how would you guys suggest i go about painting the frame of this bike (either silver or black) because right now it has this wierd two tone thing going on, i dont know what the previous owner was trying to do there. would i go about it like i would the other parts of the bike? other than making sure everything that i dont want to get paint on is carefully covered up. has anyone else done this before?

make your pic work  

i dont know why it isnt working but here is the link http://image63.webshots.com/63/5/8/33/406350833eStrxk_ph.jpg

It looks like he was either:

A) Trying to make a Cammo GS
or
B) Started painting and gave up half way through...[/list:u]

I think it's pretty uggo man...   There are a few threads around here about painting...  I think the frame is pretty straight forward.  I.E. Sand, tape, paint...

You should match up that front fender too!  

Try again.. your link doesnt work either  :dunno:

I pasted it into a new IE window...  Worked for me.

Guessing what the old owner was trying to do is worth the view... :lol:

http://community.webshots.com/user/jeremy4u88 here this will work there are a couple of pics in there

150 Rear tire?

Did you get it for a good price?  Some extra time and paint will be well worth it if you ask me.

yeah i did, i got it for $650 plus he delivered it to my house (about 80mi). when i got it, it didnt run but after a couple of days of work i have it running fairly well.

Sounds like a good deal to me...  I got mine for a great price...  $500 in tires and maintenence later, it just developed a new problem

is a 150 not a good tire for the gs. the guy i bought it from said that was brand new so i guess that is a plus. also the front only has about 1000 miles on it.

The stock size is 130/70 -17...  Everything I've read has said that a 140+ does nothing good but make it look cooler.  Some have said it makes it a little harder to control, since the tire is being squeezed out of shape...

I don't know from experience though...  I went from a nearly bald and square 130 to a brand-new 130...  That was a WORLD of difference.

Who knows though, maybe the old owner found a different size wheel too.

about painting the frame would you put a clear coat or not?

Well I got my frame painted up matt black.
I decided to not clearcoat it. This left it a bit vulnerable to petroil spills
and perhaps more upen to scratches.
On the plus side however I can fix up the paint with a quick wash and respray the area once it's dry.

Clear coat is usually a good idea...  If you want it to look dull you can get flat or matte clear coats...

Sand it down, put a coat (or two if you feel like it) of color, then a coat (or two if you feel like it) of clear...

But...  You don't have to do a clear coat....  It's just one more thing to screw up.   :lol:  I rattle-canned by '69 bug.  I screwed up so many times with the color that I decided to wet-sand it and skip the clear coat.  Then put a nice coat of wax on it.  The parts that I bothered to paint didn't look half bad.

I would do three or four thin coats, but that's me.

Yeah...  3-4 thin coats of color and 3-4 thin coats of clear...  That would be        

But, I'm lazy...  I tried to get away with one coat.   :lol:

should i use( on the frame) enamel paint or is lacquer paint better to use? what about the rest of the parts (tank, fender, ect.)?

bump!! also which type of paint is best for gas spills on the tank?

being the great rattle can artist I am I frist got an estimate from Maco for them to pain my frame a metalic red [I got a fling for red and black] but anyways they quoted me $110. that included paint prep, paint, labor, the ultra hard baking process [oven roasted :lol] and then clear coat. Only gripe is that you need to be mechanicaly inclined to dissassemble the bike completly down to every nut and bolt and every wireing harness then put it back together correctly after the frame is painted. If I was going all out I'd find someone to sand blast the frame too while I was at it so the finish will be mirror shine and the metal sealed  Speaking of which I would also get them to shoot a coat on the cooling fins of the engine so it'd be pimped out might as well as the motor is out of the frame

I also got a quote for powder coat on the frame.....YIKES....$450  for just paint

While I'm thinking about it You could also go the route of polishing the frame just make sure you CLEAR COAT the metal or after 3weeks you'll have a rust job special   dang on oxidation

Edit*
Forgot all about the gas tank situation....Nothing is going to withstand a gas spill. Gas is a great disolver and works very well to remove paint. The only thing to avoid this is to clear coat after clear coat folowed by some muscle elbow grease wax job. I personaly would suggest the Turtle wax brand that comes in the spray bottle. Water beads up instantly and has worked well on my bike. Just keep it off of plastic stuff as it de-colors them