Painting a hood

[rer_239]

Does the hood panels have to be taken apart to paint then?

[MickyD]

I did not take mine apart when I painted it but will when I get it repainted in August. It will be easier to repaint that way.

[dbaldwi3]

It’s a crap shoot if you leave them together they may chip when paint has dried and hood lifted or it may chip if taken apart and when re assembled the rods may chip the paint 50/50 shot. That being said I always take them apart.

[bruceincam]

FWIW, I painted mine fully assembled. Worked OK. I removed it from the car, did the inside first at each step of the process with the hood fully open then closed the side panels about half way to do the outsides. I did learn that you can't set it on a solid surface to paint it. It needs a lot of open area below so that product won't "bounce" up from the solid surface right back on to your work. I used some old oven racks to support the hood.

[Oldbluoval]

I have always taken them part
The tough thing is the center rod as it is hollow and often the culprit in middle hinge problems. Hard to remove usually. I have a fitting for a slide hammer to remove it...not always comes out intact
Also it’s an odd size so you can’t go down to ace hardware and pick one off the shelf. Solid rods are more apt to sag also

[larrys40]

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I usually paint them separate but have also done a few together. You get the best job separate and if you need to color sand and buff it’s easier as well. Sometimes a little dressing of the hinges with a sanding disc is needed on new hoods to ensure there’s enough clearance for refinishing materials , primer , paint etc.
Larry

[whirnot]

I did mine apart and would do it that way again. I made sure the rods fit right, after priming, and painted on racks. My center rod is solid, it does not sag.
I reassembled by myself. I put the center rod in, then put the hood on. The sides were easily attached after that.

[Tinbasher]

A good question, I always paint them apart. Paint the inside semi-gloss to look like unpolished lacquer, mask the inside up and then paint the outside. This way you can sit the panels on a bench. I use 3 qt cans to hold them up off of the surface. (One can at one end, two at the other, like a triangle) It take more time but less chance of having them fall. Also a trick to take out the centre rod that's hollow. Put a drill bit inside of the tube leave it sticking out about 1/2" then clamp on to it with a electric drill and turn it out. Learn't that one from a Model A guy about 40 years ago. JP

[Russ B]

On my cabriolet, the painter asked me to fully disassemble the hood, including the latches and handles. It is much easier to sand and buff that way. Rivets were mounted on a board and painted separately, too. I reassembled it using a lot of blue tape to prevent paint damage

Photo is tape still over rivets after the handle was riveted back on.


… and finished job. The reflection is my phone used to take photo.

The complete breakdown ensures you won’t have water/rain causing future rust problems as everything is covered with paint. I don’t think it cost more to paint that way, but it took more of my labor and I needed the proper riveting tool and tool inserts for the rivet size.