$50 Paint Job - Tremclad (rust-oleum) Paint

I am not in any way a paint or painting expert and this is by no means an endorsement to do this and I take no responsibility for your results if you decide to do this, so do so at your own risk. I am posting this as I find this type of information very useful and have made good use of many how-to articles on this site so I wanted to give back.

That out of the way...

The $50.00 Paint job

Probably more like $30.00 or less for a bike. I have some bad paint fade on the rear section of a 91 VFR I picked up about a year ago and was looking for an inexpensive way to repaint it over the winter in my basement. After some searching on the web I came across the $50.00 paint job, seems common to be done on a car but could only find one reference to someone who did it on a tank of a 250 Ninja.

Links

http://board.moparts...l...part=1&vc=1

http://ca.youtube.co...feature=channel

This should give you an idea of what I started with.

Note the paint is almost faded to white on the top portion of the tail section, bungies had also worn through the paint down to black plastic on the sides.


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Basically you use a foam roller to roll on Tremclad rust paint (also known as rutoleum in the US). the paint is thinned 40% to 50% with Mineral Spirits.

I used 1/2 can of 230ml Fire Red Tremclad and 1/2 can 230 ml International Red Tremclad mixed to get the color somewhat close to the original paint. This was thinned to about 40% to 50% with Mineral Spirits

Repair all minor imperfections with spot putty

Scuff up the original paint with 400 grit sand paper

Apply 1 coat of paint and let it dry for 12 - 24 hours

I think this is coat 1 - it looked bad after this and I was not sure it was going to turn out

Apply coat 2 and let dry 24 hours

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wet sand with 600 grit to remove imperfections

2 more coats of paint allow to dry between coats - Still somewhat worried this isn't going to work.

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Wetsand

2 more coats of paint allow to dry between coats - Starting to see better results now

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Wetsand

Repeat until you are satisfied with the coverage, it was 7 or 8 coats for me.

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On the final coat wetsand with 1500 to 2000 grit - I used 2000 grit

Let paint harden for at least 2 weeks

Buff with power buffer (I didn't have a power buffer so I did it by hand) with cheap Turtle Wax polishing compound.

The result on the bike but a I still have to do the buffing.

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This is after some hand buffing

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In the end I was pleased with the results the biggest issue for me is the color doesn't match. It works OK on the tail section as it is separated from the rest of the bike so it isn't as noticable. If I was doing this on a black bike it probably would be less of an issue.

My first VTEC as a salvage title wreck and I replaced almost every piece of bodywork with new or better condition used parts. So, I was left with nearly a full set of rashed parts (mainly light damage) taking up space in the garage and decided to try an experimental spray bomb paint job on it. I basically did the same as you (multi-coats and wet sanding) except I also added clear coats, vinyl wings I cut myself, and then going through a laborious 3 step hand polish (rubbing compound, polish, and light scratch remover) with a couple of coats of wax at the end. I LOVED the results of my hard efforts but unfortunately rock dings, oily grime, and spilled gas were too much for it. I rode it for about a year (garage kept).


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Custom VFR paint Wing paint scheme with white base coat.

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If I were to do it again, I would chance color-rites' spray bomb clear working with the store brand paints since it is gasoline safe and way more durable.

Rolled, rattle canned, or even air brushed can get good results if you use a lot of elbow grease or electricity via buffer.

The one BIG problem is that these paints are not tough and will give it up if gas or any harsh solvent spills on them, whereas factory paint can stand up to any of these things for the most part so you have to be very careful with the paint job for the rest of the bike's life.

It takes a good sprayer and safety gear coupled with high priced specialty paint ( automotive ) to restore a factory finish.

Oh yeah, throw a bunch of skill with the sprayer in to get it perfect.

I too painted my with rattle can (Colorrite base/clear) with excellent results - better than stock.

some tips:

1. clean/fill everything before you start and use a high fill primer
2. wetsand till smooth - if there are any imperfections, do not assume multiple layers of paint/clear will fix the issue
3. use multiple thin coats of base 5-6 and allow full cure time (depending on temps, plan on 2 weeks if 70 degrees plus, 5 weeks is preferred)
4. wet sand with 1500-2000 grit, pausing to wash and review your work and making sure not to burn through to the primer
5. clear as per the base color - I used 5 coats on the assumption that 1-2 of them would come off under wet sanding
6. allow to cure as per #3
7. used Griots polish levels 1,2,3 with an orbital to bring up the shine. Use a ruler to measure "depth" and keep polishing until you get at least 12" clearly readable on the ruler
8. allow to cure some more for final setup - then wax with a high quality wax - enjoy
9. do not use off the shelf krylon clears - use the colorrite ones, they stand up better and are semi gas resistant

My .02 is that if you read a little bit you can safely use pro paints (PPG, etc.)
in the HVLP Harbor Freight gun($40.00). Your results will be better and easier than rattle can and it dries dust free and to hard much faster. The trick is that you must not breathe the stuff at all. So make a fresh air breathing rig by hooking a 25.00 bathroom vent fan onto a well sealed face mask from HD. Just block off one cannister and put a PVC fitting on the other side, hook up with lightweight bilge pump hose from West Marine or similar. Goggles cover the eyes and voila, you are fully covered. Vent the spray area with a box fan. My results were great after a good clearcoat over decals and a polish job like described.

some tips:

1. clean/fill everything before you start and use a high fill primer
2. wetsand till smooth - if there are any imperfections, do not assume multiple layers of paint/clear will fix the issue

Can't agree enough with these points. A tip for sanding the primer is to give a light spray of dark paint over primer before sanding. This will tell you visually where any depressions you can't feel are when sanding. The number of times I sanded a tank or panel and wiped it clean only to see still more dark paint in an missed imperfection.... .

Oh and VENTILATE!!.

Dave.

Just posting to say thanks for this information is all.

I think I am just about ready to start with the painting process on my 2002 (been thinking about it for awhile now). Mine has spent much of its life exposed to the sun. So, it has basically turned from the "fast" red to a subtle pink'ish color in certain spots. Plus, I let the insurance lapse over the winter. So, the weather has began turning nice once again, and now that I am ready to enjoy my bike, the DMV says that I have to turn in my plates for 30 days... Oh well, that gives me the time needed to do this correctly.

I just have to decide on a color scheme now. Been thinking about all black. Not sure though (wouldn't want to slow it down too much, ya know)?

I am soo looking forward to riding again! Been on a break for awhile now (about 2 years)... Can't wait!

Also, I see that my oil thread was closed down... Me, I like to put in some AMSoil myself! Good stuff in my honest opinion. Much better than that extra Virgin stuff that came soo highly recomended....

Later