It's not the perfect paint job, but for the $300 I spent, it looks great for the money. I knew that both my wife and my neighbors would disapprove of it being there in the condition I bought it, because it looked so bad. Different colors, primer spots, a few dings, and some old name decals that were removed, but not forgotten. I needed a quick fix to first drive it home without Johnny Law giving me a once-over, and to keep the wife and the neighbors at bay.

Publisher’s Note: We originally ran this article in June 2013, so prices will be slightly higher now.

Down the road, I want a nice paint job, but that’s after I’ve completed the conversion. Now I just wanted it to be quick, cheap, and done, my version of the one-day auto paint to appease my neighbors while I work on the conversion.

In the morning, the first step was washing the bus. I used Tide dishwashing detergent at a very high concentration, mixing one cup of soap with one gallon of water. This makes for a great, quick grease, fuel, and dirt cutter for the back of the bus, where it was so dirty. Spray the soap onto the brush, let it sit and work for ten seconds, give it another quick brush, and rinse it off. Works great—first time, every time.

Next, I used a putty knife to scrape off any loose paint or decals, followed by wiping it down with acetone. This cut the glue from the stickers, as well as other “things” that had stuck to the body and paint.

Next step, apply some Bondo! In the few dings on the belt line, I ran some masking tape around one inch larger than the ding or scratch. This helps me scrape the Bondo only in the area needed and does not expand the area, which often happens. I mixed my Bondo “Hot,” meaning it dries quickly, and then I sanded it with a palm sander and 220-grit paper. I’m done with it. Is it perfect? No. But it’s pretty darn good for a quick once-over.

I did a quick walk around the bus with 220-grit sandpaper and sanded any major scratches to blend the edges down. I followed this with a quick once-over with the primer from the spray can. I used one gallon of Rust-Oleum spray primer to cover the entire bus.