Topic: The $50 Rustoleum Special paint job - a scientific endeavour

[captaincrash80]

I ended up with the same thing after the 3rd coat. Haven't sanded my 4th coat yet, still need to source some 1000 grit. I'll let you know how it turns out

[bzr]

I just put on the 5th coat today and made the paint thicker by adding more Rustoleum. And there's still more runs in it!  Guess I should have been more careful with my earlier coats.

If I still get crappy coverage on those bare metal spots (and any further ones I have to resand) I'm thinking of plugging up the specific areas with straight Rustoleum and sanding that down between coats. That should probably work, right?

[Blasbo]

I'm thinking of plugging up the specific areas with straight Rustoleum and sanding that down between coats. That should probably work, right?

I read somewhere that if you use the straight Rustoleum it takes a long time, like weeks, to dry.

[SUELZER]

I've done a matte white rattlecan primer and matte clear coat, haven't seen too many matte white motos around (here anyways). Thinking the clear coat will keep the elements away, but if i decide to have it pro-painted not much prep will need to be done. Plus I just don't see myself having time to put on and wetsand 7 coats of paint, kudos to those of you who do. Hearing about the lack of resilliency in a self done paint job really sealed the deal for me though.

keep posting those pix, this is a very intriguing thread!

[captaincrash80]

bzr:

I've already decided to not take on anymore painting projects with this method until I get a spray gun for that very reason 

[poomwah]

just remember that ANY paint job is only as good as its prep work.  use a good quality filler to smooth out the fender first. then put a decent coat of primer on it, and make sure that's smooth, hit it with a light coat of primer in a contrasting color (a guide coat) and sand it till most of that color is gone, any of that color thats left will reveal low spots.  Fill them with primer or filler depending on how deep they are.  It will take you forever if you are trying to fill low spots with paint.  If you keep sanding down to bare metal, you probably have some high spots that need to be knocked down.
  Now, with that out of the way, this question goes out to the guys using the foam brushes and such, do you have a compressor, or know anyone that does?  I can see using rustoleum paint to save money, but I can't see the appeal of brushing it on and having to do that much sanding, and taking that much time.  Unless you get lucky enough to get a super glassy finish the first coat like Bodain did (AMAZING job by they way) and that's not a likely result by any means, you are SO much better off doing like Phat and Shizzo did, cheap harbor freight spray gun, if you are going to be thinning the paint down anyway, spray it and be done with it.  If you don't have access to a compressor, use the spray cans, if you do it right, you can get a great shine without ANY sanding, and an AMAZING shine if you do sand it, and you'd only have to sand it once or twice. 
  The brush one, roll on deal OBVIOUSLY works, but its creating WAY too much work, and taking WAY too much time

[captaincrash80]

+1

[Joksa]

Now, with that out of the way, this question goes out to the guys using the foam brushes and such, do you have a compressor, or know anyone that does?  I can see using rustoleum paint to save money, but I can't see the appeal of brushing it on and having to do that much sanding, and taking that much time.

It can be also issue of other facilities also. Even if you have a compressor you might not have a place where to shoot the paint. Using rollers or brushes you can avoid overspray (especially if you are painting a car, overspray can be an issue).

[poomwah]

Now, with that out of the way, this question goes out to the guys using the foam brushes and such, do you have a compressor, or know anyone that does?  I can see using rustoleum paint to save money, but I can't see the appeal of brushing it on and having to do that much sanding, and taking that much time.

It can be also issue of other facilities also. Even if you have a compressor you might not have a place where to shoot the paint. Using rollers or brushes you can avoid overspray (especially if you are painting a car, overspray can be an issue).

excellent point, I hadn't thought of the overspray issue

[cb750fbomb]

Anyone use Flood Penetrol Oil Paint Conditioner with Rustoleum? I'm trying to figure out some cheap way to paint my bike and this stuff apparently eliminates brush strokes and helps the paint spread evenly.

http://www.floodco.com/paint-additive-solutions/products/view-product.jsp?productId=11

[bzr]

Anyone use Flood Penetrol Oil Paint Conditioner with Rustoleum? I'm trying to figure out some cheap way to paint my bike and this stuff apparently eliminates brush strokes and helps the paint spread evenly.

http://www.floodco.com/paint-additive-solutions/products/view-product.jsp?productId=11

Apparently it's fine, according to a Google search of Penetrol and Rustoleum. Also, this thread.

I might just go to Home Depot and buy a can for the final 2 coats, where I can eliminate some of the runs and streaks once and for all. Right now I will probably put two more thicker coats on beforehand (4 more coats total).

Primered the plastic sidecovers and front fairing today, gonna start layering on paint on those tomorrow. I think I can get away with a thicker mixture with those...

Edit: here's some more resources on how to do this. First, a Flickr set of a guy who did this to his sweet '67 Dart. Then, another guy's process and links to other projects. Hope this helps!

[bzr]

Just finished applying the 5th coat on the rear fender. I was careful not to leave any possibility of runs, especially on the sides where the paint would drip down. So far it's looking pretty good and I'm getting coverage over that bare metal spot I had sanded over previously. For the rest of the metal parts I'm going to buy some Penetrol and try that out, maybe it'll eliminate the orange peel and streaks once and for all on those two or three vital last coats. And on the front fender I'm going to just shorten it to get rid of the scratched and dented part, and also cuz it looks cooler.

Sprayed all my plastic parts with primer and wet sanded with 600 grit. These included the front headlight bucket, fairing, and two sidecovers. Started putting a coat on the headlight bucket and it looks awful on its first coat. Tomorrow should be better, but I'm going to have to be real careful sanding out all the runs...

I also applied some JB Weld to the sidecovers over some deep scratches, gonna sand them down tomorrow.

[76SuperSport]

haha, thinking about doing this to my winter beater this fall, interesting information in this thread.

[bzr]

Quick update: rear fender is finally finished, wet sanded it one last time with 1200 grit and now it's going to sit a week for the paint to properly harden. Or I could bake it in the oven...

Front fender is #$%*ed, I'll either cut the dented bits off and roll/pinch the lip, find a new fender from a scrapyard, or ditch front fenders altogether.

Sidecovers have had three coats on them from half a week ago, and I'll sand them down with 1200 grit as they've gotten complete coverage.

Fairing and headlight cover got their 2nd coats today, but still need another one.

I'll strip the tank paint tomorrow and start on that.

[bzr]

Found a great site about what to do after the paint's been laid on: http://www.chevyhiperformance.com/tech/paint_body/car_care/0403ch_color_sanding_buffing_tech/index.html

Basically, wet sand (with a few drops of dishwashing detergent) at 1000 grit to remove the swirl marks and orange residue from the previous coats, then hit it with 1500 and 2000 grit to get a smooth satin finish. Which is what I'm doing (with 1200 instead of 1000 because that's what I have in my cheapo Harbor Freight multi-pack). Then, I'll buff out the parts with a microfiber towel and Meguiar's Swirl Remover.





Here's the rear fender after 1500 grit. Already it's starting to look smooth, the 2000 grit should make it even cleaner.




And here's my gas tank after two coats of primer and its first coat of Rustoleum. I'm being extra careful to eliminate runs while I'm painting and using thin, long brush strokes. Already it's starting to look smoother than the fenders I did earlier.

Lastly, what's the best way to remove paint from the foam touch-up brushes that I'm using? I bought a tin of Kleen-Strip paint cleaner but all it's done so far is destroy the adhesive keeping the handle on, and give me cancer. I used regular soap and water but that takes approximately 12 decades to clean the globs of paint off.

[super pasty white guy]

Don't bother cleaning them, put the brushes in plastic bag and stick 'em in the freezer.

spwg

[Zaipai]

Wow that is working great! I will have to try this next time I paint mine. Good job..

[Scotty J]

just remember that ANY paint job is only as good as its prep work.

Try telling my wife that.  She painted the bathroom without taping or even removing any of the fixture covers.  Came out like you'd expect it to...

[mrblasty]

how does the paint hold up against gas?

Rustoleum holds up alright to gas.  Krylon doesn't

[bzr]

I'm so angry right now. 

I finally broke down and bought a spray bomb that I promptly used on my gas tank. After waiting 24 hours for it to dry, I saw that there were all these infinitesimal little pits and dust specks on there...which I promptly attempted to sand off. Turns out, the paint still wasn't dry after 24 hours, and I ended up sanding damp Rustoleum and making the biggest #$%*ing mess I could have with my tank's finish. With only three days until the damn bike show at that point, I had to act fast and ended up laying down a spray bomb basecoat and then finish off with another coat of Rustoleum/paint thinner brush layer. The results had huge orange peel on it, but I figured that I could just sand that off.

Wrong! After 24 hours I ended up having to deal with more damp Rustoleum and even some spots where I ended up getting bare metal from my sanding. The layers of Rustoleum on there were so damp that it felt like clay; I had to use my fingers to mash it over the gaping pits and then sand it down with 600, 1200, and 1500 in succession. Eventually I smoothed it out to the point where if I touched it any more it wouldn't reveal more massive pits, then sanded the entire thing down to 2000 and was careful to remove even more #$%*ing runs in the paint.

I put on another spray bomb coat, but I ran out and had to finish it off with the brush. It's baking out in 80-degree weather right now, which should hopefully make the damn thing dry faster when I put on a coat of spray-on clearcoat tomorrow. My friend's got a buffer and some polishing compound which should hopefully remove some of the remaining gouges without any drama.

And then I'm going to have it ready for Sunday, hopefully...

From Rickwrench's website I was fooled into thinking that I could have a pristine, if slightly dull, paintjob from Rustoleum if I did it right. After all, how hard could it be? But 4 blisters later I'm completely tired of sanding and waiting, sanding and waiting, and I know that I screwed up something else on my bike and that I shouldn't expect that much from the results. I'll take it as it is for now until I can save up enough money for someone to do it right.

The experiment's conclusion? It works great! If you're not an impatient dip#$%* like me and actually know what you were doing. The tank looked pretty good up to when I bought the spray bomb and completely forgot how to use it properly. So, take it as you will.

Clearly I'm an idiot and I am never doing this again.

[magnum56]

Don't be so hard on yourself.  Just look at the experience you've gained.

[mrblasty]

Probably too late for this tip but if the olor you are using comes in a flat, use it, sand and polish as needed.

[jasonseasen]

MrBlasty, are you saying that is better to use a flat than the glossy? Will the polishing of a flat bring it to a semi or glossy finish??

[Inigo Montoya]

Another tip would be to get a couple flood lamps and position them around the piece to help dry the paint faster. Couple flood lights make some nice heat.

[bzr]

I suppose I better wrap this up with a few thoughts.

Painting this outside on my driveway leads to a lot of bugs and dust that can land in the paint. After spending approx. 2 months continuously wet sanding, painting, waiting, sanding, and laying on more coats only to see more paint issues, I've decided to finish it here and just ride it around like this. Yep, I'm throwing in the towel, and I'm rather ambivalent on whether or not this experiment will be successful for anyone else. I know I certainly screwed it up.





For most people, I suppose it is "you get what you pay for." It's rather naive to think that I could get a million-dollar paintjob with a brush and a spray can, but frankly I expected better results than this.

I don't intend on painting this tank again for a long time, and certainly not by myself, so I'll take it to a body shop in the future and save up some money. It all comes down to a question of do I want to spend this money now, and get a good paintjob and take out some dents while I'm at it, or leave it as is and save up for a paintjob later on down the line (and possibly have to go through the hassle again)? I'm leaning more towards the former at this rate.

Now, stupid question: is it possible to get a good paintjob for under 200 bucks? Is Maaco really that cheap, like $80 bucks? And is there anybody in New England willing to lend a broke-ass member a hand?