http://www.tcpglobal.com/autobodydepot/semccaero.aspx
They make special prep sprays as well. Depending on the material, they have ones for plastics, as well as vinyls and leathers.
