Project Log *56K Warning*

[cyberdork]

*WARNING* I'M AN AMATUER *WARNING*

Here goes, just crossed the point of no turning back... I'll try to be specific in my process so people can learn from my mistakes lol

Started strippin using stripper from walmart (Believe it's K3). Its thick so you can brush it on and let it sit, works nice.


Got to this before I decided to get a shower and go out for the night. Not much progress, but a start.


To be continued...

[tt_four]

What's that tool in the last picture? Just an air gun to blow it dry I'm guessing? Looks good so far. I'm gonna be repainting my bike in a couple months, so I'll keep track of your project!

[cyberdork]

Yea just air. Man it's hard to completely drain the tank, guessing it's the reserve thats hard to drain. I poured some rubbing alcohol in there but still have yet to see if it all evaporated. Will be working on it again Friday.

[BaltimoreGS]

Excellent start man!     That tank looks pretty straight so you should have a relatively easy time prepping it.  Now get some paint on it before surface rust sets in and keep the pics coming!

-Jessie

[cyberdork]

Can't see it in that pic, but there's a small dent at the most top part of the tank.

[BaltimoreGS]

I don't know if it is still on sale but the Harbor Freight store had a decent starter gun kit on sale for $50 last time I was there.  http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=94572    The little gun probably wouldn't be of much use but the bigger gun comes with 2 tip sizes which is unusual on a cheap gun.

If you are strapped for cash I have an older gun you can borrow. 

-Jessie

[cyberdork]

I've always wondered what that top adjustment is?

[BaltimoreGS]

I've always wondered what that top adjustment is?

They call it a "pattern control" and I have no idea what it does.  A typical gun just has fluid and air adjustment knobs.  Guessing by its location on the gun body that it may fine tune the paint/air mixture.  Anyone know differently?

-Jessie

[cyberdork]

Any good cheap way to practice? I don't want to go through quarts of expensive paint just practicing lol

[tussey]

paint something besides your bike. Neighbor's dog works well. 

[O.C.D.]

paint something besides your bike. Neighbor's dog works well. 

Or learn on a similar surface and use the side of their car that they cant see outside.

[gregvhen]

or their windows.

[redhenracing2]

I've always wondered what that top adjustment is?

They call it a "pattern control" and I have no idea what it does.  A typical gun just has fluid and air adjustment knobs.  Guessing by its location on the gun body that it may fine tune the paint/air mixture.  Anyone know differently?

-Jessie

I have a Husky gravity-feed sprayer (Home Depot, $40) that is laid out very similar. When you are spraying, paint comes out in the shape of a fan, either vertically or horizontally or at whatever angle you would want it to be. The 'pattern control' basically determines how wide the spray 'fan' is. Get what I'm saying?

[BaltimoreGS]

Any good cheap way to practice? I don't want to go through quarts of expensive paint just practicing lol

You are always going to waste paint getting the gun dialed in.  My only suggestion would be to use the spray gun for priming so you get used to it, you will have to use a larger tip though.  At least you'll have some practice in when you go to spray the color coat.  Redhen's bike came out nice with the single stage urethane which will be cheaper than a base coat/clear coat system.  It only takes about a pint of color (if all goes well...) to paint a naked GS.

-Jessie

[cyberdork]

I also plan to do a single stage, unless the base/clear combo is near the same price. I'm actually using the same primer as redhen. How do these fair against airgun primers?

[cyberdork]

Getting lazy on the bottom, ironically it's turning out to be the hardest paint to get off, especially around the nooks and crannies.


Should I be worried about this remaining paint residue? I'm working on it Friday so it's going to be gone more than likely. The bottom I think I'll just keep it as is, I've got the clear off and paint scuffed so I think it'll be fine


Realized I had a rust problem on the exhaust. How can I go about fixing it? Can I get a rust stripper and paint my exhaust with rattle can high temp paint?

[centuryghost]

Is that rust or battery acid?

[jeremy_nash]

looks like the battery vent tube dripped onto the exhaust, causing oxidation there.  I used a wire brush to remove rust scale on my exhaust, then used high temp grill paint from home depot to paint the pipes.

[cyberdork]

That would explain the white powder on the frame then. Thanks for the advice.

[DoD#i]

There are exotic rattlecans (and no doubt non-rattlecans) for high-temp exhaust paint. I actually got as far as considering one (I would prefer the exhaust to be red - but not to the extent of making too much work). Said paint (something-VHT) wanted to be baked at 650F between coats. Some sort of fancy ceramic stuff, oh-la-la. My exhaust is therefore black. Either gloss or semi-gloss Rustoleum Barbeque black - 2 or three coats, with the shiny parts masked to stay shiny (stock exhaust heat shield on the can). A reasonably careful job, done with the exhaust off the bike (get new gaskets, and be careful removing the bolts, and be sure to put hi-temp anti-seize on the steel bolts before you re-install them in the aluminum head.)

It's held up well for over a year. Easy enough to re-do when needed (no stripping was done - wirebrush/sanding was done to remove rust and scuff any paint that was left, then new paint was applied). Allow adequate dry time and cycle the new paint through a few short idling sessions in the driveway to cook off before you take it out and run it much.

Much better than the widespread rust I had before I did that.