Whether you are just interested in re-spraying a small area to cover up some paint chips, or want to treat your car to a custom paint job that will let you enjoy envious stares from every pedestrian you pass, you will need to follow a few basic rules, and have the right tools to hand in order to carry out the work to a high standard.

The first thing to mention about auto paint jobs is that you should always work in a well ventilated area.  Paint fumes can include a number of solvents that can leave you feeling light headed and even poison you if you inhale them, so make sure there is free passage of air through your work shop when you are painting.  You should also wear a respirator mask during painting or preparation to avoid inhaling any paint and loose dust that you release.

To get the best effects when painting, you also need to make sure that you are able to keep dust to a minimum.  You can achieve a good environment by hanging sheets from floor to ceiling in the area where you are working, and wearing overalls.  You should also vacuum clean the area where you are painting at the beginning of every session.

When you apply auto body paint, the main thing is to get a good even finish that looks good, and the key to getting a good finish is having a good start.  Preparation is everything in paining.  Get it right, and you will be able to enjoy a fantastic smooth finish that will last for years and look great, skimp on your preparation, and your finish will look shabby straight away, and then get worse over time.

Before you paint, you need to strip off the old paint job.  You can do this with a solvent based paint remover, or do it the hard way by sanding back the panels to bare metal using a sander.  Whichever method you choose, you need to make sure that you have a very smooth base.  To ach