Blocking / filling.

[PaulMcElhinney]

Gents, this question is posed principally to anyone who is actually in the bodywork / restoration trade. However if you're not and you have a view please feel free to express it. The question is this. If your classic car has had new half wings, new door bottoms, near rear arch repair panels etc, you get the idea, plenty of new outer panelwork, how well should the new metalwork be finished? What is the industry standard for filler to be applied to the repaired areas? Is there a generally accepted filler thickness that one must expect to be required to block the car to a standard ready for paint?

Also how well would you expect the fabricator to finish the accessible welds on the inside of the panels? When a fabricator says "that's a job for the paint man" is that just his opinion or is there an accepted practice in the trade amongst these tradesmen?

Thanks, Paul.

 

[richie00boy]

P80 is the grit for filler to sit on.

No accepted filler thickness, an ideal world would be no filler. It's the max thickness you want to worry about, anything more than 6mm is a very poor job. Usually it's 1mm or so. It shouldn't be over large areas either.

 

[hotrodder]

Not in the bodywork/restoration trade but have done a reasonable amount of coachwork as well as working with people in the trade (making parts for the car being restored etc). IME you can metal finish something to a high enough standard that zero filler is need and some (many?) bodyshops/painters will, if given the chance, pretty much trowel filler over the entire thing. I don't blame them, they're being paid to produce a straight & shiney paint job; the good ones just end up sanding more filler off when the metalwork is spot on...

If you're paying someone to paint it they're the people to speak to

 

[PaulMcElhinney]

Thanks for your replies gents.