Painting / Touching Up Plant

[rossandson]

Anyone any good (I’m sure someone is!) at painting machines? Something I’ve never really done but want to learn or at least give it ago. But not sure where to start. Yes I’ve sprayed the odd piece of metal with a spray can and a bike fairing many many years ago. But just sprayed it.

Any advice or a point in the right direction be fantastic! Thanks in advance.

 

[Grahams]

If you can take a sample (panel or such) to a commercial paint supplier they will match it for you.

 

[Brendan]

I painted my old mini digger, did it with a paintbrush, wasn't the best finish but it was a 13+ year old machine at the time and just wanted to neaten it up

 

[GazCro]

Painting is all about the prep work. And ffs don't paint the hoses. Unless you do a decent job and prep it properly it will look worse than before you did it after a year or so.

 

[CPS]

Like gaz says its 99% prep work. Rub it down, fill what needs filled out and use a good under coat. Heat is your friend also, if your thinking about doing it out side or in an open area this time of year forget it.
Never paint over a hose its a shootable offence or a chrome rod for that matter.

Tape up all windows and rubbers and of you go.. and be prepared to walk back into the workshop after you have done a brilliant job only to find a spot has reacted

 

[doobin]

An specialist infrared type paint drying floodlight is really helpful.

 

[rossandson]

Thanks All! Yes that is one thing I was aware of that prep is everything. Masking and tape is defo your friend too! You can’t do too much.

I would of thought it was obvious not to paint hoses and especially any chrome rams. But I’m sure there are plenty out there that have. So appreciate the point outs.

Well I’m hoping I might be able to borrow a friends workshop over the winter to do a little or prep it at my place then finish prep there and paint. But I need to do a little more reading up on it. I know it won’t be perfect first time, second or prob third but have to start somewhere I suppose.

I’ll have to post my progress.

 

[Quattromike]

The bonnet of my 7740 has lost almost all of its paint, I should take it off and give it a respray but I keep seeing adds on social media of companies that specialises in tractor and plant respraying and they look super smart and professional finish but can only imagine it being quite expensive to have done

 

[CPS]

A few pictures of a few I have done going back a few years now! Haven't done to many lately but we actually have one in the workshop at the min get a full over haul .

 

[rossandson]

A few pictures of a few I have done going back a few years now! Haven't done to many lately but we actually have one in the workshop at the min get a full over haul .

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Fair play! That is an amazing achievement and effort. And here I am thinking about spraying the counterweight on a 8014 and a little bit of chassis on a 1T dumper

 

[CPS]

Another Kubota KX121 we did to, actually this was the first one we did, learnt a lot the hard way. This was a total strip down but the machine got a full over haul.

 

[V8Druid]

some serious effort gone into those Aiden ..... not an easy job to get it looking THAT good

 

[rossandson]

Also is there any chemical or product recommended for cleaning/removing concrete splatter without damaging paint below.

im presuming (without reading label) most concrete or brick cleaning solutions would also strip the paint.

 

[Regy53]

this thread makes me shudder

 

[rossandson]

this thread makes me shudder

Why? What am I doing wrong?

 

[Gunners]

Ross hates painting plant Craig.
He has a point, in the trade, a painted machine is seen as suspicious in some way. For you and me as owner operators, its a way of keeping our kit tidy, which reflects well on our work. JCB paint is readily available on ebay etc. You can buy from the dealer but its a bit expensive. I do all my touch ups on counterweights, my cab etc with a roller. I know its not a perfect finish but I like to think a digger needs what I call a 6ft paint job. If it looks good from 6ft that's good enough for me! I usually peel off the flaking paint with a stanley blade, rub down with a couple of grades of sandpaper and roll away. Rough as you like but everything I've painted has stayed and anything JCB did is coming off around it! People still comment on how clean my machine is on jobs so it must be working.
Counterweights do want to be done on a warmer day if you can, they have so much metal in them, they take ages to warm up and condensate if you just put a heater on them. Running the machine for a bit helps to get some heat in it on a colder day.
I'm so rough I didn't even fill in the scratches, its only going to get hit again.
Shudder at that thought lads

 

[Regy53]

Why? What am I doing wrong?

nothing at all, just painted plant at my

Ross hates painting plant Craig.
He has a point, in the trade, a painted machine is seen as suspicious in some way. For you and me as owner operators, its a way of keeping our kit tidy, which reflects well on our work. JCB paint is readily available on ebay etc. You can buy from the dealer but its a bit expensive. I do all my touch ups on counterweights, my cab etc with a roller. I know its not a perfect finish but I like to think a digger needs what I call a 6ft paint job. If it looks good from 6ft that's good enough for me! I usually peel off the flaking paint with a stanley blade, rub down with a couple of grades of sandpaper and roll away. Rough as you like but everything I've painted has stayed and anything JCB did is coming off around it! People still comment on how clean my machine is on jobs so it must be working.
Counterweights do want to be done on a warmer day if you can, they have so much metal in them, they take ages to warm up and condensate if you just put a heater on them. Running the machine for a bit helps to get some heat in it on a colder day.
I'm so rough I didn't even fill in the scratches, its only going to get hit again.
Shudder at that thought lads

I’m going to have to ban you i think......


This is all we will paint actually we are doing it now

 

[CPS]

Fair play! That is an amazing achievement and effort. And here I am thinking about spraying the counterweight on a 8014 and a little bit of chassis on a 1T dumper

some serious effort gone into those Aiden ..... not an easy job to get it looking THAT good

Thanks lads, there is something really satisfying about respraying a machine. I have refused to do some in the past because the owners wanted a quick half done job.... and there's as much work doing that than doing it right.

Any we have done were for customers, not for resale as such. I have no problem doing them for resale ether as long as its done right and you can so the customer why its been done, ie before and after pictures.

 

[CPS]

Also is there any chemical or product recommended for cleaning/removing concrete splatter without damaging paint below.

im presuming (without reading label) most concrete or brick cleaning solutions would also strip the paint.

We have some stuff in the yard that is good, il check if it still has a label tomorrow when I'm back in the yard. Its not bad on paint (but I wouldn't put it on your car)

 

[Jimoz]

I prefer the @doobin methodology. Scratch it up Day 1 won't be worried about it then!