my dad just got a pretty nice compressor, gun, and everything else for painting, and we hope to start painting my truck in the next few weeks, and i had a few questions i was hoping some of you guys might be able to answer

- about how much paint am i going to need to buy for my truck?
- what kind of primer do you guys suggest?
- whats the paint to thinner ratio supposed to be?
and just any overall tips you guys could have other than practicing haha

thanks a lot if any of you guys can help, ive learned a lot from this site already and it keeps getting better

oh and i still dont know if i want dark shadow gray or the dark gray ive seen on f150s, are they the same?

 

dsg ftw!

 

ive always loved it and when i got on r-f and saw dsg ftw! on just about every page regarding paint i knew this was the forum for me haha

 

paint to thinner? you prolly mean paint to hardener ratio and usually whenever i spray something i usually do for example 1/2 a hopper of paint then i put 1/4 hopper hardener...so a 2:1 ratio and as for primer i would go with a dark gray/black primer that way the DSG will be a lil more on the darker side but nothing noticeable and as for tips the best thing you can do is practice and kind of develop your own lil style i guess you could say

 

You can get by with 2-3 quarts of paint. You didn'y say if you are using base coat/ clear coat or acrylic enamal.

I usually use light gray primer...nothing fancy just the cheap stuff.

The thinning depends on the paint manufacturer. You might want to get measuring cups. Talk to the guys at the paint shop they know alot and usually will help you out with any questions.

Tips-
You can paint a pizza or a piece of glass.
Any spot putty that comes in a tube is garbage.
A few of thin coats are better than one heavy coat
You usually get runs if you go too slow or overlap on heavy coats
Keep the gun parallel with the body
If you don't wear a respirator paint will kill you
If you don't wear a respirator paint will kill you

 

hey thanks a lot man! im pretty sure we're going with base/clear, sorry i didnt specify im definitely still learning, but again thanks for the tips i appreciate the help

 

I have a family member who knows how to paint, and has actually done quite a bit of it. So I do know you can't just pick up a spray gun and expect to get professional quality results. Talk to a local paint and body shop where you live. I'm sure someone would be willing to give you advice.

 

If you don't wear a respirator paint will kill you
If you don't wear a respirator paint will kill you

 

yea i dont expect pro quality or anywhere near it, but im hoping it'll at least look better than it does now haha and im gonna practice on a old van we have that hasnt run in years, so if i f*ck it up oh well, and if i dont get to a point where im comfortable painting my truck ill figure something else out, and if not ill probably learn a hell of a lot from it

 

ppg and basf is good paint thats all my paint guy uses