Painting My Stingray - hints??

[Piney69]

Is there anything wrong with painting over an old bike with primer?
I don't have the time nor patience to sand the bike down to metal, and I tested the paint on the forks (primer, 2 coats of paint, clear coat) at it looked fine.


Also, what is the recommended drying time for primer coats, paint coats, and clear coats? I heard 7 days between coats.

Thanks, Chris

 

[scrumblero]

painting over old paint is fine, they rarely strip cars bare before painting them.

as far as drying times? if your good and working on a well prepped surface you can spray everything at once, as soon as the last coat flashes lay on the next.
if you need to sand between coats, you just need to make sure its dry enough it doesn't ball up when sanding..

 

[Lonewolf]

Dry time to avoid "balling up" could be several hours. It depends on the thickness of the layer,the type of paint and the environment.

We have a nice snap of good spray painting weather, though.

More very light coats is better than a couple of heavy coats.

It's very tempting to just "psycho spray" until it shines, but you are way better off taking your time.

Otherwise, reading your post made me laugh and I said to myself: "This dude is perfect for rat rodding".

 

[M.Martian]

You don't have to go down to bare metal but you will want to give it a good prep. Take anything loose off and get the surface as smooth as you can.

It's all about the prep.

 

[X-RAY]

im currently repainting my mtb. as strange as it may seem, im following the directions on the cans. :shock: i'll let you know how it turns out when im done. so far, i can tell you if your doin white stripes over a darker base, it may be better to do the stripes first & mask 'em off. either way, cheap tape sucks!
also, if i wetsand before i clear, will my white stripes be ruined by my red basecoat? i probably shoulda cleared between colors, but its my first time.

 

[B607]

The tape to use for striping is 3M #218 Fine Line Tape. You can get it at an auto paint supply store and it's not cheap. About $11 a roll. At least get one roll of 1/16" to lay next to where you're painting. Gary

 

[Piney69]

Many thanks all. I have to wait for some nice crisp days to arrive, then will take my time, using the many lighter coat method for a clean finish. Yes, it is a custom bike, not a faithful restoration to original. But I realize I am catching the restoration bug...

 

[X-RAY]

after reading over and over to use light coats, dont get anxious and hog it on, i have to say use light coats, dont get anxious and hog it on!!! it takes more restraint than i realized in my impatient little mind. :lol:

 

[Lonewolf]

I have had to strip and repaint so many times I can't even tell ya.

When humans have a can of spray paint, they become spray paint freaks. We all want it to shine on the first or second coat and we aren't afraid of holding the can in one place until it does.

It's about putting paint down. The last coat is where you might want to save polishing time by spraying a wet coat on. Thing is, you almost invariably get sags and have mistakes. Also, it's my belief that the quality of store bought rattle can paint has gone down.

Krylon is about the worst as it's substrate is powerful enough to act as a remover for the previous coat (This is a recent development as I do not remember it ever doing this in the past).

Rattle can paint goes on way too heavy as there isn't enough reducer and the can itself has no flow, or pressure adjustability.

Car guns do, but they are a colossal pain in the rear end unless you are a professional or hi functioning hobbyist.

Safety equipment, expensive materials ,air tank, gun, lines, driers, mixing scale, stir cups, toxins, etc.

It's hard to beat automotive paint for durability and end finish, but it's hard to beat the simplicity of the cheap route also.

I've heard of people becoming hypertoxified and dying after one single unprotected car paint session.