Roll-on Camo Paintjob

This write-up is provided solely for reference purposes.  Any modification or maintenance that you do to your vehicle is not the responsibility of All-Terrain Armor.  Work done to your vehicle is done AT YOUR OWN RISK!

My old rattlecan camo paintjob was getting pretty beat up and worn after less than a year so I decided to try something different that I have seen a number of people do lately. Instead of using a can of spray paint or a spray gun, I used a foam roller to apply paint to my truck. I went to home depot and for under $50 I bought a quart of Rustoleum flat brown, a quart of Rustoleum flat black, and a quart of Rustoleum satin green which was the flattest green I could find at the time, a 4” foam roller, a can of paint thinner, and a roll of painter’s tape.

If you are interested in painting your vehicle camouflage, I would recommend checking out this site http://www.olive-drab.com/od_mvg_camo_patterns.php

It has a lot of information about authentic military camo patterns as well as pattern layouts for trailers, trucks, jeeps, etc. For my specific application, I decided to roughly copy the pattern they provided for a Dodge pickup truck.

The really nice thing about the roll on paint method is that there is absolutely no overspray so you only need to tape off the very edges of windows, trim, etc.

1. After sanding down the body, the first thing I did was use a piece of soapstone to copy the camo pattern printed from the internet onto the truck.

2. Brown was my first color so I removed the taillights, taped the edges of the windows, then poured paint into a tray mixed with some thinner to smooth it out. I applied the paint only to the sections designated as brown, overlapping the lines and leaving soft edges. I applied two coats, then let it dry for a day before applying the next color.

3. Green was next so I once again thinned the green and applied it to the truck with the foam roller. I wanted sharp edges for the camo pattern this time so when I applied the green, I only taped off where the green would meet the brown. This would give me a crisp line between the two colors and since I left the soft edges on the brown, the green paint was seamless as it was applied over the very edges of the brown paint. Once again I gave 2 coats of green.

4. With the first two colors done, I gave the green another day to dry then it was time for the black. The black is the only color that I had to tape off the entire pattern. Again, 2 coats.

I am incredibly happy with the finished project for a $50 paintjob on a truck that sees a lot of trees when on the trails. The planning of the pattern also saved paint since there was a minimum amount of paint that would get covered and hidden by other colors. If you are looking to repaint your trail rig, camo or any other color, this is a great way to go. The process took 3 nights just because I wanted to allow proper drying time between colors. If you were painting a solid color, it could easily be done in just a day.

See you on the trails,

Eric Amato

ATArmor.com

This write-up is provided solely for reference purposes.  Any modification or maintenance that you do to your vehicle is not the responsibility of All-Terrain Armor.  Work done to your vehicle is done AT YOUR OWN RISK!