Old and Simple: A $200 F150.

[Star-Bellied Sneetch]

I think this would have looked great if you'd done the same paint scheme but purposely done it in a more matte finish. I think it'd be more in keeping with the age and style of the truck, and would have hidden the "non-professional" bodywork. Plus, you're not trying to make a showtruck out of it, so why not use the "rat" aspect to advantage?

[JimVonBaden]

Originally Posted by Whitey1

I have painted several vehicles and each one has gotten progressively better. Don't sweat it. I have learned the hard way too. I am not trying to be a dick here, but seriously why worry about the orange peel if you didn't worry about getting the body straight anyways? Get it put together and get it working and making you money. You can have a pro spray it like glass and the body imperfections are going to speak more loudly then the paint. Like I said, sorry if it is coming off shitty as I dont mean it to. I was in a hurry on my first truck and it showed. I was still proud of my achievements and learned a lot on my first low buck paint job. (base/clear) Most important I learned was noone sees the effort put into making the body perfect, but everyone sees the time you didnt. I think the truck will look good from 10 yards and that is all that matters right now. Thank you for posting your work up here and allowing FF's to comment. You are doing better then my first time.

I agree! I was too much of a coward to say so, but now that it is out, Whitey has it right.

The multitude of small dings around the body are evident.

Practice your painting skills, don't sweat it, because next summer you will be redoing the imperfections and doing a MUCH nicer paint job, with great results from the experience gained this summer!

Thanks for having the courage to learn while we watch and tease! It is all meant in the spirit of comradship!

Jim

PS Mike, I agree, a matt paint scheme would look bad ass!

[ddavidv]

It's not too late...

[Dukeryder]

Originally Posted by dorkpunch

How long should I wait before I try and do some wet sanding?

A day if it's been dry and low humidity, It's no show truck, and I've seen worse. Looks like you laid it on a little too thick, I'd hit with some 400 and shoot a couple more thin coats. (well me I'd actually probably leave it as is)

I have no clue what paint you're using but some are easier and some are harder to shoot than others, I tried it once in High School with some all in one stuff from Napa that was a metallic and it was tough to get it right, especially with the cheap gun we were using. I'm sure some others will chime in that have some more experience with a spray gun.

[dorkpunch]

Thanks all for the comments and advice. It seems to be looking better... I think I will try doing some very light high grit sanding on it later and see what happens. For now, my goal of being able to put the windshield back in is accomplished. Sposed to have crappy weather tomorrow, so I'm thinking about trying to pick up my long block and windshield tomorrow. I do still have a Vulcan and a tiller to finish up before we head North though. If its raining, might be a good day to get some more wet sanding done.

[Crisis management]

I've given this a lot of thought before posting as I admire what your doing and, like Whitey, don't want it to come over wrong... that paint looks like like shit to me and I think you will regret not doing it properly (apologies but blunt works for me).
Unfortunately the last coat of anything is the bit that you look at each day and it either reminds you of how well you have suceeded or failed, and I think you will be dis-satisfied with that finish of a regular basis.
I'm not an expert on painting but my take is too little thinners and too many coats applied too quickly, white will take a lot of coats to gain any depth and you need to let it build slowly.

I suggest the following.
Clean your gun thoroughly.
Read the paint manufacturers thinning recomendations and use them, trial it on a spare part (the hood is good) until you are good at it.
If that doesn't make any sense find a local painter and trade off some free labour (sanding maybe) for a lesson in painting, then go back to it.

You have shown you are very capable of doing a good job, master the painting skills and you will enjoy using the truck each day.

[Whitey1]

Sorry DP for turning the thread into a negative. I deleted my posts to prevent the thread from turning into an advice thread for you when you didnt ask for it. I think you ambition is awesome and I didnt want to see you drive your self insane on this. Your truck is looking great especially considering you are working outside in the elements. Keep up the good work.
I will delete this post tonight after you have had time to read it just to keep the flow of the build going better.

[Boondoggle]

It looks just fine. Extremely impressive, in fact.

I've had a couple of $600 pickup trucks in my life- this is by far the nicest $200 truck I've ever seen. Excellent job.

[Gummee!]

The spirit of the truck is 'old and simple' not 'show truck.' Run it 'as is' cause its 100% better than it was.

In the future, once you have time/$$/energy to fix it again, just do it again. After all, you've proven you can do it once!

Stick a red pinstripe around the junction of white and black and call it good.

M

[DucIt]

What's taking so long? Every time I see this done on TV there done in a half hour, ok maybe an hour for the tough ones.

[dorkpunch]

Whitey- I AM asking for advice, thats my main reason for starting this thread. I have NO CLUE what I'm doing here! I really do appreciate everyones comments.

Duc- Your MORE than welcome to come help me sand!

I do think I put on too many coats to fast. The primer came out THICK and covered great. I guess I was just expecting the other paints to do the same. The black came out pretty thick too, but this white stuff apparently is going to be a pain to use because it does NOT cover at all. At this rate, I"m also going to need another gallon of white paint.

I *WILL* end up fixing it. Yes, its a crappy old beater truck. But I have to look at that crappy old beater truck and I have to be satisfied with it. The black is good enough, but I cant let that cab corner go. Like some of you have said, its my first paint job, and I need practice. I should expect this to happen, but I need to continue on and keep practicing.

I went through the gun very carefully again last night, also drained the tank and the water trap. I did notice some water in the line, which is weird, because I've NEVER had water in the line before I installed the water trap. Course, I dont think I've ever used the compressor this much either. Also plan on doing several thin coats but letting more time between each to dry.

I followed the pain manufactures recommendations for mixing as best I could. I did try adding a little more reducer half way through, and that seemed to help a little. Like I said, next thing to try is several thin coats back at the manufacturers recommended ratios.

[azcycle]

The advice has been great so far, and good on ya for taking both positive and negative (constructive!) in stride. As many said, you're taking on something that many folks would never even consider doing themselves. I think it looks great for a first-timer (and I'm not even THAT) so keep on.

And I agree that a pinstripe between the black/white would look great. Instead of red, I'd try to match the orange in your logo. That would look sharp!

[Gummee!]

Originally Posted by azcycle

And I agree that a pinstripe between the black/white would look great. Instead of red, I'd try to match the orange in your logo. That would look sharp!

There ya go.

I'm one of those 'if the engine's clean and maintained, I could care less about the outside' kinda guys. ESPECIALLY with a work truck.

Don't get too carried away that you lose sight of the fact that this is a work truck. Tossing parts, bikes, equipment in it IS going to scratch it. Stessing about some orange-peel paint that only you are gonna notice is defeating the purpose of the truck.

M

[dorkpunch]

Yup, thats the plan. Already have the pinstripe. Eventually the wheels will be painted the same color as the roof with the orange pinstripe around them too.

Star- I really like the matte idea... Have to keep that in mind. When we go up to Canada I'll take some pics of all of the potential "projects" of my Dads... He's got several trucks from the '50s and a bunch of old tractors, etc etc. Now, if I could just find a way to get them from Southern Alberta to South East Idaho...

[Purcell69]

DP, regarding water in the trap, a big part of it is how close the trap is to your compressor. I found this out with my sand blaster. The hot air coming straight out of the compressor tends to carry moisture past the trap if it is mounted near the compressor. As the air moves further down the line and cools, condensation falls out of the air and forms droplets of water again. I ended up mounting a second water trap after my air passed through about 50' of hose, which seemed to cure the problems i was having. There is also a small trap that can be mounted at the lead hose for your gun, but it has a very small capacity and is meant as a "last chance".

For the best results, you would be better off plumbing your air supply from the compressor, through 1/2" galvanized pipe to the outside wall of your garage. Install a 'T' off a length of vertical pipe for your quick connect, leaving about 6"-1' below the 'T' with a ball valve at the bottom end to act as a water trap and drain for the hard line. This will help to rid a lot of your condensation issues.

Keep up the good work. You are inspiring me to paint the "free Jeep" after I finish swinging the new motor into the Cherokee.

-Joe