Sorry to be negative about this, based on my experience it's a waste of money it will peel, flake, at best will be totally in need of a new paint job in two years. They will also bake your battery to death when they bake the paint. They know it kills the battery, but then they always act stupid about it later. Nearly any small paint shop would be better.

-----Original Message----- From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of BJ Feddish Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2007 7:51 PM To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM Subject: Re: Earl Scheib paint job

My advice would be that you sand your own vehicle beforehand and when you get there take all the lights, etc. off and/or tape up the rest of the stuff real good. That way you are just paying for the paint which is exactly what they are charging you for. If you let them tape it up they will paint your glass, tires, bumpers, etc. for you.

$399, wow, inflation has taken it's toll. I was $99 when I got my bug done in '81.

Anyway, if you're looking for the cheapie paint job you may do a little better at Maaco but you'll still need to sand yourself and take off the lights, etc. The only thing is Earl Scheib will paint ANYTHING, depending on the particular Maaco, they'll insist on doing the bodywork first.

Bryan

-----Original Message----- From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of Geza Polony Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2007 8:09 PM To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM Subject: Earl Scheib paint job

OK, I'm considering an Earl Scheib paint job. Before you pile all over me, consider this: the van has rust "issues," as in holes you can put your finger through, and it will never be perfect. It's also a camping vehicle and that means I don't want to worry about the finish too much as I think it would take away from the fun of camping to have to do so.

I got an Earl Scheib job done decades ago and it was terrible. You could see this poor Volvo with "repaint" written all over it for about a block away. The question, then:

Has anybody used Earl Scheib recently? Has the quality improved? Anything close to factory colors?

FYI, They will spray the van for $399 plus tax, adding $50 a jamb/door if I want them done. I can take off all the easy stuff like turn signals and they'll mask the rest. Sounds like if I do the bondo I'll be paying under $700.

Spray it again, Sam. It's that time again.