Rust-Oleum Appliance Epoxy

ActingLikeAKid · Nov 16, 2015

I was at Lowe's and picked up a can of this to finish my Phoenix Bird build.

The good: It produces a beautifully shiny, hard finish. So far, all of my launches have come back down on grass, but it feels pretty strong (and it's meant to take appliance abuse, so...yeah)

The bad: I just finished building a Vector Force (yes, I'm going through all the Estes bargain-basement rockets!) and said "Oh...there's a drip here that I'll sand down, and a spot where I just got a little thin. I'll just zap those with another coat and OH GOD WHAT HAPPENED"

The second coat crinkled and looked HORRIBLE. That's when I read the label more closely: "Apply second coat within half an hour or after a week." :facepalm:

So I sanded it down and now I wait.

Other than that, though, I love the way the finish looks with it and it's dirt-cheap.

(Note: It will expose EVERY SINGLE LITTLE FLAW in your paint prep. Just sayin'.)

Construct_VA · Nov 17, 2015

Any special prep required prior to the use of the Appliance Epoxy?

Winston · Nov 17, 2015

ActingLikeAKid said:
I was at Lowe's and picked up a can of this to finish my Phoenix Bird build.

The good: It produces a beautifully shiny, hard finish. So far, all of my launches have come back down on grass, but it feels pretty strong (and it's meant to take appliance abuse, so...yeah)

The bad: I just finished building a Vector Force (yes, I'm going through all the Estes bargain-basement rockets!) and said "Oh...there's a drip here that I'll sand down, and a spot where I just got a little thin. I'll just zap those with another coat and OH GOD WHAT HAPPENED"

The second coat crinkled and looked HORRIBLE. That's when I read the label more closely: "Apply second coat within half an hour or after a week."
So I sanded it down and now I wait.

Other than that, though, I love the way the finish looks with it and it's dirt-cheap.

(Note: It will expose EVERY SINGLE LITTLE FLAW in your paint prep. Just sayin'.)

I've had the same experience even after waiting much longer than directed between coats. Stopped using it. One person I know used it successfully for one of his rockets I saw, but I don't know his methods or whether he used it on more than one rocket. Here's another person who had problems:

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showt...eum-Appliance-Epoxy-Paint&p=877303#post877303

ActingLikeAKid · Nov 17, 2015

Construct_VA said:
Any special prep required prior to the use of the Appliance Epoxy?

Nah, just used Rusto primer.See the other post in this thread, though - it sounds like the epoxy is notoriously bad for "not playing nicely" with other paints. If you're super-confident in your paint prep and you can get it done with one coat (really, that should be all it takes, I just laid it on too thick and got a drip) then you should be OK.

neil_w · Nov 17, 2015

ActingLikeAKid said:
That's when I read the label more closely: "Apply second coat within half an hour or after a week."

That's only a bit worse than the regular old paint enamels (I use the Rusto 2x) which recommend recoating within one hour or after two days (or is it one day? Blah, can't remember right now). In reality I always do two or three coats about 10 minutes apart, then let it dry for at least 4 or 5 days, often longer, before doing anything else. Some seem to be able to do it quicker but I don't want to risk it.

Admittedly, the timing on this epoxy stuff sounds more stringent, but the general principle is the same.

aerostadt · Nov 17, 2015

I've used the Rusto Appliance Epoxy "gloss white" with a Rusto primer on the first coat. I've had great results with light coats. Within a few coats a prepared balsa surface begins to look like plastic. There are quite a few scale models and futuristic models that need mostly or only white, so this paint has come in mighty handy. It might have wrinkled on me once, but if it did, it was a long time ago. To be safe it is probably best to use in warm weather or warm conditions. Low humidity might also help.

DanFrank · Nov 17, 2015

Appliance Epoxy is great, but there are a few things to watch out for:

1) It takes much longer to dry, but once dry it's much harder than normal spray paint. Putting it somewhere hot, like in a closed up car in the sun, etc. will make it dry faster.

2) Make sure the nozzle is very clean after use or the spray coming out next time will have a tendency to spot or drip the surface you are painting.

3) I have gotten best results applying it heavy to surface being painted, but not so heavy that drips form. Not so good for rockets but great for antique electric transformers, which is mainly what I use it for.

Rust-Oleum Appliance Epoxy

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