Time, Skill, & Patience: Block sanding and panel gapping

If anyone ever asks what is the key to a really good paint job the answer is always in the prep. Quite simply the more time and care that is placed in the surface under the paint, then the better the finish on the car will be. Paint hides NOTHING so the final result mainly comes down to prep.

A few days ago we showed images of our Dino in bare primer awaiting 3 rounds of block sanding. For those who do not know, block sanding is a process where the final fine shaping of the body is achieved prior to painting by using long sanding blocks that, when guided by patient and skilled hands, define the subtle details and lines of the car. As material is taken off, more is added by way of high build primers. In all the process is repeated 3 times over the course of the whole shell in preparation for a final primer and wet sanding (the final step taking some 60 hours alone). The images here show the car after the first round of block sanding.

In addition, at this time, the body panels are aligned and all of the gaps in the panels are made equal. If you look on almost any Dino the trunk lid never seems to line up to the rear quarters. We were pleased to see perfection here and in every other gap we inspected.