DIY Painting/Refurb'ing - Anyone else?

gioguy21 · December 27, 2016

Guys, been anodized clubs for awhile now (if only my own) -- anyone else do DIY wood refinishing?

(yes, i know the boys at Continental do an AMAZING job)

Just thought i'd throw it out there to see if anyone else has some tips/tricks that other WRX'ers can use.

I just got done doing a refinish on an M1 460 -- basically it had a sky mark, and a little rash along the back -- but i did some work with some 800 grit wet sand paper, using a magic eraser first to get any/all dirt and whatnot out of the scratches -- then i used painters tape (specifically the blue painters tape for metal/baseboard) and masked it off. i used a razor blade with VERY light pressure to cut the tape correctly and mask it off --- then i laid it down and put on some Rust-Oleum Automotive enamel (Gloss) on the head.

i'll throw up some pics if anyone is interested --

what say you guys? Do any of you do your OWN refinishing? steps? what type of driver -- black anodized face, silver?

also, what else do you guys do for upkeep? any of you actually WAX the paint on your driver head to keep it fresh?

could be a useless thread but - figured why not.

Nessism · December 28, 2016

I'm all for DIY but have to comment about a couple of things. First, the OEM heads are not anodized. Anodizing is a process used on aluminum and only aluminum. The shaft adapters are typically made from aluminum and anodized, but that's about the extent of the anodizing you will find on a golf club. Secondly, rattlecan paint like that Rustoleum has very poor touch durability (durability against scratching, scuffing, etc) because it drys soft. The OEM paint is typically some sort of catalyzed urethane or similar. You can purchase catalyzed urethane rattle can paint, clear coat mostly, but it's not cheap (google Spraymax 2k clear). You mix the stuff inside the can and then spray away. It's good stuff but sadly, the pot life is just a few hours and then the stuff hardens inside the can or outside. You can spray about a dozen golf clubs or more. Have a spraying party!

Sorry to rain on your parade. Again, I love DYI. There is a long thread where guys were displaying their driver head resprays so you may want to use the search feature and dig it up. Something about "murdered out" a driver or something to this effect. Guys were rattlecanning everything in site and not worrying about silly things like durability. Shows how much I know.

gioguy21 · December 28, 2016

I'm all for DIY but have to comment about a couple of things. First, the OEM heads are not anodized. Anodizing is a process used on aluminum and only aluminum. The shaft adapters are typically made from aluminum and anodized, but that's about the extent of the anodizing you will find on a golf club. Secondly, rattlecan paint like that Rustoleum has very poor touch durability (durability against scratching, scuffing, etc) because it drys soft. The OEM paint is typically some sort of catalyzed urethane or similar. You can purchase catalyzed urethane rattle can paint, clear coat mostly, but it's not cheap (google Spraymax 2k clear). You mix the stuff inside the can and then spray away. It's good stuff but sadly, the pot life is just a few hours and then the stuff hardens inside the can or outside. You can spray about a dozen golf clubs or more. Have a spraying party!

Sorry to rain on your parade. Again, I love DYI. There is a long thread where guys were displaying their driver head resprays so you may want to use the search feature and dig it up. Something about "murdered out" a driver or something to this effect. Guys were rattlecanning everything in site and not worrying about silly things like durability. Shows how much I know.

-- much appreciated --

this was mostly b/c the clear coat on top was not meant to be the best solution -- but moreover to get me through the winter for a bit before I can send it off to continental to be done with a pro finish.

I wasn't attempting to murdering it out or whatever - but really just giving it a refresh as the finish wasn't primo. despite you 'raining on my parade' - you provided some good input regarding the type of clear coat that might work best. I will have to look into it. it's not HARD to do your own, it's just being wise as to what will work best for your application. in this case - mine was a simple fix however the input you gave is what I'm looking for -- real world help/observations that can help other wrx'ers should they want to tackle an experiment like this.

so, despite your rain, sometimes we need it. thank you Nessism.