So my truck has developed it's first patch of skin cancer, (cracking, peeling clear coat).It's on the top of the roof, dead center. I knew it was only a matter of time in the sun and heat down here. Does anybody have any recommendations as to what can be done? What would you say is the going rate of a quality paint job?

 

A quality job will require removing all of the paint down to bare metal. It's expensive.
Since it just started and is on the roof, I wonder if you can clean it up some and then have a shop rough up everthing else and spray over the existing in order to keep it a while longer.
I've just waited. Most of mine came off on its own. And as the primer has worn thin... rattle can. I just did my fenders and roof yesterday. I'm so hiiiiiiiiigh. lol

 

Well, I did some researching yesterday and came up with this:

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/...art=1&vc=1

go down to the 9th post.

I can't believe he got those results using rustoleum, a foam roller and some wetsanding! I have my doubts, but it wouldn't hurt to pick up a piece (hood or something) and give it atry to see if it actually works. That'll be a next summer job.

 

Wow, hang on buddy. If there's no rust and paint is just peeling, you do NOT need to take it down to bare metal. I mean, if you're looking for a museum quality pickup and going for a real high end application, you can do that.

Really, I would just knock the painted surface down with a scuff pad. Stop by any local paint shop and ask them. They're very helpful and will be able to look at your paint code and recommend some tools and supplies. A good shop will get you a prep solvent, scuff pad, and your base and clear and all the other miscellaneous items. If it was my truck and the roof jut needed to be touched up, I would clean it, scuff it, and spray it. Don't spray all the way up to any tape lines as you'll need a fade section. A nice gun won't cost you too much and should last a while. I would think that you could have the roof all prepped and painted in about a day. I'd let it dry for a day and then you should be all set. If you get some orange peel or a little run, get some 800 grit sand paper and start wet sanding and smooth it out.

I'm not a painter. The first time I set out to paint my tonneau, everyone laughed. I did it with a $39 gun with Nason outside in the wind with a compressor that didn't have a water separator or reservoir tank. Honestly, it didn't turn out half bad. After a few hours of wet sanding, it came out fairly even. I had one corner chip when it was -30F last year, so I decided to do a better job this year. I used a fancy gravity feed gun with PPG and had much better luck. Now I can see my beautiful smile in the paint.

Don't let others intimidate you about painting something yourself. Every painter has to pick up the gun for the first time. Don't get me wrong, there are some real professionals out there that I admire and they have some great skills. You also have to remember that there are some other "professionals" out there who make you wonder how hard this really could be. But in all honesty, a single color flat surface is not the hardest thing to paint. Take your time and remember that it can always be fixed.

Good luck and have fun!

 

Scrape off as much of the paint as you can until no more will come off. square the area off as best you can with tape and some sort of cover (newspaper will do fine) sand it down to the white metal. Primer it. you can find your paint code under the hood, it should be on a sticker near the end of your hood close to the grill. Go match that up at the autoparts store. The trick to painting is to get the primer right first. You can tell exactly what it's going to look like by the primer. If the primer has a drip or a run in it the pain will too. So take your time with the primer, and if you make a mistake that's okay. just wait for it to dry and sand it off. When your satisfied with the way the primer looks wait for it to dry and begin painting. Do the paint in multiple coats. 2 light coats and one heavy coat. It's good to each coat a day in between, but not necessary. When I did my back bumper I waited probably an hour in between coats. When it is done wait for it to dry, then unmask the taped off area. Take a scotch pad and rough the old paint (don't touch the new paint) up, scratch it up.Not too much, just give it a texture. Now clearcoat your entire roof. 2 or 3 coats should do the trick. Then in about a week put some polish on it and you're good to go.

 

most auto paint shops will give you spray cans of exact match paint, All you need to do it sand down the spot (if you go down to bare metal make sure you prime the spot). Spray over the primer, wet sand, then pulish it to match, if it's small it won't be a big deal.

I am in the process of re painting my whole truck. My truck came from quebec canada. Where they use a hell of alot of salt on the roads, so i am dealing with some cancer. I just about got it all out now, just doing some dent pulling, and i am ready to rent a spray booth soon.

 

Id have to disagree. I feel the problem lies with the primer, and to get rid of the problem youd have to go below the primer, which would be bare metal.

 

What would have happened to the primer??? First problem is at the clear where the problem IS and is visible. Then your base which is the majority. What would be the problem with the primer???

Indayman, you gotta break it down. Clear is quite a bit away from the primer. The problem would also be in the base. I really can't see how the primer would affect the clear without the base. Please explain. I'm not a paint expert, just using some basic common sense and reasoning...

 

im no paint expert either, but im looking at it from a break down perspective too. Also iv seen this go from clear coat down to metal on my truck, in the same spot. My theory is that the primer is ****, therefore making all layers ontop of it not anchored properly, and from them not being anchored properly it would become the weak link and then fall apart. Again, im not an expert, thats just my theory. And again, thats how it happens on my truck.

 

My 1995 got 'skin cancer' white spots
first on the hood and then on the roof.

The ultimate solution was when I got the truck completely repainted with Dupont Imron paint after a rear end accident that the other driver's insurance was paying for. This repair was done at Fortune Auto Body in Lexington KY. When my truck was in the shop I got a call asking for permission for Dupont teachers to use my truck as an education project to show the shop painters how to use the latest Imron instructions. I agreed to this, but then got a 2nd telephone call the next day asking for further permission to sand the hood and roof to bare metal because the Dupont teachers said it was necessary to do a job that would last.

If you can't afford a complete paint job,
here's a tip I found prior to the repaint:
if you want to make the white spots go away for 24-72 hours
spray the whites spots on the paint
with WD-40 to displace the water from underneath the clear coat temporarily. This makes it look better than any wax I tried but the effect does not last very long....particularly in the summer.