painting a polyethylene body

[wildtexasranger]

Bulldog Paint Adhesion Spray

This spray is great on ABS just make sure the surface is clean befor you use any adhesion spray & paint.This stuff does NOT work on HDPE. NOTHING WILL STAY ON HDPE,IT WILL SCRATCH OFF WITH EASE!!!!!!!(or should I say alot of touch up)

[Mike]

I guess anything that may help would be worth a shot. It couldn't be any worse than the paint by itself.

[azz7772]

i would have to wonder about the chemical properties of some paints like the solvents used in them and how it would react with the plastic tubs ...........would it weaken them? make them brittle? i am not sure i would do that

could a person use a cleaning product and a buffer to bring back the color and shine?
maybe something like this

Plastic Renew

here is another link
Painting plastic right the first time - There are special procedures and precautions used when painting plastic to insure a long-lasting quality finish. Make sure everyone in your shop knows what to do to get the job done right. - SEARCH-autoparts.co



also found this interesting

Vinyl Dye/Paint - Product Details - Parasol Inc.

[Mike]

Cool, thanks for those links. That last one (the dye) looks especially interesting plus it's guaranteed not to peel or crack

I think I will read a little more about that one.

Sidenote: I have actually had great success with my last paint job on the tub. It hasn't even gotten a chip yet over the past two months. I just don't drive it ... sadly I haven't had any time to take it anywhere so it still looks great

[mrarmyant]

Found this:

https://www.polyprocessing.com/pdf/technical/PaintingPEStorageTanks.pdf

And some others. Going to see which is most robust.

[z-partsman]

I have been looking on that site for prices on the sheet goods and all I see is for camo. I did see that they have othes avalible, just do not were to find prices for them. I want that carbon fiber and some big gold rims with spinners.. naah... I like mine the way it is, scratched-up bright orange. Mike if they don't see ya, make sure they can hear ya.

[thawky]

I work in the auto body industrie and I paint many different types of plastic bumpers most of which come from the manufacture raw. The process I have used for the last 15 years has worked without a problem. I wet scuff the body with a lite scotchbrite pad (gold) and a 50/50 mixture of denatured alcohol and water in a plastic spray bottle . After scuffing spray the body down with the mixture and wipe dry. Do not let any scuffing sludge or dirt dry on the plastic. The purpose of this is to remove all mold release agents and oils from the surface. Then I use a plastic primer called all plastic primer which is made by Lesonal then a coat of sealer and then paint. Your best bet is to go to a auto store that sells a name brand paint like Lesonal, Sikkens, PPG, or Dupont and see what there system is. I know 3m makes a aerosol can of a plastic primer for TPO plastics which polyethylen is a type of. This would be a little cheaper if you where going to paint it with aerosol cans or a cheaper paint. The most inportant step is the cleaning and scuffing of the plastice

[westkymaxiv]

I to had terrible results with the Kylon Fusion paint. It got so bad I stripped it off with a pressure washer. I am almost done camoing the Max Iv with camoClad vinyl sheets. It is really hard to put this stuff on curved surfaces like the front end on the Max. Luckily the pattern blends so well you dont have to try to match to pattern where you over lap the stuff. I bout 3 sheets @ $75 from Gander Mountain and looks like Im gonna need one more sheet.

[Mike]

Awesome! Post up some pictures when you get finished. I can't wait to see that.

[Mike]

Look at the dates, this post was started in June

[mossman381]

Thawky is right, you can't paint with a spray can and expect great results. I was painting somthing years ago and went to buy some automotive paint in the can. The guy behind the counter called the it mickey mouse paint in a can. Well after painting with it and not getting the results I was after, I started looking at automotive paint. The stuff dupont sells. You need paint guns, air and it is not cheap stuff(you get what you pay for). I have sense painted alot of stuff with dupont and it is awesome. You don't get this kind of pop out of a spray can, unless you throw it into a fire! They do have stuff for painting plastics. I have painted truck grill shells that are made of chromed plastic and it has held up good. I don't take my truck in the woods and run through brush, but the front of a vehicle takes a good amount of abuse. Just wanted to share this with everybody.

[BrentNewland]

Sorry to bring up an old topic, but it seems the best topic on the subject of painting. Has anyone tried Rustoleum (or Tremclad, the canadian version)? A lot of guys are painting their cars and trucks with it (mix around 50/50 with mineral spirits - I think it's mineral spirits, always get that mixed up - and apply in thin layers with a special roller and it goes on really smooth). Rustoleum even makes a plastic primer (and I've read that Dupli-Colour Plastic Trim Primer, or Dupli-Colour adhesion promoter work as well). Rusto is an enamel paint which is supposed to be very hard to chip or damage. Used on industrial equipment and engines. Supposed to be waterproof as well. And it's dirt cheap.

[westkymaxiv]

well I have not been on here in years but the camo clad has long been removed.. it started stretching and cracking in the summer sun. Thats was a huge waste of money.

[johnj]

I was also looking into painting my max. But i knew it would chip off. I did some research into the plastic dye and that seems to be the best so far. It doesn't stick to the plastic it absorbs into it. This way it can't be scratched off. If you Google plastic dye you will find some websites that have it. I haven't tried it myself but it should work well. And they say the more coats you use the deeper you can make the color. If anyone has tried this post some pics please. I would love to change the color of my max to blue i think it would look much better than tan.

[tattooman]

Call me crazy, I painted a camp maple leaf pattern on my Max a few years ago using different color rustoleum spray paint and it still looks great.