Korina

martl

Have you tried one of those mini HVLPs? Iwata makes a good ( though) one which i as a layman think is perfect for bike frames - not as much spray area as a proper full size gun, and works with a tiny airbrush compressor..



i finished my very rough first project with it. No closeups, they would be too embarassing but i learned a lot! Next project is in the queue, which will be just a plain color on a 1920 Peugeot



btw good job on the Sakae! That was my first good MTB until a scumbag stole it from my front door...

jbchybridrider 

Your Iwata is a great gun, definitely don't need any better than what you have. Ultimately it's going to be how it's setup

My Devibiss mini is a cheap gun that can do well too but one of the things that make it cheap is no adjuster knob markings and the adjusters are hyper sensitive. The build quality is good enough as I don't use it much so will last.
My photo shows the size difference between full size and mini. I can do good bike frame spraying with the big one but there's lots of paint wastage in the air because it's for large panels and the pot size makes manoeuvring around a frame in tight spots difficult. I've decided to make it the ultimate mini gun though I've ordered a 100ml pot, a T110 air cap "again" and a 1.2 fluid tip. It won't get much better spraying frames anymore then can swap the parts back for automotive jobs.

jbchybridrider 

Looks alright to me Must have been a lot of work marking off for different colors.

I don't know if you've seen this dude before. I like the way he paint the graphics and lines, I'd like giving his methods a try, of course it would take me awhile to complete a frame.

https://www.youtube.com/user/EtoEGermany/videos

Old Fireleg

Guys, the question may be trivial, but I'm absolutely layman. How much paint do you need to blow a frame and a fork in one coat with an airbrush? And what a rattlecan be enough for?

jbchybridrider 

Not trivial at all. If I haven't done a frame in a long while I have to have a good think about how much to mix.
Looking at my mini gun I'm not sure the pot size, it doesn't say on it but looks 200ml. I'd use half that as a first light coat frame and fork then 2 pots in total to complete the job "400ml" There's about 3 coats in there. I'd call that a thin paint job with good coverage, I'd usually have 10-20% left over just while checking the frame for to light or missed spots and struggle to finish it all. Clears another 400ml at least.
I think 1 rattle cans enough for primer colour then clear "3 cans".
My big guns a 1 litre pot. Not sure about using an air brush but probably less paint required.

Old Fireleg

Thanks a lot, Sir!

martl

@JBChy thanks for the kind words! I really used the bike as a learning lab - first time using a proper gun, using 2k colors, doing a multi color job, painting a cfk fork, using an airbrush to fix chip damage, etc.
Given the circumstances I was working in (a very moist, dirty and dusty cellar hole) I'm happy with the result, it's my beater bike and I may redo it next winter for funsies.
And yes I did spend a lot of time masking off - not as much as for sanding though hehe.

I did rattle can paint jobs before but with a gun it just is so much nicer. Also the Iwata uses almost no paint at all. I bought 0.375l cans of each the blue and green and I could paint another 5 bikes with what I've got left.
With rattle cans I always needed 2 cans per frame and the frames looked like the plastic coating one can find on plier grips

daviddavieboy

Paint is finished and some of the lettering done as well. I have chosen to paint the lettering as opposed to decals. Still need to clear coat as well. Anyone have thoughts on cable housing? Thinking on sticking with white.

jbchybridrider 

It's looking real nice. Clear will be the icing on the cake.
I tend to play it safe with colors so can only recommend black or grey housings.

jbchybridrider 

Just picked this ANI r150 for bike frames and other small jobs. Highly recommended, best gun for the price.

jbchybridrider 

Also just finishing giving my van a new roof today in original turquoise metallic with a GTi Pro Lite.

rku615

Superb color combination! Congrats on the good job

rku615

A lot talent in this thread. Anyone painted an 80's team livery?

Regards
Johnny

Pompiere

I bought this 1981 Fuji S12-S LTD last fall for a winter project and finished it last Sunday. It had a rough respray and I didn't care for the original color, so I chose cobalt blue metallic Rustolium with a clear coat. New decals from Velocals. Some of the original parts were missing, so I did the best I could with what I had in the bin. 32 miles this morning showed it was worth the effort.

1981 Fuji S12-S LTD


331 Chromolly frame


Before: Rough rattle can paint and homemade decals.

3alarmer 

...after

...before

Cycle Tourist

retrofit

From 2008. sold the bike (too small). I wish I would have kept that SunTour brake set, though.

oneclick 

Oh the Horror!

SAND!

NOOOoooo......

retrofit

lol. no bikes or components were harmed during or after the photo op.

chuck mili

i took the little blue tape off eventually (:

markwesti

I painted this with Krylon Jade , It's satin . Then clear coat , came out nice and glossy . I never compared it to a stock Bianchi paint from the time period . I liked it though .

IMG_0674 by mark westi, on Flickr

Wilbur76

DIY spray can job using Montana Gold brand on this rusty GT. Before, during and after. Tried my hand at fades but got too ambitious and ended up with Ariel’s bicycle Under the Sea. Scrapped it all, started over and went for a solid pink. Just sold it off this weekend.

Dean51 

Here is a '87 Ciocc Designer 84 that I painted a few years ago. DuPont urethane base coat (Porsche Guards Red), then clear coat. Decals from Cyclomondo. ~2000 miles later, the paint has held up really well. That said, I think the best part of this picture is the tractor seat mounted on a bar stool. It was my Dad's.

IMG_1832

randyjawa 

In post #61 I showed a couple of bikes I painted myself and one in progress. Since then, I completed the one in progress...



And, using a brush, painted another one. They both turned out great, in my opinion...