DIY roll on bed liners - i am seeking tips and suggestions from those who did it

im getting ready to do the roll on bed liner and it seems fairly straight forward and simple but the videos don't get into much about the do's and don'ts of it, they pretty much show sanding then boom look how pretty its all done.

putting brand aside, I don't care about brand vs brand, im just wanting "process" info here.

what I am hoping to hear is the things like what is the best tape to use, where "not to" put bed liner because it has issues or doesn't look right, tailgate on or off when doing it, when to remove tape and how is best way, what to do so the brush and roller don't dry up on you after doing first coat, these and any other things you learned when doing it that you would do differently the next time is what I am hoping to get.

thanks for any help you guys can give on process and proceedures

AND PLEASE, NO THREAD HIGHJACKING WITH THIS BRAND OR THAT BRAND IS BETTER STUFF HERE GUYS, THAT CAN AND SHOULD BE A COMPLETELY SEPERATE THREAD DISCUSSION OF ITS OWN

 

Before most of your information your asking for you have to remain with the basics of prep for any liquid coating. Clean. Use an abrasive for maximized adhesion. Work in specified temperature / humidity / sunlight conditions for your specific material. White masking tape is good to use when working with a short time span unless you're working in direct sunlight and your body panels are really hot and will melt the glue - then blue tape is good.

Every paint has a specific time when it's best to unmask your project. It will be when the paint is dry enough not to run at the edge, but still liquid enough to let go of the tape edge without pulling material off of it. Experience is the best way to get used to what the material will look like during this time, but generally it will be within four hours of applying the last coat. The manufacturer of the product you go with will probably have more specific information on this.

Also have a plan of how to reach all of your surfaces before opening any paint. The last thing you want to be doing is rushing when your expensive material is already starting to dry on (in) your brush / roller. Each brand will have a kind of solution it's mixed in - water or non-polar solvent will be your best bet to keep your tools from becoming unusable between coats. Also, have everything all in one area that is completely covered for putting your tools while not in use so you don't have to worry about cleaning drips while your work is right in the sweet spot for the next coat.

Finally, if you want to paint with a roller and brush like a professional, DO NOT USE ROLLER TRAYS. A 2 gallon bucket and a roller grid will be your go-to roller set up and you can either have another small bucket for your brush or just use the brush when needed in the roller bucket and hang the roller off the side of it or store it in a cool clean area possibly with some solvent on it.

You can see my 1 gallon setup with a grid and a 4" roller setup for painting my wheels. I'd recommend a 2 gallon bucket (technically a 2.5 gallon bucket) and grid with a 6" roller for painting a large area like a truck bed. You only need to pour about 2 inches of paint into the bucket you're working with at a time - that should give you enough paint for a whole coat and not too much that you'll have to be transferring it all back to the original container if you end up having excess at the end of your paint job.



Here's the idea I'm talking about, but with a 5 gallon setup for a wall - he calls the grid a screen, so I would ask around at home depot or a real paint store for either a grid or a screen for a 2 gallon bucket if you don't know where to find one. He's got the basic idea down - I wouldn't paint a wall like him (his roller technique is not ideal, but it'll get the job done on a wall - not important for what we're doing with a truck bed).