Spraying your own farm machines

iron man

recently i purchased a compressor and a spray gun, ive a couple of farm implements that needs a bit of a tidy up eg dung spreader etc..... What are the best undercoats/primer to get and what do you mix with it? also whats the best brand of paint for the finish coat??? do you have to mix anything with it. all suggestions appreachiated.

ps a neighbour of mine does a bit of shotblasting so the all the crap will be cleaned off.

Drawinhard!!

Lad dont buy d best for farm machinery coz iy will only get destroyed anyway . Your local autufactor or machinery dealer should have paint in stock just ask. As for the undercoat a primer maybe but i dont think its essential at all . Remember try keep it cheap and cheerful

GenSi7

Iron Man, depending on the type of machinery, it will be painted with a standard single-pack paint or a two-pack polyurethane paint. Most of the newer machinery, everything from a bale handler to a baler, is painted with two-pack.

The most important thing to do is to make sure that if you go with a two-pack, you use the same brand of primer as most companies make primers that work specifically with their top coats.

Single pack paints are easier to work with and in most cases you can just open the tin, give it a good stir, add a bit of thinners if necessary (depends on air humidity, temperature etc) and paint away.

As with painting anything, preparation is key so I'd call in the favour from your neighbour with the shot-blaster. If you are getting it shot-blasted, you should put 2 coats of primer on the machine, let it completely cure (at least 24 hours) and then apply the top-coat.

All two-pack paints require an additive to both the primer and the top-coat. Depending on the manufacturer this will be around a 3:1 or 4:1 ratio of paint:hardener. You need to be aware of the pot-life i.e. the usable time of the paint. You can't mix the paint today and use it in two days time as it will either go rock-hard or just be an unusable sludge. So only mix up small quantities unless you know exactly how much you will need. Two-pack paint is not cheap so it's worth noting all of the above.

As Drawinhard!! mentioned, your local machinery dealers or autofactors will have them but also, the manufacturers of the machines will have no problem supplying you with the paint directly.

Hope this helps and it'd be great to see some pictures of the finished job!

iron man

thanks very much for your advice. how much is the two pack paint???? i hear it dangerous to spray inside with this stuff.... could i spray uotside on a dry day or is that not worth a fiddlers???

JohnBoy

it's dangerous to spray outside with two pack too.

it's carcinogenic

blue5000

http://www.shipleypaint.co.uk/index2.php

Heres a link I found on either ford and fordson forum or bff, few lads there were recommending them

Owen

Two Pack paint contains a mild form of Cyanide. People shouldn't be so blaisé about working with it.

pakalasa

GenSi7 wrote: »

......

Spot on with advice here. 2 Pack paint is the way to go. The company I work for have a spraying operation for Industrial machines. There are 'etching primers' too, which really bite into the bare metal and get a grip for the paint.
Preperation is the key. We've used sandblasting and it does agreat job. You also have to clean the bare metal too to remove any grease and oil. I think we use alcohol for this. I can check.
Wear a proper facemask too to protect the lungs. We have a large extration fanned room to remove the fumes.

JohnBoy

a proper mask for 2 pack paint is an air fed mask from an external source, it's bad bad sh*t

Dupont

Owen wrote: »

Two Pack paint contains a mild form of Cyanide. People shouldn't be so blaisé about working with it.

two pack should be sprayed in a special spray booth with proper extraction fan and mask and clothing as the chemicals in two pack paint will enter through the skin as well as respiratory system

aujopimur

Tractol 1 pack paint available in all agri colours from Pat O'Gorman in Wexford, €15 per ltr.. 053 9255444
Just stir and spray.

GenSi7

I would agree with all the cautionary advice given so far. Ideally, as a couple of people have mentioned, you should wear a full cover air-fed mask and only spray in a proper industrial spray booth.

Pricing varies as with most products so if you have a few options available to you, by all means shop around.

Again, you can always use single-pack paint. It's cheaper, easier to prepare and more widely available. However the finish won't be as good or as long-lasting so you'll have to budget for painting the machinery again in a year or two.

mf690

I bought Tractor Restoration : Paintwork D.V.D . From Old Pond Publishing ordered on the internet. It goes through the basics of paint mixing ,air flow ,paint mixing etc. As far as painting farm machinery with expensive two pack paints and etch primers is much to complicated a tidy spray job one pack primer and paint is fine for working machinery . With your own equipment you can always do a touch up job at anytime.

vincenzolorenzo

Two pack paint will work out way too expensive for tidying up farm machinery. I'm not sure on prices but its up around the €60/70 mark for a litre, compared to ~€15 for the standard tractol tractor paint that comes in e.g. MF Red, JD Green etc. And you wouldn't be long getting through a few litres spraying a muckspreader.

A word of caution for the Tractol paints though. You get one go at these paints and if they don't go on properly the first time there's feck all you can do. The surface will be dry to the touch after a few hours but it takes a month for the paint to fully dry so if you get a run and go to sand it back the paint will just push in front of the sandpaper and the whole thing turns to sh1te. (I'm speaking from experience! :eek:)

Give a series of light coats as too heavy an initial coat will cause runs and other problems. When going on the paint should have an 'orange-peel' appearance. This is ok when wet because as it dries this goes out of it and you're left with a smooth finish. Notwithstanding these issues I would still go for the Tractol paint and sure a few runs here and there isn't going to matter too much on machinery.

Ford4000

Very simple painting old items, Clean well, prime with Lowe rust primer it really is mighty stuff at holding back rust, get a tin of tractol or similar and spray it on over the primer, if u want a bit of shine add a wee drop of petrol to the paint !!!!

1chippy

pretty sure its illegal to spray paint without a proper extracted filtration system. classified as an enviromental issue i believe. i'm not preaching here just making you aware, ive been already warned about spraying timber and i know the enviromental officer has been asking qs about me so take from that what you will. supposed to be a hefty fine

masseys scrap and zetors no better

i'll give you a bit of advice.if you are only starting of to spray dont start with a dung spreader.A thing is better left alone as sprayed by some man that hasnt a notion what hes at.id class myself as a fair good man with a spray gun,if you want to send me your email address i can send you some pics of my work.i always use 2 pack.it costs alot more but its 10 times better paint when it comes to finish and last.all that single pack is only rubbish,shiny for a year and it fades then.i cringe at a bad paint job.if i was you id spend the money and get your machines painted by someone who knows what there at,it will be cheap in the long run.

mostatom

You're right ford4000, Lowes rust primer is mighty stuff, i usually put a coat of zinc phosphate primer over it, then a top coat. If its for harsh use i just brush on a good coat of bitumen paint over the Lowes, not the prettiest but very effective for the likes of the dungspreader.

tipper1

mostatom wrote: »

You're right ford4000, Lowes rust primer is mighty stuff, i usually put a coat of zinc phosphate primer over it, then a top coat. If its for harsh use i just brush on a good coat of bitumen paint over the Lowes, not the prettiest but very effective for the likes of the dungspreader.

Agreed Mostatom & Ford4000 Lowe is excellent stuff and I've finished off a real rusty job with a coat of the green Lowe Machinery paint and it covered easily.

iverjohnston

Fully agree with Ford4000, Lowe is great stuff. If you dry the metal with a blow lamp, or a hot air paint stripper, you can see the moisture boiling off. Then slap on a good coat of lowe Rost. You need to buy their own brand thinners/brush cleaner to clean your brushs. When its well dried, top coat. Made a livestock trailer 25 years ago, and painted this way. It was used for pigs, cattle and sheep ever since, and is on its 3rd floor now, but the paint is still good. As a bonus, Lowe rost matches up well with the shade of brown Fiat use on their cabs!