Repainting a skidsteer

[JDeereman]

i'd be interested in any thoughts, experience or recommendations here on repainting a used skidsteer. A friend of mine is interested in buying a used bobcat but it looks really awful all rusty and dented. is it best to bring these things to auto body shops or someplace like Maco? or do most folks do it themseves. he wants something that will add value and last a long time not just a butcher job. thanks.

Theo

 

[ray66v]

The only way to do it well and not end up with way too much money in it, is to do it yourself. To really clean and prep it properly is going to be labor intensive, and to use quality automotive products on it is not cheap. Sure you can get Maaco to blow some paint on it but, without the prep it is just lipstick on a pig.
If your lucky, there is a Body Shop in your area that is really hurting for work and will give you a decent job, without breaking you. But, if they have experienced technicians and do the job right it is not going to be very affordable.
I have 30 years experience and will be happy to advise you, as best I can, if you would like to diy.

 

[radman1]

My advice is have him paint it himself or just keep looking for a nicer looking one. If it is badly rusted, and he doesn't like the appearance, just move on. Badly rusted means it sat outside all the time and everything else is in similar shape - hoses, belts, wires etc. Bad rust is going to require lots of prep. It is probably cost prohibitive to have someone else do it. I touch mine up frequently with just a little primer and cans of spray paint for little issues. Can't hardly tell the difference from new. Most dealers just touch up the trade-ins to make them look nice. Remember, it is just a skidsteer - not a show car.

 

[JDeereman]

he is buying this thing pretty cheap I gather so I think he is willing to put somemoney into making it look good. i would think that repainting equipment is alot differnt than repainting cars. probably have to sandblast it good before primer and final coat. doesn't have to be automotive grade pretty either just nice and to protect from more rust. I hear that there are equipment repainting specialists, but I see none in the phone books.

Theo

 

[ray66v]

Your pretty much on target, I would start with a bath, Preferably steam cleaning, but a pressure washer and about 40 cans of engine cleaner will work too. If you are going to sand blast it there is potentially a million places you don't want sand to go and no matter how much effort you put in to protecting those areas, it is still going to get in half of them. You can effectively remove rust without sand blasting and I would try everything else first. The primer is the most important part, Spend money on a good self-etching primer, or make sure you use a product to etch the metal first and apply a good quality primer. Then, Industrial enamel (Rustoleum, ect.) will be the best "Cheap" paint to use, Tractor Supply sells Valspar brand and has a hardener that you can add to it, (this would be my choice). Adding Naptha, (10% or so), will usually make it spray better with a conventional gun. You could even brush it on a cool day if you wanted, use a good brush and don't over brush it, the stuff lays down nicely.
If you want to spend the money for good automotive paint it probably will not be terribly expensive since they are usually not all that big.
You likely won't find a shop that specializes in painting heavy equipment, most good size companies have a maintainence guy who does it all.

 

[MACDABS]

I use to do alot of equipment for auctions , 15 years ago, heck I guess 20 years ago time is going fast. We would steam clean, replace any tin that could not be repaired, paint the machine, re decal it JD860 ect. $900-1200.00. Now this was equipment like a dozer or backhoe size. But it was 20 years ago and the equipment came in very rough from road jobs. Half the time the hoses were leaking and the customer would have them replaced after we were done so everything looked good.. We called this a "fluff-n-buff"

Always had worked, paid for college, paid for cold ones had alot of fun and enjoyed it.. I would think to do something like a skid steer and to look auction ready you would be in the 2k range today . And that would be a guy doing the job out of his home shop , or like us in a alley garage 20 years ago.

 

[Wayne County Hose]

Steam clean it, and go right over the rust with cheap equipment enamel. You can find it online or go to a tractor shop. It costs about $40 a gallon and will stick to anything. Give it a couple days to dry. Or, you can use POR, paint over rust. I've used it on truck frames. Whatever you do, do not get any paint on the cylinder rods. The paint will act like sandpaper in the rod seals. They will leak in under an hour of work, then you'll be bringing all your cylinders to the shop for reseal.

If you do use automotive paint, don't use the hardener. The paint will be too hard and will crack and peel with every little scrape.

 

[JDeereman]

$2000 is alot of money. I doubt my friend would ever spend that much. I'm sure he was thinking it would be worthwhile for maybe up to $1000. so no equipment painters. no wonder I couldn't find any in the phone book. sounds like the next step is maybe to vist some autobody shops and see if anyone wants some side work.

Theo

 

[ray66v]

If you do use automotive paint, don't use the hardener. The paint will be too hard and will crack and peel with every little scrape.

Be careful with this advise, MOST automotive paint today requires hardener to dry, yes in the old days it was optional in synthetic or acrylic enamel. But, in todays urethane's they will never dry properly without precisely the right amount of hardener. That is why the high end shops now mix everything on a scale because there is a certain level of molecular cross linkage the needs to take place in the product. Secondly, the hardener does not actually make the paint harder, it does two things it makes it hard faster and it improves the bond with the other materials, If you have seen in the past the paint "chipping off" it is more commonly because the bond between the paint and the primer is a weak one, this is were the hardener helps. If there is hardener in both the primer, (the good ones will), and the paint, the two films will bond together and will be much more chip resistant. This is how the automobile manufacturers require all repairs be made to continue their warranty.
The other one I hear all the time is "put in extra hardener". NO, in order for things to work properly you have to follow the mixing instructions carefully.
You can vary the amount of reducer, but not the hardener.

 

[Wayne County Hose]

Oops, I keep forgetting, it's been a little while since I painted a car. I'm used to the old DuPont Dulux and Centari. Geez, they probably haven't made either in 10 years.

 

[JDeerekid]

I would recommend going to your local technical school (around here they are called BOCES). When I was in school I went there for auto body repair, we had some local farmers drop of a tractor every so often that we would rebuild at his cost of just parts and paint. We supplied the labor for free and got a project to work on. We rebuilt and repainted an old 8n ford in less than a month.
Just something to think about.

 

[ray66v]

The vo-ed school is a cheap, but, not always fast way to go. If they will take the job. I am not sure if they will because, its not going to help them to learn all that much for the "Real World" of working on todays cars, They skip ahead past a lot of the basic stuff any more, to teach them advanced stuff they will not use for years. Then, when I hired them, I had to teach them how to mask cars! I keep thinking of the kids playing around in the parking lot with the thing for hours. (Having spent time in that environment I have found a great deal of unsupervision).

 

[JDeereman]

interesting idea the vo-tech thing. but yes you are right. he could get the thing back in pieces if the kids get hold of it for a little fun. I wonder if there is a liability concern as well. could he be held liable for damage the kids might do to the school building, parked cars or to themselves? I don't think he plans to insure it. I also doubt he would give it up for a month either. maybe a week or so but not a month.

Theo

 

[AlanB]

If I wanted one of my peices of equipment painted (I personally do not mind the "rough" look) I would take it too one of the two local Ag places that buy cheap and sell hi.

They regularly clean and repaint old equipment and put it on their lots.

I am freinds with both, and if I remember right it was about $250 labor plus materials I would figure about $100.

Go somewhere that has shiny old tractors on thier lot and look around back for a paint booth.

If it was mine, I work on problem areas (I took the wheels off and had them sandblasted and powdercoated on our Kabuki Bob because they were rusting away) but general paint,, spray cans for problem areas for me.

 

[ray66v]

I am confident if it is "wrecked" while at the school, they would take care of it. I don't see how they could not be liable. I was wondering about the damage you can't see, i.e. internal.

 

[phoenix1979]

Rather than repainting the whole thing, repair the rusted spots then prime them with a product with great ahesion to metal. Spray touch up paint on the repaired rust spots. Then, finally spray the whole unit with a clearcoat fromVivilon Restores Faded Paint, Metal or Fiberglass

Disclaimer: I am a friend of the owner, have used the products on several units both commercial & recreational, and truly find it unique. It can be used as both a primer (self annealing and aneals to other paint) and as a paint restorer and protector. I've seen applications that were still looking good 11 years later but the oldest job I have done is now a little over 8. It restored the color to like new with luster and shine. It's easy to spray. If you want to know more, they have a section of some pics on ther website. Restore & Protect Faded Construction Equipment

Hope this helps, good luck!

 

[JDeereman]

Rather than repainting the whole thing, repair the rusted spots then prime them with a product with great ahesion to metal. Spray touch up paint on the repaired rust spots. Then, finally spray the whole unit with a clearcoat fromVivilon Restores Faded Paint, Metal or Fiberglass

Disclaimer: I am a friend of the owner, have used the products on several units both commercial & recreational, and truly find it unique. It can be used as both a primer (self annealing and aneals to other paint) and as a paint restorer and protector. I've seen applications that were still looking good 11 years later but the oldest job I have done is now a little over 8. It restored the color to like new with luster and shine. It's easy to spray. If you want to know more, they have a section of some pics on ther website. Restore & Protect Faded Construction Equipment

Hope this helps, good luck!

looks like interesting stuff. I'll forward your message and website to my friend. this particular skidsteer he wants maybe too beat up for this product, but I'll let him decide. thanks


Theo

 

[phoenix1979]

Thank you, Theo. It's obvious that you are a gentleman and scholar.

 

[MrJimi]

I plan on painting my Case 1845 C and my biggest problem will be removing the cage for a different color, I won't make it new but I will make it nice and it's a 1991
pictures in my gallery

 

[Rameck]

Rather than repainting the whole thing, repair the rusted spots then prime them with a product with great ahesion to metal. Spray touch up paint on the repaired rust spots. Then, finally spray the whole unit with a clearcoat fromVivilon Restores Faded Paint, Metal or Fiberglass

Disclaimer: I am a friend of the owner, have used the products on several units both commercial & recreational, and truly find it unique. It can be used as both a primer (self annealing and aneals to other paint) and as a paint restorer and protector. I've seen applications that were still looking good 11 years later but the oldest job I have done is now a little over 8. It restored the color to like new with luster and shine. It's easy to spray. If you want to know more, they have a section of some pics on ther website. Restore & Protect Faded Construction Equipment

Hope this helps, good luck!

I checked out this site and have several observations about the ad. This ad's pictures of before and after are deceptive. My profession deals with pictures and making them look good.
The first picture of before was taken on a cloudy overcast day compared to the after being taken on a sunny day making it look brighter, not to mention that the equipment has been at least washed. The second example has the before picture with the black levels raised giving a washed out and dull look. The after is nice and contrasty giving a scharp bright picture. It always bugs me when someone gives before and after pictures that have been enhanced to their favor. My inclination is not to trust them. The product may do what it says but this kind of advertising makes me leary of their honesty.

Ralph