I've just read a reply by @Birdy saying that he used rust oleum stove enamel on his engine tins and it goes soft if it gets hot or fuel is spilt on it. I really hope there are two types of rust oleum paint and the combi colour is ok for tins. I'm painting mine tomorrow and I've got 2 litres of it in the shed. Anyone used this on tins and is it ok?
i recon it will flake coz the heat...ive used combi colour loads on different things...great for matt blacking ya bus ,but for tinware id go for a better product suited purely for heat ....combi colour will go soft because of the high solids content which makes it a great anti rust paint....but spill petrol or.thinners or bit of heat and soft it will go ......
The strange thing is I've seen tins painted in standard body paints and it has been fine. Perhaps paint was different in the 80's. I'm ruddy annoyed at my tins. They loom unsightly now. I'll investigate other paint before I end up going down the other enamel route.
Enamel paint once fully cured shouldent be affected by petrol or reasonable heat Ive painted engine sumps with it before and its been fine It does take a while to fully cure after its touch dry though
I think it was @Mini_Bungle that painted all his tinware with orange combi colour so he will be able to tell you how well its held up over time
So I've got all the tins cleaned back to bare metal and I've got red combi colour in the shed ready to go. Do I risk it and paint with rust oleum or should I go to B&Q and get some heat resistant paint? I'll be annoyed at buying the wrong paint and wasting the money, but I'd be even more annoyed if I use it, build and fit the engine and then find out that the paint isn't up to the job.
Id use it bob Etch prime the bare steel with a spray can of upol acid etch first as it aids the adhesion Once the paint has had a few days to dry go over it with a heat gun carefully or place in front of a heater to help cure it
my experience is that it stays soft for ages. i personally wouldnt use it as it will cost more in the long run to remove the tins and strip and repaint them if it does go funny than it will to buy a litre of good paint at this stage.
Ive used tractor enamel on many of my parts Ive had items drying in front of the fire that have got so hot i couldent touch them to pick them up The paint hasent cracked,peeled or changed colour
Tinware doesent get all that hot Id say if it goes above 150 deg c then you have bigger problems Honestly enamel paint is a very durable paint once cured its been used on steam engines and agricultural machinery for years Unless rustoleum combi colour has a completely different formula to other agricultural/coach enamels ive no doubt its fine for the application bob wants it for As for high temp stove paint This need baking once air dried otherwise it will just crack and peel off
