Stratos rebuild

[Paul Irvine]

Hi,
Been viewing the forum for some time and thought I should start to join in rather than just read other posts.
I have been in the marine industry for years building and now on the design side of things.
Current project is a late 80's Hawk Stratos, it's mid way through GP4 upgrade, new engine & mounts, new cooling sytem, new exhausts etc.
The issue I have is I dont know what paint in on the body, where the back end has a new rear section this can all carried out without any issues, the front clam, doors, and main tub are all red and will all be repainted.
Question is, can I epoxy prime over the existing paint, it is sound just dull and the wrong colour, I dont know what it is could be 2K could be celly.

Paul

 

[normspanners]

Welcome to the forum,

Sorry no help to offer but----
I have seen the real ones in anger years ago, Fantastic sound never worked on one but used to love them,
Steve Perez has one he uses on classic rallies.

 

[li150ss]

have you got any paint? or a bit you could beg off a mate? was going to suggest to do a small test spray on a part and see if it reacts.

project looking good, keep pics and updates coming

 

[steveo3002]

a rag with cellulose thinners on it would be likley to soften cellulose paint almost instantly , 2k would untouched at least for a few mins maybe uneffected altogether

with regards to painting over it , well yes you can if you can trust whats been done 100% , if its costing you money then it might be an idea to sand it back well to check its all sound and nice , then your epoxy will be going on a known good base and should last well

 

[lotus 30]

Paint is all in the prep there is no easy way sand it with an orbital sander all over then

fill as required or fiberglass repair.
The last car i done was a fiberglass one i found cardboard in the rear wing no idea it was there beforehand i had to mould from the other side to repair it.600hours later job was finished.
If you skimp on prep you will waste paint trying to make good.

 

[ibrooks]

It's an issue I'll be hitting sooner rather than later with my GTM Coupe, it's dark blue at the moment but I fancied white like yours. Actually a choice inspired by a picture of one sat at the bottom of the Goodwood test hill (I think). I'm guessing it's your car as the first half of the reg is the same.

From my understanding epoxy doesn't tend to be as fierce from a solvent point of view and stands less of a chance of affecting what's already on there than 2k iso or even celly but with existing unknowns it's always going to be a lottery and real world testing is pretty much the only way to be sure.

My alternative choice with the Coupe is a really explosive looking electric blue if I can find one that doesn't involve metallic or pearl coats.

Iain

 

[lchris21]

nice project...........nice size man cave

 

[slim_boy_fat]

I love these kinds of builds, keep the updates coming.

Is that a Lotus Europa lurking in the corner?

 

[Paul Irvine]

It's an issue I'll be hitting sooner rather than later with my GTM Coupe, it's dark blue at the moment but I fancied white like yours. Actually a choice inspired by a picture of one sat at the bottom of the Goodwood test hill (I think). I'm guessing it's your car as the first half of the reg is the same.

From my understanding epoxy doesn't tend to be as fierce from a solvent point of view and stands less of a chance of affecting what's already on there than 2k iso or even celly but with existing unknowns it's always going to be a lottery and real world testing is pretty much the only way to be sure.

My alternative choice with the Coupe is a really explosive looking electric blue if I can find one that doesn't involve metallic or pearl coats.

Iain

Hi Iain,
Yes that's my GTM coupe, the photo was taken about 14 years ago at Brooklands, still use the car for classic tours etc


The other car under the cover is my Sylva Star, owned that since 1988, been all over the place in it, toured Europe in 91 & 92, sprinted and hillclimbed with it, now it just sits under a sheet waiting.
Paul

 

[Paul Irvine]

Put the headlight shells through the paint shop today, PPG epoxy primer, and they look fine, the headlights have the same paint as the body.
Paul

 

[Paul Irvine]

a rag with cellulose thinners on it would be likley to soften cellulose paint almost instantly , 2k would untouched at least for a few mins maybe uneffected altogether

with regards to painting over it , well yes you can if you can trust whats been done 100% , if its costing you money then it might be an idea to sand it back well to check its all sound and nice , then your epoxy will be going on a known good base and should last well

Just an update,
As sugested, wiped over the underside of the bootlid and where the new back end has been fitted with a rag and some cellulose thinners, after about 30 seconds started to leave a bit of red residue on the cloth, paint was not soft afterwards.

 

[Paul Irvine]

Hi All,
I could do with some advice on the epoxy primer in the engine bay, I'm using Lechler epoxy tinted black, it's had a couple of coats on Sunday, the top coat was going to be satin black but I'm pretty pleased with it as is, do I need to use a 2K satin or could I just give it a rub down and add another coat of epoxy?

 

[anjum]

Paint satin black over the top as the epoxy is not uv stable.
Great project.

 

[Paul Irvine]

Hi,
Thanks for the comment on the paint, can anyone recommend a 2k satin black to go over the primer.
Thanks
Paul

 

[norsa]

If you have a local paint supplier, any black will do and they can add or sell you a matting compound.

 

[mangocrazy]

I'm not that much of a car person (prefer bikes) but the Stratos is/was an incredible piece of kit and still looks fresh 40 years on. I spectated at the RAC rally in the late 70s and the Stratos just left everything else in the shadows. Keep the pics and the updates coming - it's great to see one of the kits restored to their former glory. What engine is fitted? I always hankered after one fitted with the Alfa V6. Still do...

 

[stormin]

Paint satin black over the top as the epoxy is not uv stable.
Great project.

UV stability shouldn't be too much of an issue in the engine bay. Unless unreliability means you have the hood up for extended periods of time!
I would be tempted to leave it with the epoxy finish.

 

[Tinbasherdan]

Just seen this, just did a little excited wee

 

[zx9]

I'm not that much of a car person (prefer bikes) but the Stratos is/was an incredible piece of kit and still looks fresh 40 years on. I spectated at the RAC rally in the late 70s and the Stratos just left everything else in the shadows. Keep the pics and the updates coming - it's great to see one of the kits restored to their former glory. What engine is fitted? I always hankered after one fitted with the Alfa V6. Still do...

When I was a kid growing up in East Yorkshie one of the 'poor' farmers had a real one, it was always the highlight of my week seeing and hearing it drive through the village. I think he also owned the first Range Rover and UR Quattros that I ever saw in real life.

 

[mangocrazy]

Haha. Never yet met a poor farmer...