How have you repainted your trusty Wheelhorse?

[Forest Road 594]

Ok. SO I'm contemplating rehabbing my 1991 312-8. I'm curious as to how some of you guys have gone about repainting your steads? Rattle can, HVLP, old school gun, paint brush, graffitti, wet sanding between coats. If you've got the time give us the details.

Thanks

Kevin

[B-8074 19]

I've only done the rattle can thing so far. I was thinking about powder coating one.

[Don1977 604]

It's all been done by one member or another including base coat- clear coat and power coating. Chose the one you think you can do the best. There was one man that was going to paint one green because his little boy wanted a green tractor, if he did he didn't post pictures here. :thumbs:

[kj4kicks 154]

Most of the parts on your 312 were originally powder coated, so getting any chips or rusty areas to "feather edge" is nearly impossible. Best bet would be to have it all blasted to bare metal, then epoxy prime and paint.

[rmaynard 15,715]

My advice is if you want it to look good, don't use the rattle cans. You will end up spending as much on primer and paint as you would buying a good epoxy primer and acrylic urethane enamel. A lot of finish sanding and buffing is needed with cans to get a nice, even, shiny finish. After proper preparation, one flash coat, then one medium coat of acrylic urethane and your done.

On the other hand, if it is just going to be a worker, use what ever you like.

I painted mine with rattle cans only to have to sand it all down and redo it right. Could have saved hundreds of dollars in material and labor.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[wheelhorse656 20]

i use hvlp spray gun with a good quality paint like valspar restoration seires or a automotive paint with hardener. i made the mistake of using rustoleum on my tractor and i really paid the price. :thumbs:

[Coadster32 793]

I used the oem toro paint. "New toro red for old wheel horse tractor". Expensive is all I can say. When you got to a show, and everyone is a different shade, you'll find that it's not about the money. You can get a nice job out of rustoleum if you know what you're doing. Good luck.

[Forest Road 594]

So in a nutshell you all agree. There are no shortcuts for a quality job. No surprise.

Eldon thanks for the info on the powder coating. I had no idea. My machines are well cared for workers. No shows until my son is a bit older. And then maybe a round hood would be fun.

Back to the 1991 312-8. The frame/tranny still look good. I can get away w/ a thorough scrubbing. My concern is the sheet metal, bad paint and just a little rust right now. No bubbling rust yet. Hopefully I can get to it in the spring. But I have to decide if I want to invest in an HVLP gun or gamble w/ cans. Either way proper prep is key.

[chris11 184]

My advice is if you want it to look good, don't use the rattle cans. You will end up spending as much on primer and paint as you would buying a good epoxy primer and acrylic urethane enamel. A lot of finish sanding and buffing is needed with cans to get a nice, even, shiny finish. After proper preparation, one flash coat, then one medium coat of acrylic urethane and your done.

On the other hand, if it is just going to be a worker, use what ever you like.

I painted mine with rattle cans only to have to sand it all down and redo it right. Could have saved hundreds of dollars in material and labor.

Just my 2 cents worth.

dito

[hoppy 0]

i say if it isnt a show tractor then spray bomb is the best way for the average joe to spruce up a worker. i have slowly started painting a few parts on my '66 856.

i have a small sand blaster in the shop so that comes in handy for good prep. i prime with a sandable grey primer and i used some safety red rustoleum that i had around. Its a nice red and although its not correct again im not showing this thing so does it really even matter? its a wheelhorse, its red and everyone will know it. my wife isnt going to care if i have a little "orange peal". right now all she see's is a faded brown/red piece of steel. that actually runs like a top i might add.

i guess what im saying is not everyone has a compressor, a spray gun, or maybe even the funds to pay somebody else to do it with a gun, etc. you can however run to the local store and pickup some spray cans and with some time and prep give yourself a tractor that looks 50 times better then it did and likely will for many years to come.

on a side note.......i have been toying with the idea of buying a home powder coating kit for many projects id like to do in the future. anyone powder coating at home with one of these kits? i have done some research and it appears they work really well and guys were suprised at how well the parts turned out. again prep was a large factor like everything else. i think it would be cool to be able to powder coat your own parts. wonder if the wife would let me use the oven?! :thumbs:

[Duff 206]

I'm with hoppy on this one, although I highly respect (and envy!) the guys who have the right equipment and skills to do a showroom quality paint job. I'm relegated to rattle-canning everything at least for now and for the most part the results have been pretty fair. Like I said, my hat is off to the real artists among us who can lay down a beautiful paint job!

Quick note about removing the factory powder coat finish...I don't have a sand blaster so I use a good quality paint stripper and the paint comes off easily with a putty knife. I follow this with an acetone wash, then spot fill and sand if/as needed. I use 220 grit in an orbital sander to put some tooth into the metal before laying on Rustoleum rusty metal primer (because of it's build), then follow with Regal Red for the top coats. Haven't tried a clear coat yet. Although the drying time is admittedly longer with Rustoleum (at least for me), I've had no problems with cracking, chipping or peeling and my tractors are workers.

Just another man's two cents worth!

Duff :)

[hoppy 0]

if i had all the stuff, the place and the know how i would do real paint jobs or better yet powder coat..........but for now the one and only horse i own('66 856)is a worker and she doesnt need to look pretty or perfect. what she could use and i will give her is a quick freshen up.

[PPGman 5]

Rattle cans will keep the rust at bay for many years, but if you want something that will last and look good for many years than catalized paint is the way to go.

As for the powder coat......a torch with a quick blast of oxygen brings that power coat right off. Be careful with the heat, or the time you save will be spent dealing with those heat warped tins! :thumbs:

[whfan74 2,068]

I am powder coating the Commando 8 that is disassembled and see how I like it. Might try and spray gun or rattle can the other Commando 8. Hoping to have both of these completed by the 2012 show and will have them there together. There are positives and negatives to whatever route you go. Unfortunately we haven't come up with a fool proof way of running them through a briar patch and have them coming out with no scratches!

[chris11 184]

you may have to plug your holes, powder coating is hard to mask.

[ftlboy717 0]

i used vaspar impliment paint in a spray can and it turned out great it covers really nice as you can see,its around $6 a can at tractor supply but well worth it i did the hole horse with 4 cans,the paint is fade proof and rust proof my horse has set out side for around a year and still looks as it did the day i painted it,you can get a gallon of paint for around $32,im in the process of redoing my horse again im going to spray it with the gun this time to see how that works,the first time i did it i didnt sand everything or fix any dents,this time im going all out it will look brand new

[SkyhawkTL 19]

Valspar is the best I've used in a long while. Their Restoration and Implement series is hard to beat. See their online site.

Rattlecan is good with this paint - sandblast - primer - paint, and hold the wet edge clear across the piece. The photo shows my 551 in process using Valspar cans. The tractor turned out great and it would be hard to beat in cost and time.

If you shoot - well, there is a lot of great paint out there, but the cost goes up.

I blasted and powdercoated my mowerdeck just to get a real hard coat of protection as I plan to use my

This worked for me

[bitten 134]

I have used a rattle can and a HVLP gun and had good results out of both. The main thing is patience. Just take your time and follow the directions.

[sorekiwi 761]

I end up using both rattle cans and a gun.

I dont have the time or space to get everything ready to go at once, so most of the time I prepare a few pieces, paint them with a rattle can and put them on the tractor. I dont have a lot of room to store the pretty freshly painted bits where they wont get banged up.

When it comes to the big bits, I try to paint the hood, dash surround (fuel tank if its an aluminum one), belt guard and rear fender pan at the same time so that they will match. These I'll do with a cheapy HVLP gun from Horrible Freight.

You can buy these from HF for about $15 when they are on sale. A lot of guys who know what they are doing give these guns pretty good reviews.

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/te...LPspraygun.html

One of the painters I work with has one he uses for primer and a couple more at home. The same guy has a few 3 or 400 dollar guns as well.

The HF gun is better than I am, when I have problems it's always down to me not having it set up right.

[HorseFixer 2,012]

I have used both for painting. I havent done a complete Tractor in rattle cans yet but I have done some impliments, I like the Valspar restoration series as it does have hardner and dries alot faster. I believe Ya get what you pay for! When I did my RJ56 I used PPG. I believe in staying with components that match if possible.

~Duke

[HankB 16]

You can buy these from HF for about $15 when they are on sale. A lot of guys who know what they are doing give these guns pretty good reviews.

Always worth checking for coupons at http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1276399

Right now this is the best I could find: http://www.harborfreight.com/extra-savings..._campaign=4810c It's $12 but I got mine for $10.

[Forest Road 594]

This is the kind of feedback I was hoping for! Looks like we're running 50/50 for guns vs rattle cans. THe 312 is definately on the makeover block for the spring. I can't wait to get cranking.

And the guy I swapped my 520 to has it all torn down in his shop. Fresh paint and decals from vinyl guy it looks like a new ride in the making. He touched up the scratches on the footrest mounts. sanded all the metal clean and primed. I hpe to see it painted by the end of the week. ANd that machine had 3 scratches on it and a couple rub marks.

Thanks guys!

[CTPATRIOT 12]

What color Valspar spray paint do you guys use?

[MikesRJ 552]

I use Valspar Restoration Series IH (International Harvester) Red. Here's a link to all the recommended paints: http://www.wheelhorseforum.com/index.php?showtopic=15846

The machine below was painted entirely by spray can. But if you have the skill and equipment, HVLP would be much less expensive and do a better job.