Complete paint rejob

Didn’t know the exact forum to post this in but here we go, so I am planning on completely repainting my 05 Tacoma from desert sand mica to whatever color the 3rd gen tacomas are, that green color, but didn’t know a thing about what I need to do in order to even begin. I have an electric painting and supplies to mask off things I don’t want to overspray, but I need to know what paint I am looking for, where I can purchase it, how much I need and what the process would even look like. I also understand this may reduce resale value or something but I really don’t care about that as I’m gonna own this truck til it’s in the junkyard.

 

Welcome to TW...

 

Get on YouTube. Since you have never painted. It’s a shit ton of work to do it right.

 

If it's helpful, I've seen folks rent out a paint booth with all necessary equipment for 8 hr intervals. I'm in the bay area, Ca but I've seen several ads on Facebook Marketplace. That seems to be the biggest hurdle to painting a vehicle. The other stuff is just technique. Learned a lot from Youtube.

 

For YouTube, some channels you might want to look at:

• Paint Society
• Paintucation by Kevin Tetz (if you ever watched the PowerBlock on TNN back in the day, he had a few shows)
• The Triggerman

There are other channels that focus on rattle can paintjobs and getting good results, but I don't think that's your aim.

 

This.

And this is a good suggestion if available in your area.

I used to paint cars as an apprentice. It was for a family friend, so he got me shooting paint pretty quickly, not just doing the prep work. Sanding. Lots of sanding. And then some more sanding. But, I learned and got good at it, and eventually I was better at laying down enamels than my teacher was, so he would make me do those jobs (a lot of stuff at the time was lacquer). When synthetics came out, they were a bit easier to lay down but harder to fix if you screw up.

It kind of depends on your expectations. If you want it to look good, it's mostly in the prep work (lots of time), but some practice and skill in getting the paint mix right, air pressure right (I would not use an electric painter, auto paint isn't designed for that kind of application), spray pattern right, and laying it down well (not too dry, not too wet) would also be needed. That only comes with practice. Plus a booth to avoid dust and dirt getting in the fresh paint. You can build your own booth from plastic sheets in a pinch, wet everything down to make dust stick to the walls and floor, and get decent results. The guidance on prep you can get from YouTube, but the painting part takes practice.

Changing colors is significantly more work. All the door jambs, under the hood, etc. has to be prepped and painted. If you are going to strip the truck anyway, that makes it a bit easier. Prep all those and paint them first.

It's a lot of work, and materials and the right tools aren't exactly expensive, but they are not cheap either. Some local auto parts/supply places may sell paint and supplies (not the chains). Just use the Google to find Auto Body and Paint supplies near you. Paint and primer is not cheap, expect to pay probably between $500 and $1,000 (maybe more) just for all the primer/sealer/paint you will need. I bought some epoxy primer and a little paint to cut in an engine bay several years ago and spent $300.

Now, if you just want to cover up scratched/peeling paint and protect the body panels, get a bunch of red Scotchbrite pads, scuff it good EVERYWHERE, wipe it down with acetone, and roll on some LineX or something.

 

I would suggest you practice spraying a lot before doing your truck. It's not as easy as most think to get even coverage, no runs, no orange peel, no dry spray and on and on!

 

Have you thought about wrapping it instead?

That's less work and it's easier to learn.


Which is to say it's still an absolute ton of work and skill. It's just easier than painting.

 

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