Automotive Interior Repair with The Interior Guy » custom painting

Recon-it Right is Live! Viper Products Midwest Distribution Center Up and Running

Mike-TIG — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 04:03:59 +0000

Recon-it Right Products is LIVE!

You read it right! Recon-it Right Products is LIVE! Viper Products and The Interior Guy, LLC. have teamed up to bring you the New Midwest Distribution Center located right here in the heart of the Midwest, Springfield, Missouri.

This will give all you guys located in or around me the ability to get your products faster, more efficiently, and for some cheaper by knocking down on the shipping costs. You can visit us right here right now online at ReconitRight.com .

I’ve been putting this together now since the Mobile Tech Expo, when a fire was lit under my butt and I decided I wanted to tackle this little monster. Well it’s been kinda slow going with a few road bumps along the way but I’m pretty confident I’m up and ready for operation now.

After the expo one big snag I ran into was the huge influx of business Tom got hit with at Viper Products. Which is an incredibly good thing, but wow it blew us away! Viper Products business all but tripled in volume and Tom literally ran out of product for me.

So after time and patients on my part, (which if you know me I have none, I guess its that OCD in me or something, but hey I get it done lol )I’ve got most of the product I need to get started with most small orders and a few larger ones and as you all keep trickling in I’ll just keep adding on and getting bigger and better.

I’m here to tell ya guys I’m pretty excited about this little adventure here. I have got so much to bring you and so many great products. Not only am I going to have Interior Restoration Products but Exterior Detailing Supplies as well. Now the Exterior Detailing Supplies wont be widely available at first but just hang on cause this rides gonna get wild I’m telling you.

I want to bring you guys everything that I can get my hands on that is top of line product, officially tested and proven to work top notch. I want you guys to have the best of the best. I’ve spent years in this business doing my research and after many trials and errors, I’m here to try to eliminate all doubt about this industry.

So don’t hesitate to jump on over to ReconitRight.com and SIGN UP and take a look around at the products and get familiar with all thats there. Now when you register I have to approve you before you can order so give me just a few. I check in several times a day so it won’t be long before your ordering from one the largest suppliers of Automotive Restoration Products in the nationRecon-it Right Products, Viper Products NEW Midwest Distributor!

Sem Aerosol Color Chart

Mike-TIG — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 03:37:31 +0000

Just wanted to put this color chart up here for you do it yourself people who are looking to match a Sem Aerosol vinyl and leather colors to the interior upholstery parts of your automobiles.

Most of the colors are close to the original colors of the interiors of most of the vehicles on the market but always test an area first before you start any project to insure color match.

I will say this on Black, mostly the Landau Black will be the choice for most of your repairs. It just matches better with sheen and all.

Red’s and Blue’s be prepared to use maybe twice as much dye in most projects due to the transparency of the dyes.

Always clean and prep prior to applying any Sem aerosol paints. Soap and warm water always works great! Scotch Brite pads are usually all that’s needed for scuffing the surface, any harsher and sanding marks could be left and will show through and leave you with undesireable results.

Apply a coat of adhesion promoter to the surface before you paint, this will also help to give you maximum adhesion and a lasting repair.

For all your Sem Aerosol colors check out TCP Global’s Auto Color Library. They have a great site for everything automotive whether it be the outside or the inside. Just scroll down on the left you’ll see Vinyl and Leather Paint under the heading Aerosol Paint Center. They will also mix custom colors for you!

Talk to ya soon,
Mike “TIG”

Airbrushing for Fun and Work

Mike-TIG — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 04:07:35 +0000

I came across these airbrush kits through TCP Global and just had to throw them up here. Airbrushing is a great hobby and one that I love to do in my spare time. Now being around paint all day you would think I’d want nothing to do with airbrushing, I mean I use one pretty much on a daily basis, but it’s different. When you sit down to create a piece of art it’s completely different then repairing a leather seat. Yes you do use your artistic abilities to do any type of upholstery repair, but when your creating a piece of art you kinda go into a different zone, at least I do.

About 3 years ago I picked up airbrushing for a hobby and I’ve really enjoyed it a lot. Ive learned things from gun control to mixing colors. Gun control is a big thing in the upholstery repair business and using an airbrush to do detailed work, like a piece of art work, really trains your brain in the hand – eye coordination department.

If your having problems mixing colors this is a great place to test out what colors do what and what colors can be used to tint and get your desired results.

One big thing I’ve learned from using my airbrush is the use of a blocking card. You can achieve so many different results by the use of a blocking card, fades to straight lines. This has helped me in my repairs in so many ways.

Well I hope you like these. Both kits come with an airbrush and a compressor, plus all kinds of other goodies. The airbrushes in these kits I personally own and both are great airbrushes for the beginner and the novice.

High Performance Iwata HP-C Plus Airbrush System

Complete with Accessories.
Powerful Air Compressor with Tank.
Iwata HP-C Plus High Performance Airbrush “Professionals Workhorse”.
How To Secrets: Airbrush Book.
20 Paint Colors to get you Started.
Plus everything to keep it Organized:
Holder for up to 4 Airbrushes.
Cleaning Pot, 100 Mix Cups & Sticks.
Makes a Perfect Gift!
PAYPAL – GOOGLE Checkout – MC – VISA – AMEX – DISCOVER – OnLine Checks – and now:
Paying Made Easy! BILLMELATER – 90 Days with No Payments!
List Price: $569.97 – YOUR PRICE ONLY: 379.98

Paasche VL Complete Airbrush Set

Includes Gravity Airbrush, Compressor and Full Accessories.

Paasche VL Airbrush Set:
Paasche’s Best Selling Dual-Action Airbrush Set!
This Versitile VL Airbrush is Favored by T-shirt artists, but is also great for illustrations, stenciling, and multiple other arts and crafts.
The VL airbrush can obtain spray patterns in detail from fine to very broad, and can handle a vast viscosity range in fluids.
The Paasche VL Set includes:
VL#3 Double-Action Airbrush.
#1 and #5 Aircap, Needle, Nozzle Sets.
Head Protecting Cap.
6 Foot Braided Air Hose.
Metal Color Cup.
Two Bottle Assemblies and Bottle w/Cover Assembly.
Hanger and Wrench.
PAASCHE’S 22 Airbrush Lessons Booklet and Parts Sheet! .
The VL AIRBRUSH is Excellent for multiple use: Custom Auto and Motorcycle Graphics, T-Shirt Airbrushing, Taxidermy, Leather Airbrushing, Models, Trains, RC Cars, Ceramics, Graphic Arts, Body Art Tattoos, Cake Decorating, Chip or Ding Repair, and More!.
The VL can obtain spray patterns in detail from fine to very broad, and can handle a vast viscosity range in fluids. This airbrush is suitable for both left or right-handed users. This airbrush also has optional color cups and bottle assemblies are available for larger volumes of paint.
Here’s an idea of pattern sizes and which set-ups are best for various fluids: .
VL#1 Spray Pattern 1/64″- 1″ for Light Fluids.
VL#3 Spray Pattern 1/32″- 1 1/4″ for Medium Fluids.
VL#5 Spray Pattern 1/16″- 1 1/2″ for Heavy Fluids.
The recommended air pressure 0.5 to 1 CFM @ 20 to 45 lbs.
System Includes:
Paasche VL-SET Precision Dual-Action Siphon Feed VL Airbrush Set with 3 Tips.
and Braided Airbrush Hose (Includes Factory Warranty).
Airbrush-Depot Brand Model TC-20T Maintenance Free Air Compressor with Tank (Includes a Full 2 Year Warranty) that has a Automatic On/Off Shutoff, Air Regulator with Gauge & Water Trap Filter.
Createx Brand 12 Popular Airbrush Paint Colors Set.
Createx Brand How to Begin Airbrushing DVD.
Plus everything to keep it Organized:
3 in 1 Use Airbrush Cleaning Pot along with Airbrush Cleaning Solution .
100 1 oz. Plastic Mixing Cups and 100 Mixing Sticks.
Universal Airbrush Holder for up to 4 Airbrushes.
PAYPAL – GOOGLE Checkout – MC – VISA – AMEX – DISCOVER – OnLine Checks – and now:
Paying Made Easy! BILLMELATER – 90 Days with No Payments!
List Price: 389.97 Your Price: 259.98

Painting Plastic Gauge Cluster Mounts To Match

Mike-TIG — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:43:34 +0000

Please don’t mount it before you paint it !!

If your cars trim is not black then why in the world would you want to put a custom item in your car or truck without making it look custom.

Painting your gauge cluster mounts to match your vehicles interior will make it look so much more factory and well again look “custom”.

We all like to have a nice looking interior in our cars and trucks like adding little interior upgrades and such. By making these items match and paying attention to the little details will pay off in the end and make your ride look like a million dollars and not like a five dollar ride.

Painting these little items to match is really easy and takes just a few minutes and I’m gonna tell you how to do it so you’ll have no excuse other then not having access to the materials, oh but wait I have those too, so see you have no excuse, unless you just want me to do it for you and well I can do that too.

So with all the excuses out of the way lets get down to it.

Things you’ll need:

Prepping solution. This can be a number of things, some use Wax and Grease Remover others just use soap and water. Both will work but definatily use something to remove any silicone and grease, paint doesn’t stick to silicone and grease.
Scotch brite pad to scuff and clean the surface
Paper Towels preferably the Blue Shop Towels, less lint and fuzzys left behind
Solvent adhesion promoter or water borne adhesion promoter
Sems Classic Dye to match or Vipers Pro Series Water Based dye

Once you have your supplies, it’s time to prep. I’ve found the easiest way to do this is in the sink. Just put the gauge cluster under warm water with your Scotch Brite pad scrub the entire cluster mount, add a little dish soap to the pad and scrub every inch that will be painted. Paying close attention to the crevices and creases. You want to scuff it all, this will make sure that down the line sometime the paint doesn’t start flaking off. Once done dry off with a clean towel, try not to touch the surface if you can, fingerprints have oils in them.

Next thing is a really crucial part and that is the adhesion promoter. This will ensure your paint will stick for years to come. Apply the solvent based Bulldog Adhesion Promoter by spraying one light coat, let dry, then apply another heavier coat let tack up then dye. If your using water based then I like to use a wet Bounty Paper Towel, just pour a little on the towel and wipe it on.

Dying or painting the gauge cluster mount to match is your last step. If your using the Sems in a rattle can, shake the can thoroughly to get it all mixed up. Hold the can about 8 to 10 inches away and with sweeping bursts spray light coats at a time letting them tack up a little between. About 3 to 4 coats should be enough unless your having to go a really light color then a few more may be needed. But don’t load the dye on or you’ll lose the factory look.

Now if your using water based dyes, light coats drying between. I had a guy leave me a comment a while back about painting plastic with water based dyes. He was having a problem with the dyes running. The first thing I thought of was that he may have watered his dye down. The dyes shouldn’t need to be thinned, but if you do need to a little at a time, or you will have problems. The other thing I thought was that maybe when he sprayed it on the plastic he didn’t spray light coats drying between. When I say light coats I mean the first coat really looks like you didn’t put dye on at all. The trick is building it up. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if the dye is ready for a second coat, but I usually look for the dye to “mat out”. What I mean by this is when the dye dries it turns to a mat finish, then your ready for a second coat. By doing it this way you will get maximum adhesion from your dye and the outcome will look factory. Water based does take a little more patience to work with but the outcome is so much nicer I think.

K, here it is the gauge cluster painted to match. Now this will look a heck of a lot better hanging up there then some black looking “thing” stuck up on the pillar for all to see. Not to custom, huh?
Now they’ll see a custom job and know that you really care what your vehicle looks like.
This job took me all of about 30 minutes to complete and the customer was extremely pleased. That little piece laying next to the cluster mount was the piece he gave me to match the dye off of. I match all my dyes by eye so this was a little bit difficult because of the size of the item, next time I’ll get a bigger piece to go off of, but I did it and it looked great.
Well I wish you luck on painting your gauge clusters to match. If you need anything don’t hesitate to contact me.
If your one that would like to have a professional job done then just give me ring and I will be happy to take care of those little details that make your ride stand out from the rest crowd.

Talk to ya soon,

Mike “TIG”