dogcow Posted January 30, 2012 Share Posted January 30, 2012 i had some gumball machines i got cheap, i wanted to make them look nicer. they were in bad condition, cheap paint was chipping off, etc.. i read some of the posts here about multiple layers of spray paint, temperature problems , orange peel problems , sanding , and my least favorite word "elbow grease". i decided i wanted to do it with as little effort and best results as possible the following depicts my test piece, total time into this was about an hour. because it was a test run i only tried the lid, i could have done the whole thing in roughly the same amount of time. I will do the rest this week and show you how it came out. I have included a lid from another one of the same batch of machiens so you can get an idea of the quality. this was not painted over the old paint, everything was stripped to bare metal first, i did not use any spraypaint this has a durable factory quality finish which doesnt flake even when scratched with a key. if anyone is interested in having their old machines repainted let me know, central florida people we can probably turn around a few units the same day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krzys555 Posted February 5, 2012 Share Posted February 5, 2012 how did you strip the lids to bear metal, and what kind of paint are you using. i never had luck stripping the machines. i used automotive paint with a gloss layer over it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted February 5, 2012 Author Share Posted February 5, 2012 Strip by submerging in 1gal of aircraft stripper. Paint will melt away remove any loose paint w steel wool Rinse in water to neutralize solvent and clean any loose paint free. Few more acetone washes and preheats to remove I?purities and solvent then paint with powdercoat. Used a cheap color on these as a test will restip them and repaint with metallic 2step and clar coat ur jaw will drop at results clean up a snap Be careful w aircraft stripper is highly caustic and toxic correct safety equipment is a must Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted February 5, 2012 Author Share Posted February 5, 2012 before: after a bath in the paint stripper, and acetone I cant emphasize enough aircraft stripper is highly caustic and highly toxic , to handle it properly you should have elbow length neoprene chemical gloves, lab goggles , a fume hood or well ventilated workshop and respirator and a good heavy lab grade apron. ideally you would want to wear a neoprene raincoat with a hood as well, lest any splatter on your neck, you also must have a safe way of storage and disposal of your waste waster. you can paint it on and strip it but that is time consuming and risks splatter, best to dunk it in a sealed tank, this will strip the paint completely off within a few minutes, even if its not totally submersed if the tank is closed the fumes will strip the paint. the only thing that does not strip well is the heavy casting the wheel sits in. i am experimenting with less caustic solvents. powder coating being applied the completed piece, after cooking and cooling for comparison with a brand new factory fresh unit... a beautiful shine, one coat, no gloss or clear coat, this is the cheapest generic paint made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krzys555 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 i was thinking of maybe sandblasting the machines to get the paint off. how do you bake the powdercoat on to the machines? using the oven? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted February 6, 2012 Author Share Posted February 6, 2012 i was thinking of maybe sandblasting the machines to get the paint off. how do you bake the powdercoat on to the machines? using the oven? Sandblasting takes forever because the machines come powdercoated from the factory Maybe w the right media it can work but it was taking forever and pitting the metal. U cure it in the oven u need a dedicated oven again fumes are highly toxic proper ventilation a must. We wired ours to the dryer outlet required making a new cable may blow fuse ifnot careful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beach Bum Vending Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Never thought of that we use powder coating on my buddies race car chassis. We are trying to get down to do that this week but all the booths are full It would probly would cost me to much to rent a booth for just a few machines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted February 8, 2012 Author Share Posted February 8, 2012 Never thought of that we use powder coating on my buddies race car chassis. We are trying to get down to do that this week but all the booths are full It would probly would cost me to much to rent a booth for just a few machines. next time his car is in there just spray em down, my friend and i have a small shop set up in his garage to start doing various projects like small to medium size auto parts and we decided to start with these machines. it was surprisingly easy but you have to use a lot of caution and preparation when doing it in your house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dperry Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 Strip by submerging in 1gal of aircraft stripper. Paint will melt away remove any loose paint w steel wool Rinse in water to neutralize solvent and clean any loose paint free. Few more acetone washes and preheats to remove I?purities and solvent then paint with powdercoat. Used a cheap color on these as a test will restip them and repaint with metallic 2step and clar coat ur jaw will drop at results clean up a snap Be careful w aircraft stripper is highly caustic and toxic correct safety equipment is a must Where do you get aircraft stripper? I've used paint strippers from Lowes. One brand I've used is called Jasco, and it's like a gel. I've used one type of spray-on paint stripper, and it worked pretty well for one or two machines. I needed to do a lot of scraping with a knife and a wire brush though. I think that a bucket of stripper that holds enough to submerge the parts would be the way to go. Can you put that stripper in those 5-gal buckets that they sell at home depot or lowes, without it melting through? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted February 14, 2012 Author Share Posted February 14, 2012 Where do you get aircraft stripper? I've used paint strippers from Lowes. One brand I've used is called Jasco, and it's like a gel. I've used one type of spray-on paint stripper, and it worked pretty well for one or two machines. I needed to do a lot of scraping with a knife and a wire brush though. I think that a bucket of stripper that holds enough to submerge the parts would be the way to go. Can you put that stripper in those 5-gal buckets that they sell at home depot or lowes, without it melting through? automotive supply might have it, its very dangerous stuff. you have to have safety equipment and some familiarity with lab safety. also the fumes are serious business. heres what happens if you get it on your skin (not me, someone else) you cannot put it in a plastic bucket, most likely it would eat right through. and then theres the question of emptying the bucket and filtering the solvent. we use a metal bucket with a locking lid and a valve to empty/filter it. you can also paint it on and scape the paint off, but as you pointed out, it is a much slower process. here's a picture of one we just did in red metallic flake paint, that just came in today the picture really does not do it justice, we also just got in blue metallic flake. do up the whole rack like that you will have the best looking machines in the state we're also getting in some nice chrome paint for lids we just havent figured out how to reverse electroplate the old chrome off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted February 14, 2012 Author Share Posted February 14, 2012 oh also you need a way to retrieve the part out of the solvent bucket and wash it in a wash bucket without getting solvent everywhere or coming into contact with the item. again, before using aircraft stripper you need to think these things through very carefully make sure you have a sound plan and approach everything with safety as #1 priority. unfortunately i cant edit my old post, we now have a professional painting booth with vent hood , etc.. i would not recommend using the set up shown above for coating due to a number of reasons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beach Bum Vending Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 What do you recommend to do if the machines have rust on them at all? I have about 60 plus machines I want to do but they were sitting and most have rust on them. I want to prep them and strip and and powder coat them like 20 at a time if possible. Just curious what steps I will need to do to accomplish that? And if the machines are rusted all the way through what can you do? Or do you just have to scrap them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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