RESTORING A 1969 CORONET RT and BEE TAIL PANEL, GRILL and HEADLIGHT TRIM, Lenses & Housings

I’ve done these before, but this particular tail panel was a pain in the ass.  I typically use 0000 steel wool and Acetone to remove old paint from plated trim pieces but this tail panel must have had 20 coats of some kind of black paint.  I ended up experimenting with regular paint strippers from the hardware store.  Some didn’t even touch the paint, but I found one Strypeeze that managed to do the job after repeated coats and use of a lighter grade Scotch Brite pad and 0000 steel wool. I think I had to re-apply the Strypeeze about 4-5 times to get all of the old paint off.  After it was all off I washed the parts with clear water.

Next comes the masking.  Since the plating around the end of the panel and tail lights has to remain finished it gets taped off.

This particular tail panel had a deep gouge in it and I had to fill and sand. As long as it was to be painted with Totally Auto black it was okay to fill and sand.