Grrrrr ... I can sympathize. I painted my front door with BM Regal Select and it never cured. Months later I put on the weatherstipping and as soon as I shut the door, the paint stuck to it. Two years later, it still doesn't feel hard. I will never again use their paints on windows or doors. I do love their Aura on walls, though.

I definitely agree with you! It's worth waiting.

Years back I painted my stairs with SW Porch and Floor paint (high gloss). It never cured. Even used fans...hoping it would eventually be ok. After weeks and weeks there was still a horrible tacky feel. I did all the correct prep and used Zinssers BIN primer. Took it back to the SW store and was told it was a 'bad batch'. They gave me a free gallon of some marine grade floor paint and threw in some sandpaper and more tape. I was also told they were going to stop making the product. (They still make it, btw.) While that was nice it didn't fix all the time I meticulously spent. The project was ruined. At that point, to be corrected, everything needed to be fully stripped. Scuff sanding just gummed up and even made the primer uneven underneath. Gah! I still get irritated talking about it. Long story short, I didn't have the energy or desire to strip everything so it's done, but not to my liking. Looking forward to the day we can replace the railings and treads.

Before I started my kitchen staining project you can believe I thoroughly tested everything.

We had a contractor replace all aluminum wiring with copper. Took a long time for me to get ready. I had to figure out how to reach every outlet, switch, ceiling fixture in this entire large 2 story house. Then my wife and I cut openings everywhere so they could run the wiring. Saved a lot of electrican labor and wall/ceiling damage the way we did it.

Problem: I bought a $100 Rotozip SAW to do the sheetrock cutting. I now consider it the most useless tool I ever purchased. Beautiful video of them cutting sheetrock. Real life was that in 3 feet of cutting it filled the room with clouds of dust. Switched to a cheap vibrating saw from Harbour Freight with one on my dull blades; It worked like magic. Never hesitate to switch quickly when real life does not match marketing bs. You waste money; so what. Think how much you are saving by doing it yourself.

Even more useless IMHO is a regular rotozip. Both now collecting dust in my tool cabinet.

Bobjax, I don't consider your paint & primer post to be a rant. It's good advice. I often get in too much of a hurry to complete a project and later regret my haste.

I used to like Zinsser but (maybe it's me) it doesn't seem the same. I really like this primer I used for my vanity. After two & half years it's still perfect. I bought it a Sherwin Williams.

Justerrilynn,

Thanks. Wish I knew how they influence each other. Click: All Rustoleum brands

Call up Sherwin Williams and they will find out for you.

Justerriynn, Have you tryed Zinnser 1-2-3? That primer really impresses me. I have used 5 different Zinsser primers. All have different purposes. Never been disappointed with performance. I also like Kilz brand. Will speak to SW about XIM when I visit next week. Have 2 gallons on 1-2-3 now and 2 more coming. So I feel I am OK now. Since Zinsser, and XIM are the same company, wonder if Zinsser is getting some technology from XIM.

The next primer I want to try is Zinsser BondZ or SW Extreme Bond (when it is on sale) for cabinets and wood. I will definitely ask about the XIM. Thanks!

Wow Justerrilynn, you are amazing!

I have 26 ft of bathroom cabinets to do plus 7 exposed sides. What paint do you use for cabinets?

Bob, I used Sherwin Williams All Surface Enamel acrylic latex, not the Pro Classic that is better suited for spray and does too fast drying for other. For my final coats I put some extended drying time "Floetrol" into my paint. Big learning curb on the Floetrol and exact amount needed. I'm not sure I would use it again.

Do you have a sprayer? For my next house remodel I will have a sprayer!!!

I would never get anything done if I did all of that. I'm with Kswl,
"Don't let perfect get in the way of good." Or something like that.

Yes, it's a curse! Those of us who are cursed go half mad at striving for perfection on every project...even knowing that "perfect" doesn't usually exist.

justerrilynn,

I had a fun conversation with the technical support people at Rust Oleum who make Zinsser and X-I-M.

I kept asking over and over in different words what product to use. He kept saying 1-2-3. I kept proposing different scenarios (about substrates, sanding requirements, top coats, etc.) he kept saying 1-2-3, although I kept bringing up X-I-M. I finally asked if this was the same product? Silence, then, "just use 1-2-3".

:-)

About perfection: Maybe it is the search for quality.

Click: Good story

justerrilynn,

Have 3 sprayers. I mean three different spray gun systems. If I had a booth I would use them more often. Remember I am probably A LOT older than you so had time to accumulate :-)

Last paint I used to paint cabinets was when I did white over brown kitchen cabinets. Used SW Sher-wood CAB Acrylic Lacquer, custom tinted, over B-I-N primer. Trim rolled with a micro roller. Back of doors sprayed. Front of doors I totally rebuilt. Will not even get into how I painted the front of the doors.

Great advice and timely. It's like the old adage, measure twice, cut once.

I'm testing paint colors right now for painting vinyl shutters and was advised (at my favorite BM store) to just use outdoor paint. Somehow that just didn't sound right to use without primer so you can bet I'm going to look into a primer, wouldn't you think?

OutsidePlaying,

That would be another research project for me. Plenty of suggestions on the internet.

Two minutes after reading some posts about painting shutters and painting vinyl siding I walk away thinking it it more about thorough cleaning and paint choice.

Agree. Just picking the paint color is a major ordeal, just like anywhere else. Then the experiment and research begins....