Hey everyone. I'm looking to eventually black out my truck with the exception of a few chrome pieces (Bumpers) etc. I was wondering if anybody had experience painting toolboxes? I am good at painting but I want to know if it is going to chip and let the metal underneath show. Some people are telling me to just buy a new box but mine is nice and new ones are expensive. I have used a spray on bed liner for parts on my truck (see pics). I have gotten good at the process. Three to four coats + two to three coats of clear coat. Do you guys think I should go ahead and do it? I am wondering if the thickness would make the lid start to rub when it's closed/closing. Maybe I should just paint the outside? Anyways, Here are pics of my truck and toolbox.

Please help...

Before Polish

After Polish (Doesn't take long to re-oxidise)



Spray on Bed Liner:



Older Truck Pic (got new headlights since then)

 

Aluminum Treadbrite is pretty hard to paint and make it stick. When we first started painting aluminum at our shop many years ago, we used to spray the material with an etching solution and then follow up with a neutralizing wash. We then hit the aluminum with a zinc based primer and then applied the color coat.

These days we skip the entire chemical bath step and just DA the aluminum, prime and then paint. Of course the DA sander won't work on Treadbrite so you will have to find some chemicals to prep the aluminum.

Something easier and possibly more fun to try is to get yourself a small piece to test with. Polish it up nice and bright and then shoot it with clear coat but tint the clear with a dark green translucent base (to match your truck). This is how they are making the 'black chrome' that you might have seen out there. It's just regular chrome with a black tinted clear coat on top. Looks pretty cool but you have to be pretty good at shooting clear. Step down each coat with 50% regular clear until you get the depth that you like. We have been doing stuff like this at our shop lately and it looks pretty nice.

 

Huh. It would be cool to have a Chrome/Black Toolbox. Sounds pretty risky though. If you werent all the way down in AZ I would just have you do it. I'm sure its pretty pricey though huh? So basically what you are saying is that I really shouldn't try painting it with the bed liner stuff or even regular paint? Or are you saying that it would work with the proper chemicals? What all would i need other than the paint I choose + clear coat. I want a black toolbox really bad but I'd rather have a polished one than a black one with polished spots all over it!

 

Get it anodized! I've never seen someone paint one and have it actually hold up. You might be able to sell yours on Craigslist and get a new black one and about break even, or maybe even find someone who has a black one and wants a shiny one.

 

Would it be cheaper to have it anodyzed? or to pay to have it line-x'd? How much for each do you think?

I am trying to look into all of the supplies of the operation and weigh whether it is really worth doing it myself. I am however about to make a post for a shiny-to-black trade ha. Maybe I'll get lucky. How much do you think I could get for mine? Cuz I doubt I could get enough to buy a brand new one. The weather guard ones brand new are like $700 !!

 

Trouble with anodizing is you'd need a container full of chemicals big enough to fit your toolbox in...
Line-X or the likes would probably be a good option and I'm sure the places that do it can tell you if it would be durable or not.

 

Well, I would shy away from spraying it with bedliner material because it's so thick and it'll look crappy (IMO).

Another option is to take it and have it powder coated but preheating the aluminum will probably warp the lids and then you'll have a different set or problems.

Yeah, you can get paint to stick with the proper chemicals. Your local auto paint supply store should have what you need. There are a bunch of products out there that basically do the same thing so just see what they have. You are looking for a gallon of the etching solution and a gallon of the neutralizing solution. They also make a water soluble etch that just gets hosed down and then blow dry it before priming.

As far as cost, I have no idea but it's going to be pricey for the etching chemicals. You can try 'sanding' the tool box with some brown scotchbrite pads and that 'may' work well enough for the paint to stick. As with any paint job...it's all in the prep. The better the prep, the better the paint. If you do decide to try the scotchbrite pad idea, make sure you get a quart of some good wax and silicone remover and wipe it down several times with clean rags each time. You need to get all that polishing compound off BEFORE you start sanding or else you'll just grind the polymers into the aluminum and your paint job will suffer.

You can test on the bottom of the box first and see how it comes out. If it looks good, then flip that sucker over and finish the job. Good luck.

 

Hmmmmmmmmm...I suppose I can check with the local body shops. I know its more durable than regular paint so that part isn't really an issue, but its the pricing that has me concerned. So far what I've gathered is that I should use the following:

.Some kind of chemical wash
.Medium steel wool
."Self-etching" primer or Zinc Chromate Primer (marine primer)
.Regular primer
.Paint/Liner
.Clear Coat

Still dont know if it would be better to just pay to have it done....

EDIT: Sweet. Thanks Greg.

 

i would just start drinking that case of bud light in the background

 

haha very observant. The only reason it is on the toolshelf is because it is empty. used it for a storage box.

 

I'd stay away from the steel wool. Last thing you want is steel fibers embedded in the aluminum. Add some moisture and galvanic action will start under your paint. Could be a problem.

It would be less expensive to have someone paint it for you because they might have surplus material in stock already. Do you have any friends who work at a sign manufacturing shop? Most signs are made from aluminum these days and most shops have all the chemicals and paint to do the job correctly. Just an idea...

 

I would use an oil based enamel. Comes out shiny and nice. I just did my aluminum front bumper with some Tractor Supply Valspar oil based enamel and it looks good!

 

I think Greg is on to something...the powder coating option would probably look friggin sweeeeeeeet....as for preheating it, as long as that's done slowly ( don't stick it in a 500 degree oven) it should be ok...heck, just leave it out in the sun down here in Bama, who needs to preheat...lol...

 

Coming from an airplane background we paint aluminum all the time. If you use a scotch-brite pad on a jitterbug style sander you can prep the aluminum pretty quick. Use the brown scotch-brite pads as they are the course ones. If you can only find the red ones you will be ok, but they wear quicker and the tread pattern will tend to eat it up pretty quick. You can use a solvent isopropyl alcohol to clean the metal as you use it on the sander. This will give you a black residue that can be wiped off with more alcohol.

We normally use a chemical called Alodine to protect the metal from corrosion, the trick with Alodine is it needs to be a "water break free surface", so when you run water over it the water needs to sheet up and run off (no oils in the metal) this is accomplished by rubbing the scotch-brite with a running hose over the entire surface, until you get that result. Once you get that, you can apply the Alodine with a sponge or brush to a large enough surface that you can manage, and rinse with water to neutralize it. You can use an etching product like metal-prep, that will help the primer adhere a little better.

A good coat of a zinc-chromate based primer and polyurethane paint will make it last. If you are around an airport these are all pretty common supplies that can be had from the local supply shop on most regional airports. You may have to go to a bigger one, but even the smaller ones have some sort of aircraft supplies store.

Doing this will cost more than just scrubbing it and using the bed liner material, but these products are made to withstand abusive environments.

By the way, I like the liner work you have done so far. It looks really good

 

I don't want to seem crass but that is a pretty small tool box to be trifling this much over. Sell it and get a bigger black one is my advice.

I know how you feel as I wanted a black one. They were simply too expensive at the time I bought mine before TS outlaw 09. Besides I loaded mine with beer (in a cooler inside the box and extra cases) and I did not want the contents baking away in that black box in the southern sun here. Anyway, I am pretty happy with my aluminum unit.

Not trying to offend, just offering ideas. Aluminum is not always a bad finish. I like what you have done with your truck and understand the blackout look. Hope you find what you are looking for.