Spent 2 years priming bare metal with the wrong grit and a painter in Dallas finally called me out
I was always hitting bare steel with 80 grit before primer because that is what the old guy at my first shop showed me, and I figured a rougher scratch meant better bite. A painter named Ray watched me prep a quarter panel in Dallas and asked why I was scratching up metal I was about to cover, since 180 gives the primer plenty to grab without leaving scratches that show through. How are you all prepping bare metal, and did anybody else get taught a grit that was way too coarse?
Started with 80 grit too because that is what the old guys taught. Took me years to figure out the scratches were the problem, not the fix. 180 is plenty for primer to bite and you are not fighting sand marks later. Ray did you a solid calling it out.