The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop DO YOU DIY OR DON'T EVEN TRY

Just wondering what everyone else thought about painting their truck. Did you or will you paint it yourself or pass it on to a professional.

If you chose to take it into your own hands how did it come out or how is it going. What equipment did you use, where did you get it, what did you think of the equipment. What brand paint did you go with. Also where did you paint it at, as not everyone has a paint booth in their garage.

So far im going the route of painting my 52 3/4 ton by myself, well except for my dad helping me out here and there. But anyways, so far i bought a Kobalt 6in dual action sander, i have a long block hand sander, a few smaller hand sanders and many different grit sander paper. I have a 33 gallon air compressor that as i read should be just fine. Im looking at purchasing a hvlp (high volume low pressure) spray gun set. I will also pickup a inline filter to keep water and dirt that gets in the air tank from getting in my new paint. As far as a paint booth, if my dads job didn't close down last month, i would of been able to use the paint booth at his work for no charge, but thats out of the question now. Instead im thinking of getting a 10'x20' carport and rigging up a vent system on in, basically a fan at one side pushing air in with a filter, and another pulling air out. Im also planning to lay a layer of plastic on the ground so no dust or dirt can make its way into the air. Good thing about the carport is i can use to as storage later. As a little guide, i purchased a really good how to book on automotive painting that goes through everything from equipment to body work to painting and so on. So far its been a good reference as i learned about the hvlp spray guns compared to conventional spray guns.

Also has anyone had any experiences using that dupli-color paint thats at advance auto parts and probably at other auto part stores.

Any thoughts, comments, experiences
What route did you take

Do/did you DIY or dont/didn't even try.

Don't get the paint from the auto parts store. Get them from the auto body supply store. I prefer PPG products, but to each his own.

Drummin52, I just went through this whole excersise trying to decide if I should paint it myself or not. Decided after a lot of encouragement from others on this site to try it. I had done some covering and painting of airplanes using Butyrate dope but that method is pretty simple and foolproof so I was a little hesitant about doing my truck. I bought my paint from the local NAPA store and not from body shop supply. This was the Martin-Senour Crossfire system. I used this system all the way through from the etching primer/filler to the clear coat. I used an old Binks siphon gun because I was familiar with it. I painted it in an airplane hangar with the big door open and an exhaust fan in the doorway. Be sure to wear a good mask or use a fresh air breathing system. These paints can be lethal on your lungs. I used the base/clear method because I had heard that the base color was pretty forgiving if I made some mistakes. I found that the clear coats would run easily but they were easy to sand out and re shoot. I think it came out very good for an amatuer like me . Also this is a driver and not a showpiece and thats how I approached it . I would encourage you to consider painting it your self. Do a search for "Paint it myself? in the paint and body work section. Also you can go to my pictures to see how it came out. Weeds

It really depends on how much you want to spend & how you want it to look when you are done. I used to do body & paint work at a collision shop & have painted cars outside(at home) before that came out fine with some color sanding & buffing. You can also make a terrible mess doing it that way and can get in trouble with the EPA.(I didn't have to worry about that 25 yrs ago)
The paints of today are a lot better AND a lot more dangerous. You can use enamel which is cheaper but won't last as long. I just bought 1 & 1/2 gallons of original color urethane (Sikkins)with the reducer & hardner for my truck for $160.00. I am going to have a guy I know at a body shop paint it for me. I don't have the proper equipment at home AND without the proper resporator the isocianates(?) in it can kill you.
Check with a couple local body shops & ask where they buy their paint from. Go to the local paint dealer & ask them what you need for supplies & safety equipment. If you ask a body shop how much to paint your truck they probably are going to start around $3000 & up. You get what you pay for. If you have a SAFE place to paint it, maybe a booth someone lets you use, would try it myself.

Would like to do it myself but would need to be single if I did or I would have to prep and paint outside.

hey drummin if you feel comfortable then go ahead and tackle it. i have. didnt turn out too bad (it wasent one of the fine at five foot jobies it was pretty good) the martin senour product at napa is good stuff (my uncle ran a paint shop for 35 + years with that product with excellent results. my next project willbe painted by me with a product called del-fleet from ppg its semi truck paint and i will only be using it in a single stage system as i have some good experiance with this product and like its coverage. i would highly recomend that you paint a few old hoods or extra fenders or maybee even a pickup box trailer with the same product you intend to use if this is your first time that was you can get a "feel" for it (and yes there is a "feel" that you will aquire) best of luck to ya
army truck

I am currently in the paint it myself camp. The good thing about trucks is that you can paint it in pieces in order to break it down into manageable chunks. Color match is not a problem as long as you work from the same can of paint, stir well each time and use a straight color rather than a metallic. I am planning to use a single stage urethane. I am a bit undecided on the manufacturer, but am currently thinking it will be TCP Global's Restroration Shop urethane. Some comments that I have seen have advised that this is basically a Valspar product. Price is very reasonable. I purchased an LVLP gun which uses less air and should work with your compressor. Astro Pneumatic and Zhipp make LVLP's that others have recommended and are very reasonable ($50-$80). In addition to this forum, I have been watching the following that are very active and have a wealth of info via search:

autobodystore.com
hotrodders.com

Safety is very important with paints. An air supplied respirator is important. I have access to a loaner. You can buy one and resell without too much cost, if you are working on a one time project.
PM me if you need any additional info.
Regards,
Steve Lorio
New Orleans

First do it. With all the knowledge here it can be done. All the above are correct. Prep is foremost. Trailer queen or driver? Single stage or BC/CC? Everyone has their type and style. The learning curve and to be able to say I did it is all worth it. Once you get started you ask more questions and get more answers. It can be done. Good luck. Pics below
Dan
http://rides.webshots.com/album/512683224ScMvjW?start=0

it will be a driver, i plan to go to shows with it but not to be apart of any contests or anything. just going to hang out and talk and look at other trucks.

I would like to shoot a few coats of clear to protect the base coat and give it a bit of shine.

Im in no hurry and have as long as i want to make this perfect and plan to work on one piece at a time and make each as perfect as possible.

so far ive stripped the fenders and smoothed the sheet metal out where needed. ive got a thin layer of filler on now, and ive been working on making it smooth.

i definitely will have questions as i go.

thanks everyone

I had every intention of painting my truck myself until I got WAY too far into my project and realized that if I were to attempt it, I may regret it in the end. I did end up painting the frame, interior, inner fenders, baffles and all of the mechanical components. Basically anything that you would have to crawl under or get in the truck to see. All the important stuff I am leaving to the pro. I too plan to drive my truck to shows and weekends out in the countryside but its days as a working truck are done. It lived a long hard working life and now it is time to enjoy the scenery.

Someday I hope to take on a project that I paint myself, it's just I dumped way too much into this one and with only limited painting experience, I would have hate to done it and wished I had made a different decision afterwards. All that being said, I have seem some really good home paint jobs. From what I understand ,a paint job is made by the prep work and I only have enough patience to do the smaller parts. I get too excited to want to see the paint flow!

The paint isn't as important as the bodywork. If you get the body "straight" the paint will look better than if you had a pro paint a wavy, dimpled mess of a body.

I know what a good paint job is supposed to look like and I'm often appalled at what I see at car shows... and then they paint that mess black. Clueless.

I get seasick walking next to 'em.