Has anyone ever had this issue with spray paint?
 

I just cant catch a break with the rattle cans...

I bought a can of Rustoleum Ultra Cover Gloss White for my U.S.S. Atlantis project and was very pleased with the results I got with it. I used that same can to paint my Original Little Joe II body, my Centuri Micron, and my Estes Alpha before it finally ran out.

No problem, I go to the hardware store and buy 2 more cans. When I go to use one of the new cans on my Lil' Hercules, I get this gritty gunk coming out the can. I figure I got a defective can and exchange it for a new can.

The new can works better but still doesn't spray on completely glass smooth like the first can did, so while painting the rebuild of the Little Joe II body I tried yet another can with the following results:


This is the original Little Joe body tube painted with the first can


This is the rebuilt body tube painted with the 4th can

I'm going back to Krylon...

Huh. I bought a can of Rustoleum gloss white as well, but have only painted one small rocket (Javelin–came out fine) and was spraying the nose cone on another rocket when I noticed the can starting to spit. I have a big 'ol Centurion to paint next and I guess I'll not risk it with that can. I had been concerned about it before I read your post. Does any manufacturer market a pearlized (metallic) white?

That second photo kills me. I'd be very irritated to say the least. It looks like textured ceiling paint.

I've had a similar problem with Rustoleum Ultra Cover Gloss White. I used it twice without issue. Then with a new can I noticed it was spitting out small chunks of paint so I stopped, re-sanded and re-primed and used yet another new can which also spit out small chunks ofpaint.

It wasn't anything near as bad as what's shown in the picture above. But it was bad enough to make the paint job unacceptable.

Hit or miss
 

I think the bottom-line on rattle cans is ..It truely is a HIT or Miss. I have used all kinds of paint (krylon,Rusto,testors,Dupli-coat,ect) over the years. Painting all kinds of stuff.One can is great and the next can (that you took off the same shelf) be junk. I have a can of Rustolem Copper that has been laying around for years ,been frozen every winter and it still puts out a great paint job. I used it on parts of my CRDR and an NC not so long ago. Figure that?????

That's pretty funny because I have an old can of Rustoleum Silver that's been laying around for years in the basement too, and just like your old can of Copper, it's always up to the task. I've mostly used it for little things, but it's always worked just fine, of course it's almost empty now. :)

And as for rattle cans being hit or miss, I'm finding more and more that's the case, at least for me. However I have my worst luck with high gloss paints in general... Flat and semi-gloss seem to work better overall.

I can excuse the odd can being bad... but I had 3 bad cans out of 4 which is unacceptable. Maybe it was a bad lot or something I don't know. It's really too bad because I did like the coverage I got with the Ultra-Coat.

Yes. Since EVERY rocket I build gets either a gloss or dull clear coat, I've been starting to shoot most white rockets with semi-gloss, which is far more forgiving than gloss white. Of course, then I have to be careful with decals to prevent "silvering".

technicialy speaking.....
 

....ALL the cans should be good. This is getting a little off topic,but, As in your case and others, the cost and hassle of Hit or Miss Rattle Cans is crazy. Its one thing to get your money back on a bad product. What about the cost and time put into the repair of what the bad product ruined? I feel for ya dbren t,BUMMER! I painted a lawn tractor Nascar M&Ms scheme. The last can of M&Ms type yellow RUINED the HOOD!!!!!!!. I was wicked bummed. Nothing I could do about it other then getting a new can of paint. BIG DEAL, whos gonna strip or sand the mess off and repaint it.hmmmm I guess that would be me. I dont know .Maybe I should just start a Naked Rocket Club. .......NRC.........One more thing..I Do now TEST every can .Meaning I spray a bit, more like a lot, on something else before I spray my project. Of course you can get 2 coats on BEFORE it starts to puke all over your project. Thats happened also. That sucks even more.

I just ordered a Paashe H airbrush. I own four airbrushes of various descriptions, but they're all antiques at this point and are all double action, side-feeds for watercolor and inks. I used to be very good with those things, but it's been since the early nineties that I've used one. The advent of the Mac and Photoshop kind'a killed the craft in my field. I love the heavy enamel paints, but I don't like the lack of spray volume and control that I'd like to have on these little rockets. That and bum cans.

Very strange I have never seen this “this bad”. To be honest, unless it was a mistake of mine, or very old and or abused paint, I have never had “bad” paint. Mistakes being not properly mixed/shaken, compatibility, application issues, cold/hot/old, etc. Now, I have had numerous nozzles fail, which can be enhanced if care is not used to take care of the nozzle to keep it clean (shoot it at an angle, etc.). Also, seen incompatibilities at the time of application, and or as it cured, but with patterns one would expect to see such as rippling, cracks, etc. But paint failure as this appears, no.

What is extremely odd here is that if this were a nozzle issue, you would not have near the texture you see, but instead a softer orange peel from the spitting nozzle. Does it look this way immediately out of the can? If you take your finger and rub the paint off directly after application, what does it feel like? Is it gritty/hard, or are these actually air bubbles? Does it happen on any surface you spray, or just the rocket; potentially outlining an incompatible base? If it is in fact gritty, then clearly something failed with the chemicals inside the paint can. Did it cure properly, or is it still sticky to the touch?

Dry spray can also cause similar/less severe issues, but as similar to the spitting, I would expect the texture to be a little different/less blatant. Even with a “nozzle failure”, the actual paint would self level to even a modest capacity and hence be a little different than your pic. So this just does not make sense unless it is truly a bad lot. Again, possible, but I have never seen it.

I would say take it to a paint store, such as Dunn & Edwards (not Home Depot) and have a pro tell you what he thinks it is. That said, if you paint atop a primed surface, or even a virgin surface, and take it back to the store, they should have no argument in returning it. Heck, I would even call the manufacturer…

Maybe they mislabeled an actual texture spray... :chuckle:

Looks like a bit of sanding is in order… Ouch…