Insanely cool paint on a budget thread

[78Suburban]

Anyone who thinks they may wanna try this, give me a holler for more details when the time comes...

Well, that's the exact technique they were talking about. I'm strongly considering it. A dense foam roller and going behind it with a dense foam brush. If I could make my burb look anywhere near the orange charger I poster, I would crap a golden egg. If I get the burb running this weekend, I'll be painting her within a few weeks if it warms up a little.

So post away
thanks,
James

 

[Greg72]

Yeah, I figured this'd ruffle some feathers, so be it... I stand behind my comments..

Never bashed the guy for his ingenuity, resourcefullness, etc.. Its this propagation of hack work that bothers me. And say what you will, but as a fan of hotrods, trucks, etc for my whole life, its hack work..

Everyone here will get into the most minute discussion on mechanical issues, but are more than willing to roll housepaint on their vehicle... Just doesn't make sense to me, if your gonna take such pride in doing a mechanical aspect the right way, why not have that pride in learning the proper way to perform bodywork and refinishing?

Doing things a less expensive way is fine and I'll cut corners myself, but I would certainly rather have the higher quality if I can.. I don't consider being stingy or miserly a trait to be proud of, sometimes a nescessity, but certainly not something I strive for..

And yes, I understand a trail/work truck can be touched up, etc easier and thats fine.. Defend your rattle can jobs to your hearts content, I just know that amongst all the car/truck nuts I know, we certainly appreciate a well done proper paintjob far more than someone halfassing it with rattlecans..

Thats the ghetto kinda stuff we laugh at.. Sorry if that offends you, but maybe the next time your at the local 7/11 beaming obliviously about how badass your truck is, keep in mind, you may not be impressing everyone...

Flame on....

Ryoken,

I wouldn't get too insulted by that thread....I scanned through it (long) and not surprisingly, the results you get are a result of: (drumroll please....)

1. Prep quality
2. Time invested





If the body is wavy, no paint in the world will hide it. And if you don't spend the time cleaning the surface, carefully painting and then lots of time cutting and buffing...you also don't get a nice result.

I'm sure a "professional" could get away with a lot of things and get a good looking result with cheaper materials. They have experience with the materials and have a clear advantage over anyone trying to paint "on the cheap" for the first time.


(I know I'm not telling you anything you don't already know.....quality takes time. And if you pay someone else to do it, then time costs money!)

 

[Leper]

I don't go to that site anymore. It makes me sad because I think of the Duster I "gave away". I used to spend so much time there.

 

[ryoken]

Theres a couple things here I'd like to point out... The 3 main reasons that we may roll and tip a boat are

1 - wind... Being that I'm talking about 40', 50' boats, it's a rarity we can put them inside (tho my new job has a huge building dedicated to this, thankfully..) For anyone who's sprayed outside in the wind, it can be difficult, but not impossible. I have sprayed boats in 20 mph winds, you just need to change up your gun technique, etc.

2 - masking.... You can imagine the time and materials it takes to cover huge sections of boat with paper or masking film. Throw some of that wind in, and it can become quite hectic..

3 - cost vs quality... Believe it or not, boaters are cheap usually. When rolling and tipping, you can vary the quality greatly depending on how much time you spend with between coat sanding, etc... Many customers are willing to live with a brush stroke here and there.. Which is where i guess alot of you are coming from.

Which brings me to one of the most important reasons to me why I'd rather spray any car/truck over a roll/tip. For the amount of extra labor it takes to get a decent job, I'd rather work, take that money and invest in a $100 gun and some better material...

Some people don't prescribe to that theory.. My old roomate would sit in his room for hrs on end working on projects that he could buy for $20.. I understand the whole "my labor is free" theory and believe me, I use it on occasion. When I did my bodylift and knew I would have the truck layed up for a couple weeks, I spent countless hrs down there scrubbing and stripping my frame down so i could zinc it, epoxy it, and put black Imron on it... Tons of labor for something most would not consider doing.

the other point to this is, not only is it 5x's the labor, consider what kind of labor.. How many of you have wetsanded till you have no fingerprints with blood coming out of the tips? Not exactly something fun.. Good work if your considering bank robbery tho! Just keep in mind thats what this process entails, tho experts can minimize this by knowing what they can get away with and dry DA sanding certain portions of the job..

For anyone considering this, word to the wise, do not just buy any foam rollers from the Depot, they will fail miserably with any oil based paint. Rollers designed for epoxy use are a nescessity, West Systems rollers are designed for this and what we use..

 

[78Suburban]

http://www.rustoleum.com/Product.asp?ddf=162&frm_product_id=18&SBL=1

Now if I can just decide on a color . Is there any sort of additive that will make this paint more resistant to UV rays?

Any more details on those brushes? What sizes are they offered in? In opinions of the ratio of mineral spirits to paint? I'm willing to do the work for the paint job.. Sanding untill my fingers bleed doesn't really sound as bad as how I earn alot of my money, which involves cleaning out huge fence rows, and fighting with THICK thorns and briars.. my arms were really cut up last week from that junk. I'm not scared of putting some effort into the job. I might try it out on one section to master the technique.

Any ideas on colors are welcome

thanks,
James

 

[surpip]

Crap that's a long thread. Looks like something to try. I am a big fan of the rustoleum hunter green, and dark hunter green. I'll probably try this on my K5 when the time comes. Very good info, I'm only on page three. . .

you mean you are getting rid of the pimp gold color?

 

[surpip]

i used the spray on clear from rustoluem, worked pretty good on my sliders
i should have done my bumper, but i wanted it on the truck

 

[ryoken]

I kinda like the light olive...

reducer for rustoleum? no freakin clue, but my guess would be mineral spirits, It'll say on the back of the can... Most paints i use for this you can help control the flow out with different speed reducers and hardeners..

you want it thin.. about a 5 on the poormans viscosity test... in other words, pour some off into a container, add some reducer, mix it up with a wooden paint stick, pull the stick out and count. it should stop dripping around 5ish.. if it drips till 10 or whatever its too thick, add more...

heres the rollers we use... they can be cut down to smaller sizes for smaller roller cages... http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...0/west rollers/All_2/mode+matchallpartial/0/0

heres the brushes we use, available from 1" to 4"

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...0/foam brushes/All_2/mode+matchallpartial/0/0

Sanding untill my fingers bleed doesn't really sound as bad as how I earn alot of my money

You have no idea, when touching ANYTHING for days kills until it heals sucks donkey hootus... But have at it young man....

 

[78Suburban]

You have no idea, when touching ANYTHING for days kills until it heals sucks donkey hootus... But have at it young man....

Would wearing some work gloves help? or would I not be able to get enough feel?

I'm thinking the semi gloss black would show flaws less.... but man that color is used sooooo much.

thanks,
James

 

[ryoken]

what i do if i know i'm gonna be wetsanding all day is wrap the tips of my fingers with electrical tape... gloves are just too big and bulky, unless your where just doing block sanding, plus there getting wet.. surgical gloves don't work, they get destroyed in a minute. i have used the rubber dishwashing gloves when block sanding, but for handsanding you need some feel, thus the electrical tape...

and black, sheesh, you are a masochist.. black is the hardest color in bodywork across the board.. shows every dent, every imperfection.. lighter colors are by far better at hiding...

 

[78Suburban]

and black, sheesh, you are a masochist.. black is the hardest color in bodywork across the board.. shows every dent, every imperfection.. lighter colors are by far better at hiding...

thanks for the tip.. I'm sure I'll figure out a good color
thanks,
James

 

[76zimmer]

I guess if you don't wheel it put the money into a good paint job. Hell it can cost 200-600 for a gallon of paint if you want that. If you wheel why worry about the paint job, the cheaper the better, and yes I've done my share of rattle can spray bombs too. I also have a great paint job on my 64 Vette. I know which has its place.

 

[pvfjr]

thanks for the tip.. I'm sure I'll figure out a good color
thanks,
James

Dibs on the "sand" color for the crew cab...

 

[jekbrown]

Trail only rig, sure, whatever, knock yourself out.. But even then, the trucks gonna look hella better with a reasonably professional job...

Bah, don't you think its just a little bit dumb to have a "professional" paint job on a rig that is going to get beat to **** my tree branches, rocks, mud, flying gravel, a few good "flops" etc? Maybe you have $ to burn on getting your rig repainted constantly, but most of us don't.

Being proud of being cheap is something i just don't get, I have to chuckle at it...

Thats ok, I laugh hysterically at idiots who waste their money on bling paint on a 4x4.

Heck, if you want detailed instruction on how to roll and tip, I'll be glad to write out a post.. I just get a little tired of the "Oh yeah! 24 rattle cans came out sweet!" mentality that is so prevelent on this board...

bling has its place... the trail ain't it unless you're either a) rich or b) sponsored. I don't plan on being either anytime soon. Good design has a continuity to it.. a goal or main idea. If you're rig is hardcore offroad-ready in every imaginable respect, but has super-blingin 500 layers of laquer paint on it... its not good design. The "whole" isn't being considered... the use/abuse the thing will get isn't either. Hate on cheap paint all you want, it fits in with the utilitarian design goals of a part-time trail rig.

j

 

[ryoken]

nice, Jek..

You guys are comical... Bling, please.... I'm talking about $200 in material, loading up a gun and blasting. not some multilayered, muralled , f*ckin showrig....

whatever.....

 

[jekbrown]

don't lie, you know you're all about the bling. You and rjfguitar need to do some trail runs together.

j

 

[ryoken]

haha, nah, I actually am not into the fancy schmancy stuff... heck, my trucks gonna be the copper, but the bumpers, rims, cap, etc are all going semi-black.. chrome sucks.... sh*t i just did my chrome side mirrors semi-black when i went manual on my doors...

I'm just from the train of thought that something in the way of a spray gun should be in 80% of the garages here... I also know how much tougher any catalysed paint is over air-dry...

Just trying to bring a different perspective is all....

 

[hi pinion]

nice, Jek..

You guys are comical... Bling, please.... I'm talking about $200 in material, loading up a gun and blasting. not some multilayered, muralled , f*ckin showrig....

whatever.....

Im with you on doing it right.

Insanly cool paint job? WHere, i diddnt see one!

 

[78Suburban]

I wasn't trying to get anyone into a spat when I started this thread. I just wanted to post up, since I didn't realize paint could look soo good for such little money. I was almost thinking it was TOO fancy for a trail rig, and would look too goood. But I guess if I master the rolling/tipping technique I can always just make touch ups. I'm definitely going to try to pick up some brushes at home depot, and maybe a half pint to test out. I'll post up pics when I figure out how to do this. I've got a feeling Its defintitely going to take some skill, but I'll have fun trying to figure it out. The worse case senario: It looks horrible and a sand it off the burb I would be out of a whopping 50 bucks.

Any more ideas on colors? I guess it would be best for me just to buy one and test it out in real life. I wonder if they make the ultra flat camo colors in actual quart cans, so I could mix it up and roll it on?

thanks,
James

 

[roadnotca]

If its fresh paint, everyone looks, no matter how it was put on. Just paint the .... truck.