Mitchell Zook - Owner

 

 

Mitchell Zook, as a young teenager, worked at his Grandfather's auto body & paint shop, learning everything about the industry from the top professionals.  In an interview he explained what he learned in his early days in Southern California, growing up inside of the shop:

Mitch, Tell us How You Learned To Paint a Car:
 
Mitch: One of the first things I asked is if you should paint a car in pieces or not? It’s not a common question, but a good one. My Grandpa took the time to explain and show me everything from A - Z.
 

There will be pro’s and con’s of painting a car or any project in pieces.

 
If you’re painting solid, metallic colors with no added flake, pearl or candy then you can paint in pieces or stages.
 
What I mean by stages is painting part of the car one day. Like your hood, fenders and bumpers, then painting the rest of the car the next day all in pieces in your garage.
 
The reason it’s ok to do this is because your colors aren’t custom. You’re not adding extra flake or pearl in your intercoat or in your clear coat.
 
If you are, then color matching will be an issue. The reason why is that you won’t be able to SEE how your coats are laying on. Thus, not being able to correctly color match your panels.
 
If you're painting all of your parts in the booth at once and in pieces, then yes. You can do this if you feel that you can lay even coats over all parts.
 
What About Painting Custom Colors?
 
Mitch: The more custom your colors are, the harder it will be to color match. You’ll have to also ensure correct paint mixing ratios. Just like CANDY PAINTS. If spraying candy, it’s recommended to paint your car or entire project in one piece.
 
Unless the parts are small like a motorcycle fairing kit.
 
Then you can have your fenders, tank and side fairings all next to each other and painting them at once in pieces.
 
If painting something small like this, then yes painting custom all in pieces at once is the only real way to accomplish a world-class job.
 
As long as you have great lighting and all pieces are in good range to check for color matching you can basically spray custom colors with pearls, flake and even candy.
 
The whole point is not to spray custom colors such as added pearl, flake and candy in pieces on different days. If you’re doing all of this at once in your garage or spray booth on the same day, you can go for it.
 
 
 
 

I wouldn’t recommend this for newbies. If you are a newbie, and your thinking of shooting pearl, flake and even candy then spray your car in one piece.

 
 
It will give you a better chance to get a good color match, and remember, candies are the one of the hardest top coats to paint.
 

You must feel comfortable with your gun and have proper flow and distance down pat first. If not, you risk having a blotchy and uneven candy coat.





Can You Tell Us Some Inside Information on Painting and Auto-Body Work?






Mitch: As days go by, automobiles play an integral part in the lives of so many people. Almost everyday, they use cars to accomplish their various needs especially in terms of traveling. However, upon waking up some day, they may find these precious things greatly affected by wear-and-tear caused by certain underlying factors such as weather changes, accidental bumps, and scratches. To restore the beauty and glow of cars, a simple car painting process can get the job done.


The most important materials required in this simple car painting process are sandpaper, soap and water, and black enamel paint. Additionally, a wax stripper or any kind of degreaser is also necessary to attain that perfect car painting result. Body putty, wire, and clear coat paint also serve specific purposes, and so do a masking tape and a paint primer. Before starting, an ample amount of plastic is necessary to cover all the windows of the car. Lastly, a urethane-based paint of a desired color is also essential for that all-important final coating.



To facilitate the car painting process, some important tools can really help such as garden hose, paint sprayer, and rags. In terms of location, an enclosed room like a garage can complement the procedure, which is divided into two phases namely the pre-painting and the actual painting.



The Pre-Painting Phase:



1. To prepare a car for some really good painting, it is necessary to clean it thoroughly, removing all the dirt, grease, and wax in the process. Before starting, every surface must be absolutely clean. A garden hose can facilitate the attainment of this simple step.



2. For the paint to attain that perfect glow, the surface must be smooth. Use a sandpaper to level out and remove rough portions, scratches, and rust.



3. Use the wire to ground the car in order for the static dust to stop attracting more dust.



4. Wipe off any dirt, ensuring that the car is completely clean before starting the painting process.



5. Use the plastic to protect the windows from getting any of the paint. A masking tape is enough to keep the plastic in position. For portions of the car that needs no painting, cover them as well to protect from the paint.



6. If there are holes or uneven surfaces, simply apply some putty to level them out and create a smooth look all over.



7. Wait until the putty dries off totally, and prepare for the actual painting phase.








The Actual Painting Phase:



1. After all the preparations, it is now time to actually paint the car by loading the primer into the paint sprayer, and then spray it all over the surface of the automobile. After use, clean the sprayer very well in preparation for the second level of coating. Wait for some time until the surface totally dries off before proceeding to the next step.



2. It is now time to put the second coating by loading the black enamel paint into the sprayer, and then spray it evenly all over the surface. Clean the sprayer once again after use then wait for some time for the paint to dry off completely.



3. Use the sandpaper to remove all the rough areas as well as the entire coating of black enamel in preparation for the next step.



4. Reload the sprayer once again, this time using the urethane-based paint of desired color, and then spray it evenly all over the surface. Wait again for some time until the paint dries off.



5. When the last coat is already dry, repeat the last step and then clean the sprayer once again.



6. After the second coat of the urethane-based paint dries off, reload the clear coat paint into the sprayer, and then spray it all over the surface of the car. Wait for some time until the paint dries off completely.



7. Repeat the last step for two more times and then move on to clean the sprayer after use.



8. After the final coating is finally over, give it some time for at least overnight to dry off perfectly. For additional designs, this is the perfect time to put them.



9. After placing all the desired designs, take off the plastic as well as the masking tape. Clean off everything else and you are ready to go with a brand new looking car!