Not joined yet? Register for free and enjoy features such as alerts, private messaging and viewing latest posts and topics.

DIY respray

Claying, polishing, waxing... share your secrets in here.
Weston Matt
Member
Member
Posts: 238
Joined: Tue May 19, 2020 8:14 pm
Location: Cotswolds

DIY respray

Post by Weston Matt » Fri Sep 03, 2021 7:07 pm

Evening,

After getting quoted £600 to get my front bumper resprayed, I thought about giving it a go myself :o

I like to have a go a most things and while this is something I’ve not done before, I know it’s all in the prep and the spraying is easy :rofl:

My question is to those that know, if my bumper turns out ok I would probably do the rest of the car as I have a big enough work shop to do the panels. Now, if I do them separately would I have an issue with them not matching? As I would be removing all panels from the car and spraying individually as I won’t be able to do the car all in one go.

Car is Titanium Silver

Ta
Matt

User avatar
inkey$
Lifer
Lifer
Posts: 10475
Joined: Sun Mar 21, 2010 9:48 pm
Location: Sevenoaks & Suffolk
Contact:

DIY respray

Post by inkey$ » Fri Sep 03, 2021 7:12 pm

No idea, but kudos for giving it a go.
Current: Project Audi A2 1.4SE
Previously: Z3R 2.8 • E46 330i • Z4R 3.0 • Z4///MC • E90 335i • Z4///MR • Z3///MC 'Breadvan' • Z3R 2.8 • E30 325i R • Z4C • Z4R 3.0

User avatar
Nanu
Lifer
Lifer
Posts: 3912
Joined: Mon Dec 03, 2012 4:47 pm
Location: Sunderland

DIY respray

Post by Nanu » Fri Sep 03, 2021 7:43 pm

I know I tried to spray an old aluminium watering can and made a right mess. The watering can still works but looks awful.

Respect for you trying though :thumbsup:
G29 M30i M Sport San Francisco Red

Previous
E89 35is Valencia Orange
E89 28i Crimson
E89 25i White

User avatar
Zulu4
Member
Member
Posts: 836
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2021 1:22 pm
Location: Lincolnshire

DIY respray

Post by Zulu4 » Fri Sep 03, 2021 7:45 pm

No idea too. Good luck. 👍
I have great respect for those that can spray panels properly.
Everytime I've tried it, it's looked pants.
2007 3.0si Auto Sport Roadster. Whippy.
Previous:
2003 3.0i SE Roadster. Whippy.

john-e89
Lifer
Lifer
Posts: 11027
Joined: Tue Feb 10, 2015 10:27 pm

DIY respray

Post by john-e89 » Fri Sep 03, 2021 7:47 pm

Spraying a car is as you say all in the prep. How much prep needed is the key and you really need to know what that is to get a good result. Also you need a good environment as dust is your enemy, if you don’t know how much dust is around and the effect it has on a car ready to be sprayed then don’t even attempt it Matt. Apologies if I’m telling grandma how to suck eggs. You also need to be aware of paint contamination, it’s sorted with paint blocker but you need to know everything. Have you used a gun before, got a good compressor, ventilation, know about mixing paint, know how to prep before and then polish after painting..? Lots to research, it’s not as easy as first imagined. Would I paint a car even having some experience before…? Not a chance, simply because I’ve had a little experience, with good spraying the more you learn the more you realise you don’t know.

Again not telling granny egg sucking. If you go for it best of luck . :thumbsup:
M roady...OEM CSL’s, strut brace, Remus back boxes, ZHP
MR2 MK 2
E89 35i project car...mapped 365bhp, M4 stoppers & wheels, KWV3’s, H&R front ARB, M3 front arms, strut brace Eisenmann cat back race exhaust, VRSF downpipes inbound
E89 35is
G29

Thrustyjust
Member
Member
Posts: 738
Joined: Sat May 11, 2019 10:12 pm
Location: Thatcham, Berkshire

DIY respray

Post by Thrustyjust » Fri Sep 03, 2021 7:59 pm

Guy at the end of the road prepped and painted his scooby STI a couple of years ago at home. Wasn't the best job and boy does this show now. Really looks poor. He spent weeks prepping ,sanding and a lot of effort. Paint is expensive and so is bodywork. Personally, you have one of the worst colours to repaint being silver , to do in sections. With metallic fleck changes and different temperatures you could be disappointed , car could look lack lustre and out of pocket for materials in a very short period of time.
I always enjoy people 'having a go' at things, but bodywork is a very time consuming and difficult job. A mate of mine rebuilt a classic Mustang and a GT6 Triump and now on an MGB V8, in recent times and is 'very' fussy. He does paint and does an amazing job at it. Very envious. But he is a time served painter and the worst person to go to the classic car show in Birmingham as he points at anything not right and you have to carry loads of paint materials back to the car, that he has pre-ordered. :D
E86 In sapphire black

Zedebee
Lifer
Lifer
Posts: 3296
Joined: Tue Sep 29, 2020 10:37 pm
Location: North Hampshire

DIY respray

Post by Zedebee » Fri Sep 03, 2021 8:36 pm

If you respray your bumper (particularly in silver) without any prior experience, it will look bad, period. You’ll then have to get it properly resprayed and you will have spent more money than getting it properly resprayed in the first place. You should shop around, £600 sounds about twice what you should pay. I have read other members saying that BMW ‘shops are actually quite reasonable.

By all means have a go, but get hold of a spare panel to practise on, or even a spare bumper. Who knows, if it works out you can bolt it straight onto your car; if it doesn’t, you can pretend it never happened. I had exactly the same idea and bought myself a second hand bumper with the intention of respraying it, but then I realised the folly in my ambition and chickened out. Fortunately (unfortunately for him), a fellow member pranged his car, so I was able to find the bumper a good home.

Good luck, whatever you do.
2003 Maldives Blue 3.0i auto
Previously: Maldives Blue 2.5i manual (its back!) and another, and a Monaco Blue 3.0Si coupe

User avatar
abar121
Member
Member
Posts: 499
Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2011 9:14 pm

DIY respray

Post by abar121 » Fri Sep 03, 2021 8:45 pm

If you fancy learning and will enjoy it, give it a go on the bumper.

Getting good results with the right prep, spray gun and compressor is quite a journey, but it can be fun as long has you have plenty of time and patience. Getting a decent colour match will also be quite a challenge.

Get some test panels and practice everything. Don't move on to the bumper until you are happy with the process / technique, from the start of prep, to achieving a decent lacquer finish.

If you have a friendly paint shop that can help with advise and trouble shooting, that will also help. Better still a mate with some experience.

Have fun.
'07 Z4M Interlagos Blue. All options except extended leather.

User avatar
1536Z4
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 1573
Joined: Thu Nov 19, 2020 9:37 pm
Location: North Shropshire

DIY respray

Post by 1536Z4 » Fri Sep 03, 2021 9:19 pm

In my experience and yes I have tried it you will probably end up spending a lot of time and money trying to do it and then end up paying someone else to put it right . You may be lucky and get away with it on the bumper but trying to get everything to match is a BIG job . You can practice on test panels as has been said but again that is more money and time you are spending . Might not be want you want to hear but is my advice :thumbsup: Good luck which ever way you go :thumbsup:
Montego Blue E86 . MILV`s . Simpson Custom Manifold Race Exhaust . xHP transmission stage 3 . VT engine mounts . BC RA coilovers . H&R arbs . Adjustable rear camber arms . Ultra Racing front strut brace . Drexler LSD .

User avatar
tiglon
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 1056
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2019 11:20 am
Location: Essex

DIY respray

Post by tiglon » Fri Sep 03, 2021 9:41 pm

Good luck, I admire your ambition!

If you want to do it, then go for it... however, even the spraying bit will not be as easy as you think. I've spent the last month or two spraying the side indicators and roll hoop covers and I learned the following:

1) spraying stuff is not as easy as it sounds.
2) you need to have strong self control to avoid "just spraying a little bit more" to fill in an area of thinner coverage before waiting for the next coat. Before you know it, you have a small amount of paint running and you've c0cked up the whole thing - back to square one. This is particularly the case with the clear lacquer as it seems to run more easily than the paint, and by this point you've already wasted a lot of time and money if you get it wrong.
3) As mentioned by others, dust is a huge problem. Even in the house/garage. I can live with slight imperfections on the bits of trim, but on an actual panel? No way.
4) Paint gets very expensive and you need more than you think you will.
5) you need to be very focussed with the spraying to ensure consistent angle and distance - just leaning across or around to do a little bit can cause big problems.

I had to buy a new set of roll hoop covers because my first attempt was not good enough and I gave up trying to rectify it after about 3 hours of sanding. You really wouldn't want to have to do that with panels.

I'm glad I attempted the little bits I did, but it would have been cheaper to get a professional to do it. There's zero chance I would attempt a body panel after that experience. Like I said at the start, go for it if you want to, but be aware that no matter how much effort and diligence you put into it, it might not go as well as you hope.
2014 E89 35is Valencia Orange 788M wheels (M2 Competition), E90 M3 control arms, Eibach Pro Kit Springs, MHD Stage 1

User avatar
Zed Baron
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 1581
Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2018 1:17 am
Location: Scotland

DIY respray

Post by Zed Baron » Fri Sep 03, 2021 9:43 pm

I'd be shopping around for other quotes, £600 sounds excessive just to get a bumper painted
Image

Silverstar
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 2716
Joined: Fri Jun 21, 2019 10:06 am
Location: Costa Del Sol

DIY respray

Post by Silverstar » Fri Sep 03, 2021 10:14 pm

I did this once! When I was trading cars, I had an old Toyota Corolla with a mangled bumper. It had a small crack which I repaired using fibre glass repair kit and then had to respray the entire bumper in burgundy metallic which I did in my garage with a spray can. The job turned out ok but nowhere near what a bodyshop what have done but it was fine for the car which wasn't exactly worth a lot and served the purpose for tidying it up for resale.

More recently about 8 years ago my mrs scrapped the rear wheel arch / wing of her Ford Focus on a pillar in the underground parking. Again I repaired this myself, as they say prep is the most important thing I run of patience in doing that so the end result looked ok, most people could not notice the repair except for me but at least the colour match and blending was spot on though, not bad considering the car was white.

In your case as others have pointed out, Silver is a bitch to get right so I would not paint all the panels separately, all the flakes have to fall the right way for all the panels to look right. £600 is way too expensive for a bumper respray, if you look around you should be able to get it done for around £250. Saying that I don't think it will cost you that much in paint to have a go yourself and if the car isn't in A1 concours condition I wouldn't be put off from having a go myself at worse if it goes all wrong you will have to get it done by a pro and you will only be a few quid out of pocket. But at least you will know if you can do it or not.

Look on YouTube for instructional videos on spray painting including tips on how to minimise dust, e.g. by wetting the floor before you paint (so dust can't fly back up) etc.
2009 sdrive30i auto Sapphire Black / Coral Red

Online
User avatar
Chippie
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 2311
Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2019 9:11 pm
Location: Wakefield

DIY respray

Post by Chippie » Fri Sep 03, 2021 10:24 pm

Firstly let me say I admire anyone who is willing to have a go at things, you never learn anything from not trying, I know I’ve had a go at most things and quite often f##ked it up, my boys are always telling me I spend more time and money doing it myself than paying someone to do it, but the sense of achievement when you get it right is a great feeling. You could try keeping the cost down by removing the bumper, trims, etc and doing all the prep work yourself, but any slight imperfections, stone chips, sanding marks will show if not done well, for some reason new paint seems to highlight the smallest of marks, even letting a paint shop do the spraying is no guarantee of getting a paint match, I’ve had quite a few goes over the years and even after several attempts at a single panel I’ve still had to do a lot of flatting and polishing to get a reasonable finish, watching a professional on YouTube or tv they make it look easy but believe me it’s not, if you have the time and are willing to accept that you could make a “pigs ear” of it then have a go, you can always pay to have it done again.
£600 does sound expensive though
E89 35is space grey Kansas coral red leather

parabolica
Member
Member
Posts: 473
Joined: Mon May 28, 2018 8:24 pm

DIY respray

Post by parabolica » Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:16 pm

Zed Baron wrote: Fri Sep 03, 2021 9:43 pm I'd be shopping around for other quotes, £600 sounds excessive just to get a bumper painted
Depends where in the country OP is; I couldn’t get quotes under £800 when I was in London.

Good luck op; I assume you have a proper paint sprayer/setup? I rattle-canned the corner of my bumper (also silver) as I couldn’t get reasonable quotes and was alright, but you could tell if you looked at it for any amount of time. I used an official BMW paint can too; but 17 years old = the paint on the car is different to when it was painted.

Ended up getting a decent quote for bumper, wing and sill when I moved back to Scotland and they did an awesome job.

Silverstar
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 2716
Joined: Fri Jun 21, 2019 10:06 am
Location: Costa Del Sol

DIY respray

Post by Silverstar » Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:19 pm

parabolica wrote: Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:16 pm Depends where in the country OP is; I couldn’t get quotes under £800 when I was in London.
You were obviously looking in the wrong places. I am from London and not too long ago my mate who is also in London had his bumper resprayed for £250.
2009 sdrive30i auto Sapphire Black / Coral Red

Post Reply