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Post by Atomic Addiction on Sept 23, 2009 4:47:57 GMT -5
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Post by uncleatom on Oct 17, 2009 7:01:40 GMT -5
I have now rolled my 63 Comet wagon and my 62 Shasta with Rustoleum, and overall the experience was good. For the Shasta  I was determined to get the right tint for the green/aqua/turquoise. Went to Home Depot and charmed/begged/pleaded with the young lady in the paint department to tint a quart of bright white for me to match an aqua/turquoise color chip I found there in the store. I promised I would buy the quart it no matter what happened, so she did it. It sat on a shelf for a year until I finally was ready to use it. As Brian said, I thinned my Rustoleum with 50% odorless mineral spirits and used the recommended foam rollers. I marked off where I wanted the Rustoleum bright white and rolled it first. It took about 3 coats to get it on. I did not bother to wet sand and it still turned out glossy. Then I did the lower half with the tinted Rustoleum and again it covered well after 3 coats. I wasn't going for a perfect result, if I was I would have spent lots of hours smoothing out the dents and dings first. I'm happy with the result, and since the camper is not under cover except for a tarp, I can add that it has stood up so far to the elements quite well over the past 3 months. BTW, if you decide to roll a car, leave lots and lots of time to get it good. Rolling paint takes tremendous patience, and you have to get almost all the thinned paint off the roller to minimize runs and orange peel texture. Plan on doing lots of wet sanding with progressively finer grits of sandpaper. On the Comet   I went with Rustoleum canvas white since I could get rattle cans and quarts that matched (it's the color used a couple years ago on the Hot Rod magazine cover car, a first generation Falcon). I removed the front fenders and hood to get all the trim off and to get the underside of the hood cleaned, sanded and primed. I used the rattle cans on the door jambs, under the hood and in some other spots where it was too hard to use a roller. The Comet took between 6 and 8 coats. I still want to go back and re-do the driver's door, my body prep was not good and you can really spot the filler that didn't get sanded to perfection. But I plan to have fun with this car and use the heck out of it (grocery runs, etc.) so I didn't want something I was afraid to leave in a parking lot. Another site with tips on painting this way is rolledon.comBTW, the Comet will retain it's six cylinder engine and suspension/brakes, so I'll probably never tow the Shasta with it. That duty will be reserved for the Park Lane convertible vintageshasta.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=towvehicles&action=display&thread=145, and I'll probably end up rolling the paint on it too! |
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Post by cpnthrfan on Dec 2, 2009 0:17:19 GMT -5
i love this thread and plan on trying ir on my 82 suburban anything will look better than the paint it has now.
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Post by corvettetonybone on Jun 9, 2010 16:50:25 GMT -5
Opinions on using a house style paint sprayer with exterior oil based enamel paint.
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Post by Redwings on Jun 23, 2011 18:07:17 GMT -5
Here is a pic of my latest $50 paint job (with $10 worth of pin striping from NAPA). (SOB) My question is: What does everyone else do about the top of the trailer? I'm so short and just sort of didn't really paint the top...but maybe I should. Is it important to have the top painted? It's in good shape but is bare aluminum from all the years of wearing off. Attachments:
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Post by kevschofield on Jun 23, 2011 18:33:26 GMT -5
That's a GREAT looking camper  |
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Post by 61shastacompact on Jun 23, 2011 18:33:35 GMT -5
That looks sharp Redwings!
I think in the grand scheme of things, painting the top would be good to add another layer of protection from the elements and protect the aluminum from oxidation. With that being said, the roof on my Shasta is bare aluminum and does not appear to have ever been painted. My trailer is garaged so I am not concerned about it for now.
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Post by Redwings on Jun 23, 2011 18:36:15 GMT -5
Thanks! We are fixing it up to sell hence the rattle rattle job. I hadn't even thought about the top until I looked down on it from an upstairs window.
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mindy
100 Post Member
Patty Ann, 1962 Compact
Posts: 248
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Post by mindy on Jun 23, 2011 19:28:29 GMT -5
Diane, She is too cute!!  Tell me about this pinstriping you did. I am thinking about a little detailing on Patti once we get the colors right. Was it a decal or paint? Thanks, Mindy |
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Post by blu26ovl on Jun 23, 2011 21:20:39 GMT -5
I painted the top of mine white. I had it out in the sun and laid my hand on the bare aluminum before it was painted and you could not keep your hand on it from the heat. With it painted white it barely heats up so it has to help to keep it cooler inside.
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Post by missblossom on Apr 2, 2012 17:33:32 GMT -5
I want to do this with my '61 compact. About how many cans of paint would I need? Going to prime it first with Rustolum primer, the color over it. Don't know how to judge how many cans of paint. Thanks.
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WingedWonder
100 Post Member
Save the domes....we will eat them last.
Posts: 166
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Post by WingedWonder on Apr 2, 2012 18:59:00 GMT -5
When I sprayed my Compact I used 2 quarts on the top half and 1 quart on the bottom.
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cowcharge
1K Post Member
I suffer from Shastasomiasis.
Posts: 1,471
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Post by cowcharge on Apr 3, 2012 5:23:33 GMT -5
Redwings, that looks great!
IMHO, using a technique meant for the thick, stable sheet steel on a car would be hard to replicate on thin, flexy aluminum, and even harder to keep that way, what with all the future dings, and the flexing and expanding thin aluminum does. Whatever they used to paint these at the factory is very thin and flexible, you can crease a piece of camper skin without the paint flaking off, but look at a creased car fender and see the paint coming off. I don't think a camper will hold a thick, car-style paint for very long. Anyone got a five year-old paintjob done like that?
I used an e-book for guitars called something like "how to get a factory paint job from a spray can", using Krylon rattle cans, on both a guitar and my tub and bathroom sink in the trailer, and they came out like mirrors. But I think Krylon's lacquer, which I think would be too brittle for flexy aluminum, and it would be an ungodly amount of wet-sanding on something like a camper (And way more than $50). Between the 6-10 coats of color and 6-10 more of clear, it'd probably be thicker than the aluminum. I'd use it on a car though... Anyone got a five year-old paintjob to report on?
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Post by lopo on Apr 3, 2012 11:39:59 GMT -5
Very good points on the differences between what kind of paint a trailer needs vs. a car - so where does that leave us? What type of paint is best for flexy aluminum?
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cowcharge
1K Post Member
I suffer from Shastasomiasis.
Posts: 1,471
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Post by cowcharge on Apr 3, 2012 13:50:33 GMT -5
No idea, Lopo. Thankfully, other than the roof my paint just needs some rubbing compound to get all shiny again. I'm sure there are lots of professional paint shops out there who know though, aircraft painters and such. Too bad there aren't any old Shasta builders here to tell us what they used.
I wonder if there are any drive-through anodizing companies out there...
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Post by lopo on Apr 3, 2012 21:55:52 GMT -5
Tonight I asked my PO, a reputable guy in Michigan who has renovated (not sure that he restores to original) 25 trailers how he paints them, and this is what he wrote back in case any of you are interested:
I use Rustoleum paint for the trailers. I ALWAYS SPRAY THEM. No brushes or rollers. You will need to sand any area you plan to paint with 220 grit sandpaper or use sanding blocks. After sanding, wipe this area very good with lacquer thinner to clean it. If you have any bare metal showing, it should be primed with a primer. If not, just mask any area you don't want paint on and spray it. If you just did the small gold stripe, I would do it with spray cans. If you do the whole trailer, etc., you really need to have it done with an HVLP (high volume low pressure) sprayer ($70.00 or so). Of course you need an air compressor capable of holding 60-80 pounds of pressure continuously. They run about $150- $200. Use the blue masking tape not the whiteish basic masking tape. It is much better tape to use. I can' give you an idea of hours of preparation getting ready to paint, but a good guy can mask off the trailer in 3 hours. He could easily paint the whole trailer (one color() in less than 5-6 hours, so basically you can see how much it might cost you to have someone else paint it. You can probably get it done by a local house painter less than you could do it yourself. Hope this helps you out, and my information isn't too late to help. If the painter wants to use AUTOMOTIVE paint--- that is great too!!
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Post by missblossom on Apr 3, 2012 23:20:47 GMT -5
Thanks Lopo for the advise. All this information helps.
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Post by janesfaces on Sept 26, 2012 12:28:12 GMT -5
uncleatom,
I absolutely LOVE your green/aqua/turquoise color choice on your Shasta. Any chance your Home Depot paint gal, wrote down those formula numbers on the can?? I just bought a 1966 Shasta, and I am planning on using your painting technique. Yours looks amazing!! Thanks for the paint info.
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Gone Kayaking
1K Post Member
long live the Vintage Shasta Trailer Forum....we're gone but you are not forgotten!
Posts: 1,600 
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Post by Gone Kayaking on Sept 26, 2012 21:58:40 GMT -5
As one who is has just finished rolling on the 6th coat following the $50 paint job method...(2 coats per day at most due to drying time required). I think it's taking more coats because the self etching primer that I had to use for the bare metal was grey so the color is taking longer to even out. I can say if you have the room to use an HVLP sprayer do it! This is very time consuming. I think I will be done by Sunday... It only is about an hour a day....but still that's 8 days not including the prep time. I unfortunately don't have room to use a sprayer. I'm happy with the way it's turning out though.
Janes faces.... If you use Ace Rust Stop you can get it tinted any color you want--its the same stuff as rustoleum. I am using Benjamin Moore Mexicali Turquoise which is similar to uncleatom. If I was to do again I might go one or twos shades darker...
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tkasten
New Member
My "New" 59
Posts: 9
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Post by tkasten on Oct 19, 2012 13:25:08 GMT -5
I just found this thread and wanted to add my 2 cents. I used a spray gun/air compressor with Rustoleum Enamel. I works great for the price. This is the second trailer I've done with this method. The thing I really like is that touch-up spray cans are easy to get at any hardware or building center. It use about 1/2 gal. for the white and a bit less for the red. Attachments:
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See my rebuild pics at: 
