Painting 1931 Model A Hood

[Ed in Maine]

The last hood I painted came out just great on the outside (painted last) but the inside (which was painted first) had looked wonderful was now covered with overspray. What is the trick to prevent the paint from blowing through the louvers?

[2manycars]

Ford painted both sides at the same time. If you dont want to try that, then mask off each louver when the back is dry, then mask the entire back.

[flatford39]

You can color sand the inside of the hood to knock off the overspray and then buff it out.

I would knock it down with 1000 grit wet and finish with 1500 grit wet, buff and you are good.

I always paint them in pieces. It's easier to buff this way. I don't put them together until they are finished painted.

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by flatford39

You can color sand the inside of the hood to knock off the overspray and then buff it out.

I would knock it down with 1000 grit wet and finish with 1500 grit wet, buff and you are good.

I always paint them in pieces. It's easier to buff this way. I don't put them together until they are finished painted.

I realize that a lot of you don't really care but in the day, only the outside was buffed. The inside of the hood as well as the firewall was was not as shiny as the main body.

[Marshall V. Daut]

As a follow-up to "Mike V. Florida's" posting, remember that Model A bodies and hoods were painted with nitrocellulose lacquer, while the fenders were dipped in enamel and baked. The fenders would have been shiny right off the bat. But anyone who has spray painted lacquer (not rattle can lacquer) can tell you that it goes on semi-flat and must be sanded and buffed to bring out the shine. Mike is correct about the undersides of the hood and firewall from the factory = unbuffed = semi-dull.
I wouldn't worry about the overspray on the inside of the hood, unless the paint ran, which is hard to do with lacquer. It generally dries almost instantly, unlike enamel, which can form runs hours after the paint has been laid down. If the overspray bothers you, however, you may be able to just hand rub it away without sanding first. It's worth a try, at least. 'Might save you from sanding through the paint.
Marshall

[Tom Wesenberg]

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Here's what the original paint looks like on my 28 Phaeton.

[pgerhardt]

Originally Posted by Mike V. Florida

I realize that a lot of you don't really care but in the day, only the outside was buffed. The inside of the hood as well as the firewall was was not as shiny as the main body.

I assume if you are striving for an authentic looking finish you are using acrylic lacquer not a base coat/clear coat system.

Then just buff off the overspray without the color sanding. You will get a nice, but not a perfect color sanded finish.

BTW I would do the louvers by hand just enough to remove the over spray without cutting through to the primer on the edges.

BTW2 I in fact did color sand and buff the inside surfaces of my hood. (picture 1 - Notice that with no clear coat layer I masked off the edges and rivets to avoid cutting down to the primer) I figured that the factory (applied by skilled craftsmen and baked) un-buffed finish would have been much better than my (sprayed in my tool room) finish. Without any waxing or care the underside should dull out fast enough anyway.

It is done now. With stainless hinge rods, it is back on the car and looks good. (pictures 2-3)

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Has anyone tried my suggestion of using HARDWOOD Dowels, soaked in LINSEED Oil, for hood pins? No RUST & no SQUEEK!
Bill W.

[Mikeinnj]

You just cannot beat the look of a nice old school lacquer paint job, hand rubbed to a deep high gloss. It does not have that artificial look of a base coat /clear coat and is very easy to touch up.

[Ed in Maine]

Thank you for your suggestions, Ed