Newbie painter needs help!!!!

[Spectre26]

I just done a Job painting up my calipers on my 8. Used the usual hi-temp paint. Its been about 2weeks since the job was done. Last week i jet washed my car. And on the front right caliper just about all the paint got blasted off. The front left were chipping a tiny bit and the rear calipers were reasonably perfect.

Not being a pro painter i dont know 100% what the reason for this is. But heres the run down for those of u more experianced than me:)

I did clean all calipers down by using a safety solvent to remove all brake dust then a wire brush to get the bare metal up (remove rust, brake dust etc). Then washed it again in safety solvent to remove any remaining traces. Let all the solvent evapourate. then masked up and sprayed. Job was done outside. Temperature was cold, around 5 degrees C or so. I know this is not ideal but the air was dry. I did warm the rear calipers up with a heat gun prior to painting and did use a heatgun to aid the paint to dry in between coats. The front calipers i didnt use a heat gun cos i simply didnt think of it :spank I suspect that last bit is the cause of my problems...

Other things i thought of was maybe the paint was of poor quality, i can't remember the brand but i can get the name of it if any of u want to know. Or I thought mabe i should have gone for a gloss finish instead of a matt finish as i did.

Any of u can recomend a good hi-temp paint brand? And can any1 recommend a clear hi temp gloss spray finish i could apply to my "non-damaged" rotors?... if such a thing exists?

[Kieron]

Hammerite (sp) is probably best thing to use. :wave re do them.

[Ada7]

Was thinking of doing mine some day over the winter (if its dry) and have been told that Hammerite is just as good as anything else on your calipers. Should be able to with stand the heat, although may dull a little over time, but the you can just sand it down a bit and and another coat

Adam

[Kieron]

Yup! Let me know when you are doing yours and I'll let you do mine 1st to practice on :guinness

I was going to do mine this weekend but I wasnt about much. Maybe next.

[Donato]

caliper paint is best brushed on, i used foliatec (spelling) stuff which is a two part paint that you mix and brush on, it goes on good and thick, takes 24hrs to cure but i guarantee you wont wash it back off again.

you can get it foliatec at your local halfords. cant remember how much....£20 maybe....
comes in various different colours...

good luck

[Ianmcurtis]

Paul, I thought u were going to use hammerite and ditch that stuff from halfords? So far no signs of the hammerite coming off my calipers - although I've not used a jet wash on them, but there are plenty of folk on here who've used hammerite with no probs.

Sorry, I can't offer an explanation why the paint came off just the one caliper mate :-(.

[deanflowers]

i'm a hamerite man too, used it on several cars over the years with good results

[Spectre26]

Paul, I thought u were going to use hammerite and ditch that stuff from halfords? So far no signs of the hammerite coming off my calipers - although I've not used a jet wash on them, but there are plenty of folk on here who've used hammerite with no probs.

Sorry, I can't offer an explanation why the paint came off just the one caliper mate :-(.
I know, i was gonna change to hammerite... but call me a tight wad or a tree hugging hippie but i could bring myself to waste a perfectly good can of hi temp paint.

And to be honest I believe the paint was fine... the problem was me... I mean the rear calipers were fine. And before u mention that they dont get hot. Mine do as i do hand brake alot more than the usual motorist. As i do enjoy a bit of sideways action a few times a week :3gears-rh I know its not gonna b as hot as the fronts, but they get warmer than with a normal driver. Also the front left paint job is nowhere as bad as the right... So logical conclusion is i must have tripped up somewhere in my worksmanship.

I personally blame my lack of heating up the caliper prior to painting and possiably cos the front right was the 1st one i did... so i prob didnt do as good a job as the rest... the ol more u do it the better u become thing...

BTW thx to Donato for mentioning that folatec stuff i did see it at halfords when i first started the project but kinda forgot about it when i saw the price. Not really cos i am a cheap skate (well i am :p) but cos i am still broke from buying my 8 and from feeding her :o So i was and still am looking from dirt cheap mods to do to my car. Like my custom grounding kit i made at work using excess AWG size 6 aircraft generator cable and crimps. Doesnt look fancy as the cable is just all black and crimps plain yellow, so no big bling colours but i guess it works good. I dunno how much it improves the car cos i did the mod 2 weeks after getting the car so i have no refrence on how the car was like b4 the mod...

k... think i am going off topic here... maybe i should post about the leads in a seperate post. That is if any1 is interested.

Well i'll try redoing the botched caliper again with the remaining paint i have it should b enough and if it fails again i'll just paint strip all of em and take a leaf outta Donato's book and use that folatec stuff.

[Ianmcurtis]

^ Mate, when I first started to read your thread that the paint had come off one caliper I thought "Sh*t, I've used hammerite on mine too". I was just surprised that you'd still used the other stuff and thats why I 'asked'.

Yeh, sounds like a prep thing given it was the first caliper you'd painted. The weathers non to good at mo' for a re-paint, unless you can get the 8 in to one of those hangars ;) ;)

Good luck & let us know how things go mate. :cheers

[Spectre26]

^ Mate, when I first started to read your thread that the paint had come off one caliper I thought "Sh*t, I've used hammerite on mine too". I was just surprised that you'd still used the other stuff and thats why I 'asked'.

Yeh, sounds like a prep thing given it was the first caliper you'd painted. The weathers non to good at mo' for a re-paint, unless you can get the 8 in to one of those hangars ;) ;)

Good luck & let us know how things go mate. :cheers

Wont b doing much for a a coupple of weeks or more as i'll be trying to book a late holiday... company gave me a week notice to use my 2 weeks of leave or lose it... Trying in vain 2 book a flight 2 cyprus for 2 weeks. And it is tough getting a ticket as i've left it so late...