Painting the bus - Rustoleum and $47 paint sprayer

[A_Bus_Called_Quest]

Hope you have the time to answer a few quick Q's.


What was the temperature when you sprayed and how long did it take to tack over?
Did you have a problem with bugs and dust sticking to the paint? runs?

Could you post a few close up pics of the finish, both the good spots and any problem areas?


Thank you.

I'll get some close up pics in the morning for sure, I was just admiring at the finish today. In some spots it is almost factory smooth, in others there is a slight orange-peel texture. The only runs were in the back where the bus is close to a wall, thus I got too close to the side when passing through. Hardly noticeable though.
Like I said I'll follow up with some closeups in the AM.

Temperature was probably 80s, I'm in Vegas so it is super dry. I didnt get to painting until about 6 or 7pm, so I think bugs were minimal - we don't have a ton that fly here anyway.
As soon as the sun hit the bus there were little flies all over it haha

After the second coat in the AM we took all of the tape of, and had used garbage bags to cover the lights. Some small pieces of the bag landed on the surface of the tacky paint - but the next day when it was fully dry they just brushed right off and didn't affect the surface.

I don't remember exactly how long to tack up - it was dark out when I was finally done and couldn't stop touching it up so I just had to walk away before I did more harm than good lol

 

[kidharris]

I'll get some close up pics in the morning for sure, I was just admiring at the finish today. In some spots it is almost factory smooth, in others there is a slight orange-peel texture. The only runs were in the back where the bus is close to a wall, thus I got too close to the side when passing through. Hardly noticeable though.
Like I said I'll follow up with some closeups in the AM.

Temperature was probably 80s, I'm in Vegas so it is super dry. I didnt get to painting until about 6 or 7pm, so I think bugs were minimal - we don't have a ton that fly here anyway.
As soon as the sun hit the bus there were little flies all over it haha

After the second coat in the AM we took all of the tape of, and had used garbage bags to cover the lights. Some small pieces of the bag landed on the surface of the tacky paint - but the next day when it was fully dry they just brushed right off and didn't affect the surface.

I don't remember exactly how long to tack up - it was dark out when I was finally done and couldn't stop touching it up so I just had to walk away before I did more harm than good lol

Thanks again. I don't know about Rustoleum but in the past with some other paints I have had orange peel textures because of high humidity. Many years ago I painted a van under an awning while it was raining and the texture was more like crinkle paint. Was there a sprinkler system going nearby? Maybe it was the lack of hardner?


I want to try the Rustoleum but I need it to dry fast to avoid the bugs and wind/sand here in the desert. The last time that I lived in Vegas the humidity was typically around 40 % (25-60 %). The more I learn about Rustoleum, the better I feel about it.

 

[A_Bus_Called_Quest]

Thanks again. I don't know about Rustoleum but in the past with some other paints I have had orange peel textures because of high humidity. Many years ago I painted a van under an awning while it was raining and the texture was more like crinkle paint. Was there a sprinkler system going nearby? Maybe it was the lack of hardner?


I want to try the Rustoleum but I need it to dry fast to avoid the bugs and wind/sand here in the desert. The last time that I lived in Vegas the humidity was typically around 40 % (25-60 %). The more I learn about Rustoleum, the better I feel about it.

I think in my case the texture is from the sprayer - I didnt take a ton of time to dial it in to a perfect mist, and didn't mind the texture so I just ran with it

 

[Brian S-SKO]

Very helpful. Thanks so much for posting this.

 

[Brian S-SKO]

Has anyone used rustoleum over galvanized metal? and if so how did it hold up?

 

[TheHubbardBus]

Has anyone used rustoleum over galvanized metal? and if so how did it hold up?

Galvanized steel is a potential problem point for any primer/paint/coating. Best to read the instructions of what you choose thoroughly, and follow them to the letter. Even paints advertised as 'direct to metal', or primers specifically meant for bare metal, often have special prep required for galvanized, which often involves both chemical (often ospho) and mechanical prep.

 

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

pure white vinegar will wipe the coating off of galvanized sheet metal good enough for it to hold paint.

 

[Iceni John]

Your paint job looks good! I bought four gallons of Rustoleum Almond, plus a gallon each of black and white, and when the weather is dryer here in a month or three I will roll it on. I can't spray because my bus is in an RV storage yard, but rolling it should be OK - I need only a 20/20 paint job, good from 20 feet away or 20 MPH.

John

 

[dognamedboo]

Hello, this thread is very helpful, I'm getting ready to paint my short bus with Rustoleum now that the weather has finally changed here in SW Washington. In fact it was 48f last week and 96 today after a constantly rainy Spring. Thought I might do it sooner.
All I'm planning to do is scuff it with Scotch Pads, wash it with plenty of soap, rinse it really well, and dry it with clean towels. Then wait a couple days and brush the paint on straight from the can. Regular rusto. It's really just +/- foot wide strips between the side protection bars for now so I don't think I'll bother spraying though we have an electric unit. The front end will stay yellow but I'll do the fiberglass corners, rear end, and overhang up to and around my Bluebird birds! Asap paint the roof white with something thick.

Well, I just thought I would put it out there in case anyone wants to advise me to the contrary. I'd appreciate it. I'll keep you updated. Thanks a lot fellow skoolies!

 

[cadillackid]

I did my Superior bus a year ago with white rustoleum Pro gloss oil based.. (in the grey can).. I literally Dawn-Power wash sprayed and paper towelled the entire bus as I painted it.. section at a time.. then a lightly sandpapered it.. and tried to sand out the runs from the various 4 layers of paint on it in its 43 years of life.. then I mineral-spirits and paper towelled the whole bus (section at a time)..



since I knew painting the bus would take a long time I did the 3 steps above as i painted each section... I put 2 coats on with 24 hours between, trying to paint (I have a shady spot) in the middle of the day when the bugs were the least likely.. I still ended up with a few..



its most surely not perfect but came out a heck of a lot better than I thought it would and its really durable.. the paint took a good while to cure.. it was soft for awhile..

 

[kidharris]

I did my Superior bus a year ago with white rustoleum Pro gloss oil based.. (in the grey can).. I literally Dawn-Power wash sprayed and paper towelled the entire bus as I painted it.. section at a time.. then a lightly sandpapered it.. and tried to sand out the runs from the various 4 layers of paint on it in its 43 years of life.. then I mineral-spirits and paper towelled the whole bus (section at a time)..



since I knew painting the bus would take a long time I did the 3 steps above as i painted each section... I put 2 coats on with 24 hours between, trying to paint (I have a shady spot) in the middle of the day when the bugs were the least likely.. I still ended up with a few..



its most surely not perfect but came out a heck of a lot better than I thought it would and its really durable.. the paint took a good while to cure.. it was soft for awhile..

"in the grey can" Brush, roller, spray? Sections... How did the overlaps show up? did they fade in? noticeably thicker? When prepping the next section, how big of a problem was the soft paint from the previous day? How big were the sections?



"trying to paint (I have a shady spot) in the middle of the day when the bugs were the least likely"...around here bugs are least likely in the winter.... so this begs the question of temperature?..... actually, around here (Mohave Desert) wind blown sand and dust would be a bigger problem for slow dry paints, so, indoors would be best. Just how slow drying is the paint? I've never tried to paint anything large with Rustoleum and only used rattle cans. Thanks.

 

[cadillackid]

rustoleum professional oil based can paint.. I rolled it on.. I brushed as little as possible.. I really didnt have overlap as i sectioned the bus based on edges.. rub rails.. then under runbs and over rubs.. hood and front fenders.. end caps up top... roof, etc.. so it wasnt like paint half a side where i just ended in the middle... this paint does seem to do well with overlaps.. it lays down nicely.. humidity is huge in drying time.. in moderately humid ohio.. actually last year was very humid as it rained so often.. it was definitely touchable in 24 hours.. tacked and skinned a bit in a few hours.. on dry days it went a bit faster.. if I was in the desert im sure with a breeze and 10% humidity it would likely dry even faster.. you want it to dry somewhat slow so it has time to lay down and leave a nice finish.. air bubbles created by brush or roller to pop and paint smooths out.. I used little disposable touch-up rollers that I threw away often so they didnt come apart and leave fuzz plus they got into crevices pretty good... I used regular blue tape for masking and peeled it pretty quickly after painting.. tried not to paint the tape too much, didnt want to peel off the paint with the tape.. couple places i goofed and the paint was thick near the tape so i had to cut a bit to remove the tape..

 

[dognamedboo]

Should I do a mineral spirits wipe down before painting? I agree 100% with painting in the shade, giving it time to dry gradually. It doesn't take that long and the paint cures all the way through.
I've got a 1/4" gap about a foot wide on the roof between where the front top section overlaps the whole rear section. It has been covered since last Fall. Is there a 'goop' that would fill it best or would any of you use caulk, make a little dam on each side of the crack to get as much in there as possible?
By the way I still have to cover the top flasher lights too. Been thinking of gluing some 7" pvc caps (if wide enough) or the bottoms out of 4 plastic flower pots (I'm sure she won't mind!) onto them with silicone. Better than wrecking the lights.

 

[kidharris]

rustoleum professional oil based can paint.. I rolled it on.. I brushed as little as possible.. I really didnt have overlap as i sectioned the bus based on edges.. rub rails.. then under runbs and over rubs.. hood and front fenders.. end caps up top... roof, etc.. so it wasnt like paint half a side where i just ended in the middle... this paint does seem to do well with overlaps.. it lays down nicely.. humidity is huge in drying time.. in moderately humid ohio.. actually last year was very humid as it rained so often.. it was definitely touchable in 24 hours.. tacked and skinned a bit in a few hours.. on dry days it went a bit faster.. if I was in the desert im sure with a breeze and 10% humidity it would likely dry even faster.. you want it to dry somewhat slow so it has time to lay down and leave a nice finish.. air bubbles created by brush or roller to pop and paint smooths out.. I used little disposable touch-up rollers that I threw away often so they didnt come apart and leave fuzz plus they got into crevices pretty good... I used regular blue tape for masking and peeled it pretty quickly after painting.. tried not to paint the tape too much, didnt want to peel off the paint with the tape.. couple places i goofed and the paint was thick near the tape so i had to cut a bit to remove the tape..

Thanks...again