Pimp my ride (advice needed)

andyealing

I'm thinking about pimpin' my Marin Fairfax (05 model). The frame is scratched and could do with a respray and it's time for a new set of rims.

I'm slightly daunted by the prospect of stripping off the componets and the ultimate quality I'll get by respraying it myself. I'm thinking about sanding it down, applying a spray primer and then a few coats of matt black. Any advice... like don't do it?

Also can anyone suggest a decent pair of replacement rims. It has 700c tyres running on an 8-speed Shimano hub. I'd like them to be light but up to the daily grind.

woodyonthebeach

Got a friend who done mine. He had it done within a week and back to me.

Like you said Sand it down basically giving the primer something to stick to I would then be tempted to wet and dry the primer then a couple of this layers of the final colour then if you want to go the whole hog and get a clear coat done on it to give it that much more protection.

It is entirely up to you on how you do it.

downfader

AndyEaling wrote:

I'm thinking about pimpin' my Marin Fairfax (05 model). The frame is scratched and could do with a respray and it's time for a new set of rims.

I'm slightly daunted by the prospect of stripping off the componets and the ultimate quality I'll get by respraying it myself. I'm thinking about sanding it down, applying a spray primer and then a few coats of matt black. Any advice... like don't do it?

Also can anyone suggest a decent pair of replacement rims. It has 700c tyres running on an 8-speed Shimano hub. I'd like them to be light but up to the daily grind.

Before you go for a respray check the frame over. I had the 05 fairfax - lurvely bike and very nippy. My frame ended up with a couple of breaks, so if you find you have those Marin will usually replace the frame free of charge.

If its fine then mavic aksium wheels and some nice race lites as I had on mine are superb and makes the thing a little nippier imo. If you go for black you'll be invisible this time of year, just to warn you, you could put some nice hiviz camo stickers on there.

ansbaradigeidfran

Ignore me by all means, but I think there's something to be said for the look of hammerite. Honest. :oops:

croggy

ansbaradigeidfran wrote:

Ignore me by all means, but I think there's something to be said for the look of hammerite. Honest. :oops:

+1
I Hammerited an MTB frame a few years ago.It's easy to touch-up as well.The end result looked good,so good that some tw@t stole it. :evil:

andyealing

I quite like the Hammerite idea. I think I've got some Hammerite black spray in the loft.

Mithras

Take it to your local pwder coaters, you should be able to get the frame done for about £50. Great if you only want one colour!

woodyonthebeach

Get the frame sprayed in a different colours each side add a bit of confusion.

I supposed the hammered effect paint would look pretty good.

downfader

If you do hammerite it then dont use black - use british racing green or fire engine red? 8)

girv73

My friend repainted a Stumpjumper in Hammerite "poo brown" as a commuter. It was a good bike underneath but to the untrained observer/thief looked, well, like crap. This was 15? years ago and he still has it.

The Hammerite finish was OK, but pick a decent colour like downfader says!

pst88

I'm tempted to strip all the paint off mine and have it a polished aluminium + clear coat. Some old man at the LBS was talking about it while ago and I think it might look pretty good.

woodyonthebeach

pst88 wrote:

I'm tempted to strip all the paint off mine and have it a polished aluminium + clear coat. Some old man at the LBS was talking about it while ago and I think it might look pretty good.

That would be like the Jag. As a promo they done one in polished aluminium. Looks the mutts nuts. Not sure how it will be recieved by drivers on a sunny day.

TO not damage the the Metal work wouldn't you have to have it dipped to remove the paint. The a good few hours with a buffing wheel to get the shine up.

gtvlusso

Okay:

Recommend you get someone else to do it as frame stripping is bloody messy. I have done 3 now and it is horrendous!

best way to do it is with shot blasting and then getting the frame powder coated afterwards. Most small engineering places will do it for you for about £100.

If you do it yourself you need:

1, Space
2, Somewhere to hang the frame securely
3, Nitromors paint stripper (try it on a bit of the frame before you commit the whole lot!)
4, Filling knife
5, Patience and time!

I have tried heat stripping, but have found shot blasting to be the best and cleanest followed by chemical stripping (Nitromors)

Put on Nitromors, wait for it to bubble and carefully push paint off with the filling knife (wear gloves as Nitromors is acid).

To spray the frame back up I used car spray. I used grey aluminium primer (asit was an aluminium frame!) Then rubbed it down with wet and dry paper - the least abrasive you can get. Keep repeating until you get an even and smooth finish - a good paint finish is all in the prep! Then coat with colour once you have a few layers of primer - use the same procedure - you don't have to coat the whole frame at once - just give it a spray over and build up. Rub down gently between coats....

It is a massive hassle, but can be done in a weekend with good weather or a good ventilated garage.

The frames I did were 2 x Aluminium and 1 x Steel frame - they all came out really well (I did stripes on one frame!) However, it would have been much cheaper and easier to just get them shot blasted and powder coated....

gtvlusso

Oh - for aluminium, I would get it shot blasted and anodized (can be coloured or clear).


See below:

http://www.griffsmotorcycleservices.com/

edhornby

google atlantic boulevard - Bury based bike shop that specialise in resprays etc

ride_whenever

the bromptons come in clearcoat only, you can see the brazing where they've joined the tubes and it looks awesome. Be careful what lacquer you use as they had a similar finish on the on-ones years ago and the frames used to rust...