After getting the last bit (POR-15) done, I took a break for a week or so to give myself a rest, and also to let the paint harden properly.
But I soon got back to it, rubbing it all down – not the easiest job, that paint is tough stuff – and cleaning it all up. Today was the day to get the topcoat on though, so off we went.
The chassis coat stuff used was interesting to work with – the first coat went on quite patchy in places:
Although in others it went quite well. We let that dry for a bit then started on the second coat. Although the first coat was reasonably dry, the second coat seemed to soften it up and mix it all together. This made a sticky goo which was quite hard to get an even coat with – I think it came out alright in the end though, I just need to get back there to have a look once it’s properly dry (and patch up any bits we missed today).
Final results (subject to proper drying, and also the camera flash is great at highlighting any thin patches, so it looks better than this in the flesh):
That’ll do I think!
It’s a bit of a shame though, the actual POR-15 made a great coat, really smooth and shiny with virtually no brush marks, whereas this stuff (which is supposed to be a cosmetic coating) is looking to be not quite as smooth.
Also in the meantime, I’ve been working on the rear wing and sill panel:
And the fuel cap area:
They both need a little finishing off, but they’re essentially done now. At last!
Now the body is done, I’ve started to turn my attention to the suspension and axle parts – I’ve got a couple of brackets which are seriously caked in rust, so I’ve started to clean them up and de-rust them using electrolysis. Once they’re done, I’ll paint them and the rest of the suspension and axle parts – again with POR-15, but this time I’ll use a gloss topcoat rather than the semi-gloss used on the body.