Help spray painting XM7 grills

[mikenehrkorn]

So I decided I would prefer to have the grills on my XM7s black instead of silver, so I cleaned them good and put a coat of spray paint on them. They looked pretty good, but I missed a couple of spots so went back for a second coat. Now the paint seems to have cracked all over and they look horrible.

So what did I do wrong? I let them dry for about 24 hrs between coats -- should I have waited longer?

Any tips for removing the bad paint so I can try again??

TIA

[viking]

Plasti-dip might have been a better option. You could strip it and go back chrome if you ever wanted to. Your probably going to have to sand/scuff them down again and start over?

[kaneboats]

You can't go wrong if you use this stuff first:

http://www.plastikote.com/products/Primer/Spot-Filler-and-Primer.html

Prepare the surface and shoot a coat of this stuff on as heavy as you like. Lightly sand it after it dries and your color coat will look like a million bucks.

Edit:

Might want to choose this one for plastics:

http://www.brandsport.com/plik-467.html

[mikenehrkorn]

Plasti-dip might have been a better option. You could strip it and go back chrome if you ever wanted to. Your probably going to have to sand/scuff them down again and start over?

Yeah, I thought about the plasti-dip but wanted a shiny surface to match the rest of the speaker and the plasti-dip is more of a flat or satin finish.

[mikenehrkorn]

You can't go wrong if you use this stuff first:

http://www.plastikote.com/products/Primer/Spot-Filler-and-Primer.html

Prepare the surface and shoot a coat of this stuff on as heavy as you like. Lightly sand it after it dries and your color coat will look like a million bucks.

Edit:

Might want to choose this one for plastics:

http://www.brandsport.com/plik-467.html

Those might work now, but the funny thing is that the surface was pretty smooth to begin with -- the cracking seems to be caused by the paint itself.

[kaneboats]

Would have worked before too. The primer adheres better to the plastic than the paint you used will ever do.

[jmvotto]

sem coat is what exile told me

http://www.tcpglobal.com/SEM-62213_2.html?sc=115&category=2662974#.VE-f6Gd0yUk

anything specific to plastic

I would use this
http://www.rustoleum.com/en/product-catalog/consumer-brands/universal/universal-gloss-spray-paint

[mikenehrkorn]

sem coat is what exile told me

http://www.tcpglobal.com/SEM-62213_2.html?sc=115&category=2662974#.VE-f6Gd0yUk



Interesting since the grill is just plastic and not metal or aluminum.





anything specific to plastic

I would use this
http://www.rustoleum.com/en/product-catalog/consumer-brands/universal/universal-gloss-spray-paint

LOL.....that is exactly what I used!!

[jmvotto]

you used the rustolem product? I used it for my hdpe ghetto gate test and it worked great even did the dishwasher test. hmmmm

[ian ashton]

I used Rustoleum too. Did you use the same can on both sprays?

The issue you have is likely from a surface contaminant, like oil from your skin, or wax or who knows what. Scuff them smooth, clean with rubbing alcohol (or go to a hobby shop and buy a bottle of Plasti-prep) and give it another shot.

If you want to start from scratch you can douse the grills with oven cleaner and put them in a zip lock bag - after a few hours the old paint should lift off with some light scrubbing.

[mikenehrkorn]

I used Rustoleum too. Did you use the same can on both sprays?


Yep -- the only thing I can think of is that the first coat wasn't completely cured, because the first coat didn't really have any cracking just a few thin spots that I didn't thoroughly cover.




If you want to start from scratch you can douse the grills with oven cleaner and put them in a zip lock bag - after a few hours the old paint should lift off with some light scrubbing.

I've also read that Pine Sol (similar product ingredients to oven cleaner?) also work pretty well for removing spray paint. I will give that a try and then make sure I get a good cover with the first coat this time!! :)

[MLA]

How did you actually prep the plastic chrome dipped grills? You need to take that chrome off, clean the grill, then prime with a primer thats intended for plastic. Once primed and cured, lightly scuff and then coat with a quality gloss thats intended for plastic. I would suggest the SEM automotive brand.

[bergermaister]

I second that. SEM is good chit. Spendy but good.

[mikenehrkorn]

How did you actually prep the plastic chrome dipped grills? You need to take that chrome off, clean the grill, then prime with a primer thats intended for plastic. Once primed and cured, lightly scuff and then coat with a quality gloss thats intended for plastic. I would suggest the SEM automotive brand.

All I did was clean the grills, I didn't attempt to remove the chrome.

[jmvotto]

How did you actually prep the plastic chrome dipped grills? You need to take that chrome off, clean the grill, then prime with a primer thats intended for plastic. Once primed and cured, lightly scuff and then coat with a quality gloss thats intended for plastic. I would suggest the SEM automotive brand.

if you take the chrome off wont they be Black ???

[mikenehrkorn]

if you take the chrome off wont they be Black ???

LOL......very good point, maybe all my problems will be solved!!! :)

[MLA]

I think they are an opaque/cream colored plastic. Ive never taken the chrome off, but seen a few that had worn/faded. Thats chrome is way t slick to stick.

[Brianinpdx]

I skimmed through this thread and everyone has given the proper advice. It's very simple to paint.

1 - scuff the chrome surface
2 - pick a paint thats good (SEM coat is a great paint and 20 bucks a can).
3 - spray two coats.

done!

I have a hunch that you used a paint that had a funky reaction to the finished surface. Or the paint might not have been shaken enough and had issues out of the spray bottle. Either way - just scuff the grills and hit them with SEM coat and you'll be golden.

-Brian / Exile

[mikenehrkorn]

I realized last night what probably went wrong....I painted them in the garage and left them there overnight to dry -- our temps are now getting down into the low 40s at night and I'm guessing that is what caused the cracking.

[beat taco]

I like all of these. I always wipe down withe sem solve and on plastic I always use adhesion promoter.
21020
My quad grill that was once blue painted a few years ago and eaten lots of sand:
21021
21022