The Rover-Landers of BC

Just wanted to get a consensus here...

When people have repainted their projects (or touched up for that matter) what method has been used? I know spray with a clear coat is the usual method but:

Has anyone brushed on enamel?

Used coach enamel (like paintguys in the UK)

Used a one stage paint (like the original coatings)

Rattle canned it?

Just trying to figure out with limited budget and space...

Also interested! *Bump bump*

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It's too open a question.

What is the state of the paint right now? Mine are all BATUS units, with very rough paint. A proper roller and brush job with thinned out rust paint does a huge improvement on them.

If yours has pristine paint, and was garaged all its life, and needs some touch up, there's one answer, doing it properly.

Any photos on the state of what we're talking about here?

Good points.

I am thinking if the panels were stripped to bare metal, then primer applied and sanding/fill done. Not perfect in the sense of straight but still having ripples etc. But the existing paint removed ready for fresh application.


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Your best bet then is a quality single stage paint applied with a spray gun. Any other method than spraying will leave a less smooth finish, which means more work sanding to smooth it out if you want it smooth. If your expectations are lower your options are more at the compromise of finish quality. Spray cans work but cheap paint won’t necessarily last well and good paint put in spray cans adds a lot of cost to the project.

Base coat-clear coat doesn’t really look right on a Series and costs more as well.

You will need room to work (and keep it dry and free of dust, insects etc), a reasonably sized compressor, spray gun, PPE (respirator, glasses, coveralls or old clothes etc), so it will still involve a bunch of equipment and space, plus the cost of the paint. Also takes practice to figure out how to spray it if you haven’t used a spray gun before. Also requires correct primer on the birmabright to ensure it sticks (zinc chromate).

Yes - I agree -

Best place to buy single stage paint locally?

Also, is an expoxy primer the only suitable primer so it "sticks"?

No pics yet...just a general question.

I also read that these panels shouldn't be sanded with anything less than 200. Is that correct?

This is like flying an airliner while blindfolded.. :lol:

Need the photos since we're talking about paint. Generally, unless there's already mostly bare metal, you should leave the factory primer on there for aluminum.

Is this a showroom job, or are we painting an old farm tractor? The photos will reveal that.

This is true lol

Here is what I am talking about. There was a slim layer of bondo over the entire truck. I am heating a scraping etc. As you can see it is very much down to the metal.

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Ok. No to rattle cans.

You'll want to get the surface flat, as opposed to needing to go down to bare metal everywhere. A bare metal case would be made with a rusting steel body, which isn't what you have here.

You'll need a proper surface for the correct primer to be sprayed onto the body. Zinc chromate?

Then you have to decide what you're doing with the truck. A high-gloss clearcoat spray will be expensive, and will clearly show all the body defects you can't get out. If it does come out perfect, you'll keep the truck garaged for the next decade, never able to drive it offroad again, and you should have painted a sportscar instead.

Thin out some semigloss rust paint that matches your primer, and then roller and brush it like an old tractor.

So zinc chromate as opposed to an epoxy primer ?

I agree no 2 stage paint as that gloss just looks wrong on these.

I would like to prime and fill to get some flatness then try a coach enamel or similar. The wife is dead set on painting it pastel green again and I don’t think rustoleum has that (!)

Im going to continue to strip this down and then see where things are. Despite working on the tub it may end up being replaced as the other side looks like it’s met with one too many rocks.

Is there any benefit to sanding the bermabrite/aluminum before some primer?


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I don't know about your primer question. I used a primer for aluminum, and it worked well.

You'll have to knock off any oxidation on your aluminum before applying primer, it should be a fairly high grit.

As for the colors of rust paint, I used Devguard at what was then Totem, now Rona. They were able to match it to my sample of army tan. You can exactly match rust paint as you do house paint.

The primer question was just in response to your comment on zinc chromate - I don't know what this is for.

I'll see if Rona still carries.

Totem...haha...that takes me back...Edmonton in the 80s....

Zinc chromate primer is what is normally used on aluminum including birmabright. There may be others as well, maybe an epoxy primer would work I’m not certain. I do know that zinc chromate has been the standard for aluminum alloys nearly forever. It works, so I would tend to stick with what is known to work and avoid issues if you try something else and it does not.

It's quite important you get the primer right. You really can't paint aluminum, it's the etching primer which adheres, and you paint on that new surface.

Then, your topcoat (roller/brush) has to be compatible with bonding to this primer, which it likely is.

Maybe give this a try on a scrap fender, etc first.

Jackuar Land Rover on insta or Facebook, if you have either of those, is documenting his restorations of a few different series trucks. He's done quite a few short videos / stories talking about paint.

He does a ton of sanding, uses bondo after banging dents out, and has a compressor / gun setup for painting.

Worth subscribing or following in my very humble opinion!

He's in Australia, but etch primer is etch primer despite the label probably being upside down.

I used epoxy primer, then single stage Marine Blue on my 90. Turned out great.

The epoxy primer is hard to sand, and more like a sealant. It is a good base layer and will stick to any clean surface I've tried it on. I sprayed the topcoat on before the primer fully cured and it went on easy and (aside from user error) smooth. I bought the paint, primer, thinner and activator at Canadian Bodyshop Supplies on Boundary just north of first. And a spray gun for 90$ from KMS tools.