Funniest thing I ever saw was in North Philly during college at the local Earl Scheib...........a freshly painted pink Cadillac.  He ain't lying, they painted everything, the top, the wheels, all molding..... the owner was putting his tail lights back on out in front of the place. A real eye opener for me.

df

----- Original Message ----
From: BJ Feddish <bfeddish@NETREACH.NET>
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2007 8:50:55 PM
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.