Painting a Boler...

[Anna K]

Hello all,
I am looking for any advice and/or tips on painting a boler. I would like to know the simplest, most low-tech way to paint my trailer. I would like to just buy a can of exterior marine or other paint and apply it with a brush (having first washed and sanded the trailer). Is this okay? I am not concerned with having a glossy finish. I don't want to damage the trailer in any way. But I also don't want all the time, expense, etc etc of getting a professional body shop paint job.
I am completely new to this and appreciate any thoughts.
cheers,
Anna

[Donna D.]

I just have to ask. Has it been painted before and you're just trying to make it look better because the paint is bad? Is there damage and repair you're trying to cover up?

If it's none of the above, and you're just trying to get a nice finish, we've discussed other methods in this topic. Click here: Want the shine

[kevin61]

Hello all,
I am looking for any advice and/or tips on painting a boler. I would like to know the simplest, most low-tech way to paint my trailer. I would like to just buy a can of exterior marine or other paint and apply it with a brush (having first washed and sanded the trailer). Is this okay? I am not concerned with having a glossy finish. I don't want to damage the trailer in any way. But I also don't want all the time, expense, etc etc of getting a professional body shop paint job.
I am completely new to this and appreciate any thoughts.
cheers,
Anna

You will get better results with a roller if you decide to paint. The body prep work took a long time. The actual painting took about 45 minutes per coat.

Here is my trailer the first time I painted it with a roller.

[Raya]

I don't mean to sound negative here, but if you really just want to do the simplest, easiest thing and aren't going to get too involved in prepping or finishing it, I wonder if you might want to just leave it as is?

Of course that depends on what "as is" is, but oftentimes a "so-so" paint job really doesn't look all that good, and only makes it that much harder when you - or someone else - wants to do a better job sometime in future.

Raya

[Doug Mager]

I agree with Raya about the paint issue, you 'could' end up making matters worse. I always feel that anything worthwhile doing is worth giving it your best shot!!

[james kent]

The only easy way to do it is to get someone else to do it for you. Prep, prep and prep some more. Plan about a week of sunny days and put on some old clothes.



Once you have it sanded and ready the hard part is done. Three coats on the top half and we went camping. Later, another light sanding and three coats on the bottom half and it's finished
Now that wasn't so bad was it?

Looking back is always a lot easier..

[sidney lewis]

Hello all,
I am looking for any advice and/or tips on painting a boler. I would like to know the simplest, most low-tech way to paint my trailer. I would like to just buy a can of exterior marine or other paint and apply it with a brush (having first washed and sanded the trailer). Is this okay? I am not concerned with having a glossy finish. I don't want to damage the trailer in any way. But I also don't want all the time, expense, etc etc of getting a professional body shop paint job.
I am completely new to this and appreciate any thoughts.
cheers,
Anna

Hi Anna, this might help, I have had reasonable success with a 4 inch foam roller and acrylic latex exterior semi-gloss finish, natural white R12-181 and have it tinted to the colour desired. This is a RONA number and they have been most helpful with advise and service. It is most important to prepare well, be sure to get rid of all the shiny surface of the existing finish using fine grit sand paper. Take your time and don't be too concerned as all those little bubbles they will disapear as the paint dries and by using this method you can go back to re do areas that you don't like. I am in Abbotsford so if you get stuck I am close by. You did ask for 'low-tech and simple'. Buy a litre at a time as 1 litre should do. See the nice jobs that Kevin and James have achieved and 'go for it'.

[JEAN-L]

You can try to paint like this guy, 50$ paint job
http://www.rickwrench.com/index79master.ht...ollarpaint.html

[Donna D.]

You can try to paint like this guy, 50$ paint job

That's dedication to get that finish. Doing something once or twice is time consuming, but 7-10 times. Yikes!! But ya gotta admit, it looks really, really good when the biggest expense was time. Thanks for sharing, I'm going to share it will all my hotrod friends who're looking for el-cheapo paint jobs for old iron.

[Raya]

On the other hand, just to give my own particular perspective, I would go for the best possible paint, since the prep, application, and post-application work is the same either way. I work with single-part paints like Brightsides in the boating industry, and although they look wonderful at first, the shine doesn't last nearly as long as something like a two-part LPU.

To each their own, and I'll admit I'm the same with houses: If I'm going to spend all the time cleaning walls, prepping them, masking off, moving furniture, painting, re-placing furniture, etc., I go for the best possible paint, since it's no less work to use a lesser-quality one.

Just chipping in my point of view

Raya

[james kent]

Rustoleum is sold here in Canada as Trem Clad.
I believe that it was Chester that painted one of his trailers with it. If he's around maybe he could tell us how it lasted.

[Anna K]

Thanks for the great advice everyone! I realize now that this might be a bit more complicated than I originally thought. Some more info: my trailer was painted with glossy (automotive?) paint to match a classic car. It is very shocking colour and chipping in places which is the main reason I want to paint. The way I see it, I have nothing to lose. The trailer currently has a less than perfect paint job. The worst that can happen is that I paint the trailer, and it STILL has a less than perfect paint job. Even if I decide to sell it the next owner can always sand it down and start over, right?

Does the type of paint previously used influence what I can used next? What if I do NOT want a glossy finish? What paint would you recommend? Do I need to completely remove the previous layer of paint or it is enough to remove the glossy finish? Am I correct that this is the order of operation:

1.wash
2.sand with fine grit to remove gloss
3.mask windows etc
4.paint with roller using brightsides or acrylic paint
Am I missing anything?
Thanks for the tips and encouragement!

Anna

[Doug Mager]

Missing something, yes...., Anna be sure to use a FOAM roller sleeve and disposable FOAM brushes when/where ever you can.

Mide sharing with us the color the trailer was when you adopted it???

[james kent]

I get my epoxies and paint materials from a marine repair facility. They have been very helpful over the years and take the time to explain anything that I need to know. Tel them your experience level and ask them to give detailed information. It's to their benefit to have you do a good job.

As you can see from my photos our trailer had green metalic automotive paint over a thick grey primer. I found under that mess that it was to cover up some deep scratches. I suspect from possible tree damage.

[Raya]

Does the type of paint previously used influence what I can used next?

Yes, it can. Here are some things that can come into play:

1) How well adhered the current paint is (important no matter what you are putting on!).
2) Whether the current paint is a harder (usually two-part) paint or a softer paint.
3) Whether you are looking to put on a harder paint (the general rule is that you cannot go harder over softer).
4) Once you have a certain brand/type of paint chosen, they usually have tests you can do to determine if the current paint will be compatible as a substrate. For example, a typical test would be to crosshatch the current paint in a certain way, and then tape a cloth soaked in a particular thinner over that area for "x" number of hours.
5) If you are interested in using a softer, one-part type paint, then you don't generally have to worry about #3 and #4 Again, once you choose a paint, there will be specific instructions, including what grit paper to sand with, etc. (of course it's a bit of a vicious cycle until you've chosen a paint, I realize).

Raya