IdahoJeepGuy

My XJ has several mismatching panels and doors from replacements over the years, so I'd like to repaint it one solid color. My budget for this will probably be around $500ish, so I obviously won't be getting a show quality job. That's okay, it's just going to get muddy and scratched to hell anyway.

I'm just wondering what my options are. Do I just rattle can it and call it good, hit up Maatco for a cheap job, or use the money to buy an air compressor, paint gun and paint to try my own hand at it?

I'd love to hear from those of you that have repainted your own Jeeps, with pictures of before and after if you have them.

Tamadrummer

Well having a good compressor would be handy in so many ways. but if you aren't worried about the quality then just rattle can it yourself and spend the extra money on parts

XJmike0122

I have seen a few rattle can jobs come out pretty dang good. If you need everything related to paint a car with 2 stage auto paint you are going to be 500 bucks deep into it before you ever get started. I'm also guessing you don't have a heated garage. That paint can take awhile to cure even in warm weather. Good luck either way.

DieselDaze

I just started prep on my jeep last week, little time here and there.. If you have no experience painting then I'd pass it on to someone else, no point in spending all the money for a nightmare on your hands, crappy results and ultimately passing a 'fix it' job on to someone else...

even if you're mechanical, painting "right" is more then meets the eye... If you're up for it and have an eye for detail it can be done, but you must exhaust yourself to no end reading up on moisture, fisheyes, orifice, technique, flash time, ETC.. 'ad nauseum'.. You have nothing to lose if you're well versed, patient and good with your hands....

I've sprayed enough automotive paint and have learned many tricks over the years and have banged my head against the wall doing so, many things to factor..... I was once in a booth spraying in winter, this booth had silicone lining in the duct for the heater, spraying metalic... came out beautiful !!!! Until the particles in the air (from heater) caused it to fish eye.... can you say NIGHTMARE ??

I've sprayed a couple show cars (5k paint jobs) but that still makes me no painter.....

good luck

DieselDaze

btw..... if you're not looking to match a factory finish, and aren't overly concerned with the paint (as it may get scratched as you mentioned) you may want to look into Rustoleum Oil Base, look it up on youtube plenty of guys applying it... super cheap so if you screw it up you still have the 500 to decide on which direction to go from there..

roadraje

you can achieve excellent results using rattle-cans if you prep properly and spray 3-4 light coats rather than 1-2 heavy coats. I sprayed cars for local body shops and even did a summer at Earl Scheib painting numerous cars a day. The key with Earl Scheib and Maaco is do the prep yourself. They will paint over dirt if you tell them you're looking for their cheapest paint-job they offer. Remove trim, moldings, etc that you don't want painted. POR-15 rust and pull/fill dents and dings. Scuff and/or sand painted surfaces to remove any "shine", clean with wax & grease remover and you can even go as far as priming with rattle-cans. Set them up for success, they will do a decent job at masking and their paint-job should come out to your satisfaction. I am in the same boat with my '99 Limited, I just replaced the rear bumper, rattle-canned it with primer and paint as well as the bumper ends. They don't match perfectly but I took my time and they came out nice. Over the winter I will prep for a spring paint-job. Good luck with yours.

DieselDaze

I've only seen orange peel crap jobs from either of the stores you've mentioned.. had a friend get the premium "crap" job from maaco cost him around $1700 or so and it was a joke.... orange peel haven....and ruined his nova... imo

a lot of painters that work for real body shops will post side work on CL... look there

btw, I'd go with rustoleum oil anyday before a rattle can.... 50/50 ratio mix and you'll see good results, (well from youtube anyway)....

IdahoJeepGuy

The rustoleum oil mix would be done through a compressor/paintgun setup, right?

DieselDaze

rolled...

andrewmp6

Have you thought about plasti dip?It is removeable but you can do it at home tho. https://www.dipyourcar.com/Pro-Car-Kits-cat/ and how to do it