painting truck

R&W

Member
i have a 2000 ford f250 super duty 7.3 and the paint is good but it needs a few dents fixed so i plan on fixing them then painting. i have a hvlp gun. but what paint would you reccomend? this is my first vehicle and it want ti to look good. i plan on using white. thanks!
 
Any name brand single stage acrylic urethane (will require hardener) PPG is my go to brand. rent a supplied air respirator . If it isn't worth good paint , then it isn't worth painting.
 
Before you start anything do a thorough cleaning with soap and water and then a wax and grease remover. The invisible trace of wax or polish on the truck can cause the paint with fail within a year. Keep in mind that white paint shows every defect. When you fix the dents you might get two different colors of primer and switch from one color to the other with each coat. When sanding between coats you will be able to see the high and low spots by using different color primers. When you can sand the primer spots and it remains one color you should be good to go with the topcoat.

The dents, if they are shallow just roughen the paint and fill it with bondo. Don't put a big blob of bondo on a spot and try to sand it down. It's better to use a broad knife and put two thin coats on as smooth as possible. It's less work and you have a better chance of repairing a dent which doesn't show after you are done. You can over sand a spot which just ends up with a more shallow dent than what you had.
 
It is possible that many an amateur or hobby paint job has come out well without use of a spray booth. That's kinda the idea of this section.
 
I am NOT saying to do this, but it worked. We hired a local guy [ good guy ]to paint several water towers, with a 2-part epoxy, sky-blue enviro color. He wound up with 10 or 15 gallons left over, all mixed up, ready to go.... he grabbed brushes, put a quick coat on his work truck. It lasted for 10 or 12 years, and looked good from across the street. Just saying, if you're not too critical, almost anything will look sorta OK. Sorta.
 
I have used the two color primer method, but just use guide coat now. Get your self a long sanding board and do it right, white is the easiest color to paint and hides well.
 

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