Building a Track Car – The Miata being prepped for paint.

Yesterday I drove out to Masterblend to meet with Phil and see how things were looking as regards the Miata.  He had already been working on the hardtop prior to Mark and I bringing over the Miata.

I had thought that it would be handy to paint a track car in Rustoleum satin black paint.  That way I would have a durable finish that – should I have a minor scrape or ding – I could quickly fix and paint out of a rattle can.

Phil was willing to try it.  He tested the paint quite a few places as he prepared the car and the top.  The results were not as good as I had hoped.  The Rustoleum just stays too soft too long.

So it is on to a “real” automotive paint that Phil has ordered that will still be a satin black.  In the mean time he has done a lot to prepare the body surface for shooting.

Mark and I had repaired a couple of major rust areas with patch panels and I had given the body a general sanding after removing the factory pinstripes and badging.   This left Phil with places that still needed work.  Granted this is not going to be a show car and it won’t have a shiny clear coat, but a good outcome means more work.

Hopefully Phil will start painting on Monday.  At least the top is ready – after he worked on some small cracks and ensured that the top was solid.  I will be out of town for a couple of days, but by the time I return I hope that Mark and I can drive out with the roll-back and get it back for some of the final mechanical work.