DIY paint job - Mercedes 500 SL R129 incredible transformation

In this video you see me doing a full DIY color change paint job on my car, a 1990 Mercedes 500SL R129. I did this at home in my improvised paint booth.
The old paint of this car was in very bad condition. Parking damage, stone chips, scratches everywhere. The car is 32 years old and has 310000kms and it really showed. I really like this car and it deserved a restoration.
So time to go to work.
I started by sanding old paint with P320. Then I sprayed high build primer on all visible panels. Afterwards sanded the primer down with P600. For the base coat I sprayed one light coat and 2 heavy coats. Same for the clear, one light coat and 2 heavy coats.
My improvised "paint booth" has 2 extraction fans (one on top and one through the grill on the floor). I always wet the floor to keep the dust down as much as possible. This paint booth works well for small stuff, but when you have to paint large flat surfaces like the hood and trunk dust becomes an issue. I will wetsand and buff the paint in a later stadium.
This project took me six weeks to complete (outside working hours).
Please note that I am not a professional. I have no training in car paiting whatsoever. I just do what has worked for me in the past based on the info I gathered over the years (online, books, tutorial videos etc). I am sure a lot of things could be done different/better :).
Tools used:
Primer gun: Zionair HVLP, 1.8 tip, pressure 23 psi
Base and clear gun: SATA Jet 3000 HVLP, 1.2 tip, pressure 27 psi (base) and 29 psi (clear)
Compressor: 2 cylinder with 300L capacity, no idea of the cfm but more than enough.
Chapters:
0:00 - demonstation of condition of old paint
2:42 - start disassembly
7:20 - sanding old paint
10:24 - spraying primer on loose parts
22:04 - masking the car
23:44 - spraying primer on the car
28:28 - sanding the primer
31:44 - spraying base coat and clear coat on car
41:40 - spraying base coat and clear coat on loose parts
53:00 - final assembly
55:39 - presentation of the result and drive
I know this automotive content is different from the other projects I have posted, but I thought it could be interesting to share this too. The next project will be again an electric build.
Thanks for watching and consider subscribing if you liked what you saw.
See you in the next one!

[@hennybutabi]

I know it's a long one but I wanted to show all steps in the process. It's six weeks of work crammed into a 1hr episode. Hope you like this piece of automotive content, next project will be again an electric build. Happy watching!

[@edwardrivera206]

Hello what size wheels are on the car? And is the car on coilovers?

[@hennybutabi]

@@edwardrivera206 8,5x19 front and 10x19 rear. R129 does not have a coilover suspension bit if you mean adjustable then yes.

[@jean-marcducommun8185]

Nothing beats a well maintained and otherwise perfectly looking icon of a car - with over 300k km on the odometer you can be proud. That's simply "your car" like as "your wife". Congratulations!

[@STRAIGHTP]

Great job. I assumed you were just going to tape it off and skip the door jams but you really took the time to do it right. Great job! I have painted a few of my cars in the garage. Prep is everything and the quality of materials (paint) is very important. Not many more projects in life are more rewarding than spraying your own car! bravo

[@hennybutabi]

Thanks man!

[@RobertSmith-di5ll]

Its like watching paint dry, but better.

[@MarkAKathurima]

Superb result! I love the slate grey. It really suits the car. And the new wheels are epic! The R129 is one of the most beautiful cars ever designed.

[@patrickcraig618]

That is a sick SL and those wheels dam . Great job

[@archiveselection7656]

Thank you for making this. You gave me inspiration just when I had given up to send my car to paint.

[@denniswheeler8091]

Great job looks stunning 👍

[@Sawedoff49]

I just bought my own ‘93 500SL and will be recording my process to get it back on the road! This inspired me to paint it my favorite color right after! Great video!

[@MrCrofty1993]

That is one beautiful car it looks amazing

[@slimdavey100]

Love watching paint dry especially when it’s a R129 500sl mines a 93 best car I have owned and I am saving the planet by not owning or buying a new car people admire it and ask how old it is and are surprised it’s 30 years old who wants a new car when R129 are built so well 😎

[@les_excursions_de_mononk]

Nice color, good job once again

[@pillin565]

Muy buen trabajo ,felicidades!!

[@edwardrivera206]

This was cool 🖤

[@RuslanChobanUA]

There is nothing better than native original wheel rims

[@drifterx007]

Dope 👏 nice pro paint job

[@Chemycal123]

good job 👍

[@jackybeans1]

Zeer netjes, het resultaat mag gezien worden. Ik ben fan. Top werk !!!!

[@RobertSmith-di5ll]

Wow!

[@bibo.b2901]

Tolle Arbeit ❤Weltklasse❤

[@rioraton]

NICE!

[@frank5743]

Finde ich gut gemacht für "Home made". 👍

[@gerhardd.9591]

you're a lowlife! Great work video and best result for a garage painting. Chapeau!

[@elvirmustafic]

Mercedes Benz 👑🤴👑👑👑

[@cz5899]

Dope 👍

[@jangodyn6177]

Mooi resultaat 👍💪💪

[@smoointhesnoo]

Mooie kleur!

[@MomentumEntFilms]

Dope

[@RomboutVersluijs]

Is restauration and design your job, seeing you have such a big work space and so much tools. Saw a couple of your productions tonight. Baffled about the quality builds you make

[@hennybutabi]

Actually, I work in a bank😏. Thanks for your support👍

[@RomboutVersluijs]

@@hennybutabi what!!! No way! Do you lots of repairs and paint jobs in your spare time. I mean you have so much gear

[@Loujr2250]

Those ramps are absolutely insane!!! Any link to where I can get a set for my R129?? Great color choice!!!

[@hennybutabi]

It's a quickjack from bendpak. You should google it where you can buy it in your country😏

[@franckricaud3719]

bonjour, j'ai la même avec une peinture verte qui n'est pas d'origine , vos jantes ont quel déport surtout a l'arrière , c'est mieux esthétiquement que l'origine ou la roue est trop a l'intérieur !! merci pour le retour !! Superbe Auto !!

[@hennybutabi]

Front is 8,5 x 19, ET32, rear is 10 x 19 ET35. But I am also running spacers 25mm in front 30mm in rear if I remember corrextly

[@franckricaud3719]

@@hennybutabi Merci beaucoup !

[@tramptruck4859]

You say you're not a professional, you have very good gun control for an amateur. I'm not generally a fan of colour change, except for bare metal, full body shell but the new colour does suit the interior trim much better and is very well done.

[@hennybutabi]

Thanks!

[@toca309]

Did you need to do anything to the fenders to fit the Wheels with spacers ?

[@hennybutabi]

I have rolled them a bit long time ago to fit the previous wheels.

[@MikkelHansen-fc2ml]

Well done! Great result 👍🏼👏🏽👏🏽 I just bought a R129 myself and I hope you can help me with a few tips. What's the wheel size you have on your? ET? Are you using spacers?

[@hennybutabi]

Hello, wheels are 8.5 x 19 front and 10 x 19 rear, ET35. Spacer 20mm front and 25mm rear.

[@ABCustoms]

Wel een dik apparaat inderdaad!🔥

[@cjlomax2156]

Wow - excellent work and I love that color .. what headlights lights are those??

[@hennybutabi]

Those are the original headlights, I changed the glass which you can buy separately

[@giopaps1]

CAme out great. Where did you get the stub Antenna? Do you have a link for that?

[@hennybutabi]

Hello. The base is the original SL antenna which I lost years ago. The stub is actually just 3D printed, it has no function. And in the meantime I changed it out for a thinner version.

[@da_bimma]

Can I have a link to those wheels please!?? And what tire size did you go with!!!!!! I love this whole video just subscribed!

[@hennybutabi]

Wheels are Ispiri csr1d in 8,5x19 and 10x19. You should google where to source them locally to you. Tires are 225 35 front and 265 30 rear. Thanks👍

[@Tarxan1000]

👍👍👍💪

[@jonboy9912]

Did you sand between coats? No orange peel whatsoever? Colour and wheels suit the vehicle. I got the same car in bright silver but would love the colour you chose! Is it a Mercedes colour?

[@hennybutabi]

I sanded the high build primer. Orange peel is minimal. The color is slate grey by Porsche. All info is in the video description😏. Thanks for watching!

[@jonboy9912]

@@hennybutabi Lovely job and you did it all left handed! Very clever!😆

[@allallall2321]

👍

[@ronaldyoung9845]

what type of wheels, they are outstanding

[@hennybutabi]

They are ispiri csr1d in 8.5 and 10 x 19"

[@Bernardo2363]

SPETACULAR JOB!! Superb video!!!! What size wheels are you using? Where did you ordered it? Web site? I notice you are using wheels spacers, can you tell me the size? Also are that wheels 12mm lug nut holes? Thank you!

[@hennybutabi]

The wheels are 8.5x19 and 10x19 ET35. Bought them locally here in Belgium. Spacers are 20mm front and 25mm rear. Bolts are M12 if I recall correctly. Greets

[@Bernardo2363]

Thank you so much for the information! Really appreciate it! Cheers from Naples, FL USA@@hennybutabi

[@ministryofengineering3850]

Those wheels are stunning, what are they?

[@hennybutabi]

Those are Ispiri CSR1D in 8.5 and 10x19. Thanks for watching!

[@antman0289]

What wheels are these?

[@jean-marcducommun8185]

Talked to a friend of mine owning a SL 500 (r129) which is in the process of getting refurbished and he very-very much likes the rims on your car before you did the paint job. Could you tell me the brand and eventually the provider of these rims? Thank you!

[@hennybutabi]

Those are Carlsson 1/16 in 8,5 x 19 and 10 x 19

[@jean-marcducommun8185]

@@hennybutabi Great! Thank you a lot - now it’s on him to find a kit. All the best with your SL.

[@JeffreyVillarreal-ng5tf]

WOW...that was sex on wheels...damn good looking. the color turned out pretty good. the wheels are WOW.

[@hagbard72]

Greatly preferred the original colour, I wouldn't buy a black anything and if I did, I'd change the colour right away.

[@DrSales-zl3kq]

No buffing needed?

[@hennybutabi]

I plan to do that in the future

[@peter455sd]

The upholstery in this car is beautiful,not such pattern in America. Disassembling the car for paint is way too much. Wheels need black center.

[@ismailaldogan9111]

Bonjour Monsieur. D’où viennent-ils le pot d’échappement ?? Auriez-vous vous un lien ou une adresse svp

[@hennybutabi]

I bought it on ebay.de many many years ago. Look for r129 auspuff. I just checked, there are lots available but prices seem to have doubled😬

[@RomboutVersluijs]

Voor de renovatie zag de auto er nog top uit voor al die jaren

[@wolfganghalvi4846]

Auf dem Schotterplatz würde ich meinen SL nicht drauf lassen

[@theniceones1613]

What wheels are those

[@hennybutabi]

Ispiri CSR1D in 19"

[@arymu007]

The wheels?

[@hennybutabi]

Specs are mentioned at 54:50

[@matthiasweigel311]

Why would you ruin it by lowering it?!? stance is horrible....

[@PeterNetped]