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how are youre results with rustoleum paint

132K views 244 replies 50 participants last post by  Project89 
#1 ·
Rustoleum paint care question

So last week I picked up a 1961 Ranchero rat rod. It's my first car, so I'm new to the whole paint care thing. About a year ago it was painted with flat black rustoleum, with red and white pin striping. There are a few scratches that i'm looking to get rid of, and also some dry water spotting and streaking that have proven pretty hard to get off. Other then that I love the way the paint job looks, and I want to keep it, but I'm trying to figure out the best way to fix these imperfections. And is there any clear-coat or wax that would be good to protect the outside while still keeping the original look? Thanks.
 
#4 ·
Well i'm not a connoisseur or anything, but this looks alright to me.


This is the paint in better days. So if it's not fixable is there anyway to redo without having to redo the pin-striping? What higher quality paint would you recommend that had the same look? Like I said, I'm new to all this, so if my questions seem obvious its because they probably are.
 
#5 ·
To re-do ( as you say) the paint job...you are going to have to sand it down to prepare for the new paint. There is no way to do that and save the pin stripeing. Also from what I understand you will have to sand or remove all of the rustoleum ( take it down to bare metal) and re-prime to get it where it will be compatable for good paint.
 
#6 ·
This is what happens when crap paints like Rustoleum are used to paint cars. You have two choices, repaint with Rustoleum or remove that junk completely and do it right with real auto paint. If you redo it with the Rustoleum you will end up right back in the same place in a very short time so that is a poor option. What you have now is a coating (I hesitate to call Rustoleum "paint") that has oxidized and been destroyed by UV from sunlight and anything you put on top of it will fail also, that is even if you can get on there without the Rustoleum lifting.


IMO a fairly rare ride like that deserves a hell of a lot better than a coat of Rustoleum and whoever did that to that car should have his butt kicked for doing it! :mad:
 
#7 ·
I like how the trim holes on the tailgate were left, and the holes for the FORD symbols were left.. :rolleyes:


Old Red's right, it needs to be redone.. fix and weld the trim holes, or get the trim and put it back. If you want it to look really neat.. get a '63 Hood, the hood scoop is a lot better looking
 
#8 ·
I do like the old school pin striping. I am hoping that (someday :rolleyes: ) when my truck gets painted, I can find someone that knows how to do that stuff.

If you strip it and go back with a flat black (quality paint), you should find a pinstriper who can sort of replicate that.

What drivetrain is in it? That is a cool little car. Looks like a falcon body.
 
#9 ·
Brian_B said:
I do like the old school pin striping. I am hoping that (someday :rolleyes: ) when my truck gets painted, I can find someone that knows how to do that stuff.

If you strip it and go back with a flat black (quality paint), you should find a pinstriper who can sort of replicate that.

What drivetrain is in it? That is a cool little car. Looks like a falcon body.
'60-'65 Rancheros are Falcons in every respect, except they have a bed instead of a trunk and rear seat.. in '66 they went up in size and used a Fairlaine chassis.
 
#10 ·
Wow, there is a distinct hatred for Rustoleum here. If a guy just wanted one color, wanted to do some repair, and didn't give a crap about the finish or how long it was going to last why not use Rusto? Money saved by using cheap paints could be used for drivetrain parts for an 'all go - no show' ride. That's still hot roddin' ain't it? Paint, to me, is like the Emperors New Clothes. It's the superficial layer of what is really there, IMHO. Against the words of the guys here, I'm gonna Rusto my ride anyway. I watch some of my buddys wash there cars over and over again - they wash them more than they drive them. It's a hunk a tin for cripes sake. I don't get so emotionally attached to such inanimate objects, but if you pop my hood, it's always cleaner than their dirty old neglected engines that motivate their gems.
 
#12 ·
Stroke said:
Wow, there is a distinct hatred for Rustoleum here. If a guy just wanted one color, wanted to do some repair, and didn't give a crap about the finish or how long it was going to last why not use Rusto? Money saved by using cheap paints could be used for drivetrain parts for an 'all go - no show' ride. That's still hot roddin' ain't it? Paint, to me, is like the Emperors New Clothes. It's the superficial layer of what is really there, IMHO. Against the words of the guys here, I'm gonna Rusto my ride anyway. I watch some of my buddys wash there cars over and over again - they wash them more than they drive them. It's a hunk a tin for cripes sake. I don't get so emotionally attached to such inanimate objects, but if you pop my hood, it's always cleaner than their dirty old neglected engines that motivate their gems.

Why not use a cheap automotive grade catalyzed paint that can be repaired down the road if you don't care about the way it looks. I just know what kind of problem rustoleum causes down the road when it is time "to do it right". The reason we all talk it down is because it is NOT the correct material to use to paint a car. JMO Tim
 
#13 ·
Stroke said:
Wow, there is a distinct hatred for Rustoleum here. ****


****didn't give a crap about the finish or how long it was going to last why not use Rusto?

Then why paint it at all? :confused:

I guess if you want to use Rustoleum it should be alright to ask about how to do it "right" :rolleyes: Likewise for the body work, for instance you should use galvanized instead of just plain chicken wire to reinforce your bondo when used over rust holes, wouldn't want it to rust out. :D
 
#15 ·
Wow, there is a distinct hatred for Rustoleum here.
NOPE..... It's not just Rustoleum, it's doing things the wrong way, and wasting everyone's time asking how to scew it up.

This site used to be a place for people to come and find out how to do things the right way to improve their rides. If someone wanted to paint for their first time, they came here and ask how to do it. Suggestions were given on which products to use, high priced and budget priced, and the proper proceedures to use them. Now we have people constantly come here and asking how to cut corners and use CRAP to really screw up a vehicle, knowing that they are screwing it up. In many cases, I am sure, they are trying to make the vehicle appear to be in good shape so they can sucker someone into buying it. Then the new owner is stuck with dealing with the mess.

If you want to find out how to do it right, there are many professionals, and others with substantial experience available here to help. If you want to screw it up, do it yourself, as you obviously won't follow any suggestions anyway.

Aaron
 
#16 ·
Sorry, I'm with the Rusto's crap guys. If you want to use it on a lawn chair, or the kid's bike, fine....not cars. If you use the primer on a car and get a bad place, spot it in and live with it. Or do it right.

Speaking of chicken wire.....and I swear this is true. Years ago, Popular Mechanics magazine did an article about doing rust repairs. They showed a rocker panel with a hole rusted in it. They wadded up newspapers and stuffed them in the hole and filled it up with bondo. Can you imagine how long that lasted; and how much more damage that soaking newspaper might have caused later on? It'd be like this Falcon, putting scotch tape on the inside of the hood and tailgate and bondo-ing over it. OOeee!

Incidentally, I wouldn't worry too much about saving the striping. Since you are in "hot rod heaven" out there, stripers should be quite plentiful..
 
#17 ·
adtkart said:
NOPE..... It's not just Rustoleum, it's doing things the wrong way, and wasting everyone's time asking how to scew it up.

This site used to be a place for people to come and find out how to do things the right way to improve their rides. If someone wanted to paint for their first time, they came here and ask how to do it. Suggestions were given on which products to use, high priced and budget priced, and the proper proceedures to use them. Now we have people constantly come here and asking how to cut corners and use CRAP to really screw up a vehicle, knowing that they are screwing it up. In many cases, I am sure, they are trying to make the vehicle appear to be in good shape so they can sucker someone into buying it. Then the new owner is stuck with dealing with the mess.

If you want to find out how to do it right, there are many professionals, and others with substantial experience available here to help. If you want to screw it up, do it yourself, as you obviously won't follow any suggestions anyway.Aaron


Exactly what I was thinking but so far speaking up against doing crap like this just seems like wasted effort, it is not a "hatred" of Rustoleum it is simply an attempt to keep the mis-informed from making a serious mistake! If a person does not "give a crap about the finish or how long it will last" then what the heck are they doing here anyway? In another thread it was pointed out that these discussions about using Rustoleum and other non-automotive paints serve a good purpose in pointing out the folly of doing such nonsense but look at what it has come to now. Now we have a thread about how to maintain Rustoleum! :drunk: Asking for advice on using Rustoleum to paint a car makes about as much sense as asking whats the best kind of sawdust to use to quite a noisy transmission so what is going to happen to all the real advice we have had available if this keeps up?
 
#18 ·
I would never use Rustoleum or ExoRust as a top coat on anything that sits in the sun. I am not dissing these 2 products, I just disagree with the makers saying it can be used for outdoor stuff....maybe a very light color on an old steel lawn chair, but not any color that will heat quickly.




adtkart; I feel your pain :(
 
#19 ·
I'm with Aaron and a couple of others that have posted to this thread. I started out as a rank amateur when it came to painting with the "new" paints. I had expected to farm out the job but when $12 to $15,000 quotes started coming in, decided it was best to learn how to do a paint job. In the long run, materials and a couple of spray guns cost me a couple of thousand dollars. As far as help - these guys here got me through a very nice paint job. Does it have flaws - you bet. Are they better or worse then a pro shop - well not some I've seen. Will the paint shine - it sure does and with minimum care, will for years to come. If I had done the Hot Rod magazine $100 paint job, it's life expectancy would be in months. The hours to prep would double or more as the car would have to go back to bare metal. If I decide to recolor my car, prep time would be minimal - scuff and paint.

The attached photo isn't current as the car is 60% together with wiring being completed
 

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#20 ·
oldred said:
Asking for advice on using Rustoleum to paint a car makes about as much sense as asking whats the best kind of sawdust to use to quite a noisy transmission so what is going to happen to all the real advice we have had available if this keeps up?
/*
I was gonna put this at the bottom, but figured the DISCLAIMER might be better served at the top: I am not suggesting that any of the following "advise" be followed - I'm just trying to be funny and inject a bit of humor into an opening that oldred left right there :thumbup: :D
*/

Well, what type of sawdust to use really depends on what you've got available. Being a hobby woodworker I have access to lots of different types of sawdust, so my suggestion would be to use a light-colored hardwood. Reason being if you dumped in something dark like walnut dust or mahogany dust, it'll change the color of the fluid so that it looks like it's burnt already. Whereas using a lighter color like poplar, birch, or maple dust would absorb the fluid color and maybe lighten it up somewhat at the worst.

That also opens up the hardwood vs softwood debate - which would be a better type to use. My feeling is to stick with the hardwoods, main reason is because they are more durable than softwoods and would have a better chance of increasing the necessary friction. Also, close-grained woods would fare better than open-pored woods because the overall quality would remain consistent. Sanding down maple would give you dust of consistent size and quality, while oak would give a less consistent quality from the larger size of the softer growth rings.

Of course, dust size plays a part as well - you can't expect planer shavings to have the same effect as 100-grit sanding dust because the shavings wouldn't be able to fit through all the little passageways. Go too small on the dust size and it could potentially turn into concrete like a blood clot. 80 - 100 grit would be a good size, though I wouldn't go any smaller than 320.

Potentially good species to go with would be:
Hard Maple - Domestic U.S hardwood that is fairly easy to find.
Osage Orange - Might give a slight yellow-ish tint to the fluid, but extremely hard and extremely rot-resistant.
Ironwood - ya wanna go for the best, this might be it. They don't call it ironwood for nothing.

:p
 
#21 · (Edited)
The question I have is ,after the person doesn't take our advice to use automotive grade paint and uses this crap and it backfires I am sure he will be back to ask the how to get out of the hole he dug question. Do We..A..say i told you so ...B..say I told you so or ..C... say I told you so. I have been here for a little while and it amazes me all people that will not listen to those trying to help them with correct advice on how to do some thing. It gets quite frustrating. I been even been cussed because one guy didn't want to believe what we were all saying to him. I just wonder why people don't listen when the correct ways to do something are being handed to them. I think there is more talent and knowledge here than anywhere else in the world. For this reason I ask the above question. JMO Tim
 
#23 ·
This whole cr*& started with the emergence of "rat rods, or "nostalgia" rods whatever the heck you want to call them. I grew up in the 50's and 60's and hot rods did not look like some of the garbage being passed off as "rat rods" today. Another beef of mine is the most over worked term in history and that has to be "old school"...I'm sick of hearing it being applied to everything.

Just my 2
Vince
 
#26 ·
F&J said:
Well, there is my chuckle for the day. :D


Seriously, maybe lightly buff for the water spots with worn out fine scotchbrite? ...or scub the whole thing with Comet pot/pan cleaner..?

If I found a need to use Rustoleum on a car ( which I probably never will ) I would put on several coats, so when somthing happened you could carefully buff the color back out, when it got water spots or fading.
 
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