SeeingSpots
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Bend, OR
I wanted to share with you guys an on-going paint experiment that I've been doing. It's applicable to our relative humidity in Colorado, so I'm posting it here.
As like most of you, I'm really cheap. Powercoating is expensive and tends to chip, POR15 will eventually turn gray from the sun, and the rattle can paint is too thin and will flake off. So I started reading the MSDS for paints and tried to find the best retail paint that had the highest solids content for the best price.
Behold....I know, right? Basic satin Rustoleum.
So just reducing and spraying this stuff will give you marginal results, just like the rattle can formula. But I did it a little differently. I did a 4:1:.5 of Acetone with an Enamel activator which can be purchased at any automotive paint store. Spraying it at 45psi at the gun, with a 1.4 tip, at 50 degrees, the results were pretty fricken awesome. Much to my surprise, it laid down super flat. It would say it's as hard, if not harder than POR15. After a week of dry time, I took a ball pein hammer to a tester piece of flat bar, and not a crack! The best part is, all of the ingredients only cost me $25.00.
The next time you guys are looking to paint something for cheap, give this a shot. The only caveat is that you'll need a HVLP gun and a fresh air supply. The polyisocyanate contained in the hardener will kill you quick if you don't have good ventilation.
Here are some pictures from my bumper and tire carrier that I painted today. Sorry for the crappy pictures. I'll snap a few more once they're installed back on the jeep.
As like most of you, I'm really cheap. Powercoating is expensive and tends to chip, POR15 will eventually turn gray from the sun, and the rattle can paint is too thin and will flake off. So I started reading the MSDS for paints and tried to find the best retail paint that had the highest solids content for the best price.
Behold....I know, right? Basic satin Rustoleum.
So just reducing and spraying this stuff will give you marginal results, just like the rattle can formula. But I did it a little differently. I did a 4:1:.5 of Acetone with an Enamel activator which can be purchased at any automotive paint store. Spraying it at 45psi at the gun, with a 1.4 tip, at 50 degrees, the results were pretty fricken awesome. Much to my surprise, it laid down super flat. It would say it's as hard, if not harder than POR15. After a week of dry time, I took a ball pein hammer to a tester piece of flat bar, and not a crack! The best part is, all of the ingredients only cost me $25.00.
The next time you guys are looking to paint something for cheap, give this a shot. The only caveat is that you'll need a HVLP gun and a fresh air supply. The polyisocyanate contained in the hardener will kill you quick if you don't have good ventilation.
Here are some pictures from my bumper and tire carrier that I painted today. Sorry for the crappy pictures. I'll snap a few more once they're installed back on the jeep.
Last edited:
