preping/sealing wood for automotive paint? Help...

[mushmouth]

I have a question:

I used Goof Off to get the top layers of (repainted) paint off of my pac man cabinet, hoping to salvage what was underneath. No such luck. The original layer was ALL messed up.

So here's my dilemma:

I'm having a friend who specializes in custom street rods and choppers do the painting/artwork and he'll be using automotive paint. You can't just use primer or wood sealant and paint car paint on it over wood. It's going to keep soaking it in.

He asked if there was some kind of a resin that could be used to create a new, hard layer that won't absorb the automotive paint. There's fiberglass resin, but that's way overkill. I checked Menards, and didn't see anything.

For the record, the cabinet is made out of 3/4" plywood.

Anyone have any experience with this? Obviously, car paint is not the ideal way to go, but his work is phenomenal and it'll cost me nothing, paint included, so a workable solution is what I seek.

Any experiences/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
mushmouth

[APFelon]

Off-topic, but-

Sorry to hear about the original layer of paint. I was optomistic that it would look at least semi-decent. Good to hear that the project is coming along, keep us updated on the Announcement forum.

APf

[Tailgunner]

I'd go with a urethane. It'll take 2 to 3 coats to completely seal the plywood, but once it cures, it's be durable as all hell.

[Hammerbot]

I'd say call your local automotive paint distributor. They are the real experts. Fid out what paint your pal is planning on using and let the experts tell you where to go...

Tell them the same story you wrote above and ask them what they recommend.

I would worry about using polyeurathane on the cab and then gambling on whether the paint will adhere properly. I'll bet your friend wouldn't be as willing to do the paint a second time due to bad prep work...

[eRA186]

me and a friend of mine do custom paint jobs on cars(i.e. kandies,pearls,flames)and i did marbelization with kandy colors on 3/4 mdf with regular auto primer and had no problems. it came out super clean but i agree its all in the prep.

[mushmouth]

What do you mean "it's all in the prep"? Could you be more specific?

Also, isn't plywood a LOT more porous than MDF?

My friend said automotive primer will keep soaking into plywood, like, forever...

[eRA186]

What do you mean "it's all in the prep"? Could you be more specific?

Also, isn't plywood a LOT more porous than MDF?

My friend said automotive primer will keep soaking into plywood, like, forever...

the prep work is just sanding the material,priming, resanding,making sure everything smooth and clean.once thats done properly you will see the imperfections,if any,to fix before shooting the paint. yes i believe plywood is very porous,maybe you should switch to mdf if possible.but i would suggest to customize just the cp because auto paint might become a problem for the whole cabinet depending on how many coats it could get a lot heavier.