Exterior Painting of Motorhome

[fmattox73]

This is going to generate a lively discussion I imagine.

My Class "A" motor home is looking pretty sad. As it's 24 years old, it's not bad, but the paint is faded, scuffed, scratched, etc.
I wondering if an individual could anticipate a reasonably descent looking job if they painted it themselves. What kind of paint would you be willing to use and how would you apply it.
Spray paint, Brush and Roller, etc.

What I'm looking for is a reasonably good looking paint job at the lowest practical price.

Has anyone ever painted a motor home with a good grade of Exterior Gloss House Paint?

Frank

[Y-Guy]

If you want some help, pop a want at up on CraigsList, I know a number of painters since one of my staff grew up in a painters family. Most all of the guys do side jobs for cash. You might find somebody that can help you out with the equipment and labor. Just another option.

[KBOnTheRoad]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
Frank,
I feel your pain as I was just working to get my 1988 Prevost painted. RV shops are $10,000+ (closer to 15 or 20) but that's not what I want. I just want a good single color or 1 color plus a strip or 2 but no one will offer a reasonable price claiming that the paint costs $800/gallon. I think I may have to take the RV to Mexico. I just want Earl Scheib to do the work not Michelangelo!
There is a video on line about a guy who painted a Mustang with canned paint but it was a lot of work and multiple layers with sanding and buffing to get a smooth gloss finish. You might want to try to Google that. I have painted portions of my RV with a rattle can and the results have been excellent but I don't know how you could do the RV sections at a time and get a good result. Please keep us informed if you try something as I really, really need my home painted!

You might try this and to the OP: what you suggest just wont work. If you have a fiberglass outer skin on your RV take it to a shipyard that paints yachts. The paint and process they use will make it look like a million dollars. It wont be cheap but it wont be anything like an RV place. Second it might last a lot longer.

One thing that makes this process so expensive is that the paints are hazardous materials and must be applied with breathing apparatus and containment systems in place.

Get some quotes from a place that paints yachts that may help. They usually price by the foot.

[BarneyS]

Frankly wrote:
Snip... I don't see an easy way to attach pictures here.

Look here!
Very simple.
1. Upload your picture.

2. Copy resulting URL.

3. Paste URL into your post with no modifications.
Barney

[fmattox73]

This going to be the short version of what I have decided to do on my 1992 Fleetwood Pace Arrow motor home.
After going through the unit and cleaning it up with soap and water. Then replacing the Toilet, Water Pump Relay, "Both" type 31 batteries and several switches and small misc. parts I was able to run a more thorough evaluation of what to do next I came up with this list of things that still needed work.
I had to replace the Power Steering Pump, The Hydro boost unit, and the Brake Master Cylinder. (The brakes and steering were lousy. The steering's still loose) I resealed the roof because of a leak that has ruined one wall and needs replacing. The generator needs work, most of the latches on the storage section need repairing or replacing. Last but not least I need to put new tires on the unit. And then there's the paint issue. There are also other issues,

Thanks for all the great suggestions by everyone, but I have decided not to throw any more money into it.

Frank

[Frankly]

I recently painted my 1994 Coachmen MH. Although it only has paint on the lower 2'. After painting it, I Zep waxed the rest, and it looks like new. The only thing left to do is work on the cracked striping. It is 32' long and it took a half gallon of paint. I used PPG acrylic enamel with a hardner. It cost a little over $100. I sprayed it with an HVLP spray gun I got at HF and I did it outside, as I have no indoor space large enough. The paint dried in a few minutes and I am happy with the result. I spent 2 days prepping it and it took about 2 hours to paint it. I took all of the latches off the cargo doors (18 total latches) and masked a couple of feet above the paint, the tires and lights. I posted a picture on IRV2 under new rig showoff; I don't see an easy way to attach pictures here.

[westend]

Well, I've done a bit of boat painting, a lot of bottom hull stuff, even worked with Imron for a period.

With the cost of Imron/Awlgrip and the consequent safety precautions needed, it isn't something I'd advise for an older guy seeking a cheap paint job. If any priming needs to be done, the three part Imron primer is something to avoid unless proper respiration gear is on hand. Regular body shop mask cartridges won't handle the chemicals in that primer and I have seen first hand the long recovery time for a guy that uses Imron primer and isn't protected.

I wonder if the OP has found a solution for the old MH. Given the situation, I'd suggest to find a local crew that can spit and polish what he has. If I was closer, I'd be there to help out. I love preparing painted surfaces, turning a dull oxidized surface to bright and clean. It's amazing to change a scuffed clear coat on a car or truck to shining and like new. If you have the tricks and gear, it's not that hard or time consuming.
On the other hand, my kids thought I was nuts with all the polishing and waxing I did on our fleet. Maybe they, at least, learned a few things about vehicle maintenance.

[Veebyes]

There is a method called roll & tip. Have a friend who did a 40' boat this way. Some years ago but think the paint was a 2 part epoxy applied with a very fine roller. Nothing like a professional spray job but not too bad. Can't remember type of paint.

No matter what is used or who does the job most of the work is in the prep. If you are planning on keeping the rig a long time think about using a marine paint like Awlgrip or Imron with a couple of clearcoats ontop.

Had a boat done with Awlgrip professionally. Five years later it looked just done. Not cheap.

[ktmrfs]

donn0128 wrote:
Cost for decent automotive paint and supplies will probably set you back 500 dollars. On top of that, you will need to build a spray booth, get a respirator etc. Modern automotove paints can be extremely toxic, so spraying wihotut proper safety equipment is out of the question. How good will it look? Depends on how good of a painter you are, and how much prep work you put in.

decent auto paint will likely be more than $500. recently bought a PINT of paint for some trim on my truck and a pint for trim on my roadster. Cost, one was $140 the other $178 for a PINT of paint, add to that the cost of activator, etc. it's going to be spendy.

The very very bottom end paint I could find was a base enamel, it was $70 per pint. now it doesn't scale linearly, but you will need gallons of paint.

[westend]

Thanks! Yes, SW has everything. The Industrial DTM primer is great on bare aluminum and prepainted surfaces. It sticks to just about anything, including plastics. I used SW Super Paint for the finish coat. I've used their higher grade paints and always go back to the Super paint. Garage doors, gutters, and trim I've painted with these products look like new 5-10 yrs later.

bresdogsr,
Thanks for translating!

[fmattox73]

Westend: Nice job. Does Sherwin Williams have all the products that you mentioned in your post?

Frank

[bresdogsr]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
SW? BM?

Sherwin Williams
Benjamin Moore

[Bill_Satellite]

SW? BM?

[westend]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
What is the best masking tape to use. The Blue stuff at Home Depot or something designed for automotive use?

Most guys that do serious painting only use regular masking tape. If you need to mask automotive for stenciling or accents, there is specialty tape for that.

Th trick for masking is pressing the tape edge down onto the surface. Frog Tape is for critical areas and those that have to be masked for longer duration. I'd steer clear of blue tape, it's for amateurs. Also suggest to buy tape at a paint supplier like SW or BM. They sell tape that works better for painting.

Also, if you're painting a whole RV, invest in a 3M masking machine and some paper. It will turn a three hour job into a 15 minute job.

[Bill_Satellite]

What is the best masking tape to use. The Blue stuff at Home Depot or something designed for automotive use?