cbrstar

I was lucky today and found this at the local pawnshop. As you can see the last owner abused the paint on the top tube. But the rest of the paint looks like new and would like to save it.

I can't paint to save my life and I have had a few bikes powdercoated. But I never just one spot. Has anyone tried this? And how was the results, does it look great or stick out like a sore thumb? I might just end up powdering the whole frame.

SurferRosa

Sand down the top tube, mask it off, and take it (the frame only without the fork) to an auto body shop for paint.

cbrstar

I get ya. Sadly around here auto shops are prohibitively expensive so I might just get the whole frame and fork powered then.

Hudson308 

You can't blend powdercoat with original paint. The powdercoat process involves baking the frame in a 400 degree oven, which would ruin the original paint and graphics.
With that said, you can sometimes powdercoat over original powdercoat.
You can also sometimes paint over powdercoat.

noobinsf 

There are a lot of threads on this forum that discuss how to prep a frame for paint, so I won't go into that, but I will say that it's worth a shot to try DIY -- mask off the top tube and paint that single tube yourself with a bright white spray of Rustoleum (or similar). You can try it on some scrap pieces to color match before applying to the bike. At worst, it will look bad and you can get the frame powder coated. But do look around for bikeforums threads about paint prep. Lots of great advice has been shared, some of which I am currently following on my own paint project.

SurferRosa

Just the opposite here, powder coating is really expensive. And if you do the whole thing, you lose the original fade and then have to shell for decals.

Andy_K 

I agree with @noobinsf -- for that bike I'd definitely try self-painting with a rattle can. The hardest part is setting up a good, safe workspace. If you feel like going for best results, get a strip of sanding belt paper (about an inch wide and at least a foot long) and rub it back and forth over the top tube. Chances are good that will get down to bare metal quickly. If it doesn't, that's OK. You just need a consistently smooth surface. Mask of the good paint by taping garbage bags over everything. Spray on a layer of primer. Let it dry. Spray on several layers of white. The key here is to figure out the right distance from the tube to hold the spray can and how quickly/slowly to move. A $5 spray can will give you enough paint to cover that tube at least three or four times, so you can always start over and try again if you don't like the results.

At the end of the day, you'll be out less than $20 and there's a good chance you'll have picked up a new skill.

thook

i umpteenth the notion to DIY. white is an easy color to rattle can, i think. i'd do some research, though. perhaps there's a rattle can brand that produces the best effect in terms of spray action. i can almost guarantee there is a "best" out there and it'd still be a lot less than a PC or pro repaint. plus, that blue fade is so dang cool!!

krakhaus 

I'd just DIY paint the top tube, but if that's where your seat is comfortable, that bike is way too big for you.

repechage

I think few pawn shops do well with bikes unless they only hand out lunch money in trade for them.

CO_Hoya 

It appears that you have a complete Sante groupset, so you’ve done very well even if the frame is the wrong size.

acm

No need to reiterate what others said, DIY is the way to go for this project. If you want the best looking result you can afford to get a high quality spray paint like Spray.Bike or Montana Cans Gold for much less than the cost of PC. Take your time and make sure the majority of it is spent on prep, and you will have a nice looking bike on your hands.

Doug Fattic 

I'm a pro painter and don't think this would be a big job for us. It would involve these basic steps. 1. sand the top tube smooth. 2. spray a couple or 3 coats of epoxy white primer. 3. sand the primer. 4. spray a couple of coats of urethane or polyurethane white. 5. Buff out the edges so it blends with the original paint.

I suppose the cost would be around $100 US dollars, maybe a bit more. It would be kind of a shame to lose the original paint fade and decals. I'm not sure who are the pro bike painters in Canada. I'd look them up and ask them.

Because I have all pro equipment and paint, I'm not very familiar with DIY products that work well doing bike frames. What I can tell you is that there is a learning curve to even simple methods and figuring out which sandpapers to use and what grit to buy can be a bit confusing if you have never done it before. Getting an even coats of paint from a spray can takes a certain touch. For some people this challenge is exciting and they love it but for others it is just confusing and difficult and frustrating. And then because they chose the wrong paint it doesn't look good nor does last.

John Nolan 

Everything that needs to be said:
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...paint-job.html

cbrstar

Here they will powder coat the frame, forks, and bars for $150 -$200. If take it to an automotive shop they have quoted me in the past $600-800cdn for the full paint job. The reason they told me was the prep work takes longer, I have to pay for the "Booth" time and they had to do multiple layers with wet sanding. I don't know about a single tube like this it might not be as bad.

Thank you for the advice everyone, I will try the DIY rattle can when the weather improves.

Phil_gretz

Now to the nuts and bolts:
- first, fully disassemble the bike. That'll give you two advantages: fewer things to protect from overspray, and a chance to thoroughly clean and lubricate every part before re-mounting later. You'll have time to clean everything as your paint cures.

- second, prep is where work gets done. Remove only to the joints/lugs where you will begin and end the paint. Get it down to clean bare metal. Then clean with a degreaser. Then clean with a tack cloth.

- third, a good epoxy primer. The suggestion above was a good one. It bonds more durably to the metal. It's also tougher when cured. Two coats, sanding lightly in between. Follow the suggestion on the can, or you can brush. Sand with 800 or 1000 grit, until smooth to the touch. Then clean and tack cloth again.

- fourth, your base coat. This can be automotive paint or home center paint. Automotive may have more not-quite-white options to suit a good match for your bike. Distance from nozzle to work piece is the key to a liquid lay down. The first coat can be light. The next coat should be "wetter". You'll already have a white primer coat, so coverage isn't a problem. Practice so you know how to avoid drips.

- fifth, a 2-stage clear coat. Likely what your bike's paint already had. 2K products are inexpensive and work quite well. Read the instructions and watch a few YouTube videos to understand what you're doing. It's not hard.

- sixth, the curing. Wait to begin re-assembly. Make sure that you have new cable housings, cables, and brake pads.

Your bike will be worth the effort. PG

francophile 

Like everyone said, rattle can it.

Sand the top tube and clean it. cut open a garbage bag, cutting it down both sides but leaving the bottom intact. Use one bag to cover everything from the seat tube back and downtube/head tube forward, so the tubes I mention are nestled in the former bottom seam of the bag.

Hit the top tube with white self-etching primer in at least 2-3 ultra-light coats, you don't need full coverage on the 1st or 2nd coat, that's the biggest mistake most people make (read the can beforehand to see how long to shake the can for mixing, and how long to wait between coats).
Follow-up with your preferred flavor of gloss white rattle can paint, again, at least 2-3 very light coats. Most important part: Allow proper cure time before riding. Enamel requires time to harden. That window may be upwards of 2-3 weeks but - regardless what the can says - I'd recommend giving at least 4-5 days.

There is absolutely no reason to strip that entire bike over an ugly top tube. Nor is it necessary to disassemble. Garbage bags are plenty sufficient, as is old newspaper if you want to be more enviro-friendly.

Johno59

If you have to blend into the PC with paint you can apply some paint thinners to the PC in the area to be painted. This softens the PC and provides a key for the paint to bind to. I don't recommend it on a large area but I had to burn a seatpost out and thus cooked the PC. Not being a fan of PC but wanting to keep the existing decals I did the thinners trick down to where the PC was solid and ran the paint into the good PC.
Sanding PC is a real PITA.