Step 5: Experimenting with painting the cabinets

My cabinets are original 1950 metal cabinets.  Painting them well is not easy.  I cannot afford to have them properly done, so I either have to leave them marred and scarred or find an adequate way to paint them.  I've been to estate sales where the original metal cabinets were painted and they were horrible!  Another big risk is that while the paint job might look good at first, the paint easily scratches off.

A little online research, and I decided to try this method:

1.  Remove hardware and rough up the surface of the cabinet with steel wool.
2.  Thoroughly clean and dry the cabinet.
3.  Spray a layer of metal primer and let dry.
4.  Spray paint the desired color evenly and let dry for 12-24 hours.
5.  Spray paint a second layer and let dry for 12-24 hours.
6.  Spray a layer of clear coat and let dry for 12-24 hours.
7. Replace hardware.

It's going to take a very long time to do all my cabinets this way, if it works.  I tried it out on an old, ugly cabinet by my fridge.

In this picture, you can see the difference when compared to the cabinet on the right behind the mixer on top of the fridge.