Built to Last

The Line-X Ultra coating on Lee Frongner’s truck is about 40 times tougher than a comparable powdercoat. The 100 percent aliphatic polyurea thin-build spray is physically durable, sparkles with a pressure wash, and is sunproof with its 100 percent UV-stable formulation. Lee, the former owner and operator of a Line-X franchise in Shelley, Idaho, had his eye on the material for nearly two years for his personal truck before it became available, and when the opportunity finally came, this thin-build coating became the final touch on a project years in the making. He says, “I knew when I saw the material that as soon as it was available I wanted to spray the truck. They say it’s ten times more durable than powder coating.” At that strength, his thoughts raced with the possibilities, and he finally got the chance to finish off his project work truck with a brilliant white Line-X Ultra coating when it became available about six months ago. “I’ve always liked just a really clean truck,” Lee says. “It turned out really, really nicely.” 

He continues, “I just wondered what the ease of care would be for the Line-X Ultra. With a high-pressure washer and some mild scrubbing, it comes cleaner than any paint I’ve been around.” Easy to maintain, this ultra robust coating protects the truck’s surface from grime, bumps, and bruises, but for this truck, that extreme durability isn’t just skin deep. That same commitment to toughness for the long term has influenced every decision Lee Frongner has made in regard to this truck from the purchase to the paint job, and 200,000 hardworking miles later, the pickup is proving daily that it is here for the long haul. 

Robust Or Bust 

In Lee’s other business as a construction contractor, his income is literally dependent on his ability to move to job sites reliably. As such, he had no intention of hitching up to a less than reliable machine. “It’s our livelihood, really,” Lee says. “It’s what gets all of our tools to and from the job site, and it had to be reliable.” Every component and system in this truck had to be ready to work as hard as he did, no matter what, without breaking or failing to perform to the highest level. “The truck is really my work truck,” Lee says. "It has been for the life of it. We purchased it with 10,000 miles on it back in 2008. I’m just about to hit 200,000 miles on the pickup, and it’s pulled a trailer 95 percent of its life.”