Paint & Clear front cap

Can't see the need for removing the front cap, other than getting it into a dust free enviroment.

From the decal removal to the final clearcoat application it is a labour intensive application. Spend the extra for the very best material available. The time it takes to put on cheap stuff is the same as the good stuff which will last longer.

If you have seen his work then go for it.

robrose1 wrote:
I would not remove the front cap to repaint it. What guarantee it won't leak after replacement? If he has to rent a booth to paint a cap maybe he doesn't paint very often and I would be suspect.

He does work all the time for Northwwod MFG. When I called him he was in the process of replacing a front cap on an Arctic Fox 5th wheel. I asked him why his price seemed lower than what I'd read from others being quoted on the net and his answer was his shop rate is lower per what a dealer might charge. He's done other work on my 5th wheel while under warranty since my buying dealer is 300 miles away. His shop is the shop that Northwood Mfg authorizes to do warranty work for those that don't have a dealer close buy. Personally I have more confidence is his ability to re-caulk the cap than the sloppy job Northwood did. It will also be a good chance to inspect the front and more than likely add some more insulation.

I would not remove the front cap to repaint it. What guarantee it won't leak after replacement? If he has to rent a booth to paint a cap maybe he doesn't paint very often and I would be suspect.

B.O. Plenty wrote:

goducks10 wrote:
My 5er has the dark brown faded cap. I got a quote from a local independent RV repair shop of $850.00. They remove the cap, sand off the gel coat, paint it and reinstall it. Takes about a week.
On my brand forum I frequent another 5er owner with a dark grey cap got his repainted for IIRC $1100-1200 at a different shop. Neither are dealers. I'm located in Oregon FWIW.

The cheap gel coat needs to be removed and the cap painted for it to be done correctly.

WRONG! The gel coat is just the colored layer of the fiberglass cap. If you take off the gel coat you are down to the bare fiberglass. I've had both my front and rear caps painted because of faded gel coat. Nobody would remove the cap to do this. On mine they stripped the decals, sanded the gel coat and sealed it with an epoxy sealer, sprayed on a colored base coat and then sprayed on several coats of clear. Same as refinishing a car. The front cost $1500.00 plus decals...The rear was done at a different shop. It cost $1050.00 plus decals. Both turned out well and have held up for a couple years so far. It's hard to find a shop with a large enough paint booth to do this. Mine was done at two different shops where they paint buses and semis.It's amazing how much bad information you can get from these forums...

B.O.

I may have misunderstood the RV repair guy then. The shop that will do mine removes the cap because the paint booth isn't big enough for the 5th wheel and it's not at his shop. He rents a paint booth from someone. I'm fine with removal of the cap.

B.O. Plenty wrote:

goducks10 wrote:
My 5er has the dark brown faded cap. I got a quote from a local independent RV repair shop of $850.00. They remove the cap, sand off the gel coat, paint it and reinstall it. Takes about a week.
On my brand forum I frequent another 5er owner with a dark grey cap got his repainted for IIRC $1100-1200 at a different shop. Neither are dealers. I'm located in Oregon FWIW.

The cheap gel coat needs to be removed and the cap painted for it to be done correctly.

WRONG! The gel coat is just the colored layer of the fiberglass cap. If you take off the gel coat you are down to the bare fiberglass. I've had both my front and rear caps painted because of faded gel coat. Nobody would remove the cap to do this. On mine they stripped the decals, sanded the gel coat and sealed it with an epoxy sealer, sprayed on a colored base coat and then sprayed on several coats of clear. Same as refinishing a car. The front cost $1500.00 plus decals...The rear was done at a different shop. It cost $1050.00 plus decals. Both turned out well and have held up for a couple years so far. It's hard to find a shop with a large enough paint booth to do this. Mine was done at two different shops where they paint buses and semis.It's amazing how much bad information you can get from these forums...

B.O.

So true! :S

goducks10 wrote:
My 5er has the dark brown faded cap. I got a quote from a local independent RV repair shop of $850.00. They remove the cap, sand off the gel coat, paint it and reinstall it. Takes about a week.
On my brand forum I frequent another 5er owner with a dark grey cap got his repainted for IIRC $1100-1200 at a different shop. Neither are dealers. I'm located in Oregon FWIW.

The cheap gel coat needs to be removed and the cap painted for it to be done correctly.

WRONG! The gel coat is just the colored layer of the fiberglass cap. If you take off the gel coat you are down to the bare fiberglass. I've had both my front and rear caps painted because of faded gel coat. Nobody would remove the cap to do this. On mine they stripped the decals, sanded the gel coat and sealed it with an epoxy sealer, sprayed on a colored base coat and then sprayed on several coats of clear. Same as refinishing a car. The front cost $1500.00 plus decals...The rear was done at a different shop. It cost $1050.00 plus decals. Both turned out well and have held up for a couple years so far. It's hard to find a shop with a large enough paint booth to do this. Mine was done at two different shops where they paint buses and semis.It's amazing how much bad information you can get from these forums...

B.O.

I can't see anyone removing a front cap to repaint. Especially not for $850.00.
The gel coat does not have to be removed, just sanded smooth and cleaned. Be sure to use quality materials.

Those sound like some crazy high prices.

I'm contemplating painting the end caps on the 5th wheel but I have done it on a boat.

If it's just the front end cap, it should be a quick and easy process with the possible exception of removing the old logo.

There is not need to remove the old gelcoat. It needs to be cleaned and de-waxed and then a light sand with a fine grit so the paint has some tooth to grab onto. If there are any chips or cracks, now is the time to fix them but otherwise, it's a pretty simple there isn't much to get in the way and no need to remove. Any auto body shop should be able to do it but you may want to consider marine paints as they are designed to work with fiberglass.

The rear is likely to be a little more complicated as there are likely windows and ladders to work around but still nothing particularly difficult.

Assuming you have a compressor and the spray guns, I would say $200 for materials maybe less. An auto body shop maybe $500. (assuming you remove the logo and other vinyl graphics.

My 5er has the dark brown faded cap. I got a quote from a local independent RV repair shop of $850.00. They remove the cap, sand off the gel coat, paint it and reinstall it. Takes about a week.
On my brand forum I frequent another 5er owner with a dark grey cap got his repainted for IIRC $1100-1200 at a different shop. Neither are dealers. I'm located in Oregon FWIW.

The cheap gel coat needs to be removed and the cap painted for it to be done correctly.