Is it just overspray from the spray paint? Try gently wiping down the whole piece with a soft cloth, then see if any more continues to come off after that.

Is the table wood, metal, or plastic?

Thanks franksmom, I'll try wiping it down VERY gently. I'm kind of afraid of wiping all the paint off since the paint doesn't seem to be sticking to the table. The table is wood and originally it had a fairly shiny finish.

Margie

Is the paint just coming off like a light fade picked up in your hands (just rubbing off as in overspray), or is it actually peeling? Spray paints, especially the metals will need more time to fully cure.

Also wondering if the night table had any type of contaminants on it such as any silicone or waxy films from furniture polishes, pledge, endust, etc? Just wondering if you cleaned it first or just sanded.

Decorativewalls, What is overspray? I think that might be the problem. The paint that comes off is like dust, but there's a lot of it. It's not peeling at all. I didn't clean the table before painting. Darn! Always one more step when I think I've thought of everything!

At the rustoleum consumer line they suggested wiping down with a damp cloth. They said with metallic paints some tiny little flakes stand up rather than laying flat against the surface, and those are the ones causing the problem. I don't know, there must be an awful lot of them. But that's my project for this weekend.

Yes, basically what the Rustoleum people said. An overspray of a very light mist of the particles that just settled on the top of the finish and did not get down into the already accepted finish sprays. This can happen with spray metals. You just want to make sure the *Actual Paint* job is sound and intact and I would take a very soft microfiber dry cloth first to wipe away the fine mist overspray and if all was not removed, I would use a very soft (lightly damp) cloth to softly wipe away.

So lets hope this helps , unless you have the silicone buildup on your furniture (don't know) you didn't mention if there could have been any type of furniture cleaners at all at any time on the table; If so this will definitely make a difference in a permanent bond.
good luck.

Thank you, decorativewalls and franksmom, for your help. After waiting a couple of weeks there was a lot less paint rubbing off. I wiped it down with a damp cloth and that helped, too. The table is usable now if you're careful what you put on it. But I definitely wouldn't use this paint again for a table. Maybe for a mirror frame or something you don't touch much.

Im having the same exact problem. Definitely NOT an over spray. It wipes darn near clean off. Theres nothing that you can do to keep the metallic silver spray and cover it with a primer that wont change the initial silver color. Its a bust. No one at Lowes or rustoleum seems to know the answer either.

any additional information on this? i am having the same exact problem. it looks horrible after I gently wipe it down... the paint never stops coming off until you can see the original backing

I'm dealing with the same issue now. Wipe down the pice you painted with a slightly damp cloth removing the overspray of the matalic particles in the paint that diden't adhere to your project, this is common with matalic paints. Then I suggest sealing it with a clear coat to keep this from happening again. Good luck!

having the same issue, rustoleum metallic paint transfers to anything. i've tried metallic chrome, silver, and aluminum. even the stick to plastic kind. it will not stay on the intended surface.

I even attempted auto paint from a car store. Didn't work. Oh well nice idea and look, unattainable.

I recently did a medicine cabinet frame with Ralph Lauren's hammered metal paint and it is not coming off in my hands at all. It will come off in the places I missed sanding but that's not the paint's problem. I did use a flat, Behr 'primer and paint in one' as a first coat (I thought I was going to distress it down to that layer but maybe it's the secret ingredient) and wait 12 hours or more between coats even when they say 2 hours. Totally works though ...

does it have the same shimmer as the "chrome" paints? its difficult to tell from the pics. nonetheless-- thank you for sharing your experience

!

I am having same problem. I am going to paint over it with Behr Marque paint and primer. I hope it works. I sanded it and wiped it. I just hope I don't mess it up.

I've only ever used the Ralph Lauren paint, so I don't know if it has a 'chrome shimmer' but it does have a shimmer and looks metallic (as opposed to a flat gray).

If you use a brush, it is a smooth, consistent silver. If you use their specialty rollers you get a 'hammered' textured appearance. (It's subtle.) I tested the paints on scrap wood and preferred when I used their rollers as it was slightly more organic looking. The display (at HD) did a pretty good job of showing what to expect. I'd love to hear if this works out for others! I'll let you know if the humidity of the bathroom eventually destroys the finish.

http://www.ralphlaurenpaint.com/specialty_finishes/metallic

I just did my bedside tables in white knight metallic originally black. First cleaned them then lightly sanded washed in soapy water then primed waited a hr then chrome x2 and they look incredible. What brought me to this page was 24 hrs later when you wipe your hand across your finger tips have like over spray that’s a guess looks like dust. Pretty much as was described in the earlier comments. But no paint is coming of. So I’ll give it another 24 hrs then wipe it over see what happen.

It sounds to me like the people mentioning issues with the coat coming off did not sand down the stuff they were painting or put a primer coat down. Both of things are important to ensure that the paint cures and binds to the frame correctly.

I have the same problem! I left it to dry for about 24hrs now and when I touch it, metallic residue comes off on my fingers! Probably should’ve sanded it more as my mirror had a really shiny finish to it already.

Same problem with three pieces of furniture and exact same issue dealing with ACE who I think ACE brand is manufactured by rustoleum because same chalking issue both protects that are sale color. just found out it is the aluminum and that have to wipe down then coat with Minwax Polycrylic that won’t react with Aluminum. Lesson is don’t use unless outdoors and not touch unless ready to do extra work for look

I have the same problem. It’s little fine dust particles that are left on your fingers when you run your hands down the frame. My concern is this is a floor length mirror. Even though it won’t be moved or touched much, it’s going to be resting on our carpet floor and I don’t want the paint to sink into the carpet. :( it looks really pretty though

I sprayed the aluminum parts of my boat with this paint. 4 weeks later and it still comes off slightly, more so in earlier weeks my nice paint job now looks horrible due to just moving about the boat or rubbing against while working on other projects on said boat, and also the tarp covering the boat rubbed some off. You cant even clear coat the shit or it turns the paint to flat grey and it loses the metallic look. Worse yet the spray cans have a huge fan spray and it carries some distance, had to googone the carpet in the boat to get it out. Also the stuff is really hard to spray over with other good collars like gloss black or gloss whit as it seems to separate the pain in a bubbly pattern, wet or dry. Also tryed another brand of metalic spray and same issues. Does anyone know how I can clear coat this to incase and retain the metallic look? Dont buy the liquid paint shit either it comes out flat grey.

Why won't my photos upload

I also noticed the same thing so I let it all dry a good two hours then I lightly wet sanded the entire surface 1000 then went to a car wash and gently soap and water cleaned dried , then with anew microfiber cloth dabbed a little bit of high purity mineral spirits lightly wiped entire surface let it dry at least 30 minutes then do a once over with a new clean tack cloth .One section at a time recoated with a third coat let it all dry 1 1/2 - 2 hours then without touching the surface in any way sprayed on a light coat of Rust-Oleum triple thick glaze and after a couple of hours inspected by rubbing fingers lightly over surface and voila ,! No silvery dusty residue and looks as if I have sealed the chrome silvery mirror like finish I will probably lightly sand with 1500 and apply a second and third coat and I should be good .I think the trick here is to make sure the surface is well sanded and then impeccably cleaned and being very careful not to bump or touch the surface also works slot better if you are inside a garage or enclosed space so wind isn't blowing the sprayed product away from the surface it is intended to protect make sure your cans are well shaken at all times .

This is a bad product. All these efforts needed to rescue projects and all this questioning of the surface prep and application process, in the end should be recognized as a sad indictment of a lousy product. You didn't do anything wrong. No paint should rub off the way this stuff does.

Rustoleum aluminum (chrome) paint is crap. It is not meant to be touched ever. It wipes right off. It has no hardener nor clear that rises to the top to protect it. Don’t waste your money. This aluminum paint has been around for decades and never was any good.