How Many Coats of Paint?
 

I'm painting an old frame and wonder, where do I stop?

I figure 2 coats of primer and 2-3 coats of top coat.

Lots of sanding is a given.

Any comment?

I used lots of speckle applications rather than complete coats. About 3 speckle sprays give the equiv of a coat. You dont get the paint running and dripping, so dont need to sand.
I think my frame had the equiv of 2 undercoats and 1 top coat. It was a commuter hack, so the paintjob was purely functional.

I did this a couple of years ago - your approach sounds fine. The quality of the result is always down to care in preparation anyway. One thing I did find was that the finish was soft for a long time after painting (weeks). If you have the option, it is a good idea to leave it alone as long as possible before rebuilding.

Good luck,

Ed

I would use 1 good coat of primer, 2 coats of color and 3-4 coat of clear. I would also let the frame set about 24 hrs between color and clear. Then let the frame dry for about a week, if you can wait. I found a body shop that had a bake booth so mine only took 3 hrs to dry.

Clear coat?

Thanks for making my job harder.

Does one sand between clear coats? 600 carborendum?

Does Rustolium make a clear can of paint?

What's wrong with the single coat of Hammerite brushed on? ;)

Good ol hammerite :)

I would not use Rustolium, unless this is a bike you don't care about. I would go get auto paint, and clear, most place sell it even WalMart. I would sand with at the most 800 grit, for the primer and paint. I would then used 900-1000 grit for the clear. After the paint jobs has cured, I would use 1500, then buff. This will give that new bike shine. It is a lot of work, but if you want it to look good, it is a must.
Good luck
Dave

Scuff entire frame.

Wipe down with lacquer thinner to remove oil from hands and dust.

primer coat.

wetsand, fixing any flaws in primer.

primer coat again.

lightly wetsand again, and clean.

apply first coat of paint.

lightly wetsand any imperfections.

apply second coat of paint, and repeat.

apply one good coat of clear enamel.

You should wind up with a super smooth, super glossy finish product. The results are all dependent on the prep. work along the way. Take your time with it. Let it dry fully in between each step. You might not even need much primer, if you have a good base coat of existing paint. Just scuff it, until it is dulled a bit. You dont have to sand to the metal. Just take the top off.

I forgot to mention,,,,, if you are going to reapply decals, put them on just before laying down the clear enamel. That way they will stay on permanently.

I have a question to go along with this post on painting. Where would be the best place to paint your frame??

Longrider, not to say you are wrong, but it depends on what you want. Some colors come out darker or more brilliant with more coats. Apply thin coats, don't do heavy coats. Heavy coats tend to run. As for Clear coat do two because some times with the first you end up with some imperfections and you don't notice them until it dries. As for the best place, find a dry and preferrably dust free environment. If you don't have dust free try and keep it to a minimum.

Rattle cans are not recomended by me at all. The tend to coat on the heavy side initially and taper off towards the bottom of the can.

i have a friend that powder coats frames. powder coating results in a much better professional looking finish. the paint is very much more durable and much better looking that spray paint.

here's what i do.

25 steps only.
1. spray primer#1 then let dry
2. sand (wet) 1000/1500
3. spray primer#2 then let dry
4. sand (wet) grit 1000/1500
5. apply filler/puty(if necessary)
6. sand 1000/1500
7 spray primer#3 (only if you did step 5&6, otherwise skip)
8. spray color#1 then let dry
9. sand
10. spray color#2 then let dry
11. sand(lightly)
12. spray color#3 then let dry
13. sand(lightly) -- optional
14. spray color#4 then let dry
15. sand(lightly)
16. spray clear coat#1 then let dry, only do your clear coat when humidity is low
17. sand(lightly)
18. stick decals
19. spray clear coat #2
20. sand(lightly) -- optional
21 spray clear coat #3
22. sand(lightly) -- optional
23. apply rubbing compound then wipe off.
24. polish
25. wax(carnuba) to shine

OK I've read the previous posts, but would still like to pose the question. I've just got my hands on a previously abused by wonderous Brompton Folding bike. It was harshly spraypainted black by some fool. I'm sanded it down so I can see the original blue. I don't have much money, a good garage, or access to many types of paint - just whatever I find at the HEMA (typical big department store). Some say use spray paint... but I don't want to spraypaint and watch it slowly peel off. And I carry the frame alot, I dont want my hands turning blue.

Whats the best formula in relation to very little supplies or skill?

Clearcoat... I just dont think I can find that. Maybe the fancy bikeshop.

You can use spray paint, it's not recomended. It globs and coats very ununiformly. You should be able to find clear coat at the local store, it's with the spray paints in the automotive section usually. Auto parts stores some times carry it also.

what grit of and paper should I use for scuffing existing paint and what grit should
 

what grit of and paper should I use for scuffing existing paint and what grit should I use for wet sanding

Newbie, you made a common mistake in asking a question of someone who has not posted here in 14 years. I doubt you will get an answer and am no painter so suggest searching for a much newer thread and someone will help you.

Here's my 2 cents worth




First off , I have been using Rustoleum spray cans for years with good results.




Rustoleum is acrylic enamel and very durable.

It comes in a huge variety of colors and is dirt cheap.

They sell 2 different clear enamels, a standard one and another specifically for automotive use.

They also have acrylic lacquer in black, white, clear, red, and, I think, Yellow.




As many have said, prep is supremely important.




You must remove all contamination from the paint before spraying.

Especially difficult to clean is the bottom bracket since it always has grease in the nooks and crannies.




I usually use stripper then sand and finally sand blast the hard to get to spots .




When the frame is completely clean put on good rubber gloves for the rest of the work. The oils in your skin can contaminate the work.


Sand the bare frame ( or painted if you didn't strip)with 600 grit wet/dry then wipe down with alcohol.





Let dry thoroughly then , wipe down again with a painter's tack cloth which has a sticky resin in it that will remove any dust .




Set your frame on a bench using a dowel screwed into a board or clamped with a Jorgeson wood clamp and inserted into the seat post. you will be able to rotate the frame 360 deg. while painting.




Take your paint can (primer, topcoat, or clear) and place in a pan of hot water. warm the paint till when you shake the can it feels blood warm (not hot, you don't want the can to explode.




I generally try to spray outside in the morning when the air is calm , especially with enamel as it drys slowly and will get on everything in the garage if you don't spray in a booth.




If you decide to spray lacquer don't worry so much about the paint. lacquer dries so fast it doesn't stick to anything except the bike frame. also dust is less likely to stick to it as it drys fast.




when spraying , don't point at the frame and pull the trigger. Start your spray motion off the bike and drag the can across the frame and stop spraying off the frame at the other end of your pass.




Spraying a frame is tricky as there are lots of angles and small diameter tubes.




I usually will spray a coat of primer with the frame upside down on the dowel then , holding it by masked of parts, flip it over and clamp the bottom bracket with the Jorgesen clamp and spray from the top side down.




don't try to cover everything with the first coat. No matter how hard you try you will definitely miss something. Spray then wait 1/2 hr. and check for holidays . Then respray to insure you have everything covered.




You have 1 hour in which to do this.




Using Enamel , wait the proper time per the instructions( usually 48 hrs) then , with gloves on, inspect your work. If you have any runs try to carefully sand them off with 6oo wet sand paper. then check to be sure you haven't sanded through the the primer. Whether or not you are painting bare metal or over existing paint , always do a complete primer coat. If you spot prime You will have difficulties as the primer will probably show under the top coat as a shadow.




After you get the primer done wet sand with 1000 paper then dry and use the tack cloth . Do not wipe down with alcohol any more as it will wipe off the fresh paint.




Now you can spray your color coats. I do not sand between coats. I spray a coat then wait 45 min and spray another coat. this is usually enough to get full coverage .




Now one last inspection , gloves on . One reason I spray the frame upside down first then right side up is that small runs on the underside of the frame don't show and with the final coat from the top down little runs usually disappear. At this point you have enough color on the frame that you can probably remove imperfections with a light wet sanding with 1000 grit paper.




Now you are ready for the final clear coat if you want one. If you were careful with the color coat you should have a pretty good looking frame already .




Having done all that with enamel you should know that it will take about a week to do the complete job.




If on the other hand, you use lacquer you can paint a frame in a day or less. Generally you can recoat in 15-30 minutes and don't need to wait 48 hours between primer, color, and clear. Also lacquer dries differently than enamel and cures a lot faster . After your final coats you should wait one day before installing hardware but actually, if you are careful you can start in a few hours.




which ever way you go , remember to not touch the frame with your bare hands, make sure you clean and prep meticulously , warm the paint( it increases the pressure in the can And makes the paint atomise better)

Longrider, why don't you like rattle cans?
I did my motorcycle with them and it turned out really well.
I used the Montana (MTN) paint and even professional painters can't tell the difference.
All I did well was the preparation with wet sanding and 2K clear coat

I have spray painted couple of frames with Rustoleum. With proper technique and patience, good results can be achieved, but durability is not going to be very good. Numerous thin coats is better than a couple of thicker coats. The first couple should look like the frame is NOT getting good coverage, consistently lacking. Also, I have had a couple of frame sets power coated, which would definitely be my choice over DIY if I was doing another frames set. For the cost, time and effort, considering the final appearance and durability of the finish, powder coating is, IMO, superior.
However, I kind of enjoyed the whole process of DIY painting, and I liked the result, knowing ahead that the durability would be low. If it is something you want to give a try, do it with realistic, or no, expectations.

Zombie thread

All that paint should be dry by now.