Custom Paint - Workshop specials.

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That's exactly why I was happy enough to proceed that way, too much of a hassle for me technically, specially having only a "balcony spraying booth"..

Makes sense.
It's not a five minute task so you have to decide if your design NEEDS it.

It's this sort of thing that can make one project cost significantly more than another.
As a general rule, if you want your project to be cheaper with any refinisher, have your graphics wrap parallel or perpendicular to your tubing if you can.

Or if you've got money to burn... go wild...

Sorry I was going to upload a pic, but it failed... will try agan later...

if you've got money to burn... go wild...

Haha, nope. But thanks very much for the detailed reply, I'll give it a go and see what happens.

do you know what the RALs are for this, have been thinking about doing something similar with my mtb

No idea sorry. Do let me know if you find out though

do you recommend a specific brand paint / lacquer combo for a household job? or will any old spray can from halfords do?

I wouldn't 'recommend' any rattle can paint per se... I can't imagine any of the other painter's would either given that they mix their own products and apply them with specially set up guns and such...

BUT...

If I had to use a rattle can product I'd use something automotive specific and I'd buy the matching primer and clear recommended by the brand/manufacturer. Keeping the products from the same family will ensure that the solvents in the products are compatible with one another which is essential for a chemical bond between the layers you build.

Its a cliche but its all in the prep.
Key the frame well, prime it well, key the primer, dust in any bits you've gone through, add paint (aim for three coats... a light one, one to cover and a third to make sure you've got it all).

For the clearcoat, follow the manufacturers instructions but remember clear isn't paint... you're trying to make an even "skin" over everything rather than simply spraying over the colour so work quickly and follow the wet edge.

That's quick and dirty, crude tips for a garage project but might help.

I'm sure all the other guys will have tips too.

Shit be gettin weird over here.

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I can't begin to imagine how you did that.

Magnets?

variegated beonze leaf. It’s a massive PITA to work with.

Most of this will be covered with paint though when it’s finished.

Come check it out at Bespoked.

variegated beonze leaf

That's rad, saw it on ig and assumed it was heat treatment on ss tubing.

It’s been a long battle over the weekend with this one. Getting there though!

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Is there any thread about "Paint DYI tips - ask the pros"?
I have an Iwata that I use for illustrations and would like to try painting an alloy stem... but have no clue which products I should be looking for that I can use with my poor-man set up.
Only YT videos I could find are car body works and it seems a lot of work for what I need! Filler, blasting, etc...

Man that is awesome. Love your work!

Depends how good of a finish you want to achieve!

Sand it/get it blasted > etch primer > 2k primer > sand > base coat(s) > 2k lacquer > wet sand > more 2k lacquer > wet sand > flow coat 2k lacquer > flat and polish if you can be bothered. (Other painters will have differing process I’m sure).

Cost of decent materials will be a lot to do a decent job though, as you’ll have to buy a lot more than you need to use for such a small project.

Any 2k product is proper nasty shit, so proper respirator and extraction is highly recommended.

I’m shit at giving advice im afraid though, as I highly doubt the way I do things is what would be considered the ‘correct’ way by a lot of other painters. I’m sure @privatepatterson would be happy to provide a some more in depth advice!

Many thanks!

Thank you!!

Cost of decent materials will be a lot to do a decent job though, as
you’ll have to buy a lot more than you need to use for such a small
project.

That was my concern, I was just wondering if it was easy to find companies that supply primer and lacquer in small quantity, modelling size kinda tubs.

"falls back in awe"...a battle well fought.

Mein Gott. Gustav Klimt reincarnated...

What @hoops said.

Everyone who paints will use some combination of those steps which will change depending on many variables. They'll have product preferences based on their personal experiences with them too.
For instance, we tend to favour epoxy based primers as opposed to etch primers here but would alter to suit the project.
If the way you do it differs from the tutorials, then your way is just as valid as any other.

The harder you work, the better it will look but that is a given.

Automotive refinishing videos are a great place to start but the bit that makes them less useful is that you have to speak a little of the language already in order to make alterations and accommodations for your own tools, mediums and substrates. For example, we all use smaller guns in the most part I'm certain.

As Bobby said... everyone does it slightly differently...

Here's loosely the order of operations here...

Media Blast > key the frame > epoxy primer > cure > key the primer ready for base coat > apply 2k basecoat/graphics etc > clearcoat > cure > wet flat > clearcoat > wetflat > flowcoat > cure > wet flat > polish.

Start to finish, factoring natural curing times, this takes us three weeks (depending on the complexity of the design). The painting part is usually around one to three hours in a process that sees us interact actively with the frame for thirty to forty hours in total. The rest is prep, masking and polishing.

Good product is expensive and the minimum quantities you'll purchase will see you right for maybe ten or more bikes... it can be quite costly. If you're London based, drop us an email at colecoatingsworkshopATgmailDOTcom, maybe we could put together a few smaller quantities for you to help you out. Primer, panel wipes, solvents, tack cloths, abrasives etc.

There are places that can supply smaller quantities of product but they'd tend to be more for modelling/hobby craft and may not be particularly robust in the grander scheme of things.

Edited for probably taking too soon..... 🤦‍♂️

Wow - that looks amazing. Congrats.

Did they get a discount for it being such a tiny frame? That’s got to be the shortest stem on any pro bike.