Paint inside and out

[Don Landis]

I intend on painting my end caps (front and back) on my Argosy - the rest has been depainted and buffed out - nice and shiny. I want to paint the front end a bright orange - orange - Orange Julis orange, and the back end cap blue - Jet Blue (I saw some pictures on this forum of a Jet Blue Airstream Transport - Cool. So exterior primers and exterior paints are needed. What say you for what I should get that lasts and has the color selection I want?

Then I intend to paint the plastic molded roof, front end cap, and side window pieces orange, a light pea green, and a dark kelly green. Again, any suggestions for primers and mat finish on the plastic mold pieces?

don

[Don Landis]

Sorry for all the smilies - my son wanted to add them.

[wahoonc]

Originally Posted by Don Landis

Sorry for all the smilies - my son wanted to add them.

Gotta keep the kids (and momma) happy

I know that the endcaps on an Argosy are supposed to be galvanized steel. That takes a certain kind of primer, plastics are something else, I have never done large scale painting of plastic/ABS bits and pieces. Krylon makes a special spray paint that is supposed to work on all types of plastics.

Aaron

[nick6930]

First of all the silver looks great, it gives me hope for mine. I am not sure if it is correct but i was planning on using POR-15 to coat the metal on the domes, since it is suppose to stop rusting and then paint over that with a primer by POR-15 and then in my case I think silver by POR-15. They make a bunch of colors and what is called a flexcoat. It is suppose to use on flexible parts and it wont crack or chip. So if it is moving down the road I would think it would have some movement. Not really sure it is all an experiment to me. I first need to get all the paint off I hope this week.

I have seen a lot of post talking about Pettit EasyPoxy enamel paints but the color selection was limited. That is why I went with POR-15 some pretty bold colors available.

Good luck and love the smilie faces.

[nick6930]

OBTW: post some photos love to see the progress.

[Don Landis]

Where does one get POR-15?

[Don Landis]

Ok - I found that site. Like the Orange. But I'm looking for a little more electric jet blue.

Also, to remove what's there - what a really good wire brush? Or a wire brush on a drill bit? Or just the POR-15 process without much abrasion?

don

[Frank's Trailer Works]

The exterior painting you are talking about is the same as used on cars. This is not something you can just do using spray bombs from Home Depot. You need to find an auto body supply house and use their products. Hopefully they sell PPG Automotive Coatings. I have had very good luck with that line of products. They will have a primer that is compatible to the steel end caps. PPG also make a line of Urethane paints that does very well on the fiberglass end caps. The color selection will be endless. You will also need to invest in a cup gun. Remember the end results will only be as good as the prep that goes into it.
You could also have a body shop do it and get professional results.

Nick, PPG sells a paint called of all things "deep aluminum" not sure of the number. Often people think my tub and toilet seat are aluminum because it matches the aluminum walls perfectly.

[Don Landis]

Wow. I thought I could get away with something cheaper than going to an auto body shop to paint it. Or invest inexpensive spray guns to do it.

Please excuse my ignorance, but what is a "cup gun?"

odn

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Don, Unfortunately you get what you pay for when it comes to auto paint. Have you ever seen an Earl Schieb paint job? Once you do there will be a clear understanding why a whole car only cost $300. Like I said earlier, the job will only look as good as the prep. A cup gun is a spray gun that has a quart can suspended under it. You mix the paint up and it siphones it out and mixes air to shoot the paint onto the surface. Sorry I do not have a picture of one. Someone that knows how to link things will probably post a picture for you. Here are some of the Urethean products I was talking about from PPG for fiberglass or plastic.

these are basically bumper paints. The stuff on the left is a primer and catylist. The stuff on the right is the top coat and hardner. Both products are a bit of chemistry needing to be mixed properly and cleaned out of the gun right after you are finished spraying. That was a very expensive lesson learned, for the primer flashed off and seized up my $350 gun. These paints will flex and not crack and are ideal for the interior caps you need to paint. This is what my tub and and toilet looked like after priming and top coating.

The paint matched the aluminum walls I put in perfectly.

[Don Landis]

Man, I just don't know if I could do that. Plus that's an investment - a spray gun and air compressor. For $350, could probably pay some auto body place to spray it for me. Plus get the colors I'm looking for. I can remove the plastic molding pieces - including the front end cap - prep them - and then get them sprayed.

I also like your bathroom idea - get that silver thing going.

I just saw someone prepping, then primering, then painting the exterior of their Argosy caps and the brown strip around it - all outside. I thought maybe I could do something like that. Guess not.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

I apologize for the distance in these photos, they are part of a panorama, but hopefully they give an idea of what I am saying. These are some Argys from our units installation rally.

As you can see some are white and some are tan. The one furthest right has been stripped and the lower part painted tan, the center is polished, and the end caps are primer as it's owner decides what color they should be. The polished mid section was very cool.

This is Mistral Blue's Argy. It is painted, well yes, mistral blue. What I am getting at is the Argosy was a "test bed" for Airstream. Have a ball. The vintage purists like me cannot say jack about it.

[juel]

This is the type of gun we used to "touch up" the exterior of our Argosy in an attempt to get back to the original color.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

that is a gravity feed gun, a cup gun is the upside down version.