Gotte

I've got a frame that needs painting, and I saw this, which reminded me of the finish of Hammerite (though it isn;t, it's powdercoating).

https://www.specialbike.co.uk/detail_br9.html

I want to hand paint it, rather than spray, as it suits my ideas better about treating my personal environment well. But I'm a bit cautious of trying it on a frame that's taken about a week to prepare.

Anyone here used Hammerite, and if so, how do you rate the results?

Don;t suppose you have any images?

Grand Bois

Just by coincidence, I'm planning to order some today. It's a U.K. product and it's hard to find in the U.S. I'm ordering from tcpglobal.com, where I get most of my painting supplies. A similar product is marketed by Rustolium here, but I've read that the Hammerite is superior.

Do a search of the forums for Hammerite, that's what I did.

Gotte

Thanks for that. I tried a search here, but only got a couple of posts showing.
Are you going to paint by hand, or are you using spray hammerite?

Berre

I did give Hammerite a try; sprayed it with a Badger airbrush. Never again. The result was very poor. The paint tends to clog the nozzle, so you need to add more thinner than usual to get a sprayable solution.

The painted frame looks (and feels) rough . No gloss neither, looks dull. I guess Hammerite should be used only for objects like fences. It should only be applied with a brush, obviously, that will give an uneven finish due to brush strokes.

I sanded the frame all over and repainted it with a good quality high gloss polyurethane paint. Looks much better now.

Grand Bois

I think that the problem was caused by the Badger airbrush. I have one and it's only capable of spraying very thin paints. It will clog unless the paint is thinned to about the viscosity of water. I use a Sharpe HVLP detail gun, but I plan to rattle can the Hammerite. I haven't seen anything online that mentions spraying Hammerite with a gun.

I have used the Rustoleum hammered finish rattle can paint paint. The finish is glossy and textured and is holding up very well. It's constantly wet, because it's on a a railing for a sunken shower. It takes weeks to harden completely and warm temperatures are required.

Grand Bois

See my reply above.

Did you do a search of all forums?

Grand Bois

I should add that I'm building an intentionally-ugly beater in the hope that it won't attract the attention of bike thieves. I want to be able to go for coffee and a paper on Sunday mornings without having to carry five pounds of lock and cable.

Gotte

Thanks for that, chaps.
Dirtdrop, I did only search this forum, a full search a moment ago has yeilded a healthier catch.
Again, many thanks.

aesmith

I've used Hammerite, but only for rough jobs, for example painting cast-iron where the metal is quite grainy. I don't think you'll the sort "under glass" finish that you showed in your first post.

385xza

I agree, Hammerite is a good industrial product for rough metal surfaces that require protection I have used it but would not recommend it for a bike frame.
There is a product called Hammerite Smooth, available in the UK which as the name suggests dries smooth, very much like standard paint but with a tougher finish it is available in a limited range of standard solid colours. I have used the smooth Hammerite on mudguards (fenders) etc with good results but not on a full respray.

Grand Bois

Smooth Hammerite is also available at tcpglobal.com.

Gotte

Again, many thanks for the info.

unworthy1

I've never been much impressed with it. I've only used the brush-on "hammered" version, and back when I bought it it was only available in the UK formulation. Now may have fallen under the umbrella of Rustoleum or some such parent firm, and the US formula may be different...but it didn't provide the ultra-tough finish that was promised, "encapsulated glass scales" notwithstanding .

Grand Bois

They are two completely different products.

Grand Bois

The bike in this thread was painted with Rustoleum Hammer finish:

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...243&highlight=

I haven't seen a bike painted with Hammerite.

unworthy1

Coincidentally, I painted a frame with the same color brush-on UK Hammerite (sort of sea-foam green), but it was a beater Mtn. bike I gave away and I never took pics of it. The UK stuff is VERY thick, and hides a lot of detail (sort of like powder-coating does), yet it was still fairly easy to chip off even after fully cured...which is why I didn't like it. Maybe it really NEEDS to be applied to a rusted and rough-grained surface (like cast-iron) to really bond properly, the Mtn. bike frame was pretty smooth and was stripped, solvent-washed and dried before painting. Anyhow, it's cheap enough paint (cheaper than PC-ing) so why not experiment...but I'd stick to experimenting with a beater you don't care much about.
BTW, one of my local PC-ers has samples of "special" powders they can provide, one of which resembles that "hammered antiqued copper" as shown in the OP, I've never opted for one since they cost more than the smooth, single colors.

J T CUNNINGHAM

I have used Hammerite (black & silver) to paint 2 steam boilers (shell covering, silver, blowdown piping

and base, black) with numerous coats which turned out just like 'hammered glass'. - very glossy.

These held up well, however the plant railings (yellow) chipped badly after hard use by those

people wearing finger rings! (I would advise against the painting of a bike with this product.)


Regards,
J T

Timotheus

just to add - smooth Hammerite is an amazing product (not the hammered finish you are after). It' very close to enamel and really does prevent rust from making a re-appearance - given a reasonably good sanding.

Heres a bike I made earlier using the aformentioned.

jjh

i have used it a few times (both with a brush and spray) and loath the stuff. try painting with toothpaste - you will get similar results. i painted a sign and after a year the rust was coming through - i started with raw steel and put two coats of primer on first. if you are going on the cheap look for tractor or equipment paint - granted your bike might be john deere green, but it will hold up really well. i have been going with the powdercoating route lately - for $90 they will strip and paint the frame and fork.

Timotheus

I missed the point of this thread - the bike above was sprayed with a tin. Also (jjh) You are not meant to use primer with Hammerite or the inhibitor is not active on the steel.
For a good effect add some iron filings to ordinary gloss - it's rust with an aesthetic edge.

badmother

Used it on one bike. Rattlecan. Chipped like hell.

This time I tryed a "rim paint" for cars. Used it on a folder that I expect is going to take alot of beating. Think it is not much better, but maybe also I am to unpatient...

hedgeapple

I used hammerite on my motorcycle's swingarm and triple tree when I was stationed in the UK in the mid-80s. I guess I followed the instructions, I know I sanded and cleaned the parts well. I got a glossy, hammered finish that seemed to be made of impervium. I never had to touch those parts again. I've looked for the stuff here, never found it.