Any cheap ideas or good ideas for buying paint

[Wwbbim]

So far i have not been able to find a decently cheap way to paint parts. Not exterior but the internal parts themselves. Any ideas for pretty cheap paint or also primer would be great!

[Jim_PTC_GA]

I'm a believer in Rustolieum paint, spray and brush on, depending on the part. I buy from whoever has it the cheapest, Amazon, Home Depot, Ace Hardware, EBay. Maybe if I mention this enough I can get Rustolieum to " Sponsor " my restoration projects LOLOL

[Rich Eagle]

I'm not sure what your budget is but this is about what I pay for these:

Quart - Gallon prices on the can of Van Sickle.

[Allan]

The thing with paint is it is the last part of the job you do which everybody sees. If you want them to see a cheap paint job, that's OK. If you like to do good work and show off the finished product, then you need good paint to do the job. Good paint, properly applied over the appropriate substrate, will last and look good for a long time after it is applied.

Allan from down under.

[Peter, Memphis TN]

Back when I was a Contractor, my painters taught me a very simple but important lesson:

When choosing a brand of paint, pick up the cans and test their weight. The heavier the paint, the better it is.

The reason is, the 'goodies' that will be left behind on the surface after the solvent evaporates, weigh more than the solvent. So, the heavier the can of paint, the more the protective layer on the finished surface. And, in the case of Enamel, that means more gloss - if you care about gloss.

By the way, this may not apply to Lacquers, I don't know.

Peter

[modeltbarn]

Depending on what you’re shooting with it, and how you’re shooting, makes a difference.

I like to Rustoleum Professional and Industrial paints for inexpensive, general use. I use those cheap Harbor Freight guns that go on sale for $10 for this....
Clean it a few rimes, and if it gets trashed it’s disposable.

For spray can enamel I like the Do It Center basic enamel. I regularly use this for small projects.

For anything going on the car’s undercarriage I use Nason single stage black with catalyst. This is a single stage enamel, the modern version of Centari. I use a decent spray gun for this.

If it’s a body panel or similar I use single stage automotive enamel with catalyst, then color sand and buff.

[jiminbartow]

A decent paint job is 99% preparation (paint removal, rust removal, dent removal, bodywork, sanding, cleaning, priming, etc.) and 1% actual painting. With so much work involved, one should want to avoid using the cheapest alternative so that the necessity for having to do all that work again is kept to a minimum. The best rattle can paint I have found for painting small parts (and large parts as shown below), is Gloss Black Rustoleum appliance epoxy. It is sold at Home Depot. It goes on beautifully and if applied properly, will need no followup work, but if followup work (wet sanding and compounding) is necessary to remove runs, dust, or other imperfections and bring it to a mirror finish it will dress out just as nicely as the professional paint gun applied paint and, if after several years, it starts to oxidize, it only takes a few minutes of rubbing with Meguire's rubbing compound to bring it back to a mirror shine. The four attached photos are of a front fender I painted with a rattle can of Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy. The photos were taken a few minutes after I painted it and it did not need any followup work. Needless to say, I was very pleased with the results and use nothing else. Jim Patrick

[Burger in Spokane]

This is no more valuable commodity in my life than my time. If I waste a
bunch of time looking for a cheap alternative, I am doing what my brother
calls moving dollars to pick up pennies. When it comes to paint or any other
job, I buy what works best, cost be damned (within reason) and get on to the
next thing. Doing the job twice costs 9x as much as doing it right the first time,
according to construction and insurance company stats.