Technical Rattle Can vs Spray Gun

I’ve never used a spray gun, but I’m wondering if it’s time to bite the bullet & give it a go. I throw this out there because I’m needing a fresh coat of paint on my custom made steel gas tank before I install it in my 37 Coupe.

The inside of the tank was done a couple years ago & after modifying a tank sending unit to work it’s time to get this sucker painted & installed. I was going to just spot paint it with a rattle can but after some self etch rattle can primer, I’m thinking twice about the durability of a rattle can paint job on the gas tank which will likely take some abuse under the car.

I have a pint of POR15 which I could use if I grabbed a cheap harbor freight spray gun, so what can you suggest?



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Buy a respirator if you going to spray POR15. That stuff is nasty just brushing it on, but can kill your lungs (and consequently YOU) if you spray it without a respirator. But hopefully you already knew this.

 

POR15 is designed to be used on lightly rusted surfaces, does not sound like this is what you have. Some inexpensive
enamel with hardener would probably work well for you, and give you a cheap way to try out spraying.

 

Spray gun is much better than a rattle can in many areas. I have never used POR15, so I cannot comment on that. A good acrylic enamel automotive paint is the way I would go. I have done some amazing spray can paint jobs on small projects. Like toys etc.. But the durability is not the same as a professional spray gun job.

 

Buy a good mask, compressor, gun and water separator, have fun! Bob

 

How fussy are you? How much of the tank can you see without crawling under the car? But a quart of Tractor Supply enamel or Rustoleum with their hardener. Or step up to an automotive paint with hardener. Brush it on. Unless you are building a Swiss watch it will be fine.

 

Pay attention to RMONTY! My buddie sprayed POR 15 on the underside of his 63 Galaxie with a respirator (but not a fresh air system) and puked his guts out three or four times , was dizzy and couldn't get his breath very well for a couple days. That stuff is nasty enough when brushed on, when sprayed it is killer.

 

do not spray POR 15.

the POR part of POR 15 is "Paint Over Rust". not sure why so few seem to realize that.

 

Hopefully anyone that is planning on spraying (or just using) any chemical products it our hobby/ business has enough snap to read the instructions.....but I digress...

 

You need to go to their website for factual information. POR 15 can be sprayed. It can also go on seasoned metal or sandblasted surfaces. It does not have to go on rusted surfaces, though it certainly can

 

I’ve used por 15 on rusty surfaces and it worked great, converted to a hard shell finish. I also got some on an adjacent non rusty surface and it appears gummy and didn’t harden so good. On clean metal epoxy paint is a much better choice, IMO.

 

I agree on the respirator (have a couple btw) as it’s below freezing here in Montana. The garage is locked up & heated, which makes the garage toxic with even a rattle can!

My main concern is durability. Yeah, I’d like it to look good or at least not like I painted it by dipping my hand in paint & smearing it on the tank....


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Pick up a cheapo Harbor freight purple gun and experiment with it. They are $10 right now, so no big investment if you can't get the hang of it. And I agree with leadfoot, use an epoxy. Sprays easy and will hold up well. If you decide to use a color down the road you can always scuff the epoxy and paint over it easily. Rattle cans have their use, but not on something that is going to be exposed to road crap being thrown up at it.

 

I was thinking Truck Bed Liner would be good on a gas tank . It seems to be durable in the truck bed and may stand up to the stone chips and abrasion the tank would be subjected to. Any one tried it ?

 

well you could paint your butt with it if yo wanted to. that is not what it is made for.

 

As was said, HF purple gun, they don't produce as much over spray as a rattle can, our Rural King and Tractor supply has enamel in qts along with etching primer. I shot some of RK etching primer and it went on as smooth as silk. I'm going to shoot my chassis in it and follow up with black enamel.

 

I use a gun on almost everything I paint. Por is a great product and I have brushed it and sprayed it. No wrong answer to the OP question. I like the idea of bedliner for a gas tank. They make a rattle can bedliner that I have used.

 

Believe it or not the POR15 goes on fairly smooth with a brush (make sure you wear gloves, it does not clean off your skin easy). I assume you are using their black which is not really a topcoat so you can paint over it. I have used POR15 on tanks and chassis and then sprayed mostly satin and sometimes gloss black for a topcoat. On small jobs like a gas tank a rattle can would probably work fine.
Then when the can is empty you can start your own rattle can marble collection.

 

I like to use Rustoleum Hammertone paint on chassis components, doesn't need primer and is durable. I spayed POR15 once, it is messy to deal with, besides a respirator you need to cover all exposed skin. Better to brush it.

 

i wasn't impressed with p.o.r., should be called p.o.s..
if the paint is warm and the tank is warm, you can carry it outside, spray it and carry it back in to dry. i use a garment rack on wheels for larger parts. roll it out, spray roll, it back in.

 

Get some John Deere Blitze Black in a spray can. It has a nozzle like a regular spray gun. Nice verticle spray.

 

My car has been undercoated in the past. When I took my tank out and cleaned and sealed it, I bought some rubberised undercoating in a spray can at Walmart, it might have been 3M brand, don't remember right now. I sprayed it with that, let it dry and put it back in the car. Has been under there a few years now, it still looks like it did when I did it, and it matches the original style undercoating.

 

Twer me I would use rustoleum rattle can bed liner. Good stuff. Really, though, original tanks lasted 30-40 years. Todays are probably better. I did not paint my new one. About 6000 miles and still shiney.

Ben

 

Another option for you: I've had good success with 2K rattle cans. You pop a button that releases the hardener, shake it up and spray just like you would with a gun. Eastwood sells it, as do automotive paint suppliers. It's a little spendy at $25-30 a can, but you won't have to buy a gun and you won't have to deal with equipment clean-up after you're done. A good respirator is required--this stuff is every bit as nasty as regular automotive paint.

 

I can only go by what the manufacturer recommends. There are always those who possess extraordinary insight and knowledge, far beyond the university trained chemists and engineers who develop these products. Were I to paint my butt, I would use a cross linked polymer as opposed to POR 15. Nicer, more organic finish

 

Buy a good air compressor. Hook up a separate line with air regulator. This way you can use it to hook line for spray gun. You really do not need high air pressure to spray paint. You will like it over a rattle can.

 

I have used the gravity feed purple hvlp gun from harbor freight it's dirt cheap and does a good job..highly recommended

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Astonishingly enough, after you give it a good cleaning, it is a pretty damned good gun.

 

Definitely NOT a good choice....





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So I went ahead & painted the tank with an acrylic enamel from NAPA, Martin Senior brand.

While it looked good it was taking for ever to dry. At least 5 days had passed & after applying heat with a room temp in the high 60’s and it appeared to be dry. Thus I flipped the tank to paint the side it was previously resting on. After painting & removing the tape in around an hour of applying the tape, it messed up the previously painted surface. It didn’t remove any of the previous paint but left the tape’s sticky pattern on it. No tape glue on the tank either, just patterned it.

It’s obviously not drying, which is really frustrating because dry time & durability were the two main reasons I went from rattle cans to proper painting. So, what can I do to get this to dry? I sure as hell don’t want to watch the paint dry for weeks or months!!!







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