Repainting a Bobcat - Advice?

[George2615]

I would not spray rust converter through a spray gun because of the chemical reaction. It may plug up the gun for future use. Most rust converters can be brushed on or some have a dawber applicator right in the bottle. The stuff I have used goes on a milky white color then turns black when cured.

 

[RWolf]

I wouldn't hesitate to use degreaser at a car wash as all the car washes around here have a degreaser/engine cleaner on them. Clean thourghly with degreaser then with soap and rinse thourougly. Dry then sand rust and paint favorite color. Make sure you are using a dry compressor (no oil lubrication) or use apropriate filters, dryer etc. Watch your PSI on the gun as to much can ruin a paint job. You can tape off and cover wheels with paper or plastic. Good luck.

 

[jgl1962]

Hey,

2 things..if you're not done already ..well 3.

Remember that approx 2/3 of the weight of the machine WITH the bucket on is over the rear axles....very back heavy with no bucket.

Try and stick to the original color scheme if not genuine Bobcat brand paint. Make what's black now black and orange orange etc. Looks better at resale time as does coming as close as possible to the original colors. Bobcat dealers have ready to spray quarts, spray cans and even little white out like bottles for touch up.

Replacing the major decals and the safety treads go a long way to that look you want for you customers and don't cost a lot.

 

[skidsteer.ca]

Here is some info on matching paint, borrowed from ssf

This time I took some hidden parts to my local automotive paint store and had them do a color match with a scanner. There scanner came up with these results:
White: # F1858 IE Car: Toyota Code: 056 Color: White Year: 1998 perfect match for me
Orange: # 6756 A Car: Ford ( I think it's for an old Mustang) Code: MX706718 Color:
Orange Year: 1992 just a tad darker in bright sun but way better match than Bobcats paint
Gray: 2 color codes mixed with equal amounts of each # DS023A and #DS024 Car: Spectramaster Code: N/A Color: Spectramaster Dark Neutral Year: N/A in bright sun one was a little dark the other was a little light so we mixed the two together and it came out perfect.
These numbers should be good at any paint store and are amazingly close to the factory colors on my 1998 Bobcat. You will need to thin 2 parts paint to 1 part reducer for spraying and maybe a little less for brushing.
Be sure to get reducer for the temperature you'll be painting at. I don't add any gloss hardner so the paint will stay flexable. It scratches instead of chipping.
Just don't pressure wash it for a few weeks to make sure it has time to harden. My store sells Dupont Paints. The Centari Acrylic Enamel is the best @ $39.90 a quart unreduced, I have started using their commercial Dupont brand called Nason Ful-Cryl II @ $26.55 a quart unreduced. Can't tell the difference except for the price. Remember to get reducer they will add it for you or sell you just what you need for about $0.30 an ounce. That makes it @ $30.00 for a quart and half of really good paint.

These are courtesy of another poster
Ken