Painting a bike (fiberglass)

[Petorius]

Before I hurt myself over-Googling this, any good resources you can point me to? Anything counter-intuitive about doing an awesome rattle can job?

[jwm2k3]

Subscribed. I need to paint the race bike...I'm leaning towards rattle can as well...

[nhbubba]

http://bayarearidersforum.com/forums...d.php?t=264901

Add or subtract steps and or substitute lesser materials if your goals are less lofty.

[Petorius]

Sweet, that's exactly what I was looking for. Thanks

[number9]

I have a compressor and an HVLP gun that you're welcome to use. But you would have to come to me, the compressor weighs 150lbs. I've never used the gun, so I can't offer any skills

[nhbubba]

I'm in the camp that rustoleum rattle cans from home-despot are good 'nuf for race bodywork.

[Paul_E_D]

I'm in the camp that rustoleum rattle cans from home-despot are good 'nuf for race bodywork.

Until you spill gas on it fueling up in a hurry. Been there, done that. Annoying as hell. You can have actual automotive paint and clear put in quality spray cans. That's the minimum investment I would make. Especially for a gas tank.

[nhbubba]

Point taken. I thought (actually, I know) we were talking about fiberglass body work not including the tank. My tank will remain multi-color dent and I suspect the OP's will too. But the good stuff is probably worthwhile for the tank or any other sheet metal. I agree.

[Stromper]

nria video

Look for primer sealer

Top coat 2 coats of Urethane seems to be gas resistant, I was successful with a Minwax

[Trouble]

Until you spill gas on it fueling up in a hurry. Been there, done that. Annoying as hell. You can have actual automotive paint and clear put in quality spray cans. That's the minimum investment I would make. Especially for a gas tank.

A PKism comes to mind here. If you can't afford to do it right the first time, how are you going to afford to do it again? Or something like that.

Of course this is me being sensitive because I painted a tank for a teammate last round and had to sand off four different color layers of rattle can with bondo applied over random coats before being able to spray automotive paint. If you don't do it right the first time it'll be a bitch if you ever want to do it right afterwards.

[jwm2k3]

My concern level on how it looks is very low here...

Rattle can???

Who wants to help with lots of beers?????

[number9]

Of course this is me being sensitive because I painted a tank for a teammate last round and had to sand off four different color layers of rattle can with bondo applied over random coats before being able to spray automotive paint. If you don't do it right the first time it'll be a bitch if you ever want to do it right afterwards.

That's why God invented blast cabinets

[nhbubba]

A PKism comes to mind here. If you can't afford to do it right the first time, how are you going to afford to do it again? Or something like that.

I dunno. I understand that some of you take this stuff very seriously. I've seen some of the OCD some of ya'll apply to these race bikes, and I aspire to be at that level. But at some point there is a law of diminishing returns. In my case, garbage in.. really no way to get top shelf goodness out. Beat to hell plastics that probably should have been retired long ago, three layers of fiberglass patch applied to the exterior over existing stickers, and all to a kit designed for a different bike anyway. Well. Really, why bother investing in $50+ worth of paint for that. I'll stick with $15 worth of rustoleum from the hardware store and deal with the fallout later.

I also happen to believe that you can get pretty darn good results with hardware store paints. I'm probably not the one to demonstrate this as I was fast and loose with my prep (never, ever good). But I do believe you can get good results.

[Tas]

Are those race numbers on that Colin?? After speaking with you back in February it seemed you had no interest in racing. Funny how things change, good for you. Hope to be joining you next spring.

[nhbubba]

I'm sure I said a lot of things in February!
Plan was to do nothing but track days in 2014 and wait-n-see for '15. I am altering the deal. Pray I don't alter it any further.

[Falko]

I've had good success (not on a bike but other things) with the little Preval spray set ups at HD. Small glass container and disposable aerosol charges. You can get one part paint from places like Summit for shorter money but not as cheap as Rustoleum but it holds up better.

[Paul_E_D]

I dunno. I understand that some of you take this stuff very seriously. I've seen some of the OCD some of ya'll apply to these race bikes, and I aspire to be at that level. But at some point there is a law of diminishing returns. In my case, garbage in.. really no way to get top shelf goodness out. Beat to hell plastics that probably should have been retired long ago, three layers of fiberglass patch applied to the exterior over existing stickers, and all to a kit designed for a different bike anyway. Well. Really, why bother investing in $50+ worth of paint for that. I'll stick with $15 worth of rustoleum from the hardware store and deal with the fallout later.

I also happen to believe that you can get pretty darn good results with hardware store paints. I'm probably not the one to demonstrate this as I was fast and loose with my prep (never, ever good). But I do believe you can get good results.

Yeah, rat bikes are a different story. We all started there. I don't think racebikes need to be as pretty as mine, but durable paint (at least on the gas tank) just makes life easier.

[nhbubba]

Can you lay the 2-part ("2k") paints over anything? My understanding is that the 2-part paints like the Eastwood 2K sprays are very durable and excellent for tanks. Does one need to use their bases as well, or can you lay a clear gloss or semi-gloss over a hardware-store enamel? @ $25/can, it's pretty pricey for something that will (unfortunately) get tossed down a race track eventually.

I think Pete is just trying to do a halfway decent job spraying his fiberglass kit for his race bike. I'll be shocked (and impressed) if he shows up friday with a painted tank.

I think he should have put this in the pit area.

[lak-o-wits]

If you are looking for a cheap rattle can job that will look pretty nice, here is the easy recipe:

1. prep, prep, prep
2. get some enamel of your choice..even some rustoleum will work fine, or you could go to a car parts store like Sanels, and get a custome color mixed up.
3. lay down 2 to 3 coats, start light
4. let it dry for a week or so
5. rough it up with some scotch bright pads, or better yet, sand with 1000 grit wet dry till the gloss is gone and the high spots are gone
6. get some Eastwood 2k clear coat. its a catalyzed clear in a rattle can, about 25 bucks per can
7. lay down 4 to 5 coats and let that dry for 2-3 days
8. wet sand with 1500 grit, then 2000 grit paper, until the gloss is gone and the high spots are gone
9. compound it by hand with some fine grit rubbing compound, then some polishing compound or swirl mark remover.
10. wait a few weeks then wax it. presto

[lak-o-wits]

BTW, the Eastwood 2k can go over just about anything, preferrably a urethane, but it lays fine over enamel though. I wouyld not, however, lay it over a laquer(duplicolor) as laquer never really dries completely. It likes to shrink too.

[nhbubba]

1. prep, prep, prep

What happens when you don't do this step correctly:


Masking tape took the color coat right off.

In related news, I am not a fan of Rustoleum brand masking tape. 3M or nothing, I say.

[lak-o-wits]

yes indeed, prep work is key. You can be a maestro with a rattle can, but if the prep underneath was not done correctly, then the paint will not look good at all. I have found, as far as clear coats go, that the best you can get from a rattle can is the Eastwood 2K urethane. After about a week of drying, it gets super hard, and from what I can tell so far, is very fuel resistant. It is easy to work with as well, although once activated, only has a pot life of about 48 hours, then it is no good.

[lak-o-wits]

another tip. when laying down the paint(and more inportantly the clear) you have to watch it flow to avoid a rough finish that requires a mountain of sanding. As you spray, you have to pay close attention to how it flows out onto the surface. i generally lay down one very light mist coat, let it flash, then lay down 2-3 more medium wet coats. The more you put down, the more you have to work with when wet sanding it before you end up sanding down to the color coat. Alos, when using any sort of catalyzed paint, wear a respirator rated for organic vapors. I CANNOT stress this enough. Catalyzed paint contains Isocyanoacrlates(think I spelled this correctly) imagine spraying vaporized superglue up you nose.....this stuff will wreak havoc on your respiratory system in the long term.

[Petorius]

Thanks for all the input everyone. To clarify, I am not going to paint anything before round 7. At the moment, I am planning to spend some time on this and do a decent job in the off-season (tank included). The level of ambition will depend mostly on how cold my garage gets in the winter. Speaking of which, bad idea to run a propane heater in the garage while I'm spraying stuff?

[jasnmar]

And don't paint in the cold .