lets talk about rattle can painting. whats the best paint to use? what about fast dry paints? enamel? rustoleum?
I will start with my brothers 53 bel air he used rustolium heavy rust primer in the inside Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Back in the 60's when you could get lacquer in rattle cans, I was making money painting dashboards in 55 chevys. Everyone wanted theirs black. Painted and rubbed out the same day. Wouldn't want to do anything very large because it's hard to keep it wet and your hand gets real tired.
I've done vehicles with rattle cans before. My old beater van was done that way. It's held up okay, but you have to be super careful with them - it's easy to get runs. Those topper sprayer things are a help, we rattle canned some parts on a display railroad car and it looks really good after. One thing with Rustoluem, they don't rotate stock and the second batch of 12 cans I hit two duds. When they get old they will spit, clog, and just not work at all, sometimes when nearly full. I would boil a pot of water, turn it off, and soak my cans in that for a while if I was in any doubt, it may make a difference, it may not.
Why not just buy a hvlp gun from Harbor Frieght and paint from Summit or somewhere like that and shoot it. You won't get a pro job but it'll look better than rattle cans. If the job is very big and you buy rustoleum in spray cans, it'll cost you a fortune. Friend of mine used 1 of those guns with paint from Autozone on a 39 Plymouth and it turned out really good. I had my doubts but it's been on for 2 yrs and still looks good.
This is a bit long winded, but full of great info. I didn't authir it, it's from M/C cafe racer website that I belong to. All credit to "twistedwheelz" from the Do The Ton forum: "I am no professional painter, however I am very experienced in using can spray paint for various purposes on a variety of surfaces. I have done everything from small bits and pieces to full mural art. I have painted cars, motorcycles, boats, and much more all using “rattle cans”. I decided to post this in order to help anyone who may not have experience using the “rattle can” method. I have seen various posts where someone gave some advice on painting, some using rattle can and some using professional equipment. I intend on covering every step in this thread. I hope anyone who has experience, will elaborate or criticize any of my method they see fit in order to prefect a collaborative method. The main reason I wanted to do this thread is I have seen where lesser experienced people have struggled with “rattle canning”. I hope they can use this as a reference. Keys to a great rattle can job: 1. Start with good body work 2. Buy good quality brand paints 3. Learn to move in one direction with long even strokes 4. Create a make-shift paint booth(good lighting, sealed off from bugs/dusts/wind) 5. GOOD PAINT TAKES TIME! Tools and supplies needed: 1. Dual action sander, preferably variable speed or at least a variable speed trigger 2. Sand paper for DA sander, 400 grit / 800grit / 1200grit / 2000grit 3. Denatured alcohol 4. Liquid soap 5. Lint free cloths (clean)! 6. Filler primer ( I like the gray rustoleum brand) 7. Body color paint 8. Clear enamel paint Intro: As stated in the keys above, the body work must be smooth and seamless, I cannot stress that enough! (Maybe someone who is handy with the body filler and finishing techniques will create that tread) I still like to prep the body work for paint by using the DA sander and the 400grit followed by the 800grit turning it on a high speed. If you are painting on fiberglass, be careful around edges not to cut in too deep. You are looking for a smooth surface with no noticeable transitions from filler to metal or resin. Never work in your paint booth unless painting body color or clear coat, even the primer will create a dust in your booth! The following are prep methods that you will refer back to in many stages of the process, so from this point forward each method will be sited by its title. “Wash Prep”: Wash object with running water and soap. I like dish washing liquid. Make sure you use a rag. Rinse thoroughly with running water. Wipe dry with shamy or lint free cloth. Allow some time after to air dry. “Tack prep”: Move object to paint booth. Using a clean/dry lint free cloth, wipe down entire object with liberal amounts of denatured alcohol. Be sure you do not touch the object with anything (especially your fingers) after wiping down. Prep: When ready to begin painting you should start with a light coat to check your body work. This first coat will show you any imperfections before you waist too much time. Begin by “wash prepping” your object, then spray a light coat of the primer on the object. You should be holding the can 16 to 20 inches away from the object, waving it back and forth lightly while intermittently releasing and pressing the nozzle. You want to slowly cover the item with a light even coat, barley getting the object covered in color. Allow this coat to dry for 15-20 minutes. Visually inspect the object for imperfections in the bodywork. If you see definite lines where two layers meet or pitting, your body work is not done and you are not ready for paint. Once you are satisfied with you visual inspection coat move on to priming! Priming: Start by “dust coating”. This means hold the can about 20 inches from object and rapidly depress and release the nozzle until you have covered the entire object in a dusty looking coat. This coat should have a texture to it, which is what allows you to build a heavy coat without getting running or sheeting. Never let this “dust coat” look wet; you are laying it to heavy if it appears wet. Allow the “dust coat” 5 minutes to set then begin “covering”. “Covering” means to lay fairly heavy coats of paint using the longest stroke possible. (EXAMPLE: if you were painting a flat square you would start across the bottom and work to the top by moving in horizontal strokes. Aim the nozzle more toward the unpainted surface and away from the freshly painted surface. Depressing the nozzle before your come over the edge and releasing after passing over the opposite edge, painting in both directions.) You should hold the can 12 to 14inches from object and overlap each previous pass by about 2 inches. Don’t try to get it to cover everything, just move at one constant speed and keep it all even, you will be making many passes over the object so it will get covered. After you first “covering coat” you can start over with another “covering coat”. That should be done about for times before pausing. After the forth coat, stop and allow a 15 minute tack time. After the time has passed you can lay on another four coats of “covering”, wait 15 more minutes then repeat covering again! At this point you have 12 coats on your object, it needs to cure, primer dries fast but when you lay it heavy it will take a while for it to cure. Place the object in your booth or other safe place and allow it to cure for at least 48 hours. After curing you may find that your primer has a gritty texture or even some egg shell or orange peel finish, this is ok. In fact if you did it all right, it should! Time to do some sanding! With your DA sander on a low speed, wet sand the surface using 1200grit. DO NOT sand corners with sander, save them and do them by hand very lightly. (TIP: mix up some wet sanding solution by using one tea spoon of baby shampoo in a gallon of water) Once the primer coat is all smooth, time to lay some color! If you sanded through your primer coat, do it all again, and sand lighter! Color painting: It is crucial that you have a good grasp of the “covering” technique for laying color. Begin by doing the “wash prep” followed by the ”tack prep”. Once you are ready and feeling confident with your “covering” technique, begin your “dust coat” of the color. Allow that 10 minutes to tack then go with the “covering” method. Just as above do the “covering” method by doing four full passes, wait 15 minutes, repeat, and repeat again. This again should be twelve coats, give this 24 hours in the booth. After the set time, go straight into another “dust” coat followed by the same 12 coat “covering” process. Curing time, allow the object at least 48 hours to cure before continuing. After curing, DA wet sand the object lightly with the 1200 grit paper, again stay away from edges, they will have to be done by hand. Make sure you start with clean paper. Sand until orange peel finish is removed all the way down to smooth color, but not through to primer! Once sanded, complete a “wash prep” followed by“tack prep”. DO NOT “dust coat” this time, just lay two passes of “covering” coats and wait 15 minutes then lay two “covering” coats of clear paint. Allow this to cure for 48 hours. Now you’re ready to clear. Clear Coating: Start by “tack prepping”. After you have prepped, lay four passes of “covering” coats with the clear, wait 15 minutes, repeat, then repeat again. After that you must cure for 48 hours. Wet sand using clean 1200 grit at low speed, “wash prep”, “tack prep”, repeat the entire “covering” coat steps again. Cure for 48 hours and repeat wet sanding, after wet sanding with 1200 grit move to 2000grit and smooth out more. You are almost there! “Wash prep” again then begin buffing. Buffing: Using a high speed buffer and a fine buffing compound, buff clear coat on high speed applying light pressure over entire object. “Wash prep” and wax using a quality wax and hand applicator. Apply and remove wax by hand, two or three coats really gets a nice bling. I hope you find this helpful, the above is for gloss paints only. Cheers! And happy “rattle canning”! "
You can probably get a HF gun and a gal of acrylic enamel that's as good as whats in a rattle can for about the same $ or less than buying a couple cases of rattlers. http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-Gallon-Sa...1146637797&pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&vxp=mtr
I'm a member on Chop Cult, a motorcycle forum. There's a thread on rattle can painting and some of these guys are doing incredible jobs. Most are on gas tanks but wow they got it going on.
I only use rattle can for either black on suspension stuff or if I am painting a small part that needs to be my car's color. I used filler primer, sand it lightly and then use a good automotive touch up paint from one of the parts stores. Cheap paints have poor sprayers usually.
I like to use Krylon, its covers nice is durable and dries in 10 minutes. I've used it on a lot of stuff and it works great.
Ive done a bit. I like krylon rustoleum and little daddy roth makes some cool stuff. . . When you Finnish save some of the tips then soak them in lacquer thinner then if you have a tip gum up you can swap it out. I like using spray paint for smaller project s . Wouldn't recommend it for a whole vehicle. here is some stuff I did
look for spray cans that have a fan spray nozzle, some are adjustable from vertical to horizontal, better coverage than cans that have a cone style spray nozzle.
Rattle cans can be a good Segway to a real spray gun Great for smaller jobs- if you apply the same techniques and principles of a regular gun- you can get excellent results- patience and preparation are key just as with any paint project. Easier to handle than a spray gun you can develop the technique necessary to achieve uniform consistent coverage and texture- then take those skills to the next level with a real gun when a bigger job comes along. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
a friend of mine braged about his $12000 paint job untill i told him and showed him my paint job. i was at home depo and they were getting rid of simigloss black spray cans for $.01 [one cent] a can, ibought all 50 that they had for $.50 , sprayed my 34 coupe in 1992 and it still looks as i painted it. have a lot of people take pix of it. maby it's the boss 429 eng that they shoot.???
I removed a hoop style rear crossmember and went with a Model A instead so I did a rattlecan blend on the chassis. I'm at the computer and the can is tucked away up in the garage so I can't tell you the brand name. I was more concerned with getting the color close than the brand name anyway to tell the truth. Although it looks a bit off in the pic its actually very close in daylight. It went on like glass and stayed that way without any runs forming. I was pretty impressed with its performance on all levels! The roll bar was bombed as well with black hammertone first to get a slight texture and then with Krylon satin black. The body is done with Tremclad/Rustoleum satin black using a regular gun.
It's all about prep as with any paint and narrow spray pattern and thin paint for spray can use is limiting. I have used krylon and duplicolor engine enamels on mini bikes and small parts with pro results. I can't imagine spraying a large bodied car with it you would likely wear out the index finger.
For small gloss black parts brackets, etc. the cheap Touch 'n Tone spray paint is actually pretty good bodied paint for rattle can paint. Available at Menards or Walmart I think. A friend gave me a couple cans which I used some on a quick release steering shaft and knuckle set up. Looks a good as you would want.
Painting a vintage bike tank and using Dupli-Color lacquer primer and Dupli-Color lacquer Red Metal Specks....I have the color on and want to clear it with same type paint but directions state to wait 7 days to dry...anyone have experience with this paint and how long did you wait to clear?
Rattle can paint must be good because all the top restorers/rebuilders on the TV are using them, but they don't show the brands because its a trade secret and we would all be using them.
I painted and cleared the firewall on my roadster with Napa Brand spray paint and clear. That paint seems to be pretty forgiving and flows out when spraying it. I'm certainly no painter but it works for now. Not sure I would want to try any bigger area though.
I rattle canned the drivers front fender with Duplicolor. I took the one with the spare tire well off the truck. Came out pretty good and matches the other 3. The paint is not as chemical resistant as good is paint, I have to be careful not to spill gas on it. But it’s held up well for 2 years overall.
I like that ride. Cool look on the back side. Seeing lots of nice looking stuff from rattle cans. Simplicity sometimes is just the ticket.
Rattle canned the entire truck with Rustoleum satin in Sage Green. Interior was same plus Krylon Celery green but I can't locate a photo of that right now. This was for about 3-4 years before I tore it down to do a frame off.
I bought a can of catalyzed Wimbledon White to do my firewall and a few other spots on my Ford. I have tons of experience painting model cars, same concept only 25X bigger... Sort of expensive but it was only 1 can. I did the interior floor pan using rattle can primer, followed with Auto Zone Duplicolor white lacquer that came in a quart can, used my jamb gun for that.
Thanks! I made a lot of changes to the car while I had it and everything was done on a tight budget. Rattle cans can't compete with quality catalyzed paint but there's no reason you can't get a decent look if you put the effort in. The T was a driver and was driven on several inter-provincial trips, so the cheap paint took some of the sting out of the rock chips! LoL I really miss the T but our weather lately meant I wasn't getting to many of the out of town shows, so it had to go. I traded it for a muscle car, thinking I could accept it...but I'm just not feeling that after having the roadster. I think something else will be in the garage in the near future... Heres a side view. I was in the process of rounding up steel wheels etc when I traded the car. Ended up giving them to a friend for his 50's Buick project.
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