New Thomas Minotour Family

[smaek]

Hello Skoolie Community, We have dreamed of owning a skoolie for years and now that we do, I am wondering if we lost our minds. But, I am still pumped about it and want to get started. Today I got a paint estimate that knocked my socks off. I am thinking we will paint it ourselves now, ugh. Please let me know what advice you have.

[milkmanchip]

You can paint that bus all by yourself talk to any auto body shop or Auto supply that sells paint supplies they can explain exactly how to mix and get your sprayer set up ready to go you can buy 2 pint sprayer for 50 bucks if you're not too particular. Sand it down tape it off spray it.

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[1olfart]

Congrats on you new adventure. There are many You Tube videos on painting as well as tips on this forum. Good luck, and keep the pictures coming.

[Robin97396]

Many of us are using Rustoleum. Some with sprayers and others with rollers and brushes. You'll see on the videos that you can get some very nice looking paint jobs even with a roller. A $26 gallon of Rustoleum does a nice base coat.

[bfuller181]

How important is it to thin Rustoleum? From what I understand, thinning is to ensure a showroom floor finish which I don't care too much about. I'm also not interested in applying 8-10 coats with wetsanding in between each coat.

My plan right now is to apply Valspar hardener to a gallon of rustoleum without thinning and hope for the best.

[Robin97396]

The recommended 15% thinner added to Rustoleum is supposed to give you a viscosity that is much easier to apply, particularly for the small sprayers. That way it's thin enough that even if you use a roller the paint blends together better than the same paint when it's thick.

I'm not a painter, but that seems to be what painters recommend.

[bfuller181]

I'll be rolling it on (which is also why I don't want to be bothered with so many coats).

Do you know if multiple coats (more than 2) will be necessary when thinned at 15%?

Thanks so much for your help.

[Robin97396]

I think two coats would be sufficient to make sure you have a second coat on any thin spots.
It is said that a coat of clear will make the paint job last much longer. IMO Rustoleum is so cheap that you'll be able to touch up your paint job for years into the future.

I'm rollering, and it finally stopped raining but it's ove 80* now. Still waiting.

[cadillackid]

im not a paint guy but I think for rustoleum to be durable you use a hardener also?
-Christopher

[Robin97396]

I couldn't get them to sell me a hardener for it at the store I went to. I think it's a good idea if you can get the hardener.

One of the best tips I've gotten here concerning paint was wiping down the surface to be painted with xyline. It strips off any oily or wax residue and softens the surface of the old paint which makes it accept and bond to the new paint.

I'm not going to worry about a hardener but I am going to wipe it down with xyline first. I'm very curious to see how this paint job turns out. I'm trying to go with the correct viscosity as demonstrated on youtube.

[bfuller181]

This is the hardener I got:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Does it specifically need to be xylene, or will mineral spirits work? (don't want to end up with gallons of chemicals that I need to store).

[Tango]

Adding a little hardener to any oil based paint will definitely make it more durable. And if you don't want to thin it too much, you can add some Penetrol which also makes for a smoother finish whether sprayed, rolled or brushed. Just stick with the manufacturers' recommendations.

[Robin97396]

Penetrol was what the home store offered when I was getting the rustoleum. It's hard to find it by that name because it has FLOOD across the can. It does have xyline in it.

I think I'll get that hardener. Thanks for the link.

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by Robin97396

Penetrol was what the home store offered when I was getting the rustoleum. It's hard to find it by that name because it has FLOOD across the can. It does have xyline in it.

I think I'll get that hardener. Thanks for the link.

Definitely go for the hardener.

I'm starting to rethink my Rustoleum plans. I've found single stage acrylic automotive/implement paint for 60 a gallon with hardener locally.

[Robin97396]

I like equipment paint. I looked for a 5 gallon bucket of Eucalid green for months before I finally bent to Rustoleum. The Eucalid green was more than likely a led paint. I ordered the hardener for the rustoleum this afternoon.

Our weather finally turned from rain to 80*+ temps. That's not great for painting but I'm getting tired of waiting for perfect conditions. Not raining is good enough.