Roller Painting Upol Raptor: An Amazing Van Roof Transformation

Our Mercedes Vario roof, like the rest of the bus, needs some TLC. This week we repair rust, prep the paint and apply Upol Raptor using a roller to give it a fresh new look. Once dried this paint should be durable, UV stable and look good - but this is the first time we've done something like this (just like the rest of our van build).

Applying the Upol Raptor using their rollers took a bit of getting used to, but i got the hang of it and managed to achieve that Raptor texture we all know. As always this was all in the prep, so the vid walks you through the steps taken.

As always thanks so much for watching. Your comments and support are really driving us on (especially as we seem to be hitting a few gnarly walls lately). If you're new here - Welcome along! Please subscribe to follow our weekly progress updates; we show the whole lot. Good, bad, funny, not funny, birdy - all that jazz.

Items we used to restore our van roof with uPol Raptor

- 5 schultz tins of Tintable Upol Raptor - https://ebay.us/4h6HAK here's one seller that also tints
- 10 #upolraptor Rollers - Amazon now have these that look the same but way cheaper: https://amzn.to/48pyu5B
- Upol panel wipe: https://amzn.to/482MXon
- Buzzweld Rust Encapsulator: https://ebay.us/ICsDbi
- Jenolite Rust Convertor -https://amzn.to/3uJgUGx
- Upol pre mixed fiberglass
- 320 grit sanding disks and abrasive pads - https://amzn.to/2RDgEtG
- tack rags - https://amzn.to/3eAbJ69

Rolling Raptor Project chapters

00:00 Intro Credits
00:00:15 A quick hello from us
00:00:32 Cleaning the roof
00:02:07 Discovering and rubbing back rust around our Mercedes Vario back doors
00:04:00 Removing old camera and light; rusty roof above the back door
00:08:28 Why we hired a scaffold tower for our van build
00:08:54 Day Two; preparing the surface with 320 grit and treating rust
00:10:48 Removing the old aerial from our Mercedes Vario
00:11:30 Day 3 -rubbing back and keying the paint
00:14:21 How we Positioned and Drilled out solar cable gland
00:16:41 More prep and progress shots of prepared Vs. Not prepared Paint
00:17:38 Mixing the Upol Rapor, Raptor Rollers and Overview
00:19:43 First coat of Raptor using a roller and why the rollers disintegrate
00:21:47 Testing the Raptor for hardness before the second coat and the correct #rollerraptor technique for rolling on raptor
00:25:04 Second coat of Upol Raptor bedliner results
00:27:02 End credits and behind the scenes

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About us and our journey

We are converting this beast of a Mercedes Vario minibus into a tiny adventure home on wheels. We have grand plans for travel and adventure and are documenting the build each week. We are building in our spare time and need all the help we can get. With that in mind we love hearing your thoughts in the comments and would appreciate a cheeky thumbs up if you've enjoyed the video.

Thanks again for watching our #selfbuildcamper series. Take care.