Painting with Rustoleum

[minimorris77 1]

I'm going to start a restore on a B-100 soon and I liked the color of the Rustoleum Regal Red I used on my last restore, except for the fact that I feel its still soft and vulnerable to scratches. It seems it has never dried and hardened. I used rattle cans and I was thinking about getting a paint gun for this job. Is that a good Idea/worth it?  Mostly because I want to mix in hardener.  Is their a certain kind I should use with this paint? Will it dry faster/harder also? I also like rustoleum because the price and availability. Also would you recommend a glossy clear coat?   

[Racinbob 10,390]

Under the right conditions you can get a great finish with Rustoleum rattle cans. I've achieved finishes that rival what a skilled painter can do with a gun but I've also had issues. It does take a long time to harden up but once it does it's pretty tough. Do several light coats with just enough to fully 'wet' the surface. You'll see when it gets to that point. If you let a coat dry for more than an hour or so (depending on thickness and conditions) DON'T respray for several days, a couple weeks is better. I wait at least a month. Forget what the can says about the 72 hours. You need to wait longer in most cases. You also need to be careful about the temperature and especially the humidity. With that being said, a gun with skilled hands behind it would be a better choice.

[Pullstart 59,879]

I've been finding the humidity to be an issue too lately.  For paint that is... my garden loves it!  but it's nothing a few work lights to help bake the paint can't handle.

[Racinbob 10,390]

I've tried the lights, baking in the Florida sun and bringing it in the house right after spraying. It helps but I found that the best thing is don't get too serious about painting during the summer here. I really liked the results with some Valspar rattle cans recently and it didn't seem to mind the climate. I may try it on the Suburban wheels if they have the right color.

 

Yea pullstart, I remember the great gardens I had in northern Indiana. I've tried to garden here but the heat and critters always win.

[tarcoleo 119]

Have no problems with brush-on Rustoleum in pry-off lid cans. It levels supurbly, dries

quickly, and is as durable--once dry--as any paint. Am partial to Sunrise Red. A quart can

will cover two to three WH's. Should prep surface including final lacquer thinner wipeoff.

[zelinadc 0]

I use the rustoleum profissional primer, then wait at least 24 hours and apply top coat. Let that top coat dry for at least 72 hours. Im going to try and reduce and spray the regal red with a gun. Not quite at that point yet.

[minimorris77 1]

Have no problems with brush-on Rustoleum in pry-off lid cans. It levels supurbly, dries

quickly, and is as durable--once dry--as any paint. Am partial to Sunrise Red. A quart can

will cover two to three WH's. Should prep surface including final lacquer thinner wipeoff.

 

Do you add anything to the paint right out of the can? Thinner/Hardener? Also do you mean taking a clean rag with lacquer thinner and wiping off the parts to be painted?

 

Under the right conditions you can get a great finish with Rustoleum rattle cans. I've achieved finishes that rival what a skilled painter can do with a gun but I've also had issues. It does take a long time to harden up but once it does it's pretty tough. Do several light coats with just enough to fully 'wet' the surface. You'll see when it gets to that point. If you let a coat dry for more than an hour or so (depending on thickness and conditions) DON'T respray for several days, a couple weeks is better. I wait at least a month. Forget what the can says about the 72 hours. You need to wait longer in most cases. You also need to be careful about the temperature and especially the humidity. With that being said, a gun with skilled hands behind it would be a better choice.

 

I was going to ask about if I should recoat soon or wait. How soon can you wait before recoating the canned-out-of-a-gun paint?

[Racinbob 10,390]

Once an hour or two pass don't recoat for a while. Like I said, the can says 72 hours but I always wait longer, sometimes much longer. Putting the final coat on only to have it do the orange peel thing is frustrating to say the least. I don't know about out of a gun. I suppose it depends on if you put hardener in it. I'll let the guys with gun experience answer that one. I want to try a gun one of these times. I think the clean up has kept me away from it more than anything.

[kudzu3 323]

I am using the rattle cans for my B 80 and so far am pretty satisfied with the outcome. When I first started and was asking questions, someone here suggested that I use a gun instead of the can because the result would be better and the cost would be less. Now that I am about finished, I have come to realize that who ever gave me the advice was exactly right. To get good results with the rattle cans, it has to be applied very heavy and to the point just before running, and with several coats, I have really gone through a lot of paint, which translates into a lot of money. If I had it to do over, I'd use the gun. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[tarcoleo 119]

Newbie- I use Rustoleum right out of the can after rag-cleaning smoothed surfaces

with lacquer thinner. Not a lot of procedure here but it works. Good luck!

[PaulC 341]

I just recently repainted my 312-H and some attachments using rustoleum farm and implement IH Red and rustoleum rusty metal primer.

 

For my mower deck and my lawn sweeper I just brushed on one coat of primer and one coat of paint. It took long to fully dry but I am pretty happy with the outcome. If I were to brush paint something again I think I would try to add hardener to the paint. And I would not recommend brush painting flat sheet metal that you want a nice looking finish on. You can get it to lay out nice but on a big flat surface I think it would take a ton of practice.

 

For the sheet metal of the tractor I used a gun and sprayed it in the booth here at work. The gun is the way to go but you need to have a paint booth or at least somewhere where you could make one, the gun will really throw some paint. Spray cans will be just as messy and I don't expect you would get the same finish, looks and durability, and would cost you a lot more. I used 1 quart of primer and paint and 1 can of Valspar hardener for oil based paints and acetone as my thinner all totaling 35-40 bucks. I was thrilled with the finish for the cost and it dried super hard and durable within a day or so. I primed Friday night, painted Saturday and took the parts home Monday morning.

 

the link to my thread so you can check it out. unfortunately the mower deck did not look nearly as nice after just one mow.

 

good luck on your project and use this site to your advantage tons and tons of awesome info on here.

[Tankman 3,515]

Have had very good results with Rustoleum Regal Red rattle cans. The price is right too! Most always on Home "Cheapo" shelves.

 

Hang the parts all over my barn on coat hangers.Rattle cans, Rustoleum Regal Red. I always use two or more light coats but, let them dry for a few days between coats. The coats must dry thoroughly or you will see blisters or lumps or whatever. I've sanded down a few hoods 'cause of my impatience. Ouch.

 

Silver wheels, Duplicolor Silver Heavy Duty wheel paint.  

 

Decals are right on from http://www.redoyourhorse.com !