Paint or bedliner?

[Elwiscon]

I searched the forum and other sites for this question and find mixed answers, but at some point I’ll have to decide whether to paint or bedline my 89’. I’m restoring it to be a daily driver, hauler and light off-roading once in a while so not looking for anything too extravagant to keep the original character of the Comanche, regardless of finish, I’ll keep it white or silver with black accents. The bed will definitely be used as such so it will get bedlined regardless. I have used different bedliner products in other projects including Herculiner, Raptorliner and Monstaliner. I like Raptor and Monsta the best, as it sprays nicely and less likely to peel with proper prep. I’m kind of hesitating in using Monstaliner or Raptorliner in the Comanche as I don’t really want the rough texture on it (except bed and rocker panels), unless i can thin it and get a smoother finish. I was quoted $2500-$3000 for a quality paint job, I’m sure I can do a good job with bedliner for far less. I was looking at Durabak’s smooth finish, looks like paint but it’s though like bedliner. Has anyone used Durabak on their comanche or other vehicle? How well does it hold long term? Any pictures? Thank you

[Pete M]

bedliner really only prevents scratches and is harder to repair if real damage occurs. 

[Elwiscon]

1 minute ago, Pete M said:

bedliner really only prevents scratches and is harder to repair if real damage occurs. 

Right, that’s one of the disadvantages.

 

[Pete M]

spray paint DIY for the (affordable) win

[Elwiscon]

6 minutes ago, Pete M said:

spray paint DIY for the (affordable) win

Makes sense  but I don’t feel confident spray painting, don’t want to ruin my Comanche with a crappy DIY paint job, 

 

[89 MJ]

Look up Vice Grip Garage and Pole Barn Garage on YouTube. They both have videos on decent driver quality painting on a budget. Do not bed line the exterior of the truck. It makes fixing damage harder to fix, it weighs more, it typically fades, and I think it hurts the resale value. 

[Elwiscon]

7 minutes ago, 89 MJ said:

Look up Vice Grip Garage and Pole Barn Garage on YouTube. They both have videos on decent driver quality painting on a budget. Do not bed line the exterior of the truck. It makes fixing damage harder to fix, it weighs more, it typically fades, and I think it hurts the resale value. 

Good point! I plan on driving and keeping the truck for many many years, and since they are getting harder and harder to find I don’t want to go too crazy with it, I want to preserve its character, I would leave the original finish but there’s some scratches, rust spots i’ll be fixing and I want it to look good.

[Pete M]

1 hour ago, Elwiscon said:

Makes sense  but I don’t feel confident spray painting, don’t want to ruin my Comanche with a crappy DIY paint job, 

 

 

 

rule number one is never practice on your truck.  practice on other things (junkyard fenders for example) and then move to the truck once you're confident.    rule number 2 is proper prep.  rule 3 is never paint in the cold or wind.  the lows at night must be good enough for the paint because the steel warms up much slower than the ambient air.  ummm, lets say rule 4 is using multiple thin, light coats. 

[Elwiscon]

Just now, Pete M said:

 

 

rule number one is never practice on your truck.  practice on other things (junkyard fenders for example) and then move to the truck once you're confident.    rule number 2 is proper prep.  rule 3 is never paint in the cold or wind.  the lows at night must be good enough for the paint because the steel warms up much slower than the ambient air.  ummm, lets say rule 4 is using multiple thin, light coats. 

Thanks for the tips, I agree, prep is everything. I’m putting a lot of work in my Comanche, I wouldn’t want screw it all up with a bad paint job, I rather pay to get it done correctly by a pro, I’ll shop around and prep the truck as much as possible by removing trim, emblems etc before having it painted. Or I may spray Durabak if it’s a good option. I sprayed my jeep tub and Comanche undercarriage with Raptorliner, I’m satisfied with the results, liner is far more forgiving than paint, especially in the undercarriage, I sprayed it for protection against rust more than looks, as I plan to drive it year round. I will also spray the interior floor once it gets a little warmer.

[Pete M]

our truck rust from the inside-out.  layers on the outside won't prevent the worst stuff.  

[PCO6]

Just my opinion but I'd stay away from bedlining the whole Jeep.   If you don't like it there's not much you can do with it once it's done.   I sprayed my LJ with Rustoleum and it turned out great for the way I use the vehicle ... basically a year round daily "salty roads" driver and for camping and trails.   It was a backyard outdoor job and for the $500 or so I have into it the result is more than fine for me.      

[ghetdjc320]

I’d also repeat same as above: don’t bedline the outside. Do you have any rust or body damage to repair? 

[Elwiscon]

2 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

I’d also repeat same as above: don’t bedline the outside. Do you have any rust or body damage to repair? 

2 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

I’d also repeat same as above: don’t bedline the outside. Do you have any rust or body damage to repair? 

Yes, there’s a little rust on the door, just replaced a rusted floor pan and I will need to fill a few 1/4” holes on the door as I removed the towing side arm mirrors to swap them for the smaller mirrors. The floorpans will get Raptorliner on both sides. I was lucky to find a relatively rust-free Comanche so there’s no major rust on the body panels.

[Elwiscon]

3 hours ago, PCO6 said:

Just my opinion but I'd stay away from bedlining the whole Jeep.   If you don't like it there's not much you can do with it once it's done.   I sprayed my LJ with Rustoleum and it turned out great for the way I use the vehicle ... basically a year round daily "salty roads" driver and for camping and trails.   It was a backyard outdoor job and for the $500 or so I have into it the result is more than fine for me.      

Right, i don't mind the look of a well done bedliner finish, but i’m not sure if the look will suit the Comanche, as I stated, i’m restoring it to be driven and used as a truck and don’t want to go too crazy with the modifications or changing the original character, If it didn’t have peeled and faded stripes and some surface rust i would probably leave the original paint. I also have an LJ, I bedlined the gas tank, skid plates and interior to protect it from rust. I thought about doing the whole rig but I’m glad I decided not to. 

[Elwiscon]

11 hours ago, Pete M said:

our truck rust from the inside-out.  layers on the outside won't prevent the worst stuff.  

True, I’ll do the lower rocker panels, as they get chips from the tires. I’m spraying Eastwood chassis paint in the unibody frame, at least it helps to cut on the rust. Once i fix it i’ll avoid driving it on mag-chloride, that stuff and salt eat up metal.

[PCO6]

36 minutes ago, Elwiscon said:

Right, i don't mind the look of a well done bedliner finish, but i’m not sure if the look will suit the Comanche, as I stated, i’m restoring it to be driven and used as a truck and don’t want to go too crazy with the modifications or changing the original character, If it didn’t have peeled and faded stripes and some surface rust i would probably leave the original paint. I also have an LJ, I bedlined the gas tank, skid plates and interior to protect it from rust. I thought about doing the whole rig but I’m glad I decided not to. 

 

I think bedliner looks great on some vehicles.   You have to be sure you want it though because it's not easy to get off ... or so I'm told.   

 

Here's how my LJ turned out.   I didn't want a super glossy look because of how I use it.   Rustoleum single stage enamel was good for what I was after and it was pretty straight forward to do. 

 

Good luck with whatever you decide on!   

 

[ghetdjc320]

Very true, I spent many days stripping off old bedliner from both my MJ’s. And that was just the cheap rattle can stuff.

 

That LJ looks great! 

[PCO6]

4 minutes ago, ghetdjc320 said:

Very true, I spent many days stripping off old bedliner from both my MJ’s. And that was just the cheap rattle can stuff.

 

That LJ looks great! 

 

Thanks.   It's been a good Jeep for camping and other things.   I built a trailer and painted it grey.   I liked it so much I did the LJ too!   

 

[Pete M]

1 hour ago, Elwiscon said:

Right, i don't mind the look of a well done bedliner finish, but i’m not sure if the look will suit the Comanche, as I stated, i’m restoring it to be driven and used as a truck and don’t want to go too crazy with the modifications or changing the original character, If it didn’t have peeled and faded stripes and some surface rust i would probably leave the original paint. I also have an LJ, I bedlined the gas tank, skid plates and interior to protect it from rust. I thought about doing the whole rig but I’m glad I decided not to. 

 

 

do make sure that you don't clog any of the drain holes in the doors, frame or rockers.   

[Elwiscon]

3 hours ago, PCO6 said:

 

I think bedliner looks great on some vehicles.   You have to be sure you want it though because it's not easy to get off ... or so I'm told.   

 

Here's how my LJ turned out.   I didn't want a super glossy look because of how I use it.   Rustoleum single stage enamel was good for what I was after and it was pretty straight forward to do. 

 

Good luck with whatever you decide on!   

 

Looks pretty good! It looks just like paint with the right gloss. Doesn’t even look like bedliner. I’ll check out Rustoleum enamle

[Elwiscon]

2 hours ago, Pete M said:

 

 

do make sure that you don't clog any of the drain holes in the doors, frame or rockers.   

Definitely! Gotta keep the drain holes clear

[Elwiscon]

3 hours ago, PCO6 said:

 

Thanks.   It's been a good Jeep for camping and other things.   I built a trailer and painted it grey.   I liked it so much I did the LJ too!   

 

Thats a nice trailer, matches the LJ perfectly 

[Elwiscon]

3 hours ago, PCO6 said:

 

I think bedliner looks great on some vehicles.   You have to be sure you want it though because it's not easy to get off ... or so I'm told.   

 

Here's how my LJ turned out.   I didn't want a super glossy look because of how I use it.   Rustoleum single stage enamel was good for what I was after and it was pretty straight forward to do. 

 

Good luck with whatever you decide on!   

 

How long have you had it on the LJ? Has it chipped/faded anywhere? Thank you 

[ghetdjc320]

2 hours ago, Elwiscon said:

Looks pretty good! It looks just like paint with the right gloss. Doesn’t even look like bedliner. I’ll check out Rustoleum enamle

It is paint not bedliner  

[PCO6]

3 hours ago, Elwiscon said:

How long have you had it on the LJ? Has it chipped/faded anywhere? Thank you 

 

I bought the LJ in 2016.   I had a TJ at the time and sold it 2 years ago.   Both were their original Bright Silver metallic.   The paint on the LJ was in good shape but rust had set in.   I had to replace the front fenders and windshield frame plus some sheet metal around the rear wheel arches.   There's a small amount of filler there but that's it.   I'd already done the driver's side floor and torque box sheet metal but they didn't need to be painted body colour.   I painted the fenders, windshield frame, cowl, doors and tailgate separately.   The tub including the door jambs were painted together, one side and then the other and the hood separately.   

 

Rather than take everything down to bare metal and prime it I simply scuffed the original paint with 3M pads to remove the gloss and etch the surface.  Original paint forms a good base if it's in good shape and I painted the enamel right over that.   I haven't sprayed metallic in a long time and didn't like doing it then so I went with enamel - single stage, no clear coat.  There's about 4 coats on it, each wet sanded and the final coat was left as is.   I haven't buffed it out and am not sure if I will.  There's one minor run, which I'll get around to fixing, but no orange peel.

 

The trailer was mostly built when I started to strip down the LJ.   I knew I was going to paint it grey and when done I just kept on going with the LJ.