Anybody have an idea of the cost of a quality custom paint job on an L. Ive been thinking of changing my white for candy apple.

Thanks.

 

I'm interested in this too.

 

I am curious as well.

 

For a complete color change, and for a vehicle the size of an L, it's going to be expensive, very expensive. Two things- the cost of the paint you select, which can vary widely, and the quality of the job you want.

Painting cars is more art than science (IMHO) the trained eye can pick apart the good from the average in 2 seconds. A close friend of mine spent years in the business and he has tried to train my eye. I would say ball park (low-end) ~5-10K.

 

Actually that is not as bad as I thought....

Assuming the avg being about 7500 that is (for a quality job)...


I may have a paint guy hook so maybe it'll be cheaper? Hehehehe hookups rock!


<----Management/Business major

 

I've been thinking about something like this too. Expect my question is how much is paint equipment really? Most of the cost is labor correct (as the bill for painting my hood proves!). I can get a sprayer and a small air compressor for under 300 bucks I think. And I have a useless basement room I want to, uh, turn into a painting room. Some cheap plastic walls wouldn't be too bad. And since my labor is free, I think I could take the truck apart and paint section by section and make it perfect. Oh yes, and save, uh, an average of 7000 bucks??? And I can always have extra paint and repaint panels with scratches and paint other stuff too! Rollpan gets painted! Interior gets some paint! Engine **** gets paint too!

Back to my question: How much will sandpaper, a sprayer, and an air compressor cost me? I have no overhead costs, no labor costs, and I can sure as hell practice painting. All that can be done for under a few hundred correct? This room will either become a paint room or a movie-theater type cinema room. And the paint room is cheaper! Just not as cool.

I'll check them prices and post tomorrow. Cool idea's like this are like crack, I can't stop thinking about it for days and end up getting strung out and move on to something else.

 

Umm just to clarify, painting a car isn't the same as a can of Krylon under an overpass. You have to strip the old paint, and I believe you may need more than just a *regular room*.

 

Just to clarify a couple of things: stripping paint is not difficult. I have successfully stripped paint from the bedcaps I painted (plus those little long bumps all the way down them) without any real problem. Sanding away the ABS plastic was the hardest part. And I didn't even use paint thinner. And no, you do not need a *special room* Some paint places do have half oval shaped rooms that are pressurized to keep dust out so they can paint an entire car. And they may wear full body plastic, uh, suits? to keep dirt and human cells (a main component of dust) out of the paint. Though, this is mainly for paint shops that will do mass painting. Like repaint numberous cars in a day. So they don't have to resand and repaint and it would be quicker and more cost effective. I on the other hand do not plan on doing too much painting and once and do not mind sanding if dust got in the paint. Just on question, what kind of *special room* is required for painting? Is it magical? Does gravity have no effect in this room. Do small *special* leprechauns patrol the room to make sure everything is up to spec? I'm confused.

The only thing you must worry about is fumes and dust. And dust will sand out anyways. But I want to put plastic around a section of a room (those long, thick plastic strips) to keep out dust.

 

I suppose with enough patience anything is possible. However, I would like to think that my time would be more valuable than spending hundreds of hours in a basement painting.


Or maybe not...who knows?

 

Lets see. I priced a paint sprayer and cup (or whatever) at under 70 bucks. I can hook up an air supply to a lift that should soon be in my garage (he he he, storing a 37 Chevy coupe over a jag) and adding some plastic to cut off the room and some sandpaper I figure under $150 plus some paint is a good price.

And about the hundreds of hours: it would be time consuming, but I think a good week (considering I'm taking a sweet 15 month vacation from school) could get it all painted. That would include everything that's not glass. Oh yes, and then, if need be you can piece your truck back together and drive it so you don't loose it for 3 weeks. Oh yeah, and save $8,000 bucks.

But whatever, if you would like "to think that my time would be more valuable than spending hundreds of hours in a basement painting. " I guess your posting is far too much of a demanding mistress that your truck could not possibley get a new paint job? I don't think too many people can really put in a solid 10-50 posts a day.

 

i got quoted 7500 just for ghost flames on a red truck with a hard cover with flames on it too. I might just have to learn how to paint.

Vinny

 

Painting is not the hard part. The prep work and the final sand/buff is what seperates the good from the average.

 

This is very true. When I painted my interior pieces, I did each piece 3-4 times. It wasn't spraying the paint which was hard, it was prep'ing, and wet sanding which made the final product what it is. With practice and patience, I can now say I do a pretty good job. It just took some time to learn the tricks.

-Mike