Skip the body filler test panel, just sand with 80 grit dry first

I was fighting orange peel on a 2018 Honda Civic door last week, spending way too long trying different primers and fillers. Then my buddy (works at a shop in Portland) told me to just hit the bare metal with 80 grit on a DA sander before any filler goes on. It grabs like crazy and I haven't had a single adhesion failure since. Has anyone else found that skipping the test panel saves time?

3 comments

3 Comments

white.keith18d ago

Yeah I saw a guy on autobody101 swear by skipping the test card with 80 grit and never going back.

parker_hall518d ago

Bet I could mess it up in half the time with 36 grit

the_felix18d ago

Went with 80 grit once and ended up redoing the whole panel, so yeah.