Painting a cooler...

[Alleged User]

Rescued a cooler from my in-laws' treasure trove of neat old stuff. Granted, it's a little hard-core, but it's free, and that's for me.

So, we'd like to make a little project of it and repaint it. Any tips on which paint to use to mimic Coleman green? (Or brown...not sure which). We're actually looking for an old upright (who isn't), but we'll use this in the meantime.



Thanks, gearus.

[doug hodder]

Rustoleum makes a dark hunter green that I think would pass on it. Rustoleum oil based does take longer to dry however and my experience is that it doesn't have the gloss like some of the others out there. Most of the hunter greens that are available in the spray cans will work and are acceptable with the Coleman crowd. It's not a concours event, it's an old free cooler, so don't sweat the match. I'd wipe the whole thing down with a degreaser, scuff it with a scotch bright pad and spot prime the rust spots, mask it off and paint it. If you want a dead on match....have a custom rattle can matched at the auto paint store. Could run you 20$ though. Nice cooler! Doug

[dreadcptflint]

Oh come on put some flames on it. Everyone will want your cooler after that.

[hotrod]

rustoleum makes a primer now called rust reformer, might want to try that over your rusty areas after you have them sanded to bare metal..its some fairly odiferous stuff so spray it outside...

[Alleged User]

Excellent...thanks so much, guys!

Can't wait to get started. I think I'll go with an off-the-shelf paint, in keeping with my thriftycheap sensibilities. Will also check out the Rustoleum primer.

Flames, huh? I'll leave the fancy business to you pros who have the skill and patience...as it is, the crooked Coleman decal is making me twitch.

Kelly

[kurtibm]

I have used Rust-o-leum 'Hunter Green' with very close results and I have seen a couple done with John Deere "Case Green" that looked great.
If I recall correctly, those plastic lids were hollow... I wonder if that expanda-foam 'stuff' could be injected through a hole or something similar in order to increase the R value...?

kurt

[Alleged User]

Yes, the lid is indeed hollow. Interesting idea on the foam.

[Dark Horse]

The Window and Door stuff would be the preferred option for the stuff in a can, and a cooler day to help limit the expansion. the regular stuff expands way too much.

[rebapuck]

hotrod, can that rustoleum primer be used on a car? I've got some rusty crusty windshields I need to take out and I'm afraid of what I will find.

[hotrod]

hotrod, can that rustoleum primer be used on a car? I've got some rusty crusty windshields I need to take out and I'm afraid of what I will find.

I would think so.. I primed my impala floors after I was done patching the rust holes then sprayed truck bed liner over it, no problems yet..
I would be sure to get as much of the rust out as you can, then prime the areas. odds are if theres a windsheild theres a seam handy and the rust will be tough to remove..

[robertaw]

as it is, the crooked Coleman decal is making me twitch.

Oh my gosh, are we related?