How many gallons to paint truck?
 

I am going to paint my 72 F100 this spring and have been pricing paint. They are pricing me for two gallons of paint for an entire paint job, is that the right amount? I thought I read somewhere in the forums that it only took a gallon to do the whole thing.

Just want to make sure that I get enough paint the first time.

Thanks,
Bob

<cr>
2 gallons would do your pickup. If you wanted to try buying less (like 1 1/2 gallons), then break the job down into sections (exterior, interior bed, interior cab, and engine compartment). That way if you run out of paint, the color matching isn't as critical.

Whatever you decide, remember to mix your separate containers of paint together before you start painting. This insures an even color mixture between the separate containers.

Just for your information, for a gallon, the 4th quart of paint is dirt cheap in comparison with the first 3 quarts.

I'm doing about the same thing with my 88 F-150. I'm thinking about a Burgany color for the exterior & door jambs. & having the inside of the bed & over the rails painted black.

Should I have to buy 2 gallons of the burgany or would 1 gallon cover it?
I'm also going to clear the whole thing, should I get 2 gals. of that?
If I buy to much clear it won't be a problem. I have 2 other vehicles that need paint after my truck is done.

It isn't going to be broken down to do a peice here or there. When I paint it, it will be painted all at once & finished before the truck sees the road again.

<cr>
A gallon should do especially since you aren't doing the interior and interior bed.

Clear will keep almost forever. It's the activator that will go bad.

You can save your opened can of activator by displacing the air inside the can, with inert gas. I use the gas from my MIG welder.

what about just cab and front clip? my highboy has a flatbed. so wouldn't that reduce the amount of paint that i need by about 30%? also, about how much (and how hard) is it to do the interior? would that offset not having do do the box (even though the box would take much more) about how much would i need to do both?

<cr>
A lot depends on the paint, color, and what you are spraying over. I would probably buy 3 quarts but consider these 2 points.

1) The 4th quart is cheap, in comparison with the first 3.
2) You only need to worry about the color matching on the cab and clip. If you ran out of paint while painting the interior and had to buy extra paint, a slight mismatched shade difference wouldn't make a difference.