Basic paint advice
 

Hi all
I am looking for some advice about painting my motorbike,as posted in a previous post the paint on the tank and some fairing bits has reacted when lacquered.
I am bare metalling the tank and need to know the best way forward,I'm thinking etch primer first , then high build primer followed by normal primer , then top coat which will be white.
What is best for home spraying,I have a compressor and gun .
Cellulose, 1k , 2k , water based etc is where I fall down. Any advice greatly appreciated
Stan,

Hi Stan,
Can't offer any advice about what paints to use (or not) But please post some pics of the results ;)
Chris

Not an expert painter here, but general advice is to stay away from 2k for home use - it tends to be isocyanate based, and really needs you to have a filtered air positive pressure face mask to work with - it can cause pretty bad lung problems.

Cellulose paints aren't too bad to work with, but you'll really need a lacquer coat over the top of whatever you do as the paint layer itself tends to be relatively soft.

https://axleaddict.com/motorcycles/H...cycle-Gas-Tank seems to be something that might help you here.

As said unless you really want to kit up for 2pack paint then don't try. applied wrong it'll just flake off is a pain to use (fumes, time limit etc..). You say you have a compressor and gun but don't say what the CFM or storage reservoir is on your compressor or the type of gun you'll be using (e.g. is it gravity fed : i.e. bottle on top?).


It's quite possible to achieve a good finish on a bike with aerosol cans and patience.

I'd say that whichever paint brand/type you choose then stick to at least using the same type from base layer to clearcoat - my preference is to stick to the same brand (although it's probably 20 years since I last did a full respray on a bike).

Etch primer, filler (there's always a small dent or two), Hi build primer then basecoat (the basecoat colour will depend on the topcoat colour you are using and the look you are aiming for) then clearcoat. Just make sure at each stage that there's absolutely no contaminant on the surface before adding a coat of paint by wiping over with a degreaser intended for the purpose: always wear clean nitrile gloves when handling the parts Or hold using clean cloths. Set yourself up a mini spray booth (use plastic sheeting and imagnination) and hang each part in such a way as you can spray most of it in one go with having to move or handle it. This helps keep dust away from fresh paint and overspray off of everything else.


My personal choice is cellulose ('cos I'm old school and used to how it goes on). But read the pros and cons for each type for you your application, remember on a bike you have both high heat areas (e.g. close to engine/exhaust) and flexing areas on the plastics (i.e. fairings and sidepanels).

Thanks so far,I had pretty much ruled 2k out due to h+s and was thinking of going with cellulose.
Do the primers have to be cellulose as well? Or can you use rattle cans for priming and put a cellulose top coat on and which clear coat to use?
Also if using cellulose top coat can I use a metallic blue for detailing or will this react?

Will do,might be a while yet though ,
I might start a link in the projects section

I'd use the same paint type throughout and wouldn't risk reactions - they don't always show immediately. I think finding the best combination for home use is going to take a bit of web-searching - I had a brief look out there yesterday lunctime and came to the conclusion that nitro-cellulose is probably the easiest and most reliable if not the most hard wearing to use. It's best when used with a good lacquer to protect it. As far as the metallic goes it's going to depend on the paint base - you get all sorts in metallics.

I want to spray my Honda Blackbird as I have crashed it several times and no two panels are the same colour. But when I did the same with my old Triumph ST before the car/wall/bike interface which ended its' life, I had it painted by someone. They told me there were specific paints for plastic as they need to flex without cracking. I have no idea if this is true or not though!

You do all the research, find out what works, experiment and get the bike all sorted and everything, then tell me the results so I don't have to do any work!
:laughing2:

No matter what your not going to beat 2k for finish and wearing straight off the gun.Thats why most panel shops use it.High gloss,no cutting back and no polishing, yes , you do need to kit up for it but if your only spraying somthing small like a bike tank or a small part that should be ok as you can buy 1k base coat colour (basically like an acrylic paint ) and do a 2 pack clear coat, both in aerosol cans.
Ideally you should have clean air feed full face mask, overalls ,gloves, booth etc if your doing a large job like a whole car etc but if you doing somthing small I'm told Sunstrom do a filtered mask that filters out 2k but is only good for about 39 hours if left exposed to oxygen
Dosnt matter if your tsing acrylic,enamel or 2 pack, all of it is bad for you so you don't want to be breathing it.
Big difference with 2 pack is if there is a lot of it in the air (like a booth) it can be absorbed into your body via eyes,exposed skin etc hence the precautions.

I took a look at that link, and brief it is .... Not something I'd rely on for advice for a good finish.

I found this site http://carsprays.com/ giving some useful advice on paint selections.

Here's another possibly useful link http://www.chuckhawks.com/harley_paintin.htm