tekaloid coach enamel

[kevin]

So, after cleaning the steel wheels on my vogue im planning on using an etch primer then a brush on enamel in ivory/old english white.
Any1 used tekaloid coach enamel?

Kevin

[JPB]

Yes, and it takes months to dry! Durable though, and unlike Hammersh*te not brittle so it won't flake and fall off at the slightest sign of loose chippings.

As long as you don't paint like me (slop it all on in a oner and worry about the runs and brush marks some months later if the job's dry by then ) then you'll be fine. In fact, there's a very handy guide to brush painting with enamels in the October edition of a publication that has a very similar name to this forum.

[kevin]

thanks for that john, not sure it will be suitable if it takes ages to dry!
will have to look at alternatives.

kev

[JPB]

Luxobarge is in the forum I see. This reminds me that he stripped and refinished the wheels on his Minor and a very fine job he made of it too so if anyone is qualified to comment on how wheels should be painted and with what, he's your man.

[Luxobarge]

Luxobarge is in the forum I see. This reminds me that he stripped and refinished the wheels on his Minor and a very fine job he made of it too so if anyone is qualified to comment on how wheels should be painted and with what, he's your man.

I did indeed.

I simply used etch primer followed by a rattle can coat of high-build primer (IIRC) and the top coat was a rattle can of Old English White. Can't remember where I got it from, it might have been one of the MM spares suppliers or I might even have just found it on the rattle can rack at the local factors.

I believe that "Smoothrite" do - or used to do - a cream colour, that was virtually the same as OEW, which would make it easy and cheap to brush paint, but you might want to skip that idea as a) Smoothrite goes very brittle over time and chips easily as John already said above, and b) I believe that the cream colour is no longer produced or is at least very hard to get hold of.

So not a lot of help really - the rattle can idea will work fine so far as it goes, but it's not an exceptionally tough finish, as you'd expect from ordinary cellulose rattle can paint. To achieve a tough surface I can't really suggest anything better than your coach enamel idea - perhaps you just need to find a way of giving it enough time to cure properly? I do strongly recommend the use of etch primer on the bare steel surface to start with though.

Cheers

[kevin]

cheers luxo

got the etch primer on the shelf already so thats a great start.
ordered some machine enamel in gloss topcoat (ivory colour although i ordered via a bs number) and primer. ive used it before with good results.
have also got a red halogen type heater coming to aid the curing process, no rush over the winter so hopefully i will get a good durable finish.

many thanks chaps

kev

[Luxobarge]

Sounds like a top plan Kev, probably last longer than the method I used!

All the best - do post up pics of the process and the results eh?

Cheers!