Kitty Vision update

[Lucky]

a progress report on the bike:

what's done:
--carbs gone thru, installed, synqed
--tank installed as-is, works fine. i'll worry about the dark corners later, i'm not worried about it.
--front brake master & caliper torn down, cleaned, reassembled & bled.  handle is spongy as crap, not sure if it's the master, caliper, hose or combination, but it works well enough for basic movement.
--rear brake spring & brake light spring installed, brakes checked, and adjusted, work great.
--steering head bearings redone
--quick coat of primer on front fender, speedo holder installed & fender installed.
--headlight installed, turn signals installed, all wiring gone over, bundled & neatened.
--cooling system tubes resealed, hose clamps replaced, filled & burped.
--both levers replaced
--clutch was frozen, freed & adjusted

Still to be done:
--figure out or just replace the front brakes
--brake bar bolts, front tire at least, neutral sensor, coolant bottle, right side body panels, master cyl sight glass all to be replaced.
--fork brace on it's way.
--seat & paint restoration (she's going for a really good looking dark purple)
--lots of little details.

--Lucky

[Lucky]

A year later...

I've been working on the tank for the last week or so, a little here, a little there.  earlier in the week i soldered up the rust holes and began sanding the tank down. this red tank was originaly black.  Today sanded the primer, found all the low spots, bondo'ed, sanded, reprimered, sanded again & pronounced her good for paint.

she got one coat of Duplicolor BGM0521 Dark Toreador Metalic.  I Have to say, despite having that adjustable nozzle, this stuff splatters & that pisses me right off.  going to let it dry for a couple of days then wet sand it & apply another coat, more wet sanding, then several layers of Clearcoat.  

i'm trying to get ther to go for some silver or gold pinstripes.  it's not the Nissan skyline purple she wanted, she knows I haven't got the $$ for that... but i hope she likes it.

[fret not]

Lucky, unless you have major problems with what you have there (looks good from here) just put clear over that without sanding.  Metallics don't take to sanding well, and that looks like fairly large metallic particles, which will naturally leave a rough surface.  Just put the clear over it and do your sanding in the clear coats.  The less thickness of the paint the more likely it will last a while as it can dry more thoroughly than thick coats.  Rally thick clear coats look wonderful when they are new but will deteriorate in the UV light and heat, can check and crack from shrinking, and are more prone to fuel damage unless they are totally cured and dry dry dry. 


The answer to a great paint job is mostly in the preparation of the surfaces.  Second most important is a steady hand and even application of the paint, and keep it thin.  You need only enough color to get it to look like the color you're trying for, then apply the clear to build the body.  I would spray 2 coats of clear and sand lightly to knock off any bumps and spray a couple more and sand a bit heavier.  You basically sand off most of the clear and keep adding coats and sanding them off so all the tiny spots get filled with clear.  Once you get all the shiny spots sanded out spray one light coat of clear, just enough to make it wet and it levels out.  Let it dry, sand it out with 800 and 1200, then buff.  If you have a really clean spray area and your prep is perfect you should be able to spray the last coat and leave it at that without sanding.  Good luck.

[Rick G]

It seems like you have done this before, Mark.
Tha's exactly haw I do it.!

[Lucky]

it's actually very small metal flake.  i did as the can said 8-10" from the tank & it dried too much before hitting the tank, so what looks like metal flake in the (poor) picture is actually the sun reflecting off the bumpy surface of the paint. I'll have to knock that down.  

in the corners, where it applied heavier & wet, it's smooth & shiney. 2nd coat will be slower & closer, just need to make sure it's smooth first & that i don't run it or orange peel it.

it didn't cover very well either, but that was over white primer (it's what i had)

[Rikugun]

I'd agree to sand and buff the clear coat only. I did the tail section with Rustoleum and it looked horrific with fish eyes when dry. The clear coat didn't help matters but wet sanding then buffing compound made the surface like glass. I didn't sand where the 'YAMAHA" badge goes and you can see how rough that looked. My cousin did a tank (using Rustoleum products) but the clear didn't hold up to gas spills even when cured. He re-did the project with a fuel safe clear and it's held up well.

[Lucky]

Normaly i'd take your advice, but this is really rough..  as rough as primer mostly (some areas are good)  Normaly i'd say blame the painter, not the product, but the temp, humidity & distance were all where the directions said.  I did find myself needing to slow down a little though...

I'd rather not get it too thick either, so i'll take the extra time & redo it right.  if I take it down, close to the primer & reapply it closer, & maybe a little slower, it should be good.

[fret not]

One main problem with thick paint is when it gets chipped the chips are bigger than if the paint were thin.

Lucky, actually your paint job doesn't look bad.  One problem with metallics is the way the paint flows as it hits the surface, and the metallic particles align with the flow.  If you get a sag or run and sand it level it shows prominently, and it also shows if you change air pressure of get too much paint on one spot.   I use a spray gun and a compressor for more control.  I can add thinner and retarder if the paint won't flow out, which you have no choice with a rattle can.  It can be a delicate line between getting the paint to flow out and getting too much on if you can't control the viscosity.  As mentioned above, use good quality paint, and good luck.