I am planning on painting the hood of my car. I was told by someone that I needed to wet sand my hood before I paint it. Would something like this work?

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/p-12829-15974.aspx

 

it is a must to wet sand first then use a tack rag to wipe it down before paint

 

A finish of 600 to 800 wet would be wise, anything finer and the paint will not adhere and you will have premature rock chips, and many of them.

 

You don't need a gizmo like that to wet sand. You need "wet or dry" sandaper of the correct grit and a bucket of water. The water is there to keep the sanpaper from loading up too quickly with the very fine sanding dust that is created. Keep the paper good and wet by frequently dipping it in the bucket. You want to sand lightly to give the surface a little "tooth" so the paint will adhere properly. There should be no shine left when you're done.
Wipe it down well to pick up the sanding dust, and when it's dry, wipe down again with a tack rag (you can buy them at a paint outlet) to get any remaining dust.

Be sure you understand the paint spec of the car before you start. Nowadays, most cars are clear coated over the color coat, and some are actually tri-coat finishes, with a color coat, a tinted clear coat and then a clear coat. The hood will be quite noticeable if not done right.

 

hmmm, never seen the link to the "gizmo" he he. Dcotter is right, you don't need that tool, but they are nice to have to keep the water flowing constantly.

Carman,Iam assuming that you are sanding out rock chips with 220 gritand priming. Then wetsanding your primer for the best finish. Dcotter is also right about the blending of the fenders, if it isn't solid black, then blending should be done if you are at all worried that the color won't match. If the hood is butt matched to the fenders, and the color is not right, then the hood must be redone with a blend of the fenders (using more of that expensive material to paint it twice) This final finish should be either 400 dry, 600 or 800 wet, or to make things quicker, 400 dry with an orbital, an application of aguidecoat, then 600 or 800 wet by block.