Painting question

My 13 yo daughter decided she wants my beater road bike because it rides
so much easier and faster than her *mart MTB. The only problem is she
doesn't like the color, so I offered to spray paint it for her. I know
the drill about putting very thin coats on at a time, but don't know for
sure what I need to do to prep the previous paint for the new colors to
stick.

The old paint is still in pretty good shape, so will sanding it to
roughen the surface be enough for the spray paint (Rustoleum or other
paint which says it's for metal surfaces) to stick properly? I don't
expect the new paint to be as tough as a professional job or a powder
coat, but I'm not paying for a pro job either; I just don't want it to
flake off under normal use.

--
Dave Kerber
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On Sat, 29 May 2004 21:27:43 -0400, David Kerber
wrote:

My 13 yo daughter decided she wants my beater road bike because it rides
so much easier and faster than her *mart MTB. The only problem is she
doesn't like the color, so I offered to spray paint it for her. I know
the drill about putting very thin coats on at a time, but don't know for
sure what I need to do to prep the previous paint for the new colors to
stick.

The old paint is still in pretty good shape, so will sanding it to
roughen the surface be enough for the spray paint (Rustoleum or other
paint which says it's for metal surfaces) to stick properly? I don't
expect the new paint to be as tough as a professional job or a powder
coat, but I'm not paying for a pro job either; I just don't want it to
flake off under normal use.


Part of this depends on what the present surface is. If it is a
polyurethane, it will be very difficult to get anything to stick. If
it's a lacquer or acrylic enamel, pretty easy.

Start sanding and see what happens. If it sands easily, then you are
in luck, Use 180 or so to break the surface, then go over it with 280.
If it seems impossible or very slow to sand, you have problems.

Pretend it's ok- sand, then USE A PRIMER!!! Lightly sand this, and
maybe apply another coat of primer. Then the final color.

And then you wait. And wait. And wait.... the longer you can wait
before rebuilding the bike, the better. If you can put it in a warm
area, like a water heater closet, so much the better (but not inside
the house proper- the odors can be bad for the first few days).

..

"David Kerber" wrote in message
...
My 13 yo daughter decided she wants my beater road bike because it rides
so much easier and faster than her *mart MTB. The only problem is she
doesn't like the color, so I offered to spray paint it for her. I know
the drill about putting very thin coats on at a time, but don't know for
sure what I need to do to prep the previous paint for the new colors to
stick.

The old paint is still in pretty good shape, so will sanding it to
roughen the surface be enough for the spray paint (Rustoleum or other
paint which says it's for metal surfaces) to stick properly? I don't
expect the new paint to be as tough as a professional job or a powder
coat, but I'm not paying for a pro job either; I just don't want it to
flake off under normal use.

Primer without a doubt. Prep is the majority of the work. Once you paint
it leave it in direct sunlight for a few days if you can ... bake that stuff
on.

Back in the days when I used to paint cars all the time I would do the prep
work and most of the masking then drive the car over to Earl Scheib. Back
then the cheep paint job was $99. Not sure what it would be today, but you
might be able to get a local body shop to throw some extra paint on the bike
when they're painting a car. Ask around, and make a list of colors your
daughter wouldn't mind ... so the next time the body shop paints a car red,
they do your bike at the same time for an extra $30 or whatever.

C.Q.C.

Have it sandblasted before painting or take it to a powdercoater.
Phil Brown

David Kerber wrote:

My 13 yo daughter decided she wants my beater road bike because it rides
so much easier and faster than her *mart MTB. The only problem is she
doesn't like the color, so I offered to spray paint it for her. I know
the drill about putting very thin coats on at a time, but don't know for
sure what I need to do to prep the previous paint for the new colors to
stick.

The old paint is still in pretty good shape, so will sanding it to
roughen the surface be enough for the spray paint (Rustoleum or other
paint which says it's for metal surfaces) to stick properly? I don't
expect the new paint to be as tough as a professional job or a powder
coat, but I'm not paying for a pro job either; I just don't want it to
flake off under normal use.

Skip as many steps as you think you must but here are the
basics:
http://www.yellowjersey.org/paint_repair.html

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Phil Brown wrote:

Have it sandblasted before painting or take it to a powdercoater.
Phil Brown

Although a lot of people do strip bikes, in the auto body
world factory paint is just scuffed out and any damaged
areas attended to.

It's unlikely a home painter could beat the factory primer
and metal prep on most bikes.

Of course if it is mostly rust or the paint's peeling off in
sheets, do strip, clean, etch, primer and paint it.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Skip as many steps as you think you must but here are the
basics:
http://www.yellowjersey.org/paint_repair.html

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Andrew,

I can't get to your site; it times out in both Mozilla and IE. Any ideas?

Thanks!

"Emily" wrote in message
...
Skip as many steps as you think you must but here are the
basics:
http://www.yellowjersey.org/paint_repair.html

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Andrew,

I can't get to your site; it times out in both Mozilla and IE. Any ideas?

Thanks!

It's working for me now....nevermind! Thanks - this is exactly the
information I was looking for as I recently put a nasty scratch in my
chainstay and need to touch it up. My bike is carbon fiber - do you have
any tips for touching that up that might differ from a steel or aluminum
bike?

Thanks!
Emily

Skip as many steps as you think you must but here are the
basics:
http://www.yellowjersey.org/paint_repair.html
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Emily wrote:
I can't get to your site; it times out in both Mozilla and IE. Any ideas?

Me neither.
Our servers in Milwaukee have been in conniptions during
this weekend's thunderstorms. Try again please.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971