Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 04-05-2021, 07:43 PM   #81
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Fastlane is now Inner Love.

Note to mods: please rename thread title from “Building My Fastlane” to “Inner Love”.

Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-07-2021, 05:56 PM   #82
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Bought Citri-Strip gel and paste yesterday. Even if I knew the right chemical to strip paint only, it would most likely be a tedious, arduous process to strip only the paint, leaving the primer, and I would have no guarantees of quality of the original primers bond with my new paint. If that chemical existed, it would probably be expensive too. I just thought it would be neat not to expose the metal and keep the tough 1980 primer.

I am doing test patches to see just how thick of a coat of citri-strip is needed to strip to bare metal as money is that tight right now.

This is going to be my permanent primer so I want to prep the metal right. Keep in mind I have not picked, much less bought my paint and primer. I don’t know what will be available, as manufacturers are temporarily unable to produce products because they don’t have the inputs needed from their suppliers. I hope temporary doesn’t become permanent as it would mean a cascading collapse of our industrial civilization.

I am going to the Kelly Moore in Santa Clara, where they have industrial and commercial paints. However, if you can personally recommend a place in the South Bay with a good selection of tractor paints and enamels, I’m all ears.

Going to use Metal Prep (the blue colored product), after a random orbit sanding pass with 220 grit sanding discs. I never want the paint or primer to separate from Inner Love, unless I want it to.

Please post links to good guides you’ve used for primer prep, with a focus on using industrial primer. Meanwhile I’m going to look on YouTube.

I am going to give the exterior of Inner Love a full scrub and wash, including using my surface cleaner on the roof and semi flat surfaces.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-07-2021, 11:01 PM   #83
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: NE Oregon
Posts: 148
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Thomas
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
If you have the time and energy for it, just sand all of it down to bare metal, then clean with acetone or whatever your primer recommends before priming.
However, if you aren't spraying, then you won't be happy with your end result anyway, so you might as well save time and lightly sand the original paint just enough so that your paint can stick, wipe with acetone, and paint away. Skip the primer if you aren't sanding to bare metal.
I'm not an expert and probably wrong.
Mountain Yawp is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-22-2021, 10:39 PM   #84
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
After slathering Citri-Strip and wet sandblasting with 3200 PSI, I removed less than half the paint. If I knew the paint was this tough I wouldn’t have attempted to strip. Paint stripping is cancelled.

Wet sandblasting media used was play sand that was screened with a flour sifter to remove larger particles.
A
I like the color and texture of the metal underneath, and was motivated to continue to strip so I could simply clear coat over that. Would have really resonated with Inner Love.

Now I’m going to give the existing paint a once over with my random orbit sander, before rolling on new primer and paint. I’m going to even out the half stripped side as much as I can.

This is not ideal, but will have to do.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-24-2021, 08:48 AM   #85
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: Mt Vernon, WA
Posts: 523
Year: 1996
Coachwork: Bluebird, Collins
Chassis: G30 Bluebird Microbird, E350 Shuttle Bus
Engine: 1995 Chevrolet 350, 1992 Ford 460
If I was the teacher I’d give you a A grade for effort for trying to remove that much paint. I wouldn’t recommend stripping a vehicle unless inside a dry building. The dew, rain, and humidity gets into everything and surface rust forms in minutes.
Repeated pressure washing and then scotch brite scrub with a bucket of water with dish soap has worked for me over the years.
Doktari is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-24-2021, 02:19 PM   #86
Bus Geek
 
o1marc's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Dawsonville, Ga.
Posts: 10,482
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Genesis
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466/3060
Rated Cap: 77
Quote:
Originally Posted by Inner Love View Post
A
I like the color and texture of the metal underneath, and was motivated to continue to strip so I could simply clear coat over that. Would have really resonated with Inner Love.
I imagine it was a sparkly metallic looking finish after blasting? Unfortunately when you clear coat it it changes the way the light refracts and just turns it to a dull gray.
__________________
I Thank God That He Gifted Me with Common Sense
o1marc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-30-2021, 11:31 PM   #87
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by o1marc View Post
I imagine it was a sparkly metallic looking finish after blasting? Unfortunately when you clear coat it it changes the way the light refracts and just turns it to a dull gray.
I wondered why I didn’t see any buses with clear coated metal. Perhaps if I really want it in the future, I could brush on a popping shiny metal texture with quality paint.

If you’re chemically stripping Wayne bus paint, Klean-Strip is the better product. Buy the gallon size and spray it on with a spray bottle. I bought a spray can as that is all I can afford, and went over the yellow paint on the rub rails.

I am going to finish stripping the side that I began to strip, because I want an smooth foundation for my primer and paint. Every other side of Inner Love is getting the orbital sanding and paint over treatment.

I’ve already bought my primer, it’s Rust-Oleum [insert information on the can here]. It’s an oil based enamel which is one type of poor mans automotive paint.

The color I am going for is Midnight Purple, basically so dark that it looks black at night.

See, I could have saved a lot of time if there was just a skoolie wiki detailing tried and true methods, ranging from the cheapest possible to middle class. Books exist, but the information freezes in time the moment the book is published, and with a book you usually only get one perspective. Also, I don’t doubt the experts and veterans, I just want to know why to do it this way or why X method is better.

After painting, time to remedy the interior floor. Why is Ospho so often used to coat the floor after wire wheeling to bare metal? Is Ospho a permanent coating? My expectation: I want to seal / encapsulate the floor metal (on both sides) so it can never start rusting again as I’m never removing my subfloor after installing it.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-05-2021, 04:54 AM   #88
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
I am concerned about how much diamond dust I breathed in without knowing the danger. I estimate that I have used diamond impregnated grinding discs at least two dozen times without a respirator. Most of the time it was outside, but a few times indoors with doors open. I read that this is really, really bad as the diamond dust will stay sharp, scarring deeper and deeper into the body until you die of internal bleeding.

I’m going to wear a respirator for any grinding or sanding going forward.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-05-2021, 02:12 PM   #89
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: NE Oregon
Posts: 148
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Thomas
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
Diamond dust, like most health warnings, probably only apply to people living in California. I am safe to drink from my garden hose, but the label specifically states that it may be dangerous for people in the state of California to do the same.

I'm just kidding around. Wearing a respirator or good fitting mask is always a wise idea when dust of any kind is involved.
Mountain Yawp is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-05-2021, 05:00 PM   #90
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
It's about time there were plush respirators and safety goggles that don't fog up, get sweaty, pinch or scratch up. I would pay $100 for a full face shield and respirator if it meant I could forget I was wearing it, was impact rated, and didn't get scratched up easily. I know the market is trended towards contractors and tradesman who are used to it, still the state of PPE is poor, and functionally stuck in the 80s. Can you say Opportunity?

[Edit by moderator to remove the quasi-spam video]

The primer I am using for the stripped side of Inner Love is Rust-Oleum Commercial CV740, Rust-Preventive Alkyd Primer, Item No. 255610. UPC# 20066 19992. Flat Red Primer. Not my first choice, but all that was in-stock and what I could afford. Ideally I would have a black primer as I'm painting Midnight Purple over it.

Since I have a gallon of it (as quarts were out of stock), about half of it will be left over. Which can be used for other parts of Inner Love, if I have nothing else.

Who has used the Rust-Oleum CV740 system, and how has it held up over the years? I'm not expecting much even with proper prep.

Question from my previous post: Why is Ospho so often used to coat the floor after wire wheeling to bare metal? Is Ospho a permanent coating?
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-05-2021, 08:19 PM   #91
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: May 2018
Location: topeka kansas
Posts: 1,771
Year: 1954
Coachwork: wayne
Chassis: old f500- new 2005 f-450
Engine: cummins 12 valve
Rated Cap: 20? five rows of 4?
Rust converter

Phosphoric acid, See where is ospho comes from?

Phosphoric acid converts iron three oxide - red rust, to Iron two oxide, black rust. Black rust is more stable than red rust.

Look at ingredients......

William
magnakansas is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-05-2021, 10:39 PM   #92
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: NE Oregon
Posts: 148
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Thomas
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
I think that the availability of respirators and other ppe is still limited due to people stocking up. Pre-covid Harbor Freight would routinely have their nitryl gloves and plastic face shields on sale, but not in the past year because most stores run out as soon as they get them.
However, thanks to covid we may be seeing some improved designs and ergonomics on respirators in the future, once back in stock.
I wear a mouth/nose covering respirator and separate eye protection. It seems to fog way less, fit more comfortably, and the glasses can be replaced cheaply when scratched without replacing the entire mask.
Mountain Yawp is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-06-2021, 12:13 AM   #93
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mountain Yawp View Post
...
I wear a mouth/nose covering respirator and separate eye protection. It seems to fog way less, fit more comfortably, and the glasses can be replaced cheaply when scratched without replacing the entire mask.
This is what I have. I just wish it was easier to breathe in (positive pressure like a CPAP would be nice) and there were stick on desiccants made for safety goggles. Hopefully in a years time the modern PPE begins to come on the market, as entrepreneurs who started executing on improved PPE in first half of 2020 reach market stage.

I have come across at least two dozen unsolved needs while building Inner Love, and depending on how wealthy I want to become in my life, may execute on some of them after selling my first company (in 5+ years). Developing a portfolio of consumable products that sell in hardware stores around the world is one steady and low competition way to grow a 5+ million net worth into a 100+ million net worth.

I can see the finish line with the paint stripping. I received a cash gift from my Neighbor’s daughter who is a burner, and bought $48 worth of tools and consumables to finish paint stripping from Harbor Freight. Including a heat gun and two different stripping tools, and two different rotary stripping wheels. At this point I want to be done stripping, and don’t really care how the paint is removed. The heat gun and razor work very well. Will be scraping off “ACTIVITY BUS” front and back with this method.

All I need are some replacement razor blades from Home Depot.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-06-2021, 04:02 PM   #94
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Inner Love View Post
...manufacturers are temporarily unable to produce products because they don’t have the inputs needed from their suppliers. I hope temporary doesn’t become permanent as it would mean a cascading collapse of our industrial civilization.
I am still looking for two gallons of either midnight blue or midnight purple from Kelly Moore. If it’s not available I’ll get safety red.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-07-2021, 11:20 AM   #95
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
There were no bases available for mixing at any Kelly Moore near me. Only thing in stock was either Rust-Oleum CV740 Flat Black or Gloss Safety Red. Guess which color I bought.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-07-2021, 02:52 PM   #96
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: NE Oregon
Posts: 148
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Thomas
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
At least people will see you coming with safety red
Mountain Yawp is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-14-2021, 01:42 AM   #97
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Approaching the finish line on painting, this has been a 3 month detour of stripping quality 1980 paint and primer on 1/4 of the body surface, to replace with weak California compliant shite. If there had been a skoolie wiki article on painting I could have saved 2 months on this step.

With how shi**y today’s paints are from environmental virtue signaling, I’m surprised more people aren’t making lacquers and other old-school coatings at home now that companies aren’t allowed to sell it in the United States. While you can’t source every last input that was in 20th century paint, you could source nearly everything to make something considerably more durable than most of today’s paints, provided you can’t buy it south of the border.

Even after slathering citri-strip multiple times, there was still paint left. Then I squirted Kleen-strip with an harbor freight oil can (https://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-...-can-1113.html), and it still didn’t remove everything. I ended up using 4” and 4 1/2” beveled wire wheels with my HF angle grinders, which made quick work relative to everything else I tried (random orbit sanding, using mini wire wheels with a corded drill, flap discs, 3200 PSI power washing with a 0 degree tip at 0 inches away). The quickest method for stripping undegraded paint is the scraper and heat gun, I had to use the wire wheel for everything else. Also, Flex Seal turns to a gummy tar when soaked in acetone and will not completely scrape off.

BTW, an all metal oil can (https://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-...-can-1113.html) is the only lasting spray bottle for acetone and harsh paint strippers. Makes a great dispenser for touch up paint, squirt right onto your brush or surface!

I have learned the method of minimizing orange peel with industrial primer, and how to properly prep metal surfaces for primer then paint. I learned how much to put on the nap and how to use a paint tray. This painting experience will help me for the rest of my life.

I have at least 4 coats of primer on every surface I stripped to bare metal, so I have thickness to sand away the orange peel. I’m planning to use 220 grit sanding discs with a random orbit sanding on everything flat, and sanding sponges on ridged metal. If I could get it in time, a handheld belt sander would make quick work of the ridged surfaces.

I am now desensitized to the Alkyd smell, and have gotten the primer on my skin, as well as acetone and mineral spirits. I hope I regain the sensitivity I had in my hands before I started painting as my body heals and recovers from all this lead and chemical exposure.

I have more fibers than I would like impregnated in the primer, which is an oxidation channel. As long as the metal is sealed and I can hide it with my paint, I don’t care.

I have everything I need to finish painting, and begin the next stage, which is gutting the walls and ceiling for insulation, which is going to be the nastiest job of the entire build due to the fiberglass, only rivaled by the floor stripping.

After I’ve gutted, I’ll post photos so we can discover the most effective methods and products to prevent having a major rust problem grow behind my spray foam insulation after salt air intrusion (major rust can happen via a pinhole or hairline crack after many months of boondocking on salt flats and playas). I have many ideas, and I can’t afford another multi-month detour as I have 8 weeks before our trip to the Black Rock Desert.

After insulation is in, I wire wheel the floor to bare metal, rust gets permanently reformed, and I roll on coal tar epoxy so that side of the metal floor never rusts again. Then Comes a quick and Spartan build as I need basic facilities working and license plates in time for our trip to the Black Rock Desert. The week before I leave, I’ll spray a fluid film all over the engine bay and apply Sweet Project Cars undercoating formula all over the underside.
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-15-2021, 07:38 PM   #98
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: NE Oregon
Posts: 148
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Thomas
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
Good work putting in the time and effort.
I look forward to seeing pictures.
Mountain Yawp is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-19-2021, 06:04 PM   #99
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 273
Year: 1981
Coachwork: Coachwork?
Chassis: International
Engine: CAT 3208 Marine Diesel
Post

One side is fully prepped for paint. I’ve split the painting into five sections: Left side, right side, hood and front face, rear, and roof. Left side is getting painted tomorrow.

I browsed Home Depot and am pleased to see a return of the bucket top misting fan, this time under the Ryobi brand from Arctic Cove. Also looked at doorbells and door buttons, and found a simple round LED lit button with a nickel finish.

Also, a sheet of 19/32 plywood is $87. This means I’m going to have to go with curtains and reclaimed materials until prices return to normal, if they ever do. Other building materials are still reasonable, and are cheap knowing that the onslaught of dollar devaluation is just getting started.
Attached Thumbnails
386B46E3-957C-4F8C-80B4-F881514E07CC.jpg   38C0709C-4514-4889-8647-A154B3AE3ECC.jpg   33380E77-5CB3-4BE5-9E4D-F4F409A0DCB8.jpg   C345EA38-6E16-4D86-9B14-E6B98A08F582.jpg  
Inner Love is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-19-2021, 09:17 PM   #100
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: NE Oregon
Posts: 148
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Thomas
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
Plywood costs are ridiculous right now. I hope they come down soon.
Mountain Yawp is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
anti-miser, first bus, inner love, skoolie build, work smart then hard

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 11:50 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.