With the economy nowdays, you got to save a buck where you can...

[Tx Firefighter]

I just wanted to post a bit of experience I've had lately on my truck.

I've been outfitting my 3/4 ton as a welding rig and in doing so, built a bumper, tailgate, and now racks and brackets inside the bed for the torch, welder, cables, etc..



I built everything myself, and painted it using that cheap Alkyd enamel Tractor Supply paint. It's 28 bucks a gallon right off the shelf. I also bought their store brand paint hardener. All total, for a gallon of paint, pint of hardender, and quart of reducer with tax, it was 51 dollars.

Overall, I'm 150 percent happy with the results. It takes awhile longer to fully harden, and I do expect a decrease in long term durability compared to name brand paint, but for less than 1/2 the price in materials compared to mainline paint, it fits the bill perfectly.

I highly recommend this route for non critical applications like frames, suspension, brackets, or in my case, rigging out a work truck.

With the money I saved I will be able to buy more stuff to make this turd better than ever.