DIY: Paint your own valve cover!
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2008 1:11 pmIm not no artist so i didn't go all fancy with some funky text or graffiti on my VC lol..... but I did end up painting it with the left over paint from my car. Mind you I was very unsure on the idea because I seen a lot of mess up online, but we did it anyways 
Oh and btw this is just a guide line, so if you fuck up your VC don't blame me :p
Heres a quick DIY :thumbsup:
-Remove your VC, in my case I needed to cut the side of mine for my cam gears, so I did that right after it was removed.
A jig saw was used to cut my half moon, not fun to do by any means.
-Once you have your VC off, place it outside on a piece a wood or something that can be moved.
- Get some high quality Paint stripper, I used Heavy Body Paint and Varnish remover. Pour some all over the VC, make sure to have gloves on or use a brush.
- Once it sits there for a good 10 minutes it will just peal right off, you can use a puddy knife or a brush to remove the old baked on factory paint.
*NOTE very messy and strong do this outside! Wear a mask
- Rinse it off very well with a water hose, to get in all the cracks and to remove the paint stripper.
-After its all rinsed let it dry very well, then clean it all with Varsol or some kind of cleaner to remove your finger prints and dirt on the VC.
*Note clean it well, so paint wont bubble when you spray it on.
-Tape off all the plug wire holes, and the oil cap hole, so no paint will get into the threads. You can tape off the lettering if you wish but I did not.
-Start priming! use a good automotive primer. Do thin coats of paint, so it wont run. I did about 5 coats. Let each coat dry before reapplying.
*Note take your time, this is something you don't want to rush at!
*Note after you prime its best if you sand it down lightly!!! with 1500 grit to get any dust or lint out of the primer.
-Decide on what color you want for you VC, In my case I used a 2 step candy red automotive paint, that was left over from my car. I went down to the local paint shop and got them to put my paint in a aerosol spray can so I could apply it to my VC.
-First base paint I did about 3 coats
-Applied the candy red clear, I did about 5 coats of clear to really make her shine lol
I let that dry over night, to make sure it was completely dry.
-Next day I used a blade and 1500grit sandpaper and sanded off the lettering! This is how I wanted to do it, but feel free to make it your own and do what you like.
Finished result
Im going to top it all off with a carbon fiber plug cover when it arrives :0)
Hope this helped, any questions feel free to ask
Oh and btw this is just a guide line, so if you fuck up your VC don't blame me :pHeres a quick DIY :thumbsup:
-Remove your VC, in my case I needed to cut the side of mine for my cam gears, so I did that right after it was removed.
A jig saw was used to cut my half moon, not fun to do by any means.
-Once you have your VC off, place it outside on a piece a wood or something that can be moved.
- Get some high quality Paint stripper, I used Heavy Body Paint and Varnish remover. Pour some all over the VC, make sure to have gloves on or use a brush.
- Once it sits there for a good 10 minutes it will just peal right off, you can use a puddy knife or a brush to remove the old baked on factory paint.
*NOTE very messy and strong do this outside! Wear a mask
- Rinse it off very well with a water hose, to get in all the cracks and to remove the paint stripper.
-After its all rinsed let it dry very well, then clean it all with Varsol or some kind of cleaner to remove your finger prints and dirt on the VC.
*Note clean it well, so paint wont bubble when you spray it on.
-Tape off all the plug wire holes, and the oil cap hole, so no paint will get into the threads. You can tape off the lettering if you wish but I did not.
-Start priming! use a good automotive primer. Do thin coats of paint, so it wont run. I did about 5 coats. Let each coat dry before reapplying.
*Note take your time, this is something you don't want to rush at!
*Note after you prime its best if you sand it down lightly!!! with 1500 grit to get any dust or lint out of the primer.
-Decide on what color you want for you VC, In my case I used a 2 step candy red automotive paint, that was left over from my car. I went down to the local paint shop and got them to put my paint in a aerosol spray can so I could apply it to my VC.
-First base paint I did about 3 coats
-Applied the candy red clear, I did about 5 coats of clear to really make her shine lol
I let that dry over night, to make sure it was completely dry.
-Next day I used a blade and 1500grit sandpaper and sanded off the lettering! This is how I wanted to do it, but feel free to make it your own and do what you like.
Finished result
Im going to top it all off with a carbon fiber plug cover when it arrives :0)
Hope this helped, any questions feel free to ask
