paint.... or lack there of.

[shearingmatt]

I have a problem on my hands.. I can never get paint to stick! I even painted some wooden chalks at the Airport and the paint didn't even stick to that! But what is more relevent, I can't get the paint to stick on my trucks trim.

If it makes any difference, it is a 66 with the 3in. wide trim. I went to the auto paint store, told htem what I wanted it for and the sold me some black spray paint. Painted the center of the trim and it looked great! For a little while anyway. It still looks pretty good but I can scrape the paint off with my finger nail. So.. I really want to figure out how to do it properly and then do the rest of the trim and the new hood I got.

So.. what all is needed to paint that trim? Was I supposed to prime it? I was painting on top of paint that was intact so I thought I didn't need to..

Second question, what all will be needed for the hood. I'll give them my old hood and they'll match the paint color. We aren't sure if it is the dodge truck white or not. So I will probubly be brushing it on. I have no spray equipment and they can't put it in a spray can for me. But anyway, this hood I have was repainted once before and that coat is peeling off. So I will have to take that coat off at the very least somehow.. What is the best way to do that? Will I need to take it down to bare metal? What all will I need to do? As I said I know almost nothing about painting.. Nothing about painting metal so any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Matt

[cowboy]

S Matt, start with a medum grade sand paper on you trim , then work up to some fine paper, be sure to wipe it down good with a wet rag , also be careful not to scrach the part you don't want to paint ,
8)

[shearingmatt]

Thats a good idea! I'll have to do that. Thanks.
Matt

[wideblock]

tt, on your trim you will be best served to remove all the old dead paint. thats 30 year old car paint that may not be mixing well with the new blends. i have to disagree with cowboy on one point though, i wouldnt take sand paper to the aluminum trim the way i would the steel hood. youll wind up with scratches in it that you will be able to see once the fresh coat of paint is on. what i would do is mask off the side areas you dont want painted with some good quality masking tape, the blue stuff works good. then useing steel wool and oven cleaner scrub all the dead paint off. put the cleaner on the wool pad, not directly on the aluminum. after all the paint is off, rinse it real good with warm water and soap to get all the oven cleaner residue off, if you leave the oven cleaner on it, the chemicals will etch the aluminum, so scrub it good then wash it good with soap and water immeadiatly after. take off the masking tape soon also, it will have some residue left in it also. and be carfull not to scrub thru the tape, hehehehe! wash the whole assembly real good, dry it well, then id wipe it with thinner and let it air dry real well, or acetone. remask and paint. sounds like a long process, but it works. acetone will work to remove the old paint as well, and isnt such a worry with residue. but it evaporates quick, so you will be constantly re wetting the pad. also, a side note. soak the cans of paint in hot water for a few minutes before you use them, dry them off real well so you dont wind up with drops of water in your paint. this makes the air in the can hot, giving it more pressure and thus a better, finer spray. as well as thinning the paint a bit for a better flow. you will also want to make sure the trim hasnt been sitting in the sun getting hot, if the alum is too hot the paint wont stick and will bubble on you. if you are useing black as the color, might i recommend appliance epoxy paint, it comes in black, white and almond colors and is much tougher then standard rustoleum. its what they use on refridgerators, any hardware store should sell it, and its even made by rustoleum, just much tougher, and much shinier, plus it has a self leveling quality that will make an amature paint job look great. just 2 cents from a spray paint guru......

[cowboy]

Thanks Trey, I just learned some thing new today , putting the paint in hot water, I had forgotten about epoxy paint , , I did a moter cycle with it years ago , lasted mant years for me , then sold it , seen it a couple years later & still the same paint job on it
8)

[wideblock]

i like thexy better if i can get it in a color i need. its more user friendly and is a lot more rugged then regular paint. we use it at the hotel all the time, seems to take the abuse better.

[shearingmatt]

Hey thanks! I'll try that.
Matt

[scoutski]

There is another thing that works real well. It is called "Bull Dog" comes in a spray can, all of the auto parts stores have it. It is an adhesion promotor that prepares the surface for the paint. It is colorless and works on most surfaces.
Bill