how much paint

[treihesse]

I'm going to paint my truck soon and I need to know how much paint. I have a hood, half doors, fenders, grill, and tailgate. All exterior

 

[pcf_mark]

Depends on the color of the primer and color of the paint. Light colors cover the least, dark colors the best. If you are using a sealer try to get one that is close to the color of your color.

I am working on mine now and I think I need about 3 qts sprayable for the whole rig excluding the top. Two may do it but I am afraid if I screw up I will run out and it wont match. I think I am going to end up using over a gallon of primer but that goes on in multiple passes to build film thickness.

Also make sure you do the math on "sprayable". I painted a car for a guy last year and said we needed a gallon of paint. He bought a gallon of paint. But it needs to be mixed 1:1 with reducer so the gallon of paint becomes TWO gallons sprayable! We had a ton left over.

In my case I bought two quarts of paint which are reduced 1:1 to I can mix up to a one gallon but I think I only need 3 quarts. I am painting dark blue over yellow primer. But I am using a black sealer.

 

[treihesse]

I'm painting dark blue black over black primer. My ratio is 4:1:1 so 2 quarts would be a little lite.

 

[bknbronco]

At least a gallon! I used up a quart just spraying the inside front clip. Of course alot goes into the air with all the nooks and crannies. Also its probably the same price to buy a gallon as it is to buy 3 quarts. My paint was 100 bucks for a quart and 50 bucks for a half pint of hardner.

 

[Rustytruck]

For me I am in the process of painting right now.
I am using catalized acrylic enamel. I will spray close to a gallon and 1/4 of mixed paint. This is due to my rookieness. I am spraying 2 coats on the back side of the hood and grill and the under hood cowl area. no inner fender wells or engine compartment. I am not spraying the inside of the tub as I will be coating all that in bedliner. I am not spraying the top. I am spraying 4 coats on all the exterior areas to fix my rookieness. including door inserts. This allows me to sand out the bugs, crap, runs and any other issues. I spray my parts apart to get all the hidden areas. This takes alot more paint than an assembled truck and alot more ends up on the floor. In the end I will use another quart of paint to repaint another set of full doors.
As a rookie I bought alot of paint and can afford to repaint an extra pannel or 2 if need be or make repairs to trail damage.
I you paint as I do I recomend 1-1/2 gallons of mixed ready to spray paint.
I have sprayed several cars and always came close to being short this time on my Bronco I am not worried about how much paint I need nor how much I may need to waste on the end of my spray session. If your a professional and you spray the truck assembled then you will probably use half that amount. I'd rather shelve an extra quart of matching paint than run up short.

If you are using a base coat clear coat system your amounts will vary from what I am using.

 

[allenfahey]

What brand of paint are you using because mix ratio and quality will determine the amount used as much as the color. If you are using a paint line that uses a 1:1 basecoat ratio you will need more paint than a brand that is mixed 2:1. For example at work I use Spies which is mixed 2:1 and I got the paint for Broncitis' Volvo semi and only used 5 sprayable quarts of amber and a quart of black on the fairings and bumper.
The spraygun also is a major factor in the amount of paint used. If you use a good quality gun you will use less paint and will also result in a better finish.
Cheaper paint isn't always cheaper!!