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We know that I went relatively cheap painting the truck. Did my own body work, and had Maaco spray it with their urethane primer, and urethane paint. $831.
I like having a topper (truck cap, et al) for occasional use, so I was on the look out for one shortly after buying this truck a year and a half ago. There weren't too many to be found on Craigslist that fit my criteria: cheap, in good shape, AND fit my 84 long bed C10. Well, a couple months back I found one that fit all my criteria - it was only $25, and only an hour drive away... but it's brown. Faded brown gel coat and a BLUE truck.
Maaco wanted $225 (plus ??) to paint it to match my truck. No. Too much for a topper I may rarely use.
I know there is someone around here who has painted a car with a roller - so I know there are alternative ways to get an acceptable paint job on an automotive application.
I explained my plight to the pros at Sherwin Williams and asked what product that they have that would work the best. He thought about the "all surface enamel" but decided on the DTM Acrylic. Technically, DTM stands for "direct to metal", but reading the instructions, it's a semi-industrial product that can be applied to several different materials. I went with Gloss Extra White.
I started scuffing the topper with 320 dry, got tired of inhaling resin powder, and wet sanded the rest of it. There are a couple scratches that will still show - but it's a topper that will probably spend 99% of it's life in my back yard on saw horses, so I can live with them.
After drying overnight, I started masking off everything I don't want to be white... you use Christmas wrapping paper to mask your projects too, right?
The DTM calls for 1 hour to be dry to the touch and 4 hours before re-coating, so I'll wait for a day that I can get started on it first thing in the morning. That way 2nd coat will have time to set up nicely before the sun goes down and the bugs and humidity come out.
My intention is to use my hand held Graco sprayer. It's like a Wagner, but a professional version. I'd like to use the big sprayer, but the dang 50' hose wastes so much paint doing small jobs...
I like having a topper (truck cap, et al) for occasional use, so I was on the look out for one shortly after buying this truck a year and a half ago. There weren't too many to be found on Craigslist that fit my criteria: cheap, in good shape, AND fit my 84 long bed C10. Well, a couple months back I found one that fit all my criteria - it was only $25, and only an hour drive away... but it's brown. Faded brown gel coat and a BLUE truck.
Maaco wanted $225 (plus ??) to paint it to match my truck. No. Too much for a topper I may rarely use.
I know there is someone around here who has painted a car with a roller - so I know there are alternative ways to get an acceptable paint job on an automotive application.
I explained my plight to the pros at Sherwin Williams and asked what product that they have that would work the best. He thought about the "all surface enamel" but decided on the DTM Acrylic. Technically, DTM stands for "direct to metal", but reading the instructions, it's a semi-industrial product that can be applied to several different materials. I went with Gloss Extra White.
I started scuffing the topper with 320 dry, got tired of inhaling resin powder, and wet sanded the rest of it. There are a couple scratches that will still show - but it's a topper that will probably spend 99% of it's life in my back yard on saw horses, so I can live with them.
After drying overnight, I started masking off everything I don't want to be white... you use Christmas wrapping paper to mask your projects too, right?
The DTM calls for 1 hour to be dry to the touch and 4 hours before re-coating, so I'll wait for a day that I can get started on it first thing in the morning. That way 2nd coat will have time to set up nicely before the sun goes down and the bugs and humidity come out.
My intention is to use my hand held Graco sprayer. It's like a Wagner, but a professional version. I'd like to use the big sprayer, but the dang 50' hose wastes so much paint doing small jobs...
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