What is the deal with Vekoma's Paint?

Deja Vu at SFGam and PKI's Face Off are getting repainted this offseason... But what is the deal with Vekoma's paint? Deja and Face Off looked like they where camouflaged. But those two rides arent the only ones that have huge white blotches on them. So whats the deal here?

I'm guessing that Vekoma has nothing to do with the paint.

I've seen those white blotches on coasters from a slew of manufacturers from Arrow to Zamperla. Take paint and expose it to the elements and see what happens.

But they seem to be more frequent on Vekoma's.

Out of curiosity how do you know that?

is deja vu getting the same colors and why so soon. Looks like its painting record is gonna surpass its operational record!

Why so soon...have a look at this photo and look at the supports: http://www.coasterbuzz.com/rollercoasterphoto.htm?i=2887

The whole ride is like this. I have also noticed it seems to be found on alot of Vekoma Ride's, im not sure what the spots are from but Face Off at PKI, Thunderhawk at GL along with the Deja Vu's are just some of the Vekoma's that have these spots.

And I don't know if the weather is the cause of the spot's, Deja Vu at SFGAm has had the spots since it was built, it's not something that has happened over time.

PGA's Invertigo was just painted a few weeks ago. Did Vekoma give out free paint to all its customers as Christmas presents (or sorry "we messed up" presents)? I can't believe how many Vekomas are getting new coats of paint.

Corkscrew at Alton Towers is getting repainted too. Look no further than Oblivion to see how loathe the park are to paint their rides.

I may be wrong. But, maybe it's just touch-up paint that isn't the same quality. When they haul around these pieces during shipping and installation they're sure to get banged up and chipped. I'd think that they fix the paint as they go or before the season starts. Weather kills paint! The touch-up paint just doesn't hold up like the original paint job.

It's definately not just Vekoma...take a look at Intamin! Millennium Force already needs another paint job. And TTD is already getting dull and faded in spots.

It probably is touch-up where the ride was scratched or whatever. You can see it on Millennium Force as you walk up the queue ramp. Remember Mantis before it was repainted? Nasty.

Regardless, I don't understand why the paint they use isn't more durable to the elements. I thought technology was better than that.

i used to work for a hydraulic cylinder company. We did work for the steel mills in ohio and pa. Most were painted dark blue, but the ones for mobile equipment were Cat Yellow.
Cat Yellow was a special paint that held up well against the elements. Keep in mind, this stuff cost like 40-55 bucks a gal back in 1987. The average cylinder size was about a 14" diam by 10 feet long, which took about a 1/4 gal to spray..
I think coaster makers are more concerned w/how the coaster works than how well the paint holds up. I imagine the rides at CP take a huge pounding every winter being out by the lake, more so that GL in Solon.

It's funny Chang at SFKK has been repainted no less than three times in 7 years. Sun and paint just don't mix well.

Chuck, who actually thinks Togos used that old toyota metal. they type where the bed rotted but the rest of the truck was fine.

chuck: that's too true about toyota's...
i have a friend w/a mid-eighties toyota p-up. Engine runs great at 425,000 miles. He remade the bed out of wood, like 4years after he bought it and metal eroded away... :)

They use crappy paint so you'll have something to complain about on Coasterbuzz. ;)

Really, I'm sure it's all about the cost of the paint. How many gallons do you suppose it would take to repaint Face/Off as compared to a full circuit like Millennium Force?

4,329.6 gallons. Duh.

Whatever they used on Raptor seems to be holding up well, if you discount the bird crap anyway.

---

Jeff said:
Regardless, I don't understand why the paint they use isn't more durable to the elements. I thought technology was better than that.

---

I don't think the deciding factor is paint *technology* so much as it is the COST of really good (i.e., durable) paint...

Besides, labor cost isn't really all that....not as much as it would be if *I* were president...THEN they'd use higher quality paint in an effort to offset the cost of re-painting, LOL...;)

P.S. Sorry for the *rant*, just listening to the song "If I were president"...

shudder

While we're on the subject of cost and paint.
When i had to repaint the interior of my rental prop last summer, i went to Sherwin Williams and asked to look at their mis-tints, which are basically returned paint. I picked 20 gals of ProClassic for a about 6 bucks a gal. keep in mind, when you buy mistints, buy them in lots w/the same code. mistint does not mean the colors don't match, it simply means someone bought the stuff, tried some on the wall and didn't like how it came out, or was slightly differant than the color indicator.
just an fyi.

I think how it is applied has something to do with it too. Assembly-line paint jobs can carefully control the heat and humidity both while the paint is applied and while it cures. You don't get to do that painting an outdoor structure, unless you fully enclose it first.

I read up on this a little bit when I considered changing the color of my wife's "single-girl, pre-married, chick car" from amythest to something a bit less dramatic. It didn't take me long to decide that it was a losing proposition.

Edit: plus, I've decided that I look fabulous in purple.

*** Edited 1/19/2005 5:53:38 PM UTC by Brian Noble***