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Paint question for Dibond

coyote

New Member
Hello all: our friends at the Arts Center are creating 4' x 4' painted quilt blocks that are going to be mounted on local barns. They have purchased Dibond panels for this and the center members will paint them. Is there a primer for Dibond that will adhere and allow them to do the top painting in acrylic house paint? I've offered to help them out and would feel more comfortable if they were working with water based paints. I have used Zinsser123 on aluminum-scuffing the surface and priming with that works well, but I have only used Dibond with vinyl graphics.
Failing that, will Ronan bulletin color work without priming? I'm trying to steer them away from Rustoleum.
thanks, Carol
 

Gino

Premium Subscriber
I would not advise someone with no experience to be doing this...... let alone a group of people.

Some things can be painted merely by just dipping the brush or roller........ and going at it, but not this.

This should first be slightly sanded with maybe 600, then tacked and then top coated with a good bonding top coat paint. You should give it at least two, if not three light coats, but with full coverage. You're not going to be using 'Green' paint, so there goes the community effort.


If they want to assist their cause in saving money, they should consider a baked goods sale.
 

Baz

New Member
If i need to paint this type of material, i put two coats of oil based enamel. Sanding lightly between coats. Has worked well so far.
 

Jillbeans

New Member
You'll definitely need to scuff the surface lightly with a Scotchbrite pad.
To be honest, Rustoleum would not be a bad choice.
I have a sign out there from 1980, painted with Rustoleum because I was a clueless twat, and it still looks OK.
Latex is going to fade and in my opinion is not as slick to work with and doesn't cover as well as an oil-based enamel. I think you're complicating things too much.
The oil-based will just take longer to dry and you'll have to use turps to clean your brushes..
Love....Jill
 

iprint

New Member
I would not advise someone with no experience to be doing this...... let alone a group of people.

Some things can be painted merely by just dipping the brush or roller........ and going at it, but not this.

This should first be slightly sanded with maybe 600, then tacked and then top coated with a good bonding top coat paint. You should give it at least two, if not three light coats, but with full coverage. You're not going to be using 'Green' paint, so there goes the community effort.


If they want to assist their cause in saving money, they should consider a baked goods sale.
Who said anything about a cause or being green? Dude you read into posts way too much. Lighten up.
 

Mike Paul

Super Active Member
Scuff it with a Scotch-Brite pad in different directions.
Clean/prep with Alcohol.
Coat with a quality oil base paint. No primer needed.
 

Gino

Premium Subscriber
Who said anything about a cause or being green? Dude you read into posts way too much. Lighten up.



Relax dudette.

Picture it........ you have an artsy crowd from an Arts Center wanting to paint these panels. Do they have the means to get rid of chemical paints and turps in a legal fashion ?? I doubt it. That takes a real facility to have that all set up, so they'll probably opt to go water based paints to stay environmentally safe. The OP wants a safe and easy way to do this if she could help it. I might read into it, but you glossed over it and nothing seemed to register for you. The casue is.... why are these people painting it themselves ?? To save money ?? Perhaps, that's a cause in anyone's book. If they just want to be close to their own project, that seems like another definition of a cause in that thar book.

Loosen up dudette, you're panties sound like they're all bunched up and you're loosing your voice.
 

Marlene

New Member
it's not that hard. are the dibond panels a matte white or the gloss white? the white Dibond I've used is pretty much a matte finish so you don't need to rough it up much at all. use exterior enamels for your paint, no latex and you will be fine. Gino, it really doesn't take a pro to paint some freaking panels to hang on a barn. they are an art center so why is it such a suprise that they would do an art peice and not bake some freaking cookies?
 

John Butto

New Member
sand with about 200 grit, prime with waterbase Zinsser, sand again and paint with exterior latex. Latex comes in some really nice colors and will hold up better than oil base.
 

Salmoneye

New Member
I would think that if you are using matte finish. A 100% acrylic 'DTM' would work well for them and be water based. It would be the finish of choice on galvanized these days I think. Some of it as exceptional gloss retention too.
 

visual800

Active Member
If they are painting with latex than why coat the panels with oil based? You do not put latex over oil.

scuff that damn thing up and spray latex on it, flat or satin. There is no sense in all this complicated processes to acheive this project. Latex is gonna outlast oil in longevity and color.
 

coyote

New Member
Thanks for the input. Most of these people use oils/turps/linseed oil regularly. This is just bigger and a substrate they don't normally use.

I'm gonna get a sample of Dibond and do an unscientific grip test: we have a shop full of different kinds of paints and primers, so I can see what works best before the project. I do love Zinsser-it sticks to everything. After 35 years of breathing 1-Shot and screen ink, I'm trying to get away from the VOCs...not necessarily to be green, but for my poor little lungs... I want to keep them pink and functioning.
 

iprint

New Member
Relax dudette.

Picture it........ you have an artsy crowd from an Arts Center wanting to paint these panels. Do they have the means to get rid of chemical paints and turps in a legal fashion ?? I doubt it. That takes a real facility to have that all set up, so they'll probably opt to go water based paints to stay environmentally safe. The OP wants a safe and easy way to do this if she could help it. I might read into it, but you glossed over it and nothing seemed to register for you. The casue is.... why are these people painting it themselves ?? To save money ?? Perhaps, that's a cause in anyone's book. If they just want to be close to their own project, that seems like another definition of a cause in that thar book.
Loosen up dudette, you're panties sound like they're all bunched up and you're loosing your voice.
Dudette? Good one. :rolleyes: According to your first post they should just stick to bake sales. How the eff is that good advice at all? Instead you resort to being confrontational.
If you truly wanted to help the OP why not just direct them to the 3A website where they have a fabrication manual with detailed instructions.
That manual can be downloaded here for those interested.
 

fresh

New Member
We just did a whole slew of painted dibond signs for a an apartment complex that didn't want vinyl. We used Sherwin Williams DTM Acrylic, did NOT prime, but we did scuff with 200 grit sanding blocks / wiped down with denatured alcohol. Worked out awesome.

The DTM Acrylic only comes in 1 gallon containers, so if you don't need that much paint, you can use their "All Surface Enamel" with equally good results.
 

Gino

Premium Subscriber
Dudette? Good one. :rolleyes: According to your first post they should just stick to bake sales. How the eff is that good advice at all? Instead you resort to being confrontational.
If you truly wanted to help the OP why not just direct them to the 3A website where they have a fabrication manual with detailed instructions.
That manual can be downloaded here for those interested.


You might try reading...... and learning or applying comprehension along with it.

My first post was about letting professionals do it, since there is more than a bunch or artsy-fartsy people indulging in this. How can the OP or anyone control how lackadaisical a bunch of people will be with primers and paints outside ?? You can't.

It doesn't matter what the tech sheets have on them. If someone spills or ruins something while doing this, the OP might stand a chance of getting in trouble for organizing this outdoor paint excursion without following proper procedure.
Why other than trying to save money would a bunch of fellow artists, fine artists, mind you..... want to paint something and cut out the sign shop doing it professionally ?? To SAVE MONEY.... like I said, that's all.

Instead of saving money and getting in their own way and possibly creating a problem, they could muster up other ways to raise money instead of cutting out the professionals.


Inquire with Joe Diaz, who is relatively good at putting together wall dog meets.... how he gets by letting every town person in on painting and taking care of their own things at a wall dog meet. For insurance and probably any other liability, he can't either. Why do you think this person would be any different ?? Sure, it can happen, but are you doing it within the limits of the law..... or have you at least checked ??
 
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