How to paint a car with your own hands at a minimum cost
While official services and private service stations open the gates for the first customers, collect queues of those wishing to be repaired that have accumulated over two months and raise prices, winning back simple and more expensive spare parts and materials, car owners are increasingly thinking about self-repair. Including - and about painting cars on their own. And why not, if, as the AvtoVzglyad portal found out, this can be done today both quickly and efficiently.
It is clear that it is better to entrust the elimination of small scratches and other traces of operation on new cars to professionals. But the fleet of cars in Russia is as old as myths about democracy, and on the vast majority of "self-propelled carts" the entire body must be painted. Even if you find a compliant craftsman, buy materials at old prices, and do some of the work yourself, the operation will be expensive. Just paint, primer and varnish - from 15 rubles minimum plus the actual work. An old Zhigul or a deeply used foreign car is unlikely to receive such investments from its owner.
And here comes the material that will reduce the cost of work many times over: Raptor paint. This product was originally developed by a major brand to paint bodywork, cargo bays and frames, and only much later began to cover the entire car. In fact, "Raptor" is the next step in the development of "anti-gravity", but the basis is not rubber, but polyurethane, so the coating is more resistant to "external irritant".
It is almost impossible to break through such protection with a branch or stone, and minor accidents generally cease to excite the car owner. It is incredibly difficult to even specifically tear off the Raptor from the body. Previously, only its developers could boast of such paint, but today there are already many analogues on the domestic market, which are much cheaper than the original.
The main advantage of such materials is that they do not require a special painting chamber and special application skills, and their very structure with large shagreen allows you not to worry about smudges. By the way, the texture can be changed by diluting the paint with special solvents. Initially, the Raptor was offered only in black and white, but today they have already learned how to “tint” it, so you can choose virtually any shade. You should be careful only with white: because of the large shagreen, it will be difficult to wash the car to perfect cleanliness.
Thus, the entire procedure for restoring the car body can be done on your own right at your summer cottage: you must first clean the parts from rust, matte, and weld through holes. Next, thoroughly degrease the surface - rinse with white spirit and water - and dry. Before you apply the paint, you have to pickle everything with a special primer, and the bumpers, if they need painting, also cover with primer. To work, you will need the most ordinary household compressor, as well as a gun for anti-gravity or mastic, which comes with a paint set for an extra charge.
"Raptor" is a two-component paint consisting of a polymer and a hardener, which need to be mixed only before starting the application process. Otherwise, you can get a stone in a bottle. By the way, the paint container itself is made in such a way that it can be installed directly into the gun, since it is almost impossible to wash the standard “bottle” after such work. If the process requires a break, then you need to finish one full "tank" and rinse the gun thoroughly.
The polymer on the body takes about three weeks to completely dry, but the top layer comes to readiness very quickly. In simple words, you can ride, but washing under pressure is not worth it. The whole procedure with materials and consumables will cost about 12 rubles. But the car body will be under reliable protection and will not require attention for many years.
By the way, if the coating gets bored or ceases to meet fashion trends, it will be easier to buy a new body and re-register documents - it is almost impossible to tear off the “raptor” to metal. That is why off-road owners who use their all-terrain vehicles for their intended purpose love it so much.
