I prepped and painted the bus on a Portland side street. It took about 3 days to complete over the labor day weekend. The response from the neighborhood incredibly positive. People seemed to enjoy watching the transformation and I lost count of the amount of people who stopped to make positive comments. With that said, there are usually rules against working on your vehicles in the street. And I have actually gotten harassed by parking authority when just charging a car battery.

Here is a finished product picture.

This spot worked out perfect for the paint process. But on a side note, my bulldog did get foxtail seeds in his paw from the field. I’m from the South and was unaware of foxtail seeds until that point. Definitely worth a Google if you are unfamiliar with foxtail seeds.

A lot of trucks and RV’s also stopped at this spot.

Rustoleum roll on paint job seemed like the best option after doing some Googling. There are plenty of people who lay out detailed instructions. Almond with blue stripes was the color choices I went with.

I did add a ceramic insulating additive to the roof paint. It’s a product called Insuladd.

This Safer Paint Thinner product worked well for wiping down the bus. But you should definitely use regular thinner for the paint. I only sanded the spots that were shiny like new because of being protected by decals.

I climbed on top of the roof and used a paint pole to reach as far as possible. Then transitioned to the ladder and used a paint brush/hand rolling.

Make sure to add extra thinner to the paint if you use the Insuladd product. My roof paint turned out too thick to lay down nice and smooth like the rest of the bus conversion paint did.

Finished up the roof after dark. Ended up having to go back over it one more time with a thinner coat of paint to get the desired finish. I used one quart of thinner to each gallon of paint. The paint thinner allows the paint to lay flat and dry fast which ends up making a nice finish.

There is a link to Part 2 of the bus conversion paint job below this picture.