How to Spray Paint Your Jeep and Make an Assault Vehicle

by sam24th

231K21268

Intro: How to Spray Paint Your Jeep and Make an Assault Vehicle


Ok since my jeep is a major beater and I take it offroading, what better way to paint a fading beaten up jeep than with spraypaint? I chose to paint it up like an Army assault vehicle and add some zombie stickers. So to start you need a vehicle you plan to paint. (I advise it to be something that you dont really care about getting beaten up) For me that would be my 1990 Jeep Cherokee that I drive offroad a lot. Heres a picture of what it should look like once it is done.

STEP 1: Find a Vehicle

Step one find a vehicle. You can use an existing vehicle or go buy one like me from craigslist for dirt cheap. :D Aw look at the lil jeep the day I bought it.

STEP 2: Supplies

Now drive to your nearest hardware store and buy the following:

-Spray paint (10 cans of Krylon Satin Italian Olive)
-220grit sandpaper
-a can of mineral spirits
-3 rolls of blue painters tape
-a sanding block

Other supplies you may need:
-newspaper or paper to tape up windows.

STEP 3: Prep the Vehicle for Paint

First I needed to remove the pinstripe from the vehicle. I used a heatgun and a razor to remove the pinstripe.

Now remove all the parts you dont want painted off. (lights, roofrack, spare tire, etc)

Next You need to wash the vehicle.

After washing the vehicle you need to sand it down with 220grit sandpaper as shown in picture.

STEP 4: Wipe Down

After finish sanding you need to wipe the entire vehicle down with some Acetone or mineral spirits to clean the surface.

I then Painted the door jams so that I wouldnt have to go back and mess with it and it looks cleaner. (This step may require removal of some interior panels depending on model of vehicle. In my case I didnt have any really so I didnt have to worry about it.


STEP 5: Mask Off the Windows

After prep and doing the door jams. I needed to mask off the windows and lights so that I wouldnt get paint all over them. I just used paper I had laying around.

STEP 6: PAINTING!

Ok now for the fun stuff PAINT. Break out all the spray paint you bought and start spraying. Make sure your (insert nice car here) isnt parked nearby or you may get overspray on it. I advise you to do one complete light coat first then a final coat after. Krylon covers quite well. Coats may vary based on what kind of paint you use.

STEP 7: Remove the Masking

After letting the paint dry for an hour you can remove the masking on the windows. Should look something like the picture below. (Notice the numbers I stenciled on before taking off the tape.)


STEP 8: Reinstall Parts and Enjoy

Now reinstall the parts you took off (lights, roof rack, etc.)


STEP 9: EXTRA STEP


I bought a front bullguard and wanted to paint it to match the truck. So ill add this step in aswell.

1) Sand down bullguard with 200 grit sandpaper

2) wipedown with acetone

3) paint with duplicolor truckbed paint


STEP 10: Final Install

I installed the front bullguard and it looks like this: The second picture is a year later after I added zombie decals to it and got a new front bumper for it. As you can see the paint has held up fine even after beating it on trails.

68 Comments

Eli D S 6 years ago

Where is the driver door?

farna 9 years ago

Find a cheap paint shop like Maaco in your area. They start around $300 in most areas for a basic paint job. Do all the prep work mentioned here except the wipe-down and masking. Also take anything off that comes off easy that you don't want painted. They can spray it with automotive paint a lot better than anyone can at home. It's not a show car job, but that's not what a project like this calls for. I've ad a few of my classic cars painted like this. The paint is good (I always used the mid priced job, which has a longer lasting paint), it's the prep work that makes a paint job. I always did my own prep and body work -- at least most of it. A couple times I had them do some more complicated body work, but that's where they make their money.

BenM213 7 years ago

Farna, that's brilliant. Any more specifics on what prep work you did before handing it over to the paint shop? Did you have to negotiate the deal for Matte Green by explaining you'd do some of the prep?

farna 7 years ago

No negotiating over price. I removed all the trim, bumpers, and lights. One car I drove to the shop so left the tail lights in, took a screwdriver and removed them when I got there. I also wet sanded the car and filled a few minor dings. Even if you let them fill the larger dings still wet sand the car yourself. You need to research paint prepping a car, you can find several articles on the 'net better than I can explain. If you want a color they don't have you will need to purchase your own paint. Talk to the shop owner about what brand and type paint they prefer before buying. You may need more than just paint -- they should be able to tell you what you need to bring if you use something other than what they normally use -- or they may refuse to spray a different type/brand. As I said, no negotiating on price. You buy the paint job they sell. If you do more prep work you get a better, longer lasting job and they tend to take more care also. If you bring your own paint they won't reduce price normally. When using house paint their cost is minimal since they buy in bulk. They can usually mix just about any color, the house paint is a good quality paint in most cases.

dreminofscremin 10 years ago

My only question is; Where did you get your body mounted tire carrier?! I've been looking everywhere for one!!

sam24th 10 years ago

the carrier came off of a bronco II. There are also factory XJ carriers available aswell but those are rare and hard to come by. I had one awhile back that mounted to the bumper but I sold it.

rangerweavere 9 years ago

lucky me that i noticed this cause ive been looking to.

dantribble 10 years ago

Nice job, but you left out any instruction on basic spray fundamentals and technique - and a final coat of UV spray/sealer would have lessened the fading problems.
The Jeep looks great!

sam24th 10 years ago

I would have used a sealer on top but wanted to keep the flat/satin look to the paint. I suppose I could have used a flattener to reduce the shine but it was really on my priority list. As far as spray techniques, not really sure what to say for that, I mean I just bought a ton of paint and sprayed the truck LOL.

HollywoodSnooks 12 years ago

I have an old in pretty good shape 1982 Chevy S10 durango. Its color now is brown and i want to change the color. How many coats would you recommend?

sam24th 10 years ago

Sorry for the late reply I took a bit of a leave from this site for a bit.

Depends on the color, but probably about 4 if you go with a darker color and 7-8 if you are going with a lighter color. You could primer it first and use less coats if you like.

arabic 11 years ago

Some questions:
What year is your Jeep?
What are the lights on the roof basket called?
lastly, what are the lights installed on the bullguard called?
Thanks

-Arab

sam24th 10 years ago

Sorry for the late reply I took a bit of a leave from this site for a bit.

Jeep is a 1990 Jeep Cherokee Laredo
Lights on the basket are KC daylighters 6inch
Bullguard is a romik bullguard from Japan and the lights are PIAA 7inch lights.

kfield1 10 years ago

Hey there! Would you recommend auto paint as well?? Also where'd you get the bull bar?? :)

sam24th 10 years ago

Dont really see much difference in the auto paint in a can and regular spraypaint other than it being a bit more expensive. It might hold up a bit better in the long run though. Bull bar came from a Japanese Jeep Cherokee. Its made by a European company called Romik I think.

sam24th 10 years ago

Dont really see much difference in the auto paint in a can and regular spraypaint other than it being a bit more expensive. It might hold up a bit better in the long run though. Bull bar came from a Japanese Jeep Cherokee. Its made by a European company called Romik I think.

goodolejim 10 years ago

If you have noticed older cars with stripes or lines in the paint it is because they didn't use enough paint. Spray can paint is very good quality, just use enough. when I had a business and not wanting the expense of a paint booth I started painting with cans. I usually would buy four cases, that is 48 cans for each machine. After several years of being outdoors all the time my equipment still looked great. the cost was about the same as if I had purchased 1.5 gallons of regular auto paint. The fire marshal was ok with spray cans in my shop.

Mr Rancher 10 years ago

I have a 2008 FJ Cruiser and I'm secretly waiting for it to get old and faded enough to warrant a repaint.
The Jeep looks great.
More Comments