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  View original topic: What about a compromise rattle can paint job?
Westy Steve Wed Sep 03, 2014 11:12 am

Hey guys,

I will be painting my car kind of soon. I think it was last painted with a rattlecan. It's a "hood ride", which isn't my cup of tea. I'm eventually going to dispose of the body in favor of another better rust-free body.

So i thought about rattle can painting it again in my driveway. I live in the suburbs.

But then I had another thought:

What if I do a rattle can paint job, but use car paint. You know, like go to a paint store and have them fill up some cans for me. Would there be an advantage? Could I do a base coat and clear coat that way? What are the pros and cons?

Steve

bvd Wed Sep 03, 2014 8:43 pm

Steve, rattlecan paint is generally enamel based (like Rustoleum which is an alkyd enamel) or lacquer based. If you try to paint over it with real urethane automotive paint (single stage or base coat/clear coat), it will be incompatible and not adhere properly or bubble. You'd have a real mess on your hands...

Enamel paint and lacquer paint dry through solvents evaporating from the paint...they sometimes take months to dry fully, or even years. Urethane paint hardens by chemically crosslinking with itself, because you must add an isocyanate catalyst or activator to it. Also, it is very dangerous if not handled properly as the isocyanates can enter your body and never leave...obviously unless you're spraying it everyday as your career you don't have to worry too much, but still exercise extreme caution and research proper respiratory protection if you ever use it.

Anyway, I'm rambling, but the long and short of it is that you can't spray urethane automotive paint over a spraycan job, unless you are spraying a compatible enamel or lacquer based product. he unevaporated solvents in the underlying spraycan paint. The urethane paint could trap in tCheck out TCP global, which is one of the only places on the internet I know where you can still buy enamel or lacquer auto paint. Also, most local auto paint stores will be able to sell you decent auto enamel, but be careful, because they will also try to sell you an isocyanate "enamel hardener", which gives enamel some of the benefits in durability of urethane, but is still rather dangerous and toxic.

Pinetops Wed Sep 03, 2014 8:52 pm

I'm not an expert but I've done some paintwork on motorcycles, cars and guitars. If you find that lacquer is compatible with the paint that's already on your bus I would probably use that. This will produce a better finish for much less effort than a rustoleum paint job.

You could get a wagner sprayer (or a ton of prevals) and some auto lacquer. You will want to get a random orbital sander and get the body smooth as possible. Sand all rust down to shiny metal and/or treat with POR-15 or similar. Lacquer is probably the most forgiving paint to make look good, it melts into itself. If you make a mistake you can sand it out and spray another coat, it's not "layers" like the modern paints.

If you want to go a little cheaper here's what I would do. I've done a couple rustoleum paint jobs and they have their place. Rolling it on is just too much effort if you want it to get it smooth. If you just want to cover it and don't mind mega orange peel and soft paint then go for it. If you go the rustoleum route I would suggest going for semi-gloss or satin in spray cans. Spray can gloss is very difficult to get to lay down even, it usually looks cheap IMO. The semi gloss will give you a more flat look and hide imperfections. Get the body smooth, paint a couple coats and done.

vdubmyk Sun Sep 07, 2014 12:56 pm


I had my local paint shop put single stage L87 in a spray can for me when I sprayed my fender. It costs $25 a can and to get enough coats on I used about 1.75 cans. I also had enough to spray the license plate housing. For a whole car, it can be done but why go through all that prep work to use a can?

Westy Steve Thu Feb 19, 2015 12:22 pm

Hey guys,

I'm the OP from this older thread. I've got a "new" car now, but follow-up questions.

My new car has really nice O.G. paint on my dash, except where my windshield seal leaked onto a small section of the dash, and the edges of my glovebox.

Maybe you can see it here (more text below picture):


ANYWAY!, I want to touch up the dash, but I don't want to paint over much of my OG paint on the dash. So my plan was to mask off a section, sand it, treat it, prime it, sand again, and paint it. Really leaning toward having some car paint put into an "aerosol" can. What do you think? Any tips?

At some point, despite the fact that my car might be original paint on the outside, I want a respray for the outside of the car only. However, since this is a "rolling resto", I'll be working on a section at a time. My plan was to work in small sections and sand, treat, skim bondo, fine sand, prime, and then what? Should I also paint those small areas with an "aerosol" can of car paint as I tackle them? (seems like that would protect my work). I was thinking once I've finished the outside a patch at a time, I could then sand the car down one more time and have the entire car painted by a professional. Bad idea? Good idea? Tips?

Thanks for any information. I'm not familiar with any of the lingo you guys use, but I understand the general concepts. (keep it simple for the dummy).

Steve

Air-Cooled Head Mon Feb 23, 2015 10:02 am

I can't see the dash damage you speak of. However, the picture does show a beautiful dash, but looking at the fender thru the vent window, :-&

Overall, your idea is sound. Get some paint made to match your dash, in a spray can. (Most any auto paint store can do this)

Since you plan the have the whole car re-sprayed after all repairs have been made, your section by section plan should work fine.

Good luck! \:D/



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