Help with a golf cart?

E

eyeage

New Member
Hello everyone. I've been fixing up golf carts as a kind of side hustle. Until this point, it's mostly been mechanical and/or electrical. But my next one is ugly. It has the factory tan finish. It has some scratches I need to fix as well.

Hoping you guys can help. There's so much information out there, it's a bit overwhelming.
I purchased a Fuji Q4 - 4 stage HVLP turbine paint sprayer for the project. I'm hoping to continue doing this. I have rattle canned a bunch of things in my life and have some experience with body work from when I was a kid - helping my dad.

Color will be white

Things I think I've learned..
- Urethane paint is what I should use.
- Scuff with red scotchbrite first, then wax/grease remover... Then adhesion promoter
- Clearly either of the above could be wrong...

Questions I still have:
- Primer necessary? Sealer? Only if I have major defects? I bought some bondo glazing putty for the scratches. If primer necessary, what type?
- BC/CC vs Single stage? Seems that single stage may be the better option... but BC/CC allows more chances to fix errors, and has more "depth". I would like to at least consider a metallic finish if it's not cost prohibitive or too difficult.
- If single stage, do you wet sand or anything between coats? Cut and polish when done?
- If BC/CC - what's the process? 3 coats BC then clear? Any sanding in there?
- At any point in this do I need a flex additive? No, based on what I've read...
- Are there any urethane systems to avoid? Again, this is for a golf cart. Cheaper is better while still making it look good.
- On the metallic aspect, what options to consider? Or forgo for now?

Appreciate any help you can provide.
 
It would be helpful to know what the substrate is. Steel, aluminum, plastic, fiberglass?
And are you sanding down to substrate, or recoating factory paint?
 
Dean Jenkins said:
It would be helpful to know what the substrate is. Steel, aluminum, plastic, fiberglass?
And are you sanding down to substrate, or recoating factory paint?
Click to expand...
It's plastic. I'm not sure of the exact type of plastic; I've read thermoplastic olefin. I'm do not plan to take the factory paint off. Only to scuff with the red scotchbrite.

"Body: Mold-in Polypropylene color for White and Beige Color. Custom-formulated thermoplastic olefin painted with a two-part top coat of high-luster automotive-grade polyurethane"
 
That helps. If you are painting over factory paint and just doing minor repair, the best is to sand it, then shoot it with epoxy primer, do your repair, shoot a sealer coat of reduced epoxy and then either Single Stage or Base/Clear, your choice. Both are good.

Red scothbrite is not the right choice to prep the factory paint, it will not cut the way you need. Sand it with 320 or 400 grit sandpaper before epoxy.
 
About fifteen years ago we were painting golf cart bodies for a company that refurbished lease end fleets of carts. back then we were painting about ten EZ go bodies a week for two years. We would repair and sand the bodies up to 180 or 220 grit. Then a 2k primer and finish sand and paint with base clear. Because all the bodies were beat up and used, any less than that and they would look bad. Had a lot of fun painting flames, tu tones and custom fades and stripes. All our bodies looked better than new. ~BOB
 
I paint golf carts all the time. I sand them with 180/220 depending on condition..3 coats of epoxy, wait 2 days. Sand and paint. 3 coats of epoxy fills everything i feel
 
I generally like Klean Strip products, but Bulldog is banned from my shop due to some comebacks that happened while we were using it.
I have zero interest in their new and improved "plus" product, maybe someone else here has tried it.
 
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