yes and no on the etch, we sprayed akzo nobel products, mainly there sikkens line and you can scuff them down really well with either a grey or red scotch brite pad and either use a good etch primer on them or like dezlsmkr said epoxy primer is very good to, i love it, if u use etch you still have to use some sort of a sandable primer over it or a primer sealer, the sealer allows you to let it flash for about 10 min and then you can go ahead and topcoat it with an single layer enamal or base coat and then clear coat if your color matching them to your truck. if u use an epoxy primer you can let it flash and topcoat the same way. do realize though, if you paint them it wont take much to skin them up. the main difference is epoxy needs no etch primer, other regular either high build primer for body work or just primer needs an acid etch of the same brand if so specified by the paint company. akzo nobel has 3 lines, sikkens is top , then lesonal, then u-tech, and u-tech makes a wonderful epoxy primer. and they also make a good durable clear coat for about $95 for the gallon and about $10 for either the slow medim or fast activator

 

Again to bring up no arguments, Acid ETCH is a thing of the past for the most part. Will it work, yes, but nowadays epoxy is about the only route to go. Also, again by no means does high build or regular primer surfacer require the use of the same brand anything to be under it. Like i said i have used it all many many times. I have used everything from Duponts high build to PPG's line of about everything to Evercoats lines. As matter of fact Evercoat URO-FIL which is a very economical primer actually specifies that it can be applied directly over a bare metal substrate. Nor should you advise to topcoat epoxy in 10 minutes. Temps very from place to place as does flash times. As a begginer or even a novice longer flash times is a good idea to prevent solvant pop.

Also if i was going the painted method i would definetly use the red scotch pad, as the grey is a very fine grit and you could risk adhesion problems.

I will agree with you on the fact that Sikkens is a good product though.

In the end i dont think any of the name brand products mentioned would be worth the money to spend on this project. JMO

 

i ran everything together, my whoops, yes on epoxy you must flash it longer, i was refering to a normal primer sealer and yes humidity and temp do affect times very much, but sikkens pushes very much so to use there etch with there high build primer. but epoxy is the best thing for bare metal or much else anything that needs something durable. but according to sikkens on panel repair and for warranty purposes cr primer(etch) must be applied to bare metal b4 there primer surfacer, which actually is way off subject of just painting some bedcaps, lol im good at over explaining and getting involved in conversations, but yes, red is much so best , i threw grey in there just incase thats all you have available, will work just takes more scuffing, thats what i was trying to do with the entire reply and yes i didnt come off very clear

 

KILZ, in a spray can, works great as a primer for any non-ferrous metal - just make sure to clean the surface of loose material, dust and oil (wiping with lacquer thinner works well). KILZ is high-build, so one coat for adhesion, two for a nice neutral color base.

Been using it for this application since 1981...

 

So you have been using Kilz for aluminum?
I have 2 aluminum fuel filter bases that I want to coat with something. They will be under the truck in the elements, so I want something fairly hardy.

(Sorry to hi-jack the thread, but it is along the same lines, and mine will fit in the oven. lol).

 

I tried one this weekend, but I had to leave before they were done, I'll let you guys know how they turn out once o get to tackle them on saturday

 

Yeah, we've been using KILZ in a spray can for aluminum, brass, bronze, copper, stainless steel, lead and magnesium. Of course, you can use it on iron and steel as well, and it should have a topcoat on it - for functional-only applications, I prefer stainless steel powder spray (also in a can), since it's a durable, corrosion-proof coating. Otherwise, we shoot whatever color/finish on top that we need...

 

Thanks.
I'll have to try that.