Re-painting my 93 Dutchmen motorhome.

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Hello all, I have been visiting this forum for about a year now. I am a part time rv'er and I am updating my 1993 Dutchmen (Dutch) 28' class A motorhome. As the pictures show the exterior fiberglass and decals was in poor condition. I bought it five years ago for $5300 with only 45000 miles on it. I have replaced the table, counters, water pump, flooring, and awnings and I just finished repainting the exterior. I got estimates from several boduy shops around here and the cost to repaint was more than I paid for Dutch. I decided to prep it by sanding and removing all of the decals 60 hours of hard labor later I was ready to paint. Cont.
 

 

[shadow]

Once you`re done painting the exterior, show us some pictures of the finished product.

 

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Once you`re done painting the exterior, show us some pictures of the finished product.[/quote]

This is the finished camper. I am still trying to resize the photos to get them to post. I hope they are here. Jeff

 

[Gunny]

Looks very good.

Rob

 

[OutdoorFT]

Nice RV. And nice job!

 

[jonsun]

wow that had to be a job

 

[Wabbit]

Nice job! Did you build a plastic tent to paint that in?

 

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wow that had to be a job

Yes, it was a work of love. My grandson and I repainted it Jan. 15 in the mIddle of a wind and snow storm. I used a Harbor Freight $169 airless paint sprayer and Sherwin Williams acrylic latex house paint over their bonding primer. The actual painting went very smooth. I also rebuilt the front door completely and added 200 watts of solar and 2 golf cart batteries. I think I we will be ready for some great boondocking this year'. I especially like the forests of southern Colorado. Jeff

 

[ArtW]

Nice!

 

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Nice job! Did you build a plastic tent to paint that in?

Yes, it was 40' long 14' wide and 12' high. I used 6 mill heavy plastic a100 x20 foot roll. The tent cost about $300 of the $900 total cost. I had to tie it down with ropes to keep it from blowing away.

 

[Ballenxj]

Once you`re done painting the exterior, show us some pictures of the finished product.

This is the finished camper.


Looks good! Between the interior remodel, and the exterior paint, you should be very proud of it now since you've done it yourself.

 

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This is the finished camper.


Looks good! Between the interior remodel, and the exterior paint, you should be very proud of it now since you've done it yourself.

Yes, I am glad that I was able to do all of my own work. I was an appliance repaiman, a gas technician, and I worked on an electrical contracting crew in my younger days. That experience has helped me a lot. I find that if I do my research on a repair that I can tackle most anything. If I wasn' t able to fix things I would still be camping in a tent as I sure could not afford to pay for repairs. With the internet and a little patient thinking you can solve most of your RV problems yourself. The big limiting factor for many is the physical limitations we all face. Jeff B

 

[closeanuf]

I used to buy wrecked cars and pickups and rebuild them so I have a pretty good idea of what you had to go through.  That's one major project for anybody, but for someone to tackle something this big to start with is awesome.  I especially like the fact you had your grandson help you.  This is something he will remember forever, not to mention the benefit it will be to him in years to come.  My hat is off to you sir!


Allen

 

[ceejay]

Yes, I am glad that I was able to do all of my own work. I was an appliance repaiman, a gas technician, and I worked on an electrical contracting crew in my younger days. That experience has helped me a lot. I find that if I do my research on a repair that I can tackle most anything. If I wasn' t able to fix things I would still be camping in a tent as I sure could not afford to pay for repairs. With the internet and a little patient thinking you can solve most of your RV problems yourself. The big limiting factor for many is the physical limitations we all face. Jeff B

really nice .. congrats

 

[highdesertranger]

nice job. although I would have picked desert sand for the color. highdesertranger

 

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nice job.  although I would have picked desert sand for the color.  highdesertranger

Thanks. It was a dark cream color with blue and grey decals. I wanted it to look like it is newer than it is. Most of the newer trailers and smaller motorhomes area white base. I don't think I will add any graphics to it.  Jeff B

 

[highdesertranger]

no, no graphics please. looks fine as it is. highdesertranger

 

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Thanks High desert ranger. I am amazed at how good it looks. It has always performed great it was just the faded decals and peeling clear coat that was dragging it down.

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

Looks great,  I know when I start big projects like this I question my sanity while knee deep in the middle of it but then once it's done it feels really good and you get to admire the finished product for years to come.  I don't care for the typical motor home graphics from the factory, but I might add a pin stripe or two down the sides to break up the look of it.  

I did it in paint real quick just to see what it would look like.  My photo shop skills leave a bit to be desired, but I think a few plain pin stripes can really change the look of things.

 

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Every road leads home, The stripes look good. My wife thinks a dark blue over a teal blue would look good. The upholstery and awnings are blue and white. Could you show me a picture of what that would look like? Thanks, Jeff