mixed results with spray paint... anyone have this happen?

[ryans65]

I've always had mixed results with spray paint, obsessive prep, no prep, scuff and shoot.... today was no different. I prepped a few metal parts, took one down to bare metal with 120 grit, degreased and let it dry. The others I washed and used a orbital sander to scuff factory chassis paint then cleaned up the dust/ degreased let them dry. I shake my rustoleum satin black and start my light coats. It immediately fish eyes everywhere on all of the parts almost like a hammered finish. I figured I didn't shake enough so I shook more..... second coat more garbage. I let the bare metal piece dry, sanded the paint, heated the can and shook it and more hammered looking garbage lays down. As a car guy Ive spray painted a lot of stuff. My last project was my mid rise lift that sat outside for about a year. I sanded where the paint was flaking and simply washed the rest figuring anything would look better that the faded and rusty blue that was there and to my surprise that satin black laid down really nicely and I swear you can't scratch it with your finger nail. About 15 years ago I painted the steel wheels on my F350 and again, hardly any prep basically degreased, taped the tires off and shot the satin black and here we are 15 HARD years and they're still
black. Is it me? Is it the paint? Did something change??

[Crowbob]

The only time I get good results with a rattle can is when I want to paint my fingers.

[Bob Kontak]

Degreased and then painted after it dried. That's your problem. You don't have a clean surface.

Go to a paint jobber and get some pre-clean which is a prepaint solvent. 20+ bucks a quart. Ask them what to get.

Alternatively, wash it with soap and water, rinse then dry.

Advance Auto has a decent non-hydrocarbon pre paint cleaner that works well.

Purple Power is not the ticket.

[ryans65]

I guess I should have said my degreasing process was with dish soap diluted in water. Still my barely prepped part came out the same also. Maybe it was the particular can?

I'll have to look into some paint prep solution for sure thank you for the tip.

[serene911]

Silicone sprays are well known as well as other contaminants for causing fisheyes during
painting. Clean and degrease, try acetone or laquer thinner as well to wipe your parts
down with, preferably while wearing gloves

[creaturecat]

commercially available automotive wax and grease remover..

[Brian 162]

I have the same results as you using big-box spray paint. I tried spray paint from an auto body paint supply store. The results were excellent. I painted my winter steel wheels last year and they still look like I just painted them.

[Scott Douglas]

I once painted some stuff with Krylon which was not supposed to run. It did and looked terrible. I took pictures of the piece, I forget what it was, and sent them off in an email to Krylon. I think I got the email address off the can or with an internet search.
They replied that it shouldn't have happened, like it said on the can, and they'd replace the paint.
Next thing I know there's a whole 6 can case of the stuff being delivered to my door.
You might want to contact the manufacturer and see what they say.

[otto_kretschmer]

Fisheye means the surface is dirty.

I paint things every five years so its like I have to relearn how to do it every time. Or maybe half.

Here are two projects; my 76 911 (which I'm going to touch up when I get it rolling again) and a bicycle.

Same paint

https://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/816906-skinny-fat-skinny.html
https://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/1136608-getting-back-into-cycling-19.html

[Alan A]

I never have any luck with rattle cans. Usually I put it on too heavy and it runs.
Stuff like rustoleum I’d brush paint.

[dw1]

Originally Posted by ryans65

I guess I should have said my degreasing process was with dish soap diluted in water......

Liquid surfactant detergents like dish soap are notorious for leaving an invisible film residue.

A solvent-based cleaner is strongly suggested. Sometimes when I don't have anything else around, I use isopropyl alcohol (the higher % the better).

The surface temperature of the part, the temperature of the air, the air humidity, and not shaking the can long enough are also important factors.

And sometimes you just get a bad can and/or bad nozzle.

[unclebilly]

Originally Posted by creaturecat

commercially available automotive wax and grease remover..

This.

I painted a car many years ago for a family friend. He washed it and put armour all on the vinyl too before he brought it to me.

I meant to say, I painted a car (3 times) years ago for a family friend…

[wdfifteen]

If you're getting fish eyes, either the surface is contaminated or you are using paints that are incompatible. It's most likely contamination.

To answer your last question, yes, something has changed. Silicone is really terrible for causing fish eyes, and it seems like silicone is everywhere anymore. It's gotten so that if I'm painting something that I haven't had in my possession for decades or otherwise KNOW it has no silicone on it, I start off with silicone remover. Silicone doesn't come off with soap and water, no matter how hard you scrub. You can get the real thing at an automotive paint store, or try acetone, toluene, or paint brush cleaner that has a whole concoction of nasty chemicals in it. After you get the obvious dirt off, go with the silicone remover, then grease remover. I hit it with the silicone remover again just to be sure. If you sand or sandblast silicone, you drive it into scratches in the metal or old paint and you'll never get it off.

[Rodsrsr]

I'm betting whatever you were trying to spray was too cold. Needs to be warm or it will fish eye or orange peel no matter the prep.

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by Rodsrsr

I'm betting whatever you were trying to spray was too cold. Needs to be warm or it will fish eye or orange peel no matter the prep.

Paint may run also if too cold. Warm the paint as well.

I sprayed a fender recently with basecoat in a prepared spray can. Nice spray pattern. Every once in a while it would spit and I could not figure it out. I would dust over the "spit" spots and proceed normally and it would spit again. Came out ok but I would love to know what I did. Maybe I did not shake enough? I like using the stuff as you usually have half a can left for another job down the road.

I just used two part automotive clear. Way shinier and you can wet sand cooties and polish the next day.

[ryans65]

It was quite cold.... I suspected the paint and the pieces were too cold even by florida standards for cold. It's been a rough month or so in the low 30s/ high 20s!

Originally Posted by Scott Douglas

I once painted some stuff with Krylon which was not supposed to run. It did and looked terrible. I took pictures of the piece, I forget what it was, and sent them off in an email to Krylon. I think I got the email address off the can or with an internet search.
They replied that it shouldn't have happened, like it said on the can, and they'd replace the paint.
Next thing I know there's a whole 6 can case of the stuff being delivered to my door.
You might want to contact the manufacturer and see what they say.

Originally Posted by Rodsrsr

I'm betting whatever you were trying to spray was too cold. Needs to be warm or it will fish eye or orange peel no matter the prep.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by ryans65

It was quite cold.... I suspected the paint and the pieces were too cold even by florida standards for cold. It's been a rough month or so in the low 30s/ high 20s!

I don't even try to paint with a spray can if I can't get the part and the paint up to at least 60 degrees. I think the paint cans say minimum of 50 degrees, but even that is too cold.

[flipper35]

I don't like any results from Rustoleum any more. Seems the quality has gone down a lot with them.

Have had great luck with other paints though. I do soak the cans in hot water before I spray and make sure the air and parts are warm. At least long sleeve shirt warm. The Duplicolor cans have a nice fan pattern instead of a generic round pattern.

As said above, any silicone will cause those issues, even if it hasn't been applied in a while.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Two things-

One, I just realized there's no way in $%$# I'm going to be able to paint my bike before spring cause of the cold. Even the garage is too cold to paint.

Two, I recently painted a metal cabinent with BEHR paint (they had the right color). Put a base layer down of the BEHR. Went back a week later and went for a final coat. The second coat completely peeled the original coat. This wasn't a clear over a base, or two different types of paint. They were the same can. That was a head scratcher. wth?!?!?

[wdfifteen]

^^
I've had that happen. The solvents in the second coat softened and lift the first coat. A lot of paints say, "Recoat within 1 hour or after 48 hours" and some say you have to recoat between 24 and 48 hours after the previous coat.

I had to sand and repaint the base on the music box I restored (A birthday gift for Vicki (31 photos)) because I put the second coat on too heavy. It didn't run, but there was enough solvent to cause the first coat to craze.