Paint recommendations

[BulldogTom]

OK, I have all the body work done. I am looking at paint costs and timeframes and I am about to choke.

What is a good, low cost paint to purchase? This is a daily driver that will be in the hands of a 17 year old.

Any thoughts on just taking down to Macco and putting a cheap paint job on it?

Tom

Lodi, CA

[Young Ed]

Nothing wrong with Maaco. They will do as good a job as you pay them to. If you want a 2k paint job they will do it. If you want 10K quality they will do that too. Dads jeep with a $500 maaco paint job after home brew body work.

[MBF]

I have seen some nice jobs come out of MAACO. How about that single stage Duplicolor ready mixed paint sold by Advanced Auto Parts if you want to spray your own. You're limited in colors but it is an alternative! I used Rustoleum on mine about 8 yrs ago because I got tired of the primer Still looks good-but I'll be reshooting it if I do a frame off. GB used a similar process with a brush and his truck looks good too. Mike

[Dave72dt]

DupliColor is one, Summit Racing also has a lower cost alternative. Most of your name brands have a less expensive line also avalable to them. If you're choking on the lower expense name brand prices, you might also try places like Fleet Farm, Tractor Supply and look at their farm equipment paints. Be sure to get the gloss hardener for those as they didn't have UV protectant built in.

[HanksB3B]

told me never to use the word hate. I HATE Maaco and would like to sue them for absolutely ruining one of my cars.

I looked at my Pickup's paint bill from 1979..it was $239 including boby filler, 2gals of primer, 2 gals of aircraft quality acrylic epoxy green paint.

This time around I paid $1,200 for 3 gals of PPG when gas was around $5/gal.

I didn't do what I wanted to do (because of the body shop's owner) and buy the paint direct from tcp global which I highly recommend. Here's the link:

http://www.tcpglobal.com/

I'd like to think that even holding a cheap HVLP gun from Harbor Freight in one hand and a beer in the other, I'd be able to do better work than...oh, I can't even bring myself say that species of shark's name.

Don't do it !

Hank

[Dave72dt]

told me never to use the word hate. I HATE Maaco and would like to sue them for absolutely ruining one of my cars.

I looked at my Pickup's paint bill from 1979..it was $239 including boby filler, 2gals of primer, 2 gals of aircraft quality acrylic epoxy green paint.

This time around I paid $1,200 for 3 gals of PPG when gas was around $5/gal.

I didn't do what I wanted to do (because of the body shop's owner) and buy the paint direct from tcp global which I highly recommend. Here's the link:

http://www.tcpglobal.com/

I'd like to think that even holding a cheap HVLP gun from Harbor Freight in one hand and a beer in the other, I'd be able to do better work than...oh, I can't even bring myself say that species of shark's name.

Don't do it !

Hank

I was quoted $235/gal for high end Dupont at my local jobber about the same time. However... doesn't include reducers, activators, clears, etc. Lower cost line about $150/ gal. Total cost of materials can add up to big $$. Have also used tcpglobal for some specialty paints and found them to be the most economical. Have paid $600/qt for some of that stuff. DON'T want to be knocking the can over.

[Guest Kuster13]

Do to the lack of funds the only current option I have had to progress with my project was to use an industrial acrylic enamel (Devoe Coatings). Good uv resistance, any color you want and really tough paint. Sprays ok and has a good gloss. My price was less than $30 a gallon. Not exactly what I wanted but easliy what I can afford. I'll be happy with it.

[HanksB3B]

Do to the lack of funds the only current option I have had to progress with my project was to use an industrial acrylic enamel (Devoe Coatings). Good uv resistance, any color you want and really tough paint. Sprays ok and has a good gloss. My price was less than $30 a gallon. Not exactly what I wanted but easliy what I can afford. I'll be happy with it.

But darn I like the way mine came out. It took 3 gals, five coats, and a whole lot of time for Martin. I told him I wanted it to look like a California Hot Rod. I've never been dissapointed. When you think about it, the time spent priming, sanding and blocking is the most expensive part, but then again my labor is cheap.

Good luck with what you decide, a 17 year old with a old Jeep hardly needs a chick magnet incorporated into a paint job now does he?

Hank

[JoelOkie]

The pros and cons of all this have been kicked more than several times on the forum, and of course there is a broad lane of opinion on it.

I can personally tell you that a very inexpensive, and easy to work with paint, is VanSickle, sold at (among other places) Atwoods farm stores. It reduces with Naphtha, (sp?) is very easy to work with, and I found that "wet look gloss hardner" from O'Reilly's , ect. works well with it. I used it to get the John Deere green, and John Deere safety yellow colors I wanted for my truck. Everything I have painted with it has came out great, and has a nice gloss, without a single run, and no color sanding, buffing/waxing, ect. How it will hold up over the long haul, I don't know, but I have seen where they have a clear coat now, and it is supposed to be UV resitant. I figure I can paint it every few years if I needed to, no big deal, but I think the truck being kept in the barn that it will last a long time. Joel

[BulldogTom]

Do to the lack of funds the only current option I have had to progress with my project was to use an industrial acrylic enamel (Devoe Coatings). Good uv resistance, any color you want and really tough paint. Sprays ok and has a good gloss. My price was less than $30 a gallon. Not exactly what I wanted but easliy what I can afford. I'll be happy with it.

Do you have a contact for Devoe Coatings? $30 per gal sounds really good to me and the picture looks good. Some day I might regret it, but I think my kid will do ok in a paintjob that looks like that.

Tom

Lodi, CA

[Guest Kuster13]

A Quick Goggle search came up with

http://www.devoecoatings.com

There is a store locator on the home page. I beleive there was a Glidden outlet in Stockton. Different areas allow different paints and product lines. I'll have to go back a check to see which one I used, DevoeGuard sounds familair.

Tom

[jakenoklahoma]

Seems like a good place for affordable paint and supplies.

http://www.smartshoppersinc.com/

[ggdad1951]

so I understand the engine and tranny get silver for a 51, what about driveshaft and rear diff?

[Plymouthy Adams]

patina

some folks like to use the product cast-blast to give the rear cast iron nodule that factory fresh look...can get from Eastwood and other places...the axle tubes etc most folks paint black along with the driveshaft...

Edited June 25, 2010 by Tim Adams

[Merle Coggins]

Or you could paint it all black like I did.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Not making a paint recommendation, like myself most folks have their own preference for whatever reason but would like to comment on a little something I do when I paint a car. I usually run by the dollar store and grab a couple bottles of clear fingernail polish, any color will do as I dump the contents, clean the bottle and applicator brush and fill with paint for later touching up..nice bottle, brush included and you know it will match...even if you don't paint you own car, give your painter a couple of these empties to place paint in..be sure that you get raw paint and none that is thinned and catalized. You'll thank me later..

[Guest Kuster13]

Moving right along, but I had to buy another gallon to fix some runs.

Next month I get to put it all back together.

[HanksB3B]

Not making a paint recommendation, like myself most folks have their own preference for whatever reason but would like to comment on a little something I do when I paint a car. I usually run by the dollar store and grab a couple bottles of clear fingernail polish, any color will do as I dump the contents, clean the bottle and applicator brush and fill with paint for later touching up..nice bottle, brush included and you know it will match...even if you don't paint you own car, give your painter a couple of these empties to place paint in..be sure that you get raw paint and none that is thinned and catalized. You'll thank me later..

When you get up to the checkout counter, does the girl look at you funny?

Hey just kidding. That's a great idea. I do have a question though. Since my paint is two part, I guess I need to calculate the correct proportion and have just enough paint and free space to add the catalyst to the nailpolish bottle.

Thanks,

Hank

[Plymouthy Adams]

I do know know of any touch up paint you buy over the counter from the dealer that has hardener..ALSO..I did not mention but is important, I use single stage enamel exclusively on my cars...and the only time I have ever shot clear, it was 50/50 paint and clear....if one goes with gase coat clear coat you maybe able to do a 50/50 mix there for any inperfection that goes past the base..

remember the hardener is a chemical reaction and does not need air to set up hard..takes a longer time unexposed but it will set....refrigerating will increase this time but only by a few days max..

[HanksB3B]

Tim,

I have a quart of PPG single stage paint left over from my paint job. The green does not have clear coat. The idea you gave me is to fill a nailpolish bottle with an exact amount of paint (minus the volume of the catalyst) when I'm going to do the touch up, I'll just mix the correct proportion of catalyst into the nailpolish bottle and do the touch-up work. I think I'll wait till October 31st and do my nails with the leftover green paint. (I don't like to waste things)

P.S. guessing you clean the clear polish out of the bottle with acetone?

Thanks,

Hank

[grey beard]

Most of the discussion on this thread has centered aroujd the idea of air-drying enamel from various manufacturers. Please know that two-part urethane paint is not in the same world as this old type air-dry enamel.

Two part paint does not dry in the usual sense or the word - it cures chemically. Once cured, it is nearly twice as durable and hard as anything that dries by air - all the old frashioned stuff including all rattle can paints.

I just finished restoring a Ford 8N tractor. Everything was sand blasted and primed with fast-fill epoxy two part primer made to go onto bare metal - U-Tech 350 primer, then painted with two-part urethane paint.

I've painted almost one hundred tractors in my shop teacher life and I'fe [aomnted my Pilothouse truck. For any one of these projects, you need only a few quarts of paint. I painted the 8N with one quart of red and one quart of grey. I painted my Pilothouse with one quart of green and one quart of black. When you buy paint in this sort of small volume, you can afford one or two hundred bucks for the good quality stuff.

When you consider the amount of lbor and work necessary to get a vehicle ready to paint - body work, sanding, rust repair, etc., in muy thinking it makes sense to use a goopd quiality product on the frinish. Once you own a vehicke with the two-part finish on it, you will never go back to the cheap air-dry stuff, IMHO.

Good Luck

[Dave72dt]

Single stage acrylic enamel is not the same as single stage urethane enamel which uses an activater. The acrylic is air dried and I believe is what Tim is using and can have hardeners added to it just prior to use. The urethane is what Greybeard uses and requires an activator for it to cure. Do not mix in the nail polish bottles or your supply of touch up will be gone. Use some of those plastic shot glasses and mix with medicine droppers to get correct ration and dab on with q-tips or brush and do not return unused back to the supply bottle. 2 stage, 3 stage paints use a non-gloss base color with no activaters, followed by clear coats which usually do have activators. It is the clear coat that provides the gloss.

[SteveMelchiorre]

I'm about done w/ my cab's Tremclad roller job on mine.

Looks good from 10 ft away but there are some spots I'm going to touch up and buff out this weekend. Easy to do and I'm only into it for $70 or so...

Steve...

[MBF]

Wow Steve-looking GOOOD! Here's my 6 yr old Rustoleum job that seems to be holding up well. Even I don't look good when you get closer than 10', but like the truck I'm okay from a distance.

[jakenoklahoma]

Wow Steve-looking GOOOD! Here's my 6 yr old Rustoleum job that seems to be holding up well. Even I don't look good when you get closer than 10', but like the truck I'm okay from a distance.

wow, this pic just inspired me to get to work on my B3D.....going to use deep blue rustoleum on it