DIY Overland Trailer Paint

[GrizzMug]

Hey there Overland bound i am new here. I am currently in the process of building an overland trailer. I am to the point where i need to paint the exterior. I would like to paint it an OD green color also having a textured feel to it is a plus. There is quite a few options out there just seeing what you all have used and worked well.

 

[Project hermes]

Hey there Overland bound i am new here. I am currently in the process of building an overland trailer. I am to the point where i need to paint the exterior. I would like to paint it an OD green color also having a textured feel to it is a plus. There is quite a few options out there just seeing what you all have used and worked well.





View attachment 142716

I don’t have any experience with it yet but I’ve seen quite a few DIY bed liner kits that you can get in different colors
That’s a really cool looking trailer also welcome to the group

 

[M Rose]

I just learned this yesterday... OD Green is made from mixing Black and Yellow... might try the bed liner approach with these two colors

 

[Road]

Bed liner will add more weight than regular paint and will be more likely to chip and flake applied over a wood surface. Then, will be harder to mix in the right shade again when you need to touch it up. I looked into bed liner paint extensively for the exterior of my trailer (the bed and underside has it) and for my van and decided against it, other than for the rocker panels on the van.

Additionally, a textured surface will be much more difficult to clean and will harbor dirt and moisture more than a smoother surface.

You might want to look into farm implement paint and see if they have some meant to go over primers meant for wooden substrates. Farm implement paints are rugged and often used for off-highway vehicles. It's most likely what I am going to use for my trailer and matching color on my van.

That's going to be one of the things to watch no matter what top coat you use...preparing your plywood with the right primer so it grabs hold and provides the right binder for your topcoat.

Personally, having a ton of experience in priming and topcoating plied substrates for long-term exterior use, I'd consult a good Benjamin Moore or Sherwin-Wiliams dealer that serves contractors in your northern climate and use their suggestion for primer and top coat. It used to be SW ChekGard (perfect as primer/ binder for unprimed plywood and MDO plys) and Ben Moore alkyd Impervo as top coat. I could use one coat of primer and one coat of Impervo rolled out smooth and have exterior plywood last ten years before needing a recoat.

I'd use a good seam seal for all edge voids, as well, before priming.

.

Roaddude - On the Road In North America - ROADDUDE

Roaddude - Traveling Photographer/Writer/Artist On the Road In North America. Gear, reviews, people, places, and culture.

roaddude.com

 

[Boort]

Hey there Overland bound i am new here. I am currently in the process of building an overland trailer. I am to the point where i need to paint the exterior. I would like to paint it an OD green color also having a textured feel to it is a plus. There is quite a few options out there just seeing what you all have used and worked well.

When I was looking to build a trailer I was looking to use either Filon (thin fiberglass like coating that goes on with glue), or treating it like a wooden canoe to seal it up.

Then automotive spray paint.

Boort

 

[M Rose]

When I was looking to build a trailer I was looking to use either Filon (thin fiberglass like coating that goes on with glue), or treating it like a wooden canoe to seal it up.

Then automotive spray paint.

Boort

If I were to do this project, for the price, I would do like a root suggests in the video... filon isn’t cheap... I have been looking into it... I can get it locally, but the price is awful. The plus to filon... a lot easer to use... glue clamp and wait.

 

[MeHere!]

I know one of the off road teardrop companies uses a bedliner in black, they say it actually helps keep the inside cool

 

[GrizzMug]

Has anyone used a deck coating like Cadot Deckcorrect? Seen it at the store the other day and it has the texture that i want and it is tintable which is nice. Just don't know if i will have a peeling problem with the proper primer underneath it. Also all the edges will be getting covered in 2 inch angle aluminium with sealant underneath.

 

[Road]

seeing how your going over plywood, i would prep the plywood first.
if you want your trailer to be 100% watertight for 30+ yrs, and twice as strong as just plywood alone, i would coat the entire trailer in PMMA.
we use Soprema Alsans RS 230 flash at work, it's a 2 stage coating that is impervious to water, gas, chemicals, and damage. you can beat on this stuff all day with a hammer and not even scratch it. you can even drive a vehicle over it with no damage at all.
you mix it up just like body filler and can brush or roll it on. it is self leveling, so if you want texture, use a texture roller. comes in grey and white, but can be painted any color you like. this stuff will not flake, peel or anything, gives a rock hard coating that is still flexible
i did my camper roof with it few yrs ago- i now have a literal "forever roof" with no maintenance what so ever. and it's lightweight, 2 coats added approx 6-8 lbs to my camper roof
View attachment 142782View attachment 142784

it rained about 20 mins after i did my roof, check out how the water just beads
View attachment 142785
this is not the "snow roof" junk you get at the rv or hardware store, it's an extremely high performance coating that you can only get from a dedicated roofing supplier. this stuff will bond to anything, plastic, wood, metal (any kind) rubber, just about anything you can think of.
and because it's so good, it's not cheap. this 25lb pail runs about $200 plus a couple more bucks for the catalyst, but for never having to do anything with it again is more than worth it.
View attachment 142786View attachment 142787
like i said, it is impervious to water, my car topper boat was leaking around the engine transom board, coated it with Alsans and added some green paint to match, and no more leaks at all
View attachment 142788
one thing you should do if you use it, is use the fleece over the gaps around the edges, kinda like a filler for big cracks or joints
a version of PMMA is actually used to make fighter jet canopy's.
here's some info on PMMA

pmma - Google Search

and

ALSAN RS 230 FLASH

Two-component polymethyl methacrylate-based (PMMA) liquid membrane combined with fleece fabric to form a monolithic, self flashing and self-adhering reinforced field membrane designed for use in interior and exterior new, tear-off and recovery applications.

www.soprema.ca

it is an easy to use, do at home type of product, just MAKE SURE you use rubber gloves, only time (and lots of it) will get it off your hands. no paint is going to last many yrs, but you will have a super solid substrate to keep working with for future paint jobs.
one of the better paints i have ever used is POR15, incredibly tough paint, the entire underside of my truck is done with it

.

That's one awesome looking, and interesting, product.

.

 

[Road]

seen, tried, used, pretty much any kind of material you can think of in my job, some work, some don't.
this is actually is one product that really does live up to the hype.
we have been using it for yrs at work, on roofs, plus we do a lot of foundation waterproofing with it, even done underground parking lots with it and you can drive over it and not hurt it. couple yrs ago we did a "floating" roof over a poop tank at the sewage plant. as the roof goes up and down (depending on how many tacos were ate...) "clinkers" (poop particles) get stuck on the roof.
we put a torch-on roof over the tank, but they need to pressure wash the "clinkers off. unprotected torch on would only last a couple yrs under constant pressure washing, so we coated the whole torched roof with Alsans.
the engineers project a 20-25 yr life span now with the constant washings.

.

Good info. How's it do on short vertical surfaces, like the sides of a homemade raised roof cap. Sags before drying, or can be applied thin enough in multiple coats to avoid slump?

.

 

[smritte]

pmma - Google Search
and

ALSAN RS 230 FLASH

Two-component polymethyl methacrylate-based (PMMA) liquid membrane combined with fleece fabric to form a monolithic, self flashing and self-adhering reinforced field membrane designed for use in interior and exterior new, tear-off and recovery applications.

www.soprema.ca

it is an easy to use, do at home type of product, just MAKE SURE you use rubber gloves, only time (and lots of it) will get it off your hands. no paint is going to last many yrs, but you will have a super solid substrate to keep working with for future paint jobs.
one of the better paints i have ever used is POR15, incredibly tough paint, the entire underside of my truck is done with it

I cant seem to find anyone who sells this. May just be me and searching. Anyone have a link or two?

 

[MLGrace]

I have used monstaliner on five different trailer builds. No leaks. Happy with it.

 

[RickR]

Interesting...Watching this progression.