School me on DA sanders ; Electric vs pneumatic

[Buick355]

I'm about to embark on my first auto body project, a crusty old 63 Beetle. It's had a couple of what looks like cheap rattle can coats of paint, and some rust here and there. I want to start by sanding and priming the whole car, and fixing dings and dents as I go.

I've read pneumatic DA sanders are the way to go, but my compressor is only a 20 Gallon CH, so it's not going to keep up. Are there any decent electrical sanders out there?

[Baron Von Crowder]

I'm about to embark on my first auto body project, a crusty old 63 Beetle. It's had a couple of what looks like cheap rattle can coats of paint, and some rust here and there. I want to start by sanding and priming the whole car, and fixing dings and dents as I go.

I've read pneumatic DA sanders are the way to go, but my compressor is only a 20 Gallon CH, so it's not going to keep up. Are there any decent electrical sanders out there?

air is better, but they are noisy, the compressor runs full time to keep up, etc. I only burned up one harbor fright electric doing my bug. Bought the warranty, they swapped it out for me.

[Sean88gt]

FML...I almost asked which jurisdiction he was in...

[Baron Von Crowder]

FML...I almost asked which jurisdiction he was in...

my condolences, counselor.

[Buick355]

air is better, but they are noisy, the compressor runs full time to keep up, etc. I only burned up one harbor fright electric doing my bug. Bought the warranty, they swapped it out for me.

How'd it perform?

I was thinking of buying a middle of the road brand DA Sander like Porter Cable, Dewalt, Bosch, etc..

[Buick355]

FML...I almost asked which jurisdiction he was in...

In 6 weeks I get to point and laugh at you from the land of free time.

[Baba Ganoush]

Pneumatic all the way. My 20 gal craftsman kept up just fine, though it will generate some heat. I only used it for stripping and knocking down filler. All primer sanding I did by hand, block sanding.

[Sean88gt]

In 6 weeks I get to point and laugh at you from the land of free time.

Embrace the shit out of that!

[46Tbird]

I'm about to embark on my first auto body project,

If you intend to keep doing auto body projects, then the only answer here is to get a real air compressor and some decent tools. You'll constantly be frustrated with a compressors running out of air, or going back and forth to HF to return bad tools. That goes for air or electric btw.

If you only want to do one Vdub, then you can probably get by with a cheap electric DA. I would expect to use that warranty at least once though. Most of the electric ones are real shit.

[Baron Von Crowder]

If you intend to keep doing auto body projects, then the only answer here is to get a real air compressor and some decent tools. You'll constantly be frustrated with a compressors running out of air, or going back and forth to HF to return bad tools. That goes for air or electric btw.

If you only want to do one Vdub, then you can probably get by with a cheap electric DA. I would expect to use that warranty at least once though. Most of the electric ones are real shit.

After one veedub, I never want to touch anything resembling a da ever again.

[Buick355]

If you intend to keep doing auto body projects, then the only answer here is to get a real air compressor and some decent tools. You'll constantly be frustrated with a compressors running out of air, or going back and forth to HF to return bad tools. That goes for air or electric btw.

If you only want to do one Vdub, then you can probably get by with a cheap electric DA. I would expect to use that warranty at least once though. Most of the electric ones are real shit.

I doubt I'll be doing body work frequently, but I don't intend to buy junk either, so something I can rely on to do a decent job without breaking the bank would be nice. A larger compressor really isn't in the budget, but if I can't get around it I guess it'll have to be.

I doubt I will paint this thing. I intend to get the body straight and smooth, and maybe block sand the primer coat, then let a professional paint it. I'm sure said professional will need to do some final prep work that I missed or messed up. I know NOTHING about body work, so I am starting from almost total ignorance on this.

After one veedub, I never want to touch anything resembling a da ever again.

Can you post pics of your project?

Any advice on where to start with the DA sander? 220 grit? There's going to be A LOT of sanding I'm sure.

pic of beetle still at previous owner's place:





As you can see I have my work cut out for me.

[Baron Von Crowder]

started with this




and finished it up

[46Tbird]

I doubt I will paint this thing. I intend to get the body straight and smooth, and maybe block sand the primer coat, then let a professional paint it.

I recommend talking to whoever this person is FIRST. Find out what kind of products he recommends you use. That way his work is not affected by some bad chemistry interaction with the substrate.

And actually, the work you described is the hard work - and the part that will show the most! Getting that round body to be straight is going to be a challenge. You can do it, but take your time and do it right. Shiny paint on top of poor bodywork doesn't look much better than what you already have.

Once you've done all the body work and primered it, you might just want to finish the job too. Laying down the paint is very simple, unless you choose a metallic or pearlescent paint.

I'm not taking credit for any of this work - my dad did every bit of it - but it takes a lot of effort to paint a car.

[Baba Ganoush]

I did a full paint job in my home shop once.....ONCE. It's very rewarding to know I can do it, but it made a big goddamned mess lol.

http://www.dfwmustangs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=14112

[Baron Von Crowder]

im still in love with your dad's caddy, Danny.