Decided to have my tractor painted, have questions

TJ in KY

Member
I have talked to 2 body shops about painting my 1950 Ford 8N tractor. I have decided not to paint it myself because I don’t want to take a chance with the ISO’s and my health and I really want it painted with a hardened paint. One of them is coming to look at it tonight.
In talking to them I asked about what I could do to keep the cast parts from flash rusting. Both said to give it a quick prime with a light coat of an acid etch primer. Neither one of them had heard of PickleX 20 or Must for Rust. I have read a lot on the painting forum and other sites and I have a few questions
1 Is PickleX 20 OK to use on cast. I thought I read somewhere that some don’t like to use it on cast? Has anyone used it on cast? What has your results been. In my location there is no way I can prep the whole tractor and get it to the body shop without flash rust occurring?
2. I am concerned about putting acid etch primer on cast and then following it with epoxy? Anyone have any thoughts on that. From all the reading I have done I really want to use an epoxy primer on the tractor and was of the opinion it should go right on the bare metal.
3. I have stripped all the sheet metal and parts to be painted gray. They will do the repairs and be responsible for final prep on those parts. Should I specify epoxy primer on those also?
4. I could epoxy prime the rest of the tractor myself as I go (on bare metal) but then I would have to scuff it before putting the color coat on it. Or would I have to scuff it and then have them put another coat of epoxy on before the color coats on?
Any other questions I should ask them. Any other specifications I should ask for to get a quality job.
I know it will cost quite a bit but the sheet metal is beyond my ability, (for now) and I am trying to do all the paint and grease removal to save some money.
Sorry it is so long, I may have other questions as I go. But the end of this restoration is near and I want to get it right.
 
I have had the best luck stripping the sheet metal off, taking it to a blaster that also primes it immediately. The sheet metal cannot be blasted or it will warp.
 
Just do the epoxy on everything and when they get it they will know what to do from there. If they know nothing of picklex etc then if you use it and there are problems later , that's what they will use as the reason(and maybe rightfully so). If they are going to stand behind their work then do it their way which would probably be epoxy. As far as any other questions to ask them all I can say is be COMPLETELY honest with them as to the quality of the finished product that you expect. Don't minimize by saying things like "it doesn't have to be a show tractor" because you are liable to get a few surface imperfections like runs/sags/dirt/lint etc. Some see a tractor as just that , a working , gonna get dirty and greasy piece of farmers machinery. Get the communication going before the work starts and the money flows.
 
Hello TJ,

I'll give you my opinion and it's worth just what you paid for it.

1. I am no a fan of acid etch primers on anything. Body shops use them because they're quick and all they deal with is sheet metal. Not much cast work in typical body shops. I am a big fan of Picklex 20 but I would use it only on sheet metal, not cast where it would tend to seep into the pores. I'm not surprised neither of them had heard of Picklex 20. The paint "system" they use would likely only permit a very specific schedule of products as recommended by the paint "system" manufacturer - for warranty purposes. Any such manufacturer would only recommend their own products to be used together, which would not include Picklex 20.

2. There shouldn't be a problem in following an etch primer with epoxy if that's what you decide. However, you should check out the epoxy tech data sheet for the specific product you are using just in case. I use epoxy directly on bare metal, both sheet metal and cast. I see no particular benefit from using an etch primer first on sheet metal, under the epoxy. If I cannot epoxy prime the same day on sheet metal, I'll use Picklex 20 to keep the surface from flash rusting until I can get the epoxy on. That"s even more important if the surface is sandblasted since that leaves the metal in a very raw state.

3. Check with the body shop. They may not use epoxy primer at all, instead preferring an acid etch primer followed by a primer-surfacer. If they do use an epoxy primer, discuss with them what they would prefer and let them be responsible for the final selection and quality of the resulting product. Don't give them any excuse to blame your insistence on any product or method for a result you wind up not being satisfied with.

4. I think if it were me, I'd spot epoxy prime as I went while prepping the cast. When you're ready, scuff and reapply epoxy on it all just prior to the body shop applying the topcoat. Three problems with this however: 1) there probably will be some spots in the overlap areas between spot primes that actually need to be sanded a little, 2) due to the time window on topcoating epoxy, you will need to carefully coordinate with the body shop regarding schedule. Choosing a DuPont epoxy primer with a seven day window could be helpful in this regard and 3) you give the body shop an excuse to blame your preparation for anything that doesn't come out to your satisfaction. It's doubtful you would be given any kind of warranty.

It would be preferable if the body shop you are considering has done tractors before and yours is not going to be a first for them.

Note: You possibly could use an etch primer on cast and get by without a problem. I just wouldn't risk it myself. Don't forget however, that most etch primers have short time windows to be overcoated with something - even shorter than most epoxies. For example, PPG's OMNI etch primer has a maximum 24 hour window - a major problem for any prime-as-you-go procedure. You do NOT want to apply etch over etch as you can by scuffing epoxy. You might as well use epoxy and be done with it!

Rod
 
OOPS,

The Dupont epoxy I think has a 24 hour window. I meant to say PPG's premium epoxy (DPLF)is the one that has the seven day window - it's pricey though!
 
David, B-maniac and Rod. Thanks for your replies and opinions. The body shop that was supposed to look at the tractor 2 times still hasn't shown up. I think I am done with them. I have talked to two more shops. One was a restoration shop, 5 old cars in various stages of restoration, very neat shop , I was impressed, but I am afraid they would be costly.
So right now I have one more local shop to talk to, I am going to digest your replies and do some more research. I looked on a car restoration forum and by far they recommended epoxy, so I am leaning toward the spot epoxy prime, and then scuff it and let them shoot the final epoxy coat and color coats.
Had to help my daughter out all day yesterday or I would have got back sooner.. Thanks again, I am sure I will have more questions.
 
There's a man in western Ohio that paints tractors. He's setup to either power wash or steam clean them. Then he sand blasts the rust off and old paint. Removes the wheels and sheet metal. He has a forklift for handling the loaded
wheels. Here's a tractor he painted. Hal
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