LS paint

[westernstar]

I was bored this weekend so did a little test of Rustoleum , Sail Blue opposed to Safety Blue. Bare metal primed with Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer first. Sail Blue is on the left, Safety Blue is on the right. Black marker is to mark the middle between the two. You should be able to see that they are very close, with the Sail Blue maybe one shade darker. Hopes this helps anyone with a comparison.

George

 

[flingwing1969]

I was bored this weekend so did a little test of Rustoleum , Sail Blue opposed to Safety Blue. Bare metal primed with Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer first. Sail Blue is on the left, Safety Blue is on the right. Black marker is to mark the middle between the two. You should be able to see that they are very close, with the Sail Blue maybe one shade darker. Hopes this helps anyone with a comparison.

George

Thanks George. I have found the Safety Blue is a very true match for LS Blue. I welded some 3/4" round stock to my stabilizer legs to store my thumb's stiff-arm on and then touched up the weld with some self-etching primer and Safety Blue. I didn't paint the whole leg and it nicely matches - and not just from 50'.

 

[westernstar]

I have been using Sail Blue because it is what I had, and it was a pretty close match, but then I am not that critical. Just paint stuff for the protection and to make it look "close". I was at Lowes picking up some paint last week and decided to grab a can of Safety Blue to compare it and found the Safety to be about one shade lighter. Next time I need to paint something or touch it up on the LS I will give the Safety a try. I was also a little surprised, I painted the Sail Blue ENAMEL first and let it dry for a whole day, taped it off and sprayed the Safety Blue ENAMEL and you can see in the photo in the middle where it crinkled over the first coat like I was spraying enamel over lacquer. Surprised me so I checked both cans to make sure they were both enamel. Very strange for two coats of enamel from the same manufacturer to do that. I would have been very upset if it had happened when I was painting something already on my tractor.

George

 

[flingwing1969]

Right you are George, I noticed that too.

I used Sail Blue on a welding job on my tractor a couple of years ago and noticed when I looked at it yesterday that there is now a distinct purple cast to it.

 

[Ford850]

Their instructions say you have to recoat within 1 hour, or wait at least 48 hours. I've tried to cheat and recoat 36 hours after the initial coat, and it crinkled like you show. If I wait 48 hours or more (longer yet in cool or humid weather) I don't have a problem with wrinkles.

 

[Doofy]

Their instructions say you have to recoat within 1 hour, or wait at least 48 hours. I've tried to cheat and recoat 36 hours after the initial coat, and it crinkled like you show. If I wait 48 hours or more (longer yet in cool or humid weather) I don't have a problem with wrinkles.

Very good to know. Not very good with the "Hurry-up and Wait" method of watching paint dry. I always try to fudge on re-coat times too and usually have less than steller results.

 

[westernstar]

Ford850, you are right. I went back and read both cans and they both say to wait 48 hours to recoat. I had only read down as far as where it said it was fully dry in 24 hours. Thanks for the info. Next time I will be a little more patient.

George

 

[Ford850]

Ford850, you are right. I went back and read both cans and they both say to wait 48 hours to recoat. I had only read down as far as where it said it was fully dry in 24 hours. Thanks for the info. Next time I will be a little more patient.

George

I try to get all recoats done within an hour or so, building up several light coats, otherwise waiting over 2 days to recoat is a pain. I guess as it starts to cure there's a top skin and it takes those 2 days for it to cure all the way through. Once that skin forms (past the first hour) it will wrinkle with top coats since the paint is soft under it. After the full 2 days, the paint is firm top to bottom and will sustain the next coat.

 

[westernstar]

That makes a lot more sense, thanks for the explanation. I have been doing a lot of parts painting this winter and hadn't noticed it before, but those parts are all cast steel, with rough surfaces. this was a piece of channel so it was smooth to start, primed and then painted after that. From now on I will do as you suggest if they are smooth parts, coat the 2nd or 3rd time about an hour apart, then let it dry for a day or two before handling it.
See, you can teach an old dog a new trick.

George

 

[papachaz]

has anyone tried the Magic Ford/NH blue paint that some of the box stores like Tractor Supply sells? just curious. I have a few implements that could use a paint job, and now that I have a new LS, I may buy a quart of it and try spraying one of them and see how close it comes. Should be close enough on an implement, but what about for touch up?
no, I haven't scratched it.....yet.....