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Ashes in paint?


Nick H.

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Hey guys, I hope we have a few paint pros in here, because I need some help answering a quick question.

 

My Dad and I have been working on the Monte Carlo since about '96, when he stopped DD'ing it and decided to start building it up. We took it to the bare metal, fixing all the problems the car had before. The body of the car was painted Corvette Competition Yellow with black racing stripes, but after the paint work was done, Dad bought new front fenders and had a 4" fiberglass cowl induction hood made for it. The fenders and hood are already cut in, the outside surfaces of the fenders are in primer still, outer surface of the hood is in black gelcoat. I'm going to do the prep work to paint all of it at once next summer, but I have a unique situation now. . .

 

Dad passed away in January of this year, and we had him cremated (per his wishes), and I want to put some of his ashes in the paint for the front end. I wanted to make sure that it wouldn't cause any problems when it comes time to spray the paint, like fisheyeing, orange peeling, etc. I just want to know what I'm up against, I've been told by some people that it shouldn't cause any problems considering I'm not putting a lot of ashes into the paint, some people have said that it will affect the adhesion properties of the paint, but none of them have had any experience with it, and their levels of expertise are questionable at best. Honestly, I've done a lot of body work on this car over the years, and helped Dad paint many others, so I don't believe it will adversely affect the finished product, but it's a question worth asking.

 

Thanks in advance for the help, and I hope to be posting up pictures of the car when it's done next summer.

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That's an interesing question. I'd be willing to bet that nobody has gone there before.

Im not a chemist, but I believe they use ash to alter PH levels in farming soil. I don't know how that might affect paint...especially since you aren't using much of it. I DO know that the ashes you speak of aren't of consistent size. You will find anything from powder to fragments in there. I guess you could process the stuff and grind it like flour, but it doesn't sound very respectful to me.

I'd say run some through a very fine seive, (maybe like a paint strainer?) and use it in your primer coat. I suspect that your Dad will always be a part of the car whether you decide to use the ashes or not.

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Dad will always be a big part of the car. It was transformed by the two of us from being a pea-green (I think the color was Seafoam Green or something like that) DD to being a 700hp bright yellow beast of an automobile. He poured his hard earned money, his time, his blood, sweat, and tears into the restoration, and I can honestly say it was "built, not bought", since every bit of work done to it was done by either my Dad or I.

 

I don't plan to do anything to the ashes except mix them into the paint and spray them. I think the filter will take most of the fragments out, as well as any larger ashes that won't go through the gun properly. I'll probably filter the paint twice before I put it in the gun, just to be sure. I was thinking of putting the ashes in the first coat of clear, so when I shoot it over the whole car it will be there, but I also considered just putting them in the black for the stripes on the front end. I'm still figuring out how I'm going to go about it. The car is no show car, but it is a nearly flawless restoration.

 

Dad and I built it to drive. Nothing more. It's not a race car, it's not a show car, we built it for us to enjoy it. One of his last wishes was for us to put some of his ashes in the gas and take him for a ride and "Drive it fast", which we are still going to do, but I thought it would be fitting to make him a part of the car that was such a big part of his life while he was with us.

 

Thanks for the quick response, I appreciate the advice!

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Very interesting idea.

 

I hope you never get into a fender bender later down the road...you might get a little over excited if someone else causes you front end damage and you realize right then and there you might lose his ashes if you have to repaint... frown

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I have been painting for over 20 years, oddly enough,this has never come up!

I would say that if anything is done, possibly putting it into the clearcoat, but then you will have issues with spraying it out of the gun, also if it is in the clearcoat,like Mark said, the ashes vary in size greatly, it would end up looking like the car was painted in a sandbox, so that wouldnt be good either.

My suggestion here would be to do something with the interior, possibly in the seat upholstery or something like that.

I dont think the ashes in the paint would affect anything as far as the adhesion goes, just dont think the results would be anything you like

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Yes you can sand it smooth, I dont think your going to get the desired effect. Your basically going to see your yellow,with black or white dust in it,even if you sand it flat. I like the idea of putting some ashes somewhere in the car,just dont think the paint is the way to go. Id go with something with the interior maybe, inside the spare tire before its mounted, use your imagination, If you really want the paint route,maybe in some paint on the frame of the car,it can be brushed in with a rust-o-leum or something. I dont want to dishonor your father,so its hard to say.

He will be with you and the car forever anyway,so dont worry about that!

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A guy I work with has some of his moms ashes in a ring he had made, maybe you could use a piece of metal from the car, fabricate... oh I don't know... a medallion to fit his ashes in and keep on the mirror.What ever you do is going to be a great way to remember you dad.

John

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i was gonna say depending on what hood spear you have(i have a 72) you could fill the front of the spear with his ashes then paint clear coat over that..that way hes always leading the way...lol

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i was gonna say depending on what hood spear you have(i have a 72) you could fill the front of the spear with his ashes then paint clear coat over that..that way hes always leading the way...lol

 

It doesn't have a hood spear. It's got an aftermarket fiberglass hood. lol

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oh if you could instead of the red in the emblem do the ashes.... my car was my grandfathers(as ive mentioned 100 times) and Im just going to get a sticker made that says his name and the DOB and DOD!

 

I have Dad's DOB and DOD in a tattoo on my arm, I'm probably going to get a vanity plate made for the car, but I wanted to do something more permanent. I'll probably do the ashes in the paint. Seems like it would be pretty simple, relatively safe (I don't think it'll have any adverse effects on the finish, especially with all the prep and finish work I'll be doing). Even if there were fish-eyes or orange peel in the paint, it would make a good conversation piece at shows.

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I kinda like the curtom hood ornament idea. Maybe you could make up something in this basic tapered shape out of billet aluminum, and have the nose unscrew to access an internal chamber?

Ornamento%20Chevrolet%201.jpg

Or maybe something like this where the raised emblem is changed and made to double as a container?

0906rc_03_z+1957_ford_ranch_wagon+hood_o

Or maybe you could even have a sign painter put words on the car like "Rembering Dad" and have him use the ash in his lettering paint.

...just throwing ideas...

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Very cool idea,your a good son..

 

I just wish I could have been there for him the last couple of years. I was away in the Army while his health was declining. The best thing I can do now is take care of the family he left behind and remember him the best way I know how.

 

I don't think I'm going to put a hood spear on it, it just wouldn't look right with a 4" cowl and racing stripes. I wouldn't mind doing something with the grille emblem though, the idea of the hood spear and emblem was a REALLY cool idea.

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Try painting the frame with black frame paint, mix some of the ash's in. That should not cause any problems. You may need a under coating gun. Everyone's right, Ash's in paint will give you a paint job you won't like.

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