Paint & Body
Painting is involved in every category of a restoration project. Although many car restoration facilities farm out painting to third parties because the equipment is expensive and the process is labor intensive, Palmetto Restorations does all painting in house. Palmetto Restorations knows that painting is the key component of the restoration process and prefers for this crucial, all important process to be completed only by them.
Before painting can begin and to start the media blasting process, Palmetto Restorations disassembles the body of the vehicle, getting it down to its bare shell. Everything is removed and dismantled, including removing the window glass out of the doors. The vehicle is now ready for media blasting to safely remove rust and old paint.
Palmetto Restorations has media blasting equipment that is unique to the industry. Its plastic media booth is a sophisticated piece of machinery that blasts cars with a plastic media versus the traditional sand which can generate surface heat and cause warping. Also, because the plastic media is so non-abrasive, it can be used on fiberglass, plastic, chrome, rubber, copper, steel, brass, glass, aluminum and others. The plastic media is also safer for the environment as it does not create free silica.
Once the paint has been removed and the vehicle has been stripped down to the metal, the entire body is sanded until the metal shines. At this time, all metal work is performed, replacing and removing sections and cutting and patching quarter panels. Then, the car is put back together for test fitting and alignment of doors and panels — surveying the entire body and making sure the gaps are perfect. This testing is done now — before painting — so scratches and adjustments can be made now instead of later when a fresh coat of paint has just been applied.
After an acid etch is performed on the metal body (spraying down of car with acid to remove rust), the surface is smooth and paves the way for a clean adhesion between the primer and metal. The car is primed and the body is massaged, using plastic filler to smooth any rough spots. The final steps include putting on a final primer, then wet sanding, and then sealing it with another primer. Lastly, the final touches are applied by painting the vehicle.
Every project greatly depends on this stage of the restoration, and the state of the art paint booth allows Palmetto Restorations to achieve flawless paint jobs. The Nova Verta down draft paint booth used by Palmetto Restorations is one of the best on the market.
No attention to detail is spared. Palmetto Restorations provides only the highest quality craftsmanship and aims to be the best and most trusted restoration company in the country.