Cracks in paint

Painted tractor frame about a year ago, and did not get tractor completed before winter, so I covered painted area with a plastic
sheet. Got busy this spring and summer and did not uncover until a month ago, and found the frame paint had cracks in it. What
would cause this? and what do I need to do to repair it. Thanks in advance. Fred



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Hard to say. What kind of paint is it? The most common reason for cracks in paint is applying too many coats too fast. The outer coats dry first and hard and when the first coats dry they shrink causing the topcoat to crack. If it is an alkyd enamel you have to allow each coat to completely dry before topcoating. The paint could also have been defective. The plastic sheeting could also cause problems if covered before the paint job was a month old. Paint doesn't get completely dry for about a month. You cover the fresh paint job with plastic and vapors can build up underneath the plastic and damage the paint.
 

Thank you Stephen. I get to thinking about it, I did paint it heavy or one coat after another. I was using Martin-Senour Crossfire acrylic enamel. thanks again.
 
If you didn't use a catalyst in the paint then too many coats too fast was the problem. A catalyst would force the undercoats to dry pretty much at the same rate as the top coat.

What you need to do is put the tractor in the hot sun for a week or so and see if any more cracks develop. It probably won't be necessary to refinish it but it needs to crack all it's going to before fixing the paint.
 
Did have hardner in the paint, and small parts painted with this paint look good. What do I need to do to repair the paint???? Glad I didn't paint the whole tractor.
 
The paint that is there should be alright. The cracks you could fill with bondo and sand level. Then spot prime and put one coat of paint on the repair spot. Then when that dries sand the entire area affected and put another coat on. Just be sure to allow the bondo and everything dry well. Bondo shrinks as it ages. It would be helpful if you would stop short of sanding it completely level and allow it to dry a week or so and harden before sanding level. It still may show a line where the crack is someday but if it bothers you, you can sand it level and put another coat on. The only way to be 100% it won't come back to haunt you is to strip it down to bare metal and start over.
 
This is why they tell you to never cover a boat that has been painted with a plastic tarp out in the sun. It will lift the paint every time. I don't know why.
 

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