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Painting high-gloss metal without peeling

I have a cheap, polished brass-finish (I doubt that it is real brass) chandelier that looks like it has some kind of high-gloss lacquer finish coat. I'd like to paint it matte black with a well-known brand of metal paint in a spray can. What is the best way to prepare the brass-finish surface to accept the black spray paint. I hope I don't have to sand down the surface to create a "tooth". Are there primers I can use instead?

Thanks in advance!

Marion C [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]
- Shawnigan Lake, BC, Canada

April 13, 2010

Hi, Marion. As you say, it's may not be brass if it was cheap. There are "self-etching primers" =>

. . . that are made for brass and similar metals, and they should be fine as long as there is not a reaction with the lacquer, clearcoat, or whatever is the top layer of this shiny unknown finish.

If there is a reaction that causes bubbling, it will surely happen immediately, rather than off into the future, and then you'll be faced with the need to remove whatever the existing paint or lacquer is. But struggling with a stripping procedure that probably isn't necessary would be a lot of extra work with possibly nasty chemicals. Good luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.
finishing.com
Brick, New Jersey

Self-etching primer

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