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Bud Metal Question!

Posted: Sun Apr 28, 2019 11:01 pm
by Lenp
I am looking for a source of touch-up paint for Bud Metals line of PortaCab enclosures. I think it is a common light gray color that is used on many of their products.

Some of the many PortaCab enclosures I use, from time to time mysteriously develop 'shop rash'; manifesting as a ding or two.
I contacted Bud and through a distributor special order, it s over $30 plus shipping for a few ounce spray can. That's nuts!

Trying to mix colors from other gray spray cans has so far been like Edison searching for his lamp filament. No failures, just a a long list of stuff that doesn't work. I may take a sample to see if a paint store can match it but since they deal with household finishes, I'm not too hopeful.
Anyone been down this road?

FYI I buy Bud Metal Products, and other things, from A1Consolidated. https://www.aiconsol.com.
They drop ship from Bud and it takes a little while, but their prices are the best I've found.
(No commercial interest here,they just have great service and prices!)

Thanks!

Re: Bud Metal Question!

Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2019 7:28 am
by Janitor Tzap
Your talking about this type of enclose, right?
Image
Yeah, getting paint to match it can be tough.
But if you can bring, say the cover too your local paint store.
They'll maybe will be able to get something fairly close.
The biggest issue is the paint fading.
Even if you have the right color, over time the original paint will have faded.
Thus, after about a year or so. The touch-up you did for it, will stand out from the rest of the case.

I've had this issue when I was repairing some scratches on an older car.
I got the right color, but over time the area where I fixed the scratches.
Started to stand out from the rest of the car. :/

Some times you just have to bite the bullet, and re-paint the whole case.
Or......
Just learn to ignore the miner stuff.
:lol:


Signed: Janitor Tzap

Re: Bud Metal Question!

Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2019 8:43 am
by Lenp
Most of the dings are on the back of the cabinet
where a fan cutout is milled. The front has a lot of machining but that is covered with a graphic overlay.so it is clean.
Since this is a product being sold I just want to cover the bare metal showing through.

Re: Bud Metal Question!

Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2019 9:54 am
by Janitor Tzap
Can you get the cases unpainted?

Reason I'm thinking, is that you cut and drill your holes first, then give it a coat of paint.
Then assemble the cabinet.
That way you don't have too worry about matching the paint to touching up scratches.


Signed: Janitor Tzap

Re: Bud Metal Question!

Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2019 12:50 pm
by haklesup
An automotive paint shop can probably match the color and finish but is it worth the cost. A different but coordinating color for the back panel may be acceptable. From the photo it looks like it could be a powder coat or epoxy paint of some kind making it hard to match with spray paint.

If you need more color selection from stock, there are automotive brands available in aerosol cans and brush applicators and if you can match it to a parked car, you should be in business. I would overspray the whole panel for the most professional look, you are probably right about touch up becoming obvious over time. Look at SEM brand or Dupli-color ( a little easier to find in retail). Rustolium also has a textured Silver that might look good. you can also get a can of the SEM texture Coating that does a better job of covering the chip edge prior to repainting (note SEM has several label graphics but if the number matches, its all the same). SEM can be purchased on ebay and amazon easily and you can buy a paint color chart separately.

Re: Bud Metal Question!

Posted: Thu May 09, 2019 11:17 pm
by Lenp
Years ago I struggled to repair a water spot on a piece of furniture. The more I worked, the worse it got. I caller MinWax tech support and they helped make it disappear. First, don't sand just the area, make a bigger area the repair so it blends gradually. Next don't use fine sand paper first. It blends the surface rather than removing the damaged area. I blended the damaged bare metal area down to the good paint surface in a larger area than just the damage. Rather than just a touch-up, I sprayed the rear with a light gray then a quick dust of darker gray while the first coat was still wet. It passed muster and went out the door. Maybe I can offer it next time as a two-tone custom accent paint!
Cost, about $10 for the lifetime supply of repair paint, or at least until the cans clog up. That's probably the shipping cost for the Bud paint...
Thanks all!