Painting/primering questions

[m37_power]

Ive got my truck mostly stripped down, all wiring removed, engine components...etc and i started sandblasting it the other day. My truck had at least 4 or 5 coats of paint on it. The rust really wasnt that bad, small spots here and there. My goal was to just sandblast as much of the truck as i could and focus on the rusty areas. Ive gotten almost all of the bed done as of last night and shot some primer on it. I know its not a show car, but its bugging me to see the dips in the paint where the other layers of paint are still there. Theres not a ton of them, but im a perfectionist and cant look past them. I plan on taking the truck offroad somewhat, nothing crazy, but I want it to look nice. Is there a filler primer that would help fill some of this? I really dont want to put and bondo on it due to the truck will probably vibrate and crack it over time. Just looking for some suggestions. I appreciate the help.

[Nickathome]

Can't help you on the primer, etc, however what you said about being a perfectionist, I'd like to make a comment to if I may. If looking for perfection in a vehicle, I think you've picked the wrong one. Army trucks I doubt looked perfect (one reason that attracts me to them) when they were new. They certainly weren't expected to roll into action sporting shiny blemish free paint jobs, such as you would expect to find on a nice touring sedan etc. Noone is going to have an issue with a ding here or a dent there, or dip in the paint. If I were you I'd paint the truck up as best you can and don't give it another thought. You think it will stay nice and pretty? First time offroad and you will be asking yourself "why did I worry about that ding, look at all the scratches now". Forget perfection with these trucks friend as they're not meant to live that way. You'll only be hurting yourself if you feel otherwise. However it is your truck and you are free to feel as you wish, so just take this with a healthy grain of salt as no insult was meant or implied.

[powerwagontim]

If you dont want to fill the low spots, feather them out more and it will be less noticable. There are high build primers, maybe a combination of feathering and spot applications of the high build primer.
Tim

[m37_power]

lol...no no no...i didnt mean that i wanted the truck to be perfect by any means.... trust me. Thats what i love about it. i also know a few things about taking vehicles offroad. my newer Willys TJ has the scratches and dings to prove that and i drive it everyday to work. It sees trails almost every weekend here in WV. I was just looking for some opinions thats all. Ill probably just try feathering some of the bad ones out and leave the rest. It sucks, but i dont have any other MV's here in the area to look at and compare to. Thanks for the quick replies.

[refit1701]

Aside from WWII vehicles, nearly all the trucks I see are unrestored. Duces are usually just as they left the military; rusty and dirty.

I am painting my M37 blue since it is an AF truck but it will be on the trails as well.

Most importantly, make it look good to YOU.

[m37_power]

absolutely....i love the way it looked without some sanding and a fresh coat of paint.

Side note, i love the Air Force blue m37's!

[Lifer]

Yeah! There's not enough of the blue trucks out there.

[98taco3]

Found some blue paint under the OD on mine, now the question arises, do i paint it blue or OD

[MikeOneSix]

Yeah! There's not enough of the blue trucks out there.

I was just offered a USAF M108 wrecker still has lots of strata blue paint on it..... .
Matt

[vtdeucedriver]

Yeah! There's not enough of the blue trucks out there.

I was just offered a USAF M108 wrecker still has lots of strata blue paint on it..... .
Matt

You accepting the offer???

[MikeOneSix]

Yeah! There's not enough of the blue trucks out there.

I was just offered a USAF M108 wrecker still has lots of strata blue paint on it..... .
Matt

You accepting the offer???

Not sure yet. Have enough projects but a wrecker is a handy peice of equipment to have.
Matt

[Glenn]

Have you tried using paint stripper to get the bulk of the coats of paint off? Combine that with sandblasting and you'll reduce the amount of total effort you'll spend. It takes a lot of work to feather out sanded areas to match the finish coat.

[Josh]

OD military paint laughs in the face of strippers. I tried SEVERAL and got nowhere. I think the only way to get the stuff off is to blast it, hot tank it, or burn it off.

[cuz]

OD military paint laughs in the face of strippers

Except during the 60's when we used pre-EPA governed stripper on base.

[MikeOneSix]

OD military paint laughs in the face of strippers.

What?!! Oh, you meant chemical strippers

Matt