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vehicle spraying:
Hello everyone,
This is the first time I have posted any of my work, so I hope it works.
Whilst not strictly speaking a lettering or vinyl job, this is an old tractor unit we have refurbished for a customer. I decided to post it because I really like the combination of colours as well as the sweep of the orange panels on the cab. Our customer is absolutely delighted with the job, and is going to use this scheme an all their lorries as new ones come on the fleet.
The colours are Tekaloid Orange Chrome, British Standard 381C Aircraft Blue and RAL 9010 White. My preference for doing this type of paintwork was always Tornol Coachfinishing Enamel, but this is sadly no longer available, so we have used a high solids 2k paint. I am confident that this respray will last out the remaining service life of the vehicle.
I felt very proud to be delivering this completed job back to the customer yesterday, and even the Traffic Police on the M62 rubbernecked as they overtook me!
Best wishes to all,
David
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7 Replies
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Nice job David
I work at sprayshops so I know the amount of work that go’s into completing a project like this.
Is the customer having it lettered? Vinyl or hand painted? If they are, be nice to see a picture of it.
Keep up the good work.
Neil :clap2:
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Thanks Neil,
As you know, the real work is in the preparation. Actually spraying the paint on is the easy bit. Commercial refinishing is so competitive, the key is to reduce labour time as much as possible whilst still producing a reasonable standard of work. On this particular job, we saved a lot of time by putting the orange and blue on at the same time. Looks impossible, but we did it! Customers want perfection, but I have yet to meet one who will pay for it!
The lorry is going to run anonymously for a while, and will be stickered up later. I think that a simple design with this sort of colour scheme looks best.
Paints have changed so much over the years, and I find that we are constantly having to adapt our techniques to suit them. The good quality old fashioned coach enamels (Tornol/Tekaloid and the like) are simply not available any more. Primers have certainly improved, but topcoats (in my opinion) are not as good as they used to be.
Cheers,
David
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Looks great! I used to paint turbine engines when I was younger, I miss picking up the gun and painting. It is definately nice to stand back and look at what you have created. The spray booth was always a good place to have some “quiet” time with yourself. I always had my best ideas while I was painting. Thanks for sharing.
-Marek -
Hi Marek,
What you say certainly strikes a chord. Most people think that spraying is just a manual skill, but in fact it is as much a mental process as a physical one. It is difficult to explain, but as you work your way around a job, you receive all sorts of feedback (the sound of the gun, the appearance of the paint as it hits, the temperature, the quality of the reflection as you recoat and try to get that perfect shine). Time seems to become suspended, and your instinct takes over- sometimes I have almost “felt” that something was not right with a job, and known instinctively to, for example, put another coat on a door and the like. Like you, I have also had some of my best ideas and inspiration about all manner of things whilst in the spraybooth.
I still cannot wait to get back to work in the morning to see how the job I sprayed the previous day looks. I hope that this gives my work a little extra something over my competitors.
Regards,
David
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Hi David after having my own bodyshop for the last 15 years I’m not quite so in to it as you instead of talking flash off times ,flow out and out the gun finish my saying is one up one down and chuck it out sorry may sound a bit harsh but for the skill us guys put in to this trade its the worst paid job in the world !!!!!!!!!
sorry by the way the cab looks brill i cant wait to stop painting and get into signs full time
rich -
When I was a lot younger I did a stint spraying McDonalds garbage bins in 2 pac poly with heated air, but my boss at the time was so tight, he would not build a real spray booth, but built is own on the draft method. May work in some industries, but not when you were expected to do a mirror finish off the gun.
Gave it away after a year, out of frustration mainly. As a result I admire anyone that can produce a decent job with a gun. Hard to find quality painters tho these days. Most just see it as a job, and not a career.
Keep up the good work david, it is nice that your clients appreciate your effort and talent.
You and rich make a good point tho, few people understand or appreciate the talent required to do a good job.
Cheers
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Hi Rich,
I certainly know what you mean, but I find signwork and spray painting very difficult to combine. I am sure you know what I mean- you really have to be there yourself in the paintshop, and that leaves little time to do the more profitable sign stuff. Nevertheless, I do try to though!
Yes, commercial vehicle refinishing is a very poorly paid business. I have to go like crazy some days, steamcleaning (you know what second hand tractor chassis are like!), blastcleaning, rubbing down, masking, priming and painting. In the end, I earn my wage, but not much more. Customers are so demanding in terms of the price they are prepared to pay, the turnaround time and the high standard of finish they expect. But I still enjoy spraying, and our little family firm has done this since 1953.
What does get to me is the fact that customers send in an expensive chassis cab in with a nice body on, but shortage of time and price means I have to more or less do what you say- one coat up and one coat down of poly. It would be nice to give a price for top quality workmanship and materials and stick to it, but over the years we have seen so many coachpainters set up and then go bust. In the end, you have to do the best job that is possible within the constraints of what the market will pay. I do a lot of the painting myself, so I can put that bit extra in and produce an adequate standard of work.
Thankyou for your comments. It is nice to hear that we are not alone in our frustration. Good luck with your signs!
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