RAPCO Spray Can paint issues

[m16ty]

No its not the same viscosity as gallon containers, rattle cans are reduced quite a bite more. Spray a rattle can of gillespie on a artist brush and you'll see how much thinner it is compared to dipping it into a gallon can of the same stuff even when its been reduced 4 or even 3 to 1.
I've been using Rapco spraycans since 1998 and I always seem to get at least one ( per order ) that gives me a problem spraying.

Yes, I know they thin the paint some when they put it in the cans. I don't think they thin it as much as most other big name spray can makers though.

 

[srodocker]

im also having issue with my case of paint. the gallons are great to work with.

 

[Amer-team]

I too have had problems with the cans, but it was one color. The paint was good when it came out. I have shaken, tipped over and sprayed till the tip was clean, cleaned tips in thinner, and for heating, put them in a pan of hot water on the stove for a bit.. But have also given up on a few cans and tossed them. My second batch like that convinced me that I did not want to buy paint from that vendor and have not.
Another tip cleaner idea is to snip a wire off your wire shop brush. They make great tip cleaners and there is almost an endless supply. You can also take a rubber tip nozzle on your air compressor and blow the tips out once you have tip cleaned them.

 

[m16ty]

To those that have advocated heating the cans I would like to add a word of caution to people reading this thread. A little heat works good but don't over do it. The can will explode if heated too much.

WARNING DO NOT DO THIS- As a kid we used to throw used spray cans into a fire to watch them explode. A empty can makes a pretty good boom. I can only imagine what a full can would do.

 

[3dAngus]

Even better than paint was a can of hair spray. I used to take them down to the Chatahoochee River in Columbus camping out and it would blow out the whole fire. If you use a lamp, make sure you have a lid to close down on it. And make sure the lamp does not come in direct contact with any can. It will get to hot. The idea is to heat the "oven", which will warm the cans. My aluminum box with hinged cover is about 18"X 12" by 16" high and works perfect. I just put in a max of six cans, three on each side and lamp in the middle. The lamp is really a shop light so it has a shield/cover on half of it already. As with anything we do in this hobby, a little common sense goes a long way.
M16ty is right on. He can even spell his town correctly now.

How did you ever get that fixed anyway? You've been complaining about it for months. Nice to see you got your way with it. And thanks for the warning to all. It brought back old, old memories of my youth and the fires we would make, then put out with various cans.

 

[JAYHAWK 1962]

Thanks for the info. Have a couple of cases of various colors. Will definitely be useful.

 

[RealCavDog]

I don't know what i would take i picture of, my tan splattered black wheels?
the paint dribble splatter all over my hands from shaking? the clogged tips?

for the very very brief few seconds it actually works its GREAT!

Post # 21 is really nice the way you use MY name and header as a quote, then chop it all up and mix in stuff I did not say ! It makes it look as if all the combined junk is from me, comes across much more offensive than what I wrote and intended, and I do not appreciate it one little bit ! Learn to do it right, or don't do it at all !

Hope your painting technique is not so choppy and mixed up, that may explain it !


Quote this ! And be accurate this time Mr. Copy and Paste !

 

[glcaines]

The paint is great - the cans are junk. I found that I have almost no clogs if I invert the can several times during the spraying and clear the nozzle. However, my big problem is that the nozzles leak and liquid paint accumulates on the top of the cans. When the can is tilted, the paint dribbles all over the surface being painted. You should also note that they supply two nozzles per can, one black and one white with different spray patterns. I would rather pay slightly more for the cans of paint and receive decent cans.

 

[135gmc]

Any semi-gloss or flat paint is loaded with particulate, and it gets worse with any of the CARC-equivalent paint. Fresh paint helps - the longer it sits on your shop shelf, the more shaking ti requires. Like Angus said, heating the paint also helps. I use a coffee can full of warm water, and let the spray can sit in it while I have a cuppa coffee. The biggest help is shaking the can. If I need to use a can that has been on my shelf a while, I visit a friend who made a paint shaker just for spray cans. Nothing fancy, but he leaves a can on it for 10-15 minutes, and that seems to solve the problem.

Cleaning the tips also helps - I usually give them a squirt of carb cleaner - the extension tube reaches into the tip very well, then a shot of compressed air through the tip from the front finishes the job.

But the key I've always found is to be sure the can is really mixed.

 

[Flyingvan911]

Out is 36 cans I've only had 2 that were bad. The paint itself is great. I order over the internet and have always received my orders quickly. I have heard that Rapco can be hit or miss if you try to call.

 

[Gunfreak25]

Seeing as how everybody was using Rapco I went with Aervoe on my M211. They have all worked really well, i just shake them 3 minutes a piece and if I am working on a large piece like a hood, then I shake 2 at a time. I was told Aervoe solved the fading to pink issue, time will tell but it's held up great for 3 months in the hot Yuma sun. Full exposure every day and not a shade lighter.

 

[dittle]

Three cases of Rapco paint with no issues to complain of. Yes you get the little bit of dribble down the front of the can but nothing I'm going to complain about. I use one of the pistol grip adapters for spray can and that makes painting with the cans a lot easier. Also makes it a lot easier to shake the can while you're using it. I have not tried the CARC tan however, makes you wonder if the paint color mix for that is thicker than the other colors.

 

[lacoda56]

Gunfreak, your fuel pedal was done with Gilespie 24087. Just sayin'!

 

[135gmc]

I've used Aerovoe in the past - right now, I'm using Gillespie. Aerovoe paint is good in gallons, but I wonder if some of their squirt cans don't spend too much time on the shelf before they get sold.

The next problem is how long they sit on our shelves before we use them.

I'm planning on building a spray can shaker this winter. Not fancy -- the one my friend has started as a very elderly Wisconsin horizontal shaft engine. He threw away the head, and built a can holder on top of the piston. He added whatever electric motor he could find, and that's it. Its a little unballanced, but he has it on a heavy base. I just have to find an old engine with a piston bore about 1/2" bigger than a spray can's diameter.

 

[wdbtchr]

if im gonna get skrewed, i at least want the common courtesy of a reach around!

Hmmm . . . Never considered that! I haven't had any problems with the cans yet, but the cabinet I store them in is one from above the stove when we redid the kitchen. It's not tall enough to stand the cans up, so I store them laying on their sides. Don't know if it makes any difference, but if you have bad cans it's worth a try and won't cost you anything.

 

[lindsey97]

Well I hated to resurrect an old thread but.........

I bought some Rapco tan 686 (part #33446) to do some touchup work on my M1082A1 trailer. I read thru this thread while waiting for the paint to arrive in the mail and began to worry about the finish quality. I purchased a very cool paint shaker that works with my Dewalt sawzall, called "Mixkwik". Upon receiving the paint, I sanded my area on the trailer where red paint had been applied to mask numbers. Then I took the trailer to the carwash for a hot soapy bath, followed up by air drying and using brake cleaner to remove grease or oil.

I heated the Rapco paint for 5 minutes with my wife's hair dryer, and then shook the paint with the sawzall mount Mixkwik for several minutes. Over the course of 2 days, I applied 3 individual coats of Rapco tan to my trailer. Two would have been good enough, but 1 more didn't hurt anything. I am very pleased with the results. I also cleaned the paint can tips immediately after use with brake cleaner, and experienced ZERO runs or splatters of any type.

I think that like most things in life, folks get in a hurry when trying to paint with spray cans. I think that cleanliness and sanding/prep time is as important as the type of paint chosen.

The Mixkwik is an American product made in Idaho. Their website is: www.mixkwik.com

 

[swbradley1]

Actually that is what we want, resurrect old threads and ad to them when appropriate.

In your case, along with the other tips is very good info. I like that paint can stirrer.

 

[jcappeljr]

That's all I use is Rapco.No problems here.....

 

[Lonnie]

I just went through a case of it with very little problems.
Yes, I had a clogged tip once in a great while, but far better paint than the watered down stuff you typically get in the stores.

This paint seemed to go twice as far as typical spray cans.

A good storage tip is to keep them upside down. This way the solids don't gather around the pickup tube at the bottom.
When you receve them, shake wery well & invert the cans before storing. Always stored my cans this way & it seems to help.

 

[SCSG-G4]

Another 'trick' is to find an old spray top and drill through it on the top to use when the can stops spraying because it's old. It will take two hands to 'spray' (one finger on each side of the top), but the idea is to allow a large volume of paint out of the can at a time, which forces the congealed paint out of the can. Should only take a couple of seconds to clear, but be careful where the can is pointed. Holding the can upside down may clear it without as much loss of paint, but will lessen the charge that expels the paint, so those bursts need to be a second or less. Once it's clear, put the original spray top back on.