M60A1 Tank - paint removal

[KGREENE]

Hello Group:

I was at the local war memorial and they had a M60-A1 tank that could be a nice project to restore. I spoke with one of the staff at the site who indicated that there was some interest in doing that however, there was concern about the paint used and possible lead content. As removing lead paint takes considerable additional effort to remove because of possible toxic issues, the project has not gone forward. The other challenge is that the tank is parked next to the parking area and the main street, working on the tank is a challenge if you are going to sandblast it.

I would be curious to know how this challenge has been solved in the past. I assume we can move it from where it is to a less risky location to be worked on but the primary concern it seems is the toxic paint on the tank.

Other than the paint issue, the tank looks in OK condition however I have not looked inside of it. I do see that the engine and the transmission are still available if you had to buy them. The tracks look OK. I am sure there are many seals that might need to be replaced.

Thank you for any comments or suggestions you might have.

Kevin

 

[patracy]

Dustless blasting is the way to go. I just had a M35A2 done (CARC'd). It will leave a sand residue all over though. But tarps could be laid down to capture all that.

 

[NDT]

Maybe pressure wash the crap out of it and spot prime any bare areas, and top coat with Pro Industrial water based acrylic from Sherwin Williams.

 

[Guyfang]

If you are going to move it, the Museum needs to contact TACOM and make sure they are allowed to do so. The tank is on loan to them. TACOM likes to know where they are. And if the hatches are welded shut, TACOM takes a dim view of someone opening them.

 

[KGREENE]

If you are going to move it, the Museum needs to contact TACOM and make sure they are allowed to do so. The tank is on loan to them. TACOM likes to know where they are. And if the hatches are welded shut, TACOM takes a dim view of someone opening them.

Thank you for a fast reply. I have not climbed up on the tank to look at the turret hatch to see if it was welded shut. I did see the rear engine compartment doors are tack welded closed. I assumed they would be as where we live, my thought would have been that something might have been stolen if left unlocked next to the main road.

As for moving it, I was only thinking to move it about 100 feet to a parking area well back from the road and where you could install a provisional wall around it to help with the restoral process. Then after painting, to move it back into its normal home.

I would think you need to get inside to release any brake systems and disengage the transmission so you can move it. I would think that TACOM would allow it to be moved within the confines of the property for restoration work. That said, I have no idea if they (TACOM) are interested on having it restored.

Anyway, thank you all for the ideas provided. I will look into the various forms of sand blasting available here. I did just have 6 forty foot steel containers sand blasted and it went well but the sand was everywhere even with tarps.

Kevin

 

[Mullaney]

Thank you for a fast reply. I have not climbed up on the tank to look at the turret hatch to see if it was welded shut. I did see the rear engine compartment doors are tack welded closed. I assumed they would be as where we live, my thought would have been that something might have been stolen if left unlocked next to the main road.

As for moving it, I was only thinking to move it about 100 feet to a parking area well back from the road and where you could install a provisional wall around it to help with the restoral process. Then after painting, to move it back into its normal home.

I would think you need to get inside to release any brake systems and disengage the transmission so you can move it. I would think that TACOM would allow it to be moved within the confines of the property for restoration work. That said, I have no idea if they (TACOM) are interested on having it restored.

Anyway, thank you all for the ideas provided. I will look into the various forms of sand blasting available here. I did just have 6 forty foot steel containers sand blasted and it went well but the sand was everywhere even with tarps.

Kevin

.
Don't know what you do for a living, but that is one heavy beast. Chances are that it is sitting on a concrete pad or at least most of them are. Somebody has the pieces of paper that were signed with TACOM. Might be worth reading before you go much further. Painting it in place shouldn't difficult and more than likely is expected under a section titled Proper Maintenance. Maybe you can paint over whatever is already there without being concerned about lead. Maybe?

How about this... If you do decide to paint it or sand blast it - think about how the city paints Water Towers as an example. Scaffolding to support really big drop cloth sections might be the way to go. It helps trap the blasting media and paint over-spray without ruining somebody's car.

Definitely post up some pictures!!

 

[Guyfang]

A friend of mine who worked at TACOM, and had to go looking for equipment that people had moved, told me about the only thing people were allowed to do is clean or paint the equipment. Moving it required TACOM permission. Officially, the equipment belongs to TACOM. Its loaded out to whoever is displaying it.

 

[jeffhuey1n]

If the tank has any radios, antennas or some such stuff, it doesn’t have lead paint. Lead paint on military vehicles, tracked, wheeled, rotary wing, fixed wing, etc., aren’t supposed to have any metallic paint as it will royally mess up your reception. A fairly simple, not to expensive way forward is to have the paint tested for lead. It seems there are an abundance of testing companies all over the place.
As for moving it, not a good idea. The issue with TACOM is the same issue with all equipment displayed. It sits where they put it and you don’t move it without written permission (in hand).
If I may propose a solution, after testing for lead and a) no lead is present, use steel type brushes to clean off any loose paint and repaint it. You’ll need to lay down tarps and such to keep the environmental impact at a minimum. B), if lead is present, do not scrape it. There are special paints that can be used to seal away the lead. It wouldn’t surprise me if the local version of the EPA would want to get involved if lead is present. Hopefully you won’t have to deal with that particular can of worms.
I know there’s been other repainting issues that have been discussed on this site. Might be a good idea to check into them.

 

[87cr250r]

The lead in paint is in a non-metallic form. Oxides, chromates, carbonates are not metallic.

 

[Guyfang]

Been a while since I have seen lead paint on military equipment. But you never know what someone has done after it passed to civ hands.

 

[WillWagner]

This is what we do at the museum. First, lay down a tarp to catch the paint chips, have a small shop vac with a good filter for the topside and seams. Needle scale the really crusty/flaking areas, use a DA to feather the bad areas into the not-so bad areas, spot prime as you go. Chips go in a bucket to be disposed of per our laws.

When you are ready for paint, use some liquid dish soap and a paint brush and give the rubber parts a good coat of soap.

Paint as necessary, let it dry, apply the Nat'l Symbol and any markings you like, let all that dry, then give the rubber parts you soaped up a light scrub with H2o. This takes the soap off and makes the rubber look good.

We use Rustoleum rusty metal primer out of a rattle can for priming as you go and Cardinal Industrial Finishes polyurathane paint applied through an HVLP gravity feed gun for the color. Here in Ca, it is perfectly legal to spray this stuff outside of a booth, and when the paint dries in the disposable cup, it is no longer considered haz-mat. It does have an aroma to it! Nat'l Symbol and any stencil we do in house and normal ol' Rustoleum for them, color depending on which branch/era the vehicle is from. Paint usually lasts 3-5 years baking in the sun, sometimes longer.

The M40A1 we just did was done in FS24087 green.

Whatever you do, do not let a red/green colorblind person do the color coat, spots will be missed!..........That would be me......

And, I doubt you will have something available to move it. Empty it weighs around 100k. It most likely has no power pack in it, so take away 8800 lbs from that 100k. Still heavy!