upgrade of my bike
rickchap
Posts: 2
Hey everyone,
I have a bike. It is my first bike. I have many scratches on it. I would like to repaint the frame. Should I use the sandpaper at first? What paint is it better to apply? Brush or spary paint?
Thanks
I have a bike. It is my first bike. I have many scratches on it. I would like to repaint the frame. Should I use the sandpaper at first? What paint is it better to apply? Brush or spary paint?
Thanks
0
Comments
-
I'd leave it as it is you know. Or send it off for a professional respray and then it will look as good as new.
Amateur sprays - not a good look.0 -
To do it right, get a heat gun and heat the old paint until it is bubbling then wire brush it off. Unless you're confident with a can of spray paint, get the painting done professionally.0
-
To do it right, get a heat gun and heat the old paint until it is bubbling then wire brush it off.
Great idea - especially if the frame is heat-treated aluminium, or carbon fibre....0 -
To do it right, get a heat gun and heat the old paint until it is bubbling then wire brush it off.
Great idea - especially if the frame is heat-treated aluminium, or carbon fibre....
And the chances of his first bike being carbon? But yes, I assumed it would just be steel.
But any idiot should know that you wouldn't take a heat gun and a wire brush to a carbon bike. :shock:0 -
Newbies only ride steel bikes? - what world do you live in?0
-
You'd have to be a bit of a muppet to attempt to take a heat gun to carbon fibre....
Although thats maybe how Pinarello invented their wiggly forks they used to have ?0 -
If you don't do it right it will look crap and you may have well just had a bike covered in scratches. If a frame was worth repsraying I would get it done professionally. If I didn't want to spent the money I'd leave it.
There are lots of things you need to do in order to re-spray a frame properly.
Take off all of the components
Remove ALL of the existing paint. Depending on the frame material this can by done by bead or sand blasting or rubbing down or possibly paint stripper and a lot of hard work. Any of these can also completely write-off your frame if you choose the incorrect method for the frame material or don't do it properly.
Remove any dirt/grease from the frame with a solvent possibly IPA.
Ensure that any threads are covered so they don't fill with paint.
Apply a primer being sure to get an even finish, ensure that you do this in a well ventilated area and wear a face mask and goggles. Which primer depends again on frame material and colour of top coat.
When dry rub down the primer with a very fine grit paper.
Apply your top coat and again rub this down.
Put on any stickers
Apply a coat of clear lacquer.
Put all the components back on the bike.0 -
Newbies only ride steel bikes? - what world do you live in?
I think he must be a newbie himself.0 -
Plan A. It's a bike, it will get scratched, live with it.
Plan B. If plan A is not to your liking, wrap it, easier than painting and you can do it whatever design you want.0 -
If it's worth painting and it's a metal frame, strip it of components (including bearings etc) so it's just the separate frame and forks.
Take it to a company that will media-blast and powder-coat the frame - and make sure they are familiar with doing this with bike frames. If they are, they will probably protect thread and bearing surfaces. This will probably cost in the region of £50+ - depending where you live. Powder coating is industrial painting - the sort of thing they use on filing cabinets etc - but you can get any colour.
You may need to have the bearing surfaces and threads re-finished if they overpaint - a local bike shop would have the tools to do this - I would guess it would take under an hour or so - so whatever their hourly rate is.0
