# Chassis paint



## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

I am sure this topic has been discussed to death but I am putting it out there.
Just got the frame back from sand blasting and want to paint it. Any suggestions on what is the best product to use and why.


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## 05GTO (Oct 6, 2004)

I've had success with most of the Eastwood products;

Underhood paints - Paints


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## y2kjammer (Dec 18, 2009)

Up under the 'search' dropdown bar type in frame paint (or something of that nature. You will find a number of different threads that will answer your questions. It's all good reading.


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

NAPA carries Martin Senor Paints with their NAPA name on it, their underhood paint is the exact same color as Eastwoods for far less money. I had some Eastowood underhood paint and ran out and got NAPA's the colors were identical and the flow was nice and even. 

Duplicolor paints go on nice too, I used their Engine paint and it works great.


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Originally, from what I've researched, the frames had a thin coat of blackish paint that rubbed off easily. Both of my unrestored cars have what looks like bare metal frames. Maybe a slight hint of black paint here and there. Every non restored original GTO frame I've seen looks like mine: bare. if I were to due a frame off, I would probably use Rustoleum semi-goss or low gloss black. I've used it on diffs, suspension parts, and my Model T frame, and the stuff looks right, is cheap and available, and it tough. Your mileage may vary.


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## crustysack (Oct 5, 2008)

depends if your doing concours or you want it to last. if the latter try POR-15 a 1 part paint that actually get harder when exposed to moisture- I am in the north east where cars rot- I did not want this to happen to this car (65) after restoration so I did some research and was also turned onto this product by my tech who swears by it. If you are not going to powder coat this is the next best thing- I did the frame,diff, the whole bottom of the car, firewall, radiator support, inner fenders, and any thing else I could slap it onto. Its about $130 per gallon but I did all those parts with 1 gallon- if you only are doing the frame 1 qt is PLENTY. All of those parts were brushed no spraying. I went with gloss for easy cleaning but they also make flat and semi gloss and different colors.


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

The non-gloss black spray cans from NAPA is the correct color. But that POR 15 does look good, and even though it's not correct, I see cars with it win more at the shows then the correct cars.


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

crustysack said:


> depends if your doing concours or you want it to last. if the latter try POR-15 a 1 part paint that actually get harder when exposed to moisture- I am in the north east where cars rot- I did not want this to happen to this car (65) after restoration so I did some research and was also turned onto this product by my tech who swears by it. If you are not going to powder coat this is the next best thing- I did the frame,diff, the whole bottom of the car, firewall, radiator support, inner fenders, and any thing else I could slap it onto. Its about $130 per gallon but I did all those parts with 1 gallon- if you only are doing the frame 1 qt is PLENTY. All of those parts were brushed no spraying. I went with gloss for easy cleaning but they also make flat and semi gloss and different colors.



Did you use just the regular Por 15 or did you add a top coat for UV protection


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## crustysack (Oct 5, 2008)

I used regular everywhere and I believe I top coated the area in the engine bay- the rest of the areas will never be hit by sunlight


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## masterblaster (May 8, 2010)

I'm asking the same question myself on another post. Check out Inline Tube - Preformed Stainless & OEM Brake Line Sets That's the way to do it. I just need to no what products to use and on what parts. Let me know if you find out.


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## masterblaster (May 8, 2010)

try this one instead Inline Tube 69 GTO Judge Restoration


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

Well, I went with the POR15. I did some research on the Eastwood product and the reviews were very good, the only problem, I live in Canada and the shipping time was something like a month so I opted for the Por15. I did the POR15 rust paint then added a top coat with UV protectant just to be on the safe side of things, it turned out rather nice.


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

DrBoeing said:


> Well, I went with the POR15. ..... it turned out rather nice.


It sure did. :cheers


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Very Nice. Gotta ask, where is the best(cheapest) place to by this stuff?


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

68greengoat said:


> Very Nice. Gotta ask, where is the best(cheapest) place to by this stuff?


You can get it on ebay the cheapest, and it's not cheap. But it seals rusts and doesn't let air to it, so it's a forever repair! So, it's worth the money, especially around the windows, places prone to rust. I coated the inside of my quarters as they were rusting from the inside out, hopefully it will stop the rust. It is more than just paint.
I've heard it's better than powdercoating, as you can't repair Powdercoat, por-15 you can't knock off with a chissel.


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## crustysack (Oct 5, 2008)

jetstang said:


> You can get it on ebay the cheapest, and it's not cheap. But it seals rusts and doesn't let air to it, so it's a forever repair! So, it's worth the money, especially around the windows, places prone to rust. I coated the inside of my quarters as they were rusting from the inside out, hopefully it will stop the rust. It is more than just paint.
> I've heard it's better than powdercoating, as you can't repair Powdercoat, por-15 you can't knock off with a chissel.


:agree


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Yeah, I've been looking at that stuff for awhile. I know it aint cheap. I guess that's why I haven't pulled the pin yet. Looking to use it mainly on the frame. It's not bad or anything, just want to clean it up a little and POR15 seems to be the way to do it without a frameoff....


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

68greengoat said:


> Yeah, I've been looking at that stuff for awhile. I know it aint cheap. I guess that's why I haven't pulled the pin yet. Looking to use it mainly on the frame. It's not bad or anything, just want to clean it up a little and POR15 seems to be the way to do it without a frameoff....



I paid $55 a quart, I painted the frame as well as the diff and I still have probably enough to paint the firewall.


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

I used rattle can semi gloss on my 454 SS, and wasn't happy with the durability of the finish. I did my Lemans with High gloss Dupont acrlic enamel with hardener on the frame rails and fenderwells, installed the motor, not one chip, super hard paint. I wish I would of got semi gloss, but looks good, may repaint the fenderwells with semi. Normal spray gun paint works great and better than spray bombs. I would use POR-15 for hard to reach, limited access areas, 1 time only spots due to the cost, but it's worth it. If you don't paint with a gun, get a good harbour tool gun and pick someones brain on using it with real paint, the results are more long lasting and you can clean them like you would an exterior paint job. The quart of dupont black and a gallon of thinner was $80, so POR 15 is not that expensive compared to gun paint, plus I already had the hardener-$30.


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

The only thing I was a little concerned about was the drying time.
The rust paint take a fair bit of time to cure(24 hours) but it does cure with a good shine. The top coat drys ultra fast. It was drying in less than 30 minutes.
You have to look at how much you get done with the 1 quart of Por 15, I managed to do the entire frame and diff and as I said earlier, there is likely enough to do the entire fire wall. So at $55 Canadian, likely cheaper in the USA, it is really not a bad deal.
FYI, when doing this job, make sure you have latex gloves and long pants and shirt, other wise you will be wearing this stuff for a few weeks. I was wearing shorts and now I look like a Dalmation.


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## crustysack (Oct 5, 2008)

sorry- should have warned you about reading the warnings on the can and paying heed to them-IT WILL NOT WASH OFF AFTER DRYING on you, your clothes, your skin, your hands your face, or your dog -I also walked around for about 2 weeks with POR spots except I had them on my FACE:lol:


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## y2kjammer (Dec 18, 2009)

Just saw some semi-gloss on ebay for $25/pint ($9+ shipping).


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

y2kjammer said:


> Just saw some semi-gloss on ebay for $25/pint ($9+ shipping).


Good price, what is it, Acrylic enamel, with thinner or what? At the local paint supply place, I can get a quart of color for $30ish, thinner $15 a gallon, and hardener for $30. You don't have to use hardener, but it makes enamel more durable, and dries faster. With hardener in your paint you must use a respirator. The AF said I didn't have to use a respirator with laquer, look at me now. Respirators are good.

Just for info: The pre mixed stuff at Advanced and autozone is Laquer and is premixed, so you are getting 8 ounces of real paint, 24 ounces of thinner for $25, that's real expensive and not durable paint. But, for someone that hasn't shot with a gun isn't a bad starting point. Just don't paint your whole car with it, because it won't last.


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

jetstang said:


> Good price, what is it, Acrylic enamel, with thinner or what? At the local paint supply place, I can get a quart of color for $30ish, thinner $15 a gallon, and hardener for $30. You don't have to use hardener, but it makes enamel more durable, and dries faster. With hardener in your paint you must use a respirator. The AF said I didn't have to use a respirator with laquer, look at me now. Respirators are good.
> 
> Just for info: The pre mixed stuff at Advanced and autozone is Laquer and is premixed, so you are getting 8 ounces of real paint, 24 ounces of thinner for $25, that's real expensive and not durable paint. But, for someone that hasn't shot with a gun isn't a bad starting point. Just don't paint your whole car with it, because it won't last.


I think he was talking about a pint of POR 15


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Decided to resurrect this thread so not to start a new one on the same subject. Thread was dead anyway.

Looking at POR15 Blackcote and POR15 Rust Preventative Paint, what's the difference? I see Blackcote is UV protected. For now, going to use it under the trunk pan. Pulled the gas tank out to fix a leaking fuel pickup gasket and saw a couple of spots that has surface rust. Going to take the easy way out and use POR15. May also paint the tank with it too... Appreciate the help......

Ok, was reading about this stuff on e-bay. Is the blackcoat the U/V resistant top coat people talk about putting over the R/P paint? If so, Blackcote wont work by itself? Would a sponge brush work the best for applying?


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

68greengoat said:


> Decided to resurrect this thread so not to start a new one on the same subject. Thread was dead anyway.
> 
> Looking at POR15 Blackcote and POR15 Rust Preventative Paint, what's the difference? I see Blackcote is UV protected. For now, going to use it under the trunk pan. Pulled the gas tank out to fix a leaking fuel pickup gasket and saw a couple of spots that has surface rust. Going to take the easy way out and use POR15. May also paint the tank with it too... Appreciate the help......
> 
> Ok, was reading about this stuff on e-bay. Is the blackcoat the U/V resistant top coat people talk about putting over the R/P paint? If so, Blackcote wont work by itself? Would a sponge brush work the best for applying?


The Black cote is a top cote to use after you apply the Por15 rust paint.
There have been many arguments on using just por 15 on a frame or using the top cote. I spoke with the manufacturer and they say just the por15 for a frame is OK but having talked to others who have used it, they say that if you do not put the top cote, the por15 will become chalky. I used the top cote, I figured that since I was doing a frame off, why cut corners on something as simple as a top cote. Spend all this time and money to possibly have a frame that becomes chalky, not worth the chance.


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Did you brush it on? If so, what style of brush?


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## DrBoeing (Apr 26, 2009)

68greengoat said:


> Did you brush it on? If so, what style of brush?


Yes I did brush it on, I used the cheapest brush I could find at the Home Depot. The stuff goes on real easy. Wear surgical gloves, other wise you will be wearing the stuff for 2 months also, use crappy clothes as they will be junk afterwards.


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