To Rat or not to Rat......?

Agreed

 

@Luis Navarro did you mean there are two things - patina and rat?
@Baysearcher Is my van a rat? I would say not but it is scruffy.

 

I'd call it patina as I've done nothing to it.
I parked next to a fake early the other day. It had been blue, then painted red and rubbed through in all the wrong places. It looked alright despite that, the blue/red thing works.

 

Yeah I would definitely class them as different things. Patina to me is a well timeworn and naturally weathered look, whereas rat is more often than not taking a shabby vehicle and making it a 'thing' by making it even more shabby lol

 

I like the 'not-quite concours' look. Attention to detail, original colours and tasteful mods....

 

Finally, with loads of compression, cropping, settings and a little whisky, I've managed to upload a pic.

I did say it was a mess......

Definitely a survivor and showing his scars.

The original tempest blue is just showing on the worn bits at the panel joins and under the gutters.

Fix and re-spray?

Sand it back to a risky patina/faux rat?

or continue to say "**** you I don't care what you think"?

 

TBH at the mo it looks a mess.

 

Rock solid underneath though, with gallons of waxoil and underseal.
Appearances next.

 

I like it.

Definitely this, whatever you do to it.

Probably a good idea to get some paint on the primer though. Brushed on rustoleum, tractor enamel etc. probably better than letting it rust. It's on my to-do list too...

 

Difficult to retain a careworn look when you replace panels and doors. It would be more trouble than making it into a shiney one. I sold my shiney buses (after having to restore them) and bought a naturally battered one.
It's ironic that the battered camper freedom rose tinted carefree dream so often ends with the dreamer in posession of a shiney minter, worrying that someone will nick it.

 

That's deep.....
You've been on the whisky as well.

 

Anything short of a re-spray and yours is still going to look tidier than mine!

 

99% T-Total actually, not had a drink since techenders. You think about these things as you turn rusty buses with character into shiney new looking ones.

 

It's a tough one. I'm more comfortable in a scruffy vehicle but a respray would probably add £5K to my bus... Still, currently leaning towards brush painting some parts in slightly the wrong shade (what's in the shed) to preserve it for as long as I can get away with it.

I know, I'm jealous.