Repainting Base of '04 Hawk

[Brad's Dad]

I need some advice. I am the 2nd owner and it looks like parts of the grey base have either been repainted or edge painted (edged with something that looks almost clear to honey colored like maybe a varnish??). I'd like to give it a coat of the best paint available to not have to do it again forever or realistically a long while.

Given the questionable history of types of paint, does anyone have any suggestions on what to repaint with now? I plan to sand everything enough to create a better adhesion surface but certainly won't be removing most of the old paint.

I have a respirator with organic vapor cartridges if epoxy paint would be worth the effort but know getting good coverage and making it stick properly all depends on an excellently prepped and clean base underneath. Probably not without sanding it all down to bare wood, hey?

Any ideas? Thank you in advance!!

Fred

 

[jcfly]

Fred, I did my '04 Hawk 2 yrs. ago. I machine sanded the existing surface just to provide better adhesion, then applied a coat of Rustoleum because I wanted the longer life of an oil-based paint.
End result? Still looking good! I imagine any quality brand paint will fit the bill.

Good luck with it.

 

[rotti]

How about using the do it your self truck bed liner material on it?
I seem to remember another member here doing that.

I have thought about doing that or even having a LineX spray on done.
I love the LineX in my truck bed.

 

[Brad's Dad]

How about using the do it your self truck bed liner material on it?
I seem to remember another member here doing that.

I have thought about doing that or even having a LineX spray on done.
I love the LineX in my truck bed.


Hmmmmm! I'd do the underneath part of the base also and wonder how easy the camper would be to move or slide with a bedliner surface applied? I also would want to look into whether the material would stick to wood. Don't know why it wouldn't but with my luck it'd peel off like orange peel......

Guess I will search using LineX or bedliner and see what pops up! Thanks rotti!!

Anyone had long term success with porch and deck paint or any other type of paint as jcfly did with Rustoleum?

 

[Jamesiam]

I'm using an Acrylic latex enamel paint that I picked up from Ace hardware; mold, algae and mildew resistant. I feel this would be a great paint even in some extremes but feel the grey bottom and side’s don’t receive that much harsh exposure. It is shaded from sun both on and off camper, and feel it doesn’t get much rain when on camper if at all and minimal when off camper, unless you’re in an area where it rains sideways. I'm from Florida so I've seen it happen! I don't know anything about Wisconsin weather though; I'm in the high desert of Reno.

 

[rotti]

Here are two posts about bed liner material on campers:
post #11
post #2
You could pm him to see how it is holding up long term?

 

[cwdtmmrs]

This is my 3rd post...DIY truck bed liner is the only way to go for the plywood. Cost about $80-$100 for a gallon kit from most auto parts stores. It is also available from automotive paint supply stores and can be custom color matched.My camper does not move in the bed anymore either.

CWD

 

[pods8]

Glidden floor and porch oil based is an affordable paint option numerous folks on here have used. Something like $25/gal at homedepot.

Epoxy paint will chalk under UV exposure, not a biggie if your truck is normally shielding it, just depends. Lots of different formulations with varying pros/cons.

A good bedliner wouldn't be bad either. I'm likely going to use tinted monstaliner on the underside of my camper build.

As for the generally best considered paint out there I think Aliphatic Urethane holds that honor. Toxic to spray (vaporizes isocyanates) but can be rolled/brushed more easily. Expensive (industrial versions are about $150/gal). But high abrasion/UV resistance/etc.

 

[Jamesiam]

I'm using an Acrylic latex enamel paint that I picked up from Ace hardware; mold, algae and mildew resistant. I feel this would be a great paint even in some extremes but feel the grey bottom and side’s don’t receive that much harsh exposure. It is shaded from sun both on and off camper, and feel it doesn’t get much rain when on camper if at all and minimal when off camper, unless you’re in an area where it rains sideways. I'm from Florida so I've seen it happen! I don't know anything about Wisconsin weather though; I'm in the high desert of Reno.

So I decided to start my own paint job project on the base of my 2005 hawk and was a bit surprised. As I started doing a rough sanding for the fresh paint to adhere I noticed the old paint came right off, extremely dry. It will be nice to get a fresh coat or two on my camper. So I take back my nonsense about minimal exposure on the base of these campers.

 

[Brad's Dad]

So I decided to start my own paint job project on the base of my 2005 hawk and was a bit surprised. As I started doing a rough sanding for the fresh paint to adhere I noticed the old paint came right off, extremely dry. It will be nice to get a fresh coat or two on my camper. So I take back my nonsense about minimal exposure on the base of these campers.


Thanks everyone for the input and experiences! My time before having to use my camper draws short so will probably try a porch and deck paint. Maybe Consumer Reports has tested them to find one that will hold up well.

Fred

 

[SLO_F-250]

Thanks everyone for the input and experiences! My time before having to use my camper draws short so will probably try a porch and deck paint. Maybe Consumer Reports has tested them to find one that will hold up well.

Fred


Fred,
I used a standard sealer and primer for the underside of my (new to me) older hawk. I will then finish is up with an exterior enamel paint. My previous camper I had some boxes between the bed rail and camper for storage. I made them out of Plywood and painted them with exterior semi gloss paint from Home Dept (Behr). The boxes have direct exposure and are now 3 years old and look great. I did 3 coats. All in all I think any good exterior grade paint will do for the underside.
Good Luck!

Picts:

 

[pods8]

Thanks everyone for the input and experiences! My time before having to use my camper draws short so will probably try a porch and deck paint. Maybe Consumer Reports has tested them to find one that will hold up well.

Fred


Read up on the glidden, pretty good esp. for the price.

 

[White Dog]

In the original question, Brad's Dad asked what the amber material on the edges might be. Without seeing it, it's hard to tell but I would guess the previous owner used epoxy to try to seal the edges of the plywood. Take a power sander to a bit of it. If its epoxy, it will smell kind of sweet and aromatic.

I like the idea of Line-X. It is very tough. A lot of offroad vehicle restores spray the underside and inside of vehicles with the stuff in off-frame rebuilds. However, it goes on hot (about 170 dg I think) which may blister the original paint. I would talk to a reputable Line-X installer first. It might be wise to remove the original paint before installing Line-X but check with the pros.

If you are going to use paint, I would recommend a good epoxy sealer first. I've use Industrial Formulators S-1 sealer (now part of System Three) for years and it works great.It soaks in and hardens forming a waterproof barrier. The finish coat could be anything but a good marine enamel or polyurethane would probably be best. Again the epoxy sealer would only work properly if you went down to bare wood but this is always a good idea anyway.