Filling and painting roof

[BongoBongo123]

Would it be possible to put new AFT decals back on a rollered surface ? I might think about rollering if you can.

[philpdr]

There's a member on here called Cabte,has a company called First Stop Decals,you could look him up in the members list and send him a message.

[BongoBongo123]

Thanks just some thoughts on self spray:

Low cost primer:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Simoniz-12-Ca ... 41984cb8d7

And of course the top coat of similar match to your AFT. 12 400mL cans would I guess do it. Top coat cans around £45.00 - £60.00

With decals would cost approx £110.00 (decals about £27.00)

I would probably mask my AFT rubbers with tape then mask downwards windows/skylight etc. with tape and newspapers the night before and spray it from early morning on a nice low wind day. Need a good step ladder and a good quality spraying mask/goggles. I think it would be quite easy to get a uniform finish. Mine is grey so it is a fairly easy colour and the primer itself is grey so would not show through any gloss coats. That Simoniz Primer is supposed to be ok straight on fibre glass as well.

Might even be able to simply primer and then lacquer it (if your AFT is grey coloured). Plenty of options to consider. It is a large surface but pretty sure it could b done ok.

Definitely need a good mask approx £18

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3M-4251-06941 ... 1c3be1c143

[BongoBongo123]

Of all places thinking about this is bed. Why would roller-ing it mean you would not need to mask anything off ?

You will need to mask the sealing rubbers off (bolt holes for the rack etc.) unless you remove them (And I would be inclined to leave well alone) you will need to mask the sky light and cover the tops of windows/sills to protect them from drips.

[mikeonb4c]

Of all places thinking about this is bed. Why would roller-ing it mean you would not need to mask anything off ?

You will need to mask the sealing rubbers off (bolt holes for the rack etc.) unless you remove them (And I would be inclined to leave well alone) you will need to mask the sky light and cover the tops of windows/sills to protect them from drips.

I think they're probably referring to overspray masking. And of course if you removed the aft rubber seal you might not need to mask much at all.

[BongoBongo123]

Of all places thinking about this is bed. Why would roller-ing it mean you would not need to mask anything off ?

You will need to mask the sealing rubbers off (bolt holes for the rack etc.) unless you remove them (And I would be inclined to leave well alone) you will need to mask the sky light and cover the tops of windows/sills to protect them from drips.

I think they're probably referring to overspray masking. And of course if you removed the aft rubber seal you might not need to mask much at all.

Fair enough Mike. I am not planning to remove mine, I think an old AFT rubber removal might cause more trouble than it is worth here. (my one anyway) I used that rubber conditioner last August and it looks as dry as it did last year. Seems like it comes off with the weather, did not even last a year so I won't use that one again after this has run out. I used SONAX Gummi Plege (the one that looks like a glue stick). Not cheap and has vanished from the rubber surface. Not an enduring product. (unless it is absorbed by the rubber, but then why the returning dryness?)

Bongo's can keep you busy if you work on preventative stuff and I have to say by and large I have enjoyed maintaining and tinkering thus far. Aided significantly by this excellent forum and it's helpful and friendly members.

[mikeonb4c]

Of all places thinking about this is bed. Why would roller-ing it mean you would not need to mask anything off ?

You will need to mask the sealing rubbers off (bolt holes for the rack etc.) unless you remove them (And I would be inclined to leave well alone) you will need to mask the sky light and cover the tops of windows/sills to protect them from drips.

I think they're probably referring to overspray masking. And of course if you removed the aft rubber seal you might not need to mask much at all.

Fair enough Mike. I am not planning to remove mine, I think an old AFT rubber removal might cause more trouble than it is worth here. (my one anyway) I used that rubber conditioner last August and it looks as dry as it did last year. Seems like it comes off with the weather, did not even last a year so I won't use that one again after this has run out. I used SONAX Gummi Plege (the one that looks like a glue stick). Not cheap and has vanished from the rubber surface. Not an enduring product. (unless it is absorbed by the rubber, but then why the returning dryness?)

Bongo's can keep you busy if you work on preventative stuff and I have to say by and large I have enjoyed maintaining and tinkering thus far. Aided significantly by this excellent forum and it's helpful and friendly members.

Yes wish I was retired and could make more of a hobby out of fettling mine. As it is there are times when I wish I had a turn-the-key-and-go boring car, as I'm short on time for fettling. But no car is likely to give me the same driving fun or usefulness as the Bongo, which just did 34mpg even travelling a lot at 70mph and being stuck in m/way tailbacks (though there were long stretches of 50mph speed limit also). So I keep it

[BongoBongo123]

Sorry to go a bit off topic...sure, work and play means time needs to be designated. My workload is up and down like a yo yo (no rhyme or reason to the dynamics) So I often have a day here or there or can work loads 2-3 days then have a day to sort out domestic and Bongo jobs.

The roof might be a bit more involved but I often do a bit of tinkering early mornings and evenings when the daylight hours are long in the summer and it isn't frost outside !

[Spencer54]

Literally just resprayed mine this weekend with Matt Black Plastikote, its running at about £4 a tin from Screwfix.
Not 100% happy with the result, but for £13 I'm in so far I'll keep going, going to rub it down where I have the odd run and go again.

I have Cabte's roof decals for the side £20, but be advised they are narrow so might not cover the whole graphic if you have a late style roof graphic. Thats my finding.

All I did was scuff the surface, pull the rubber down (roof up a bit) used sheets taped together then closed the roof.
No overspray that way.
Not perfect, but I did it quickly as the paint was burning a hole in my pocket LOL.
So some more paint needed and a bit more effort, but looks way better than a rough old roof half rubbed down.

I'll put pics up if interested. Matt black seems to be able to cover a lot of sins...

[BongoBongo123]

I am going to spray mine, asked dad to borrow electric sander to create a surface to prime, that saves a massive amount of labour. Quality 3M mask on the way etc. 12 cans of primer should do it (I calculated 7 cans approx at 0.7M per 500ml can AFT is about 1.8m by 2.8m if you include the sides ) and then a grey topcoat about £80.00 in paint total.

I thought grey primer may not have good UV properties given it is designed to be an undercoat.

May or may not lacquer it, will see how it ends up and see. In reality I probably will, seems silly to do all that work with the masking on and then not protect it with at least 1 layer of lacquering. Not the kind of thing you want to have to do every few years really. Will use cheapish lacquer as it does not to be a glossy shine up there anyway.

If/when I get a chance this summer (if I am not out and about Bongoing) if not next year.

[philpdr]

Literally just resprayed mine this weekend with Matt Black Plastikote, its running at about £4 a tin from Screwfix.
Not 100% happy with the result, but for £13 I'm in so far I'll keep going, going to rub it down where I have the odd run and go again.

I have Cabte's roof decals for the side £20, but be advised they are narrow so might not cover the whole graphic if you have a late style roof graphic. Thats my finding.

All I did was scuff the surface, pull the rubber down (roof up a bit) used sheets taped together then closed the roof.
No overspray that way.
Not perfect, but I did it quickly as the paint was burning a hole in my pocket LOL.
So some more paint needed and a bit more effort, but looks way better than a rough old roof half rubbed down.

I'll put pics up if interested. Matt black seems to be able to cover a lot of sins...

Pics please,roof's on my list for this summer.

[BongoBongo123]

Just checked my step ladder reaches, no problems... without having to over extend either.. luckily. Also another tip when spraying (if you do go that route) do not wear your watch, especially if it is metal last thing you wnat is it dragging and scratching new or existing paintwork.

I am up for being the aerosol AFT spray can guinea pig (Though the spray plasticote chap seemed to do ok? I would like to see a photo as well). It is quite a big surface area for cans but the boring grey colour and that it is up top means it will hide many ills I suspect.

I took a look up on the top of mine and it could not look worse. There are small scratched paint patches of fibre glass showing through in places so it needs doing. (WARNING: Another reason to ensure you use a very high quality respirator/mask when sanding or messing with the roof is that fibre glass particles in your lungs is not a good place to be.)

Just things I am finding out myself by getting my hands dirty. Oh and make sure the prep is spot on from the outset, masking covering, cutting/keying degreasing etc. The more I do this the more I know there are no shortcuts to getting a 1/2 decent DIY result. I have started on the bit between the AFT and the windscreen now. (Turning out to be more awkward than I thought as it is harder to get to and keep an aerosol at a uniform distance from the place you are spraying, starting to prime it shortly)

I will before and after photo it of course (if I actually get around to it this year, I would really like to)

[TheStinkyHippy]

Here is the progress of mine.
I rollered it with Rustoleum matte black at the weekend. Its had 2 coats so far. This weekend I plan to flatten it back and add another coat.


Before:




During:



After 2 coats:



There is still some patching that needs more coats, and the original rubber edge is back on, didn't want to replace that until the end.

Not sure if I want to try to add some sort of clear coat at the end or not...being matte...

[BongoBongo123]

I do not think I will get a chance to do mine until back end of July/August (Bongoing/work etc.). Roller-ing it would sure make it quicker to do but I am in principle up for spraying.

It would be great to pick a 2-3 day run of no rain as then I would not have to un-mask it and re-mask it.

[mikeonb4c]

Remember that black absorbs heat more than any other colour and matt black is worse than gloss. Everything connected with that will have that much harder a time.