1936 Ford Project Part III: Body Fitting & Paint

When we introduced this '36 Ford cabriolet, we gave you a close-up look at the old stocker and what we planned to do with it. The car spent most of its life in the San Francisco Bay Area (Castro Valley in particular), and the salt air turned it into a pretty rough roller. From a combination of salt air and plenty of abuse over the years, the car didn't have one straight panel. We found small areas of rust in the lower quarters and the tail panel of the rotund '36 that needed a great deal of work. Although the car looked pretty good when we first spotted it, the majority of problems surfaced after it was stripped to bare metal.

In the world of hot rodding, appearance is very important, and we certainly wanted an attractive and top-quality '36. In order to get this rodney perfect, the sheetmetal needed plenty of work. In addition, the body was pretty flimsy so steel braces were added inside to make it more rigid. New wood was installed throughout, and the floor was equipped with heavy-duty bracing as well. We also wanted the car to display some individuality, so a little minor custom work was done.

We started this rod by assembling the entire car to ensure everything fit before it was disassembled for paint. While the car was being pieced together, we worked on the body to get each panel straight and line the seams up. After the entire car was together and the parts fit properly, we pulled it apart and finished the bodywork. The easiest parts to finish were the fiberglass fenders that we ordered from The Fairlane Company.

In order to smooth off the car, we made a few changes in the front and rear fenders (which increased the necessary bodywork). We modified the front fenders by removing the horn holes and filling the fender seams. The rear fenders didn't match the shape of this body, so they were split in half at the rear and widened slightly. We also frenched '39 Ford teardrop taillights into the rear fenders for a classic appearance. When all of the bodywork to the fenders was done (using fiberglass and special Marglass filler), they were primered with PPG K-36 and block-sanded. We applied several coats of primer followed by block-sanding until the fenders were perfect. After this we sprayed on a few coats of PPG K-200 primer with a guidecoat of black paint, followed by the final blocking with 400-grit wet and dry sandpaper. Once this was done, the fenders were ready for the final coat of PPG Ford Mustang Ultra-Violet basecoat/clearcoat.

After the fenders were painted we started the final preparation for paint on the body. Even though it looked pretty straight when we started, we spent weeks primering and block-sanding areas until we were satisfied with the results. The last few coats of primer were followed by a guidecoat to locate any high or low spots that we may have missed. The rear tail panel, which was heavily hammered when we started, was the hardest part of the car to perfect--it is one big compound curve. The bodywork on this car was very time-consuming, but the end product was worth all the effort.

After this, we applied a final coat of PPG K-200, followed by a light guidecoat of black spray paint. The entire body was sanded with 400-grit sandpaper wrapped around a paint stir-stick to ensure straightness. When the final blocking was finished, the body was washed with liquid Tide and water to remove any wax, grease, or dirt that could affect the paint application.

The next day, several coats of PPG Ford Mustang Ultra-Violet basecoat were applied to the car with a Sharp HVLP spray gun. Since we were spraying on a metallic paint, the first few coats were applied in a normal manner, then we backed the gun off and misted on the last few coats to avoid any "tiger lines" (light and dark areas of metallic paint). The misting technique spreads the paint out, spacing it very evenly. It's also advisable to spray the side of the car as a unit, front to rear, to achieve uniformity over the entire surface. The car's rear was done the same way.

It took a few hours to lay down the color coat, then the car was allowed to dry for approximately one hour before we applied the PPG NCT clearcoat. We covered the car with six coats of clear so there would be plenty to work with for color-sanding the car smooth.

Warm weather and low humidity helped the acrylic urethane dry quickly the day we painted. We allowed two days for the paint to cure before we started polishing the car. There's much more to polishing a car than many people realize--normally about three to four days of hard work (that's why professionals charge $1000 or more to do it correctly). In order to get the paint flat (to remove the "orange peel"), you have to color-sand it. Using a small, semi-flexible block and 600-grit sandpaper, we wet-sanded the car, making sure to get the surface as smooth as possible. This technique flattens the paint and also removes any small dirt particles that can get in the paint. The entire car was sanded with 600-grit wet and dry paper, then sanded again with 1000-grit and finally with 1500-grit. Color-sanding is a lot of work, but it makes the difference between an average paint job and a really nice one.

The second part of the polishing process is buffing the car. We used a Sioux buffer and the 3M Perfect-It polishing system that consists of two buffing steps: one with compound and a compounding pad, and one with polish and a polishing pad. Those two steps are followed by a swirl remover applied with a buffer and a foam pad. The foam pad doesn't leave the swirl marks characteristic of wool pads. The fourth step is done with a hand glaze. We generally apply four or five hand-glaze coats before any wax is put on the car. Hand glaze also helps minimize swirl marks and gives the car a very reflective shine. The wax is a final sealer, but many people just keep applying the hand glaze instead.

We painted the '36 in pieces with the body on the frame. Unfortunately, the frame must also be painted and detailed, which means the body has to be removed. Since we knew we'd have to remove the body after all the fitting was completed, we braced the body and floor. We also fabricated a pair of tubular supports that bolt in between the dash and the rear deck. Roadsters and cabriolets have a tendency to fold in the middle when they're lifted, so the braces will keep the car rigid.

In the next installment, we'll show you how we painted and detailed the Fat Man Fabrications chassis with paint, polished parts, and powdercoating. We will also show you how we hooked up a cable arrangement for clutch operation.