On Fri, 20 Feb 1998, Larry Dickstein wrote:
> Cordell, Ralph PhD wrote:
> > > A lot of factors go into determining the cost of a paint job, not the
> > least of which is the cost of the paint. You can get some idea of that
> > by checking with local auto paint stores and asking the price for the
> > materials they will be using.
>
> > I can tell you from experience that I spent far more time getting the
> > body ready for paint than actually shooting the paint.
> >
> >
> Ralph and others-
> I'm not too tuned into the engine work but I do know it's CHEAP
> compared to quality body work. Quality body work takes time--there is
> now way around it. Even w/ new Rover body panels, there is a lot of
> time necessary to work them to where they will look good.
> A quality body shop around here gets 50-60 dollars an hour. We can
> argue all day about whether that is worth it or not but that is the
> rate. If you are paying for a "paint job" then Earl Schieb is the place
> to go. Two or three hundred will get it painted. Now if you want to do
> it right, it's going to cost you 3-5 grand--that's the way it is. Ralph
> is absolutely right--the preparation is everything. Almost anyone can
> "paint" a car. Do the prep, buy the paint, and bring it to my house and
> I'll shoot it for nothing. You will have to have done all the metal
> work, the flat sanding, and all the other stuff which takes all the time
> and most of the money. I won't spend the hundreds of hours necessary
> for that stuff for free, however, and that's where quality paintwork
> costs a lot.
> Some one said once "You get what you pay for"
> and he/she was right, especially in body work.
> --
> Larry Dickstein Kansas City, MO
> '58 Bugeye, '67 BJ 8, '67 MGB V8
>
>
I'll second that (or is it third that) when I said the prep work in my
previous post I was refering to sanding and removal of everything that is
bolted on including the windshield. For dents let the pro's do it. Last
summer I had a rather nasty dent from a tire that fell off the front. The
insurance company gave me $700 after a $250 deductable. A body shop took
the dent out and primed it for $150 I think, maybe it was $125. I bought
the paint (a pint oflacquer) for about $30 and painted the fender in about
40 minutes. Another 1 1/2 hours is needed to wet sand and rub it out but
my time invested is less than 1/2 day. To take the dent out would have
taken me at leats 10 hours and still wouldn't have looked right. Even the
smallest dent should be left to a pro. Been down the road enough to know
what to avoid.
...Art
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