about that finish on the carbon Tournesol?

[eddief]

Dbrk or whoever might be able to comment: If and when I do a custom carbon, I'm inclined toward nude carbon with a clear satin finish as seen on the carbon Tournesol. Is that paint treatment at all tricky to do or a relative no brainer for a good painter?

[Steve Hampsten]

Eddie,

It's a matte finish. Most painters can do it but it's trickier than a gloss finish. Another option might be to go totally nude and use a anti-UV coating like 303 to protect the tubes.

[malcolm]

I just got a parlee and wanted the matte finish. They were not to hot on it. They said it didn't hold up as well. I went with gloss because I tend not to keep frames very long. If I was sure I would keep it I would have gone matte. Parlee no longer offers it but I gather they can have it done if you wish.

[Steve Hampsten]

If Parlee is steering people away from that finish I'd be inclined to listen to them. We had our own painter clear the carbon frames for the last few years but now that he's retired we use Parlee's painter.

[eddief]

Any explanation about why it would be difficult to apply or why it would be less durable than shiny clear?

[malcolm]

look up parlee on the web and call them. They were very helpful. I only remember they advised against it and for some reason they felt it chipped easier.

[dbrk]

In my discussions with Parlee they were not keen on the matte finish for the durability reasona but my own Tournesol-Parlee also has the matte finish, so it looks identical to the bike many saw at Interbike and from the pictures. The finish is remarkably beautiful because it simply mutes the carbon. Shiny carbon is fine too. The matte durable enough in my estimate since I think even the clear coats over carbon are reasonably susceptible to chips or nicks. Paint on metals hold up better, atmoimho. My own experience thus far is that the matte is not particularly less durable than clearcoat. All that said, I do have a tiny, tiny nick on mine and have no idea how it occurred. I consider that something of a blessing because too perfect makes me mental and it's good to get it out of the way.

dbrk

[eddief]

still the look I'd prefer. Some things capture the attention, some don't.

[justinf]

Agreed. Bikes can always be refinished if truly necessary, right? I'm looking forward to seeing that matte finish up close and in person.

[wasfast]

Regarding full gloss vs matte with an applied coating, there's no difference in difficulty of application. The base coating is the same, you just add flattener to the mix before spraying.

What Parlee is talking about is totally different. It's not a sprayed film coating as most paints are. The matte appearance is the composite material itself. Hence, there's not much there to protect the carbon from any scratches etc. It's an option for those that are careful. Others that aren't careful could do some light damage to the outside layers. Parlee must have had some issues with some owners and, conservatively, recommended against this.

This information is based on some years of spraying cars, guitars and bike frames. I'm not speaking for Parlee by any means.

So, if you want a matte appearance, have it sprayed but without gloss. Best of both worlds.

[eddief]

what are you referring to here? Does Parlee use something other than the normal clear coat to cover its carbon tubes?

[Grant McLean]

"Time" uses a matte finish &
Reynolds offers some forks in matte.

g

[justinf]

I understand the Tournesol matte finish to be a matte spray rather than the raw exposed material. Steve/dbrk please correct me if I am mistaken here.

[ada@prorider.or]

Eddie,

It's a matte finish. Most painters can do it but it's trickier than a gloss finish. Another option might be to go totally nude and use a anti-UV coating like 303 to protect the tubes.

i would not paint at all but use much more resin layer on the outside finish layer of carbon


the same as on formule 1 car´s
very strong ,resin better then any paint

[Steve Hampsten]

I understand the Tournesol matte finish to be a matte spray rather than the raw exposed material. Steve/dbrk please correct me if I am mistaken here.

It's a sprayed-on finish.

Interesting idea, Cees, but I have no idea if it could be made to work on a tube. There may be other reasons not to do it - who knows?

[ada@prorider.or]

It's a sprayed-on finish.

Interesting idea, Cees, but I have no idea if it could be made to work on a tube. There may be other reasons not to do it - who knows?


well simply add more resin and apply more force

[Steve Hampsten]

well simply add more resin and apply more force

Which would work if Parlee built using a monocoque system, but they don't.

[malcolm]

I think parlee was willing to do unfinished. The guy I talked to there said they just wax it with an automotive paste wax. He also advised against this. It I knew for sure I would be keeping it I would have gone with the tournesal matte look.

[ada@prorider.or]

Which would work if Parlee built using a monocoque system, but they don't.
why only monocogue can also done with pultursion
for the tubings and others

[Steve Hampsten]

why only monocogue can also done with pultursion
for the tubings and others

Gotcha.

Thank you for using the word "pultrusion" in a sentence.

[ada@prorider.or]

Gotcha.

Thank you for using the word "pultrusion" in a sentence.


sorry see it now
well thats my bad writing in english


:banana:

[Steve Hampsten]

sorry see it now
well thats my bad writing in english


:banana:

Actually, I wasn't trying to correct your spelling - simply happy to see an underused word in circulation.

:beer:

[Grant McLean]

Actually, I wasn't trying to correct your spelling - simply happy to see an underused word in circulation.

:beer:

I had to google that one!

guess it's kinda like 'mix' ...

http://www.acmanet.org/pic/products/description.htm

g

[ada@prorider.or]

I had to google that one!


well its a normal way of making carbon tubings
in all forms and sort´s

[autoloclys]

REgular clear coat can be polished if there are and dust spots or imperfections in the paint. Matte clear doesnt let the painter get away with this, if the paint is not perfect your only option is to respray the frame since any wet sanding or polishing would make the area shiny-er than the rest of the frame. The paint is also tricky to handle and sprays unlike either color or clear coat, and demands extra careful prep of the surface. In my experience the best strategy with carbon is to spray the frame with regular clear coat, polish it wicked smooth and then apply the matte clear.

Same applies with any chips or nicks in the paint while you is riding it. clear coat can be touched up pretty easily but matte needs to be resprayed.

Some painters are VERY good at it, the tournesol is on eof the best matte jobs ive seen, others struggle and take a lot of time to get a good result.


imstill in the second group, but getting better with practice!

[Climb01742]

another vote for the beauty of matte. douglas' carbon is one of the prettiest i've seen. ain't that the way: the most beautiful are the toughest?