Paint Flyer

[Otilia Mojarro]

Irecently purchased an American Flyer No. 767 Illuminated Branford Roadside Dinner 1950 - 1954 model. A lot of the paint has peeled off. I was hoping if someone out there can tell me the best way to repaint the accessory, any special type of paints I can use, etc. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Many thanks.

One of the first considerations you might have is that many collectors are of the opinion that once you have repainted an item you have devalued it, because you have altered it's "original" condition. Lucky for you this is not a high value item to AF collectors; prices range from $50 to $150 depending upon physical condition. But if that is a consideration for you then you might just stick to giving it a good cleaning.

A second consideration is whether you wish to spend the time and money to get custom-made paints that are an exact match, or if you are content to use commercial paints that are "close enough". If your plan is just to touch up damaged areas you should probably go the custom paint route. There are sources online for custom matched AF paints. Hemmings is one, Port Lines Hobby Supply is another. Port Lines can also sell you the rubber stamps and red ink you will need to restore the signs on the side of the diner.

But if you are thinking about repainting the entire object basically you need three colors; yellow, green and red, and you can probably find good matches for all in your local hardware or paint store.

I had a diner that lost it's paint also. It is a common problem with the painted version of the diner. Since the shell is bakelite it is easy to strip the remaining paint off. I repainted mine yellow with a black roof and got reproduction dry transfer lettering like the original had. You can get lettering from Port Line hobbies on line. Once the paint starts to flake off there is no good way to stop it. Good luck on your restoration.

If the paint's sloughing off the bakelite shell I'd suspect there was never a primer coat put on before the color coat was. I'd suggest anyone repainting one of those shells to prime it first before the main color goes on.

Our first step involved taking apart the Radio Flyer tricycle to get a better idea of what we were dealing with; this process exposed more rusty spots and a few loose screws (hence, the wonky steering). After cleaning up the old parts, and treating a few of them for rust (a vinegar soak + WD-40 did wonders), we set out to choose our paint.

As we started the painting process, we felt a little like we were in an episode of Pimp My Ride (remember? On MTV?). My husband, Bruno, acted as Xzibit and documented most of the process, adding his two cents every so often, and I became the paint and body expert, using a two-color process. We decided if we were going to go to the trouble of painting the trike, we might as well throw in a few extras. So, in true PMR fashion, we customized it.

The first few coats of white went on easily, and only took about 30 minutes to dry. While the white dried, I painted the other parts using the other colors. The whole process worked very efficiently, and the weather conditions were perfect, dappled sunshine, a gentle breeze, and no rain in sight. However, I should have checked the forecast, because as the afternoon went on, the winds picked up and with that came the threat of rain. Fortunately, I was able to finish all the painting before the rain came, but the wind worked against me, blowing all manner of cottonwood seeds, small insects, and the like into my drying paint.

On day three the decals arrived and we very carefully set them in place and began the purple painting process on the bucket and trike body. At this point, all of the other painting was done and we could barely wait for the paint to dry so we could remove the decals and see how dazzling everything looked.

Using three cans of Krylon Dual spray paint (in white, purple, and watermelon), some custom decals we created using a Silhouette cutting machine, and a new set of wheels, we made a one-of-a-kind tricycle that our daughter adores. Check out the transformation (and scroll down for the video reveal!):

My kids have an old Radio Flyer wagon that was in need of a good makeover. The paint inside the bed was all worn away and replaced by an ever-worsening layer of rust. The paint on all the other parts was chipped and peeling as well, showing signs of rust underneath.

I'll show you the steps I took to strip it all down and refinish it. While I can't technically call this a restoration (because it wasn't returned to its original state), it looks good and is functional--which is what I was after. My kids now have a shiny new-looking wagon that will hopefully hold up to many more years of use.

It took a little time and attention but this wasn't a terribly difficult project. If you have an old red wagon that needs a little love, perhaps you can get some useful ideas from this. Thanks for taking a look.

You can purchase new wheels and hub caps as well as most other parts for current wagon models at Radio Flyer's website. If you need to remove the wheels, this page on Radio Flyer's website has instructions on how to remove the hub caps. Note that they get destroyed in the process. If you're restoring an older discontinued model, finding parts may be a little more tricky . . . but there's always eBay.

I worked on the bottom of the inside of the bed for quite a while but couldn't seem to get down to bare metal. All the loose brown rust was removed, but the surface was still slightly rough and pitted. I could have used body filler to get a smoother surface but I didn't feel it was worth the trouble, especially since I planned on giving the bed interior a textured, rubberized coating.

Rust-Oleum sells a truck bed coating spray which I have used in the past for other projects. I figured I'd try this rubberized undercoating instead, and actually found that I like the finish it provides much better. It was dry to the touch in a few hours but it took about five days until felt fully cured.

You can purchase new vinyl ones from their website for about $15 apiece, which I had no interest in doing. I considered making my own stencil and painting the logo back on, or even one of the older logos instead. In the end I concluded that this clean, badge-less look is just fine with me. I don't think the kids will mind.

It is estimated that approximately 50% of the waste collected during municipal household hazardous waste events (HHW) is made up of only paint. This also mostly accounts for half the costs of recycling and disposal for HHW items. *Product Stewardship Institute

Please do not! We ask that you do not leave any paint products outside of the collection facility at any time. It is important that citizens observe this request to help minimize accidental leakages that could harm environmental quality, humans, and wildlife.

All liquid paint can be recycled for a fee of $5 per gallon and $25 per 5-gallon container, regardless of amount within. No charge for spray paint cans. Recycling paint can be costly for the Solid Waste Division and reduce the amount of funding available towards new recycling programs for the community. This minimal fee helps Solid Waste cover this program and ensure that paints are being properly recycled or disposed of. We appreciate your understanding.

We ask that you only mix good quality, latex or acrylic paints together. Never mix oil-based paints or related items together, as these items are flammable. This ensures that the quality of paint we receive is high enough to be made into new materials or new paint.

Depending on the quality of paint received , latex and oil-based paints can be refined and start a whole new life as something else or new, usable paint. A variety of open landfill operations around the country can use bulked latex and acrylic paints as spray-on daily covers. High quality non-hazardous paints can be reformed into new paints after the color is refined or even be mixed into cement fill. Oil-based paints can be used as alternative fuel bases and as cement block fill once the volatile chemicals are removed.

A majority of paint containers are now made out of plastic or metal and can be recycled once they are emptied and cleaned out. Spray paint cans that are made of steel can also be recycled. These items can be recycled at the Convenience Center daily as long as they are empty. Please be sure to remove plastic caps from metal cans.

If you look for white wagons on sites such as Etsy they go for $200-$500. Insane right?! Because we were having such a hard time finding a nice and affordable one, we decided to go the DIY route. We started off with a classic, used red Radio Flyer wagon that we found for $30 on Facebook Marketplace. You can also try OfferUp and Craigslist (a brand new one retails for at least $100). Read on for detailed instructions on how to DIY an all white wagon!

First, remove the 4 wooden panels and then hose everything (including the wooden panels) down with water. Use a cloth immediately after to thoroughly dry the wagon and prevent the metal from rusting. Let all parts completely dry over night.

Lay down all wagon parts listed in Step 2 on newspaper, cardboard or paint drop cloth. Pro tip: Do NOT use plastic. We made this mistake (as seen in the photos below) and noticed that the spray paint would stick to the plastic and took longer to dry.

Put gloves on for protection and spray paint the first layer of each wagon part on one side. For tips on how to spray paint correctly, watch this YouTube video. Let the first layer dry completely. Flip over the wagon parts and spray paint the other side. Repeat on each side until the layers thoroughly cover the base color or logo. Let dry completely in between each layer.

The Fort Pierce Redevelopment Agency (FPRA) is excited to continue offering its Paint Program as part of ongoing efforts to revitalize both residential and commercial properties in the FPRA district. This program, which has seen significant success since its launch, is open to qualified applicants.

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