Testors enamel paint for touching up bikes?

[coolplanetbikes]

Have any of y'all tried using Testors enamel paint for touching up bikes?

Seems like a durable, reasonably priced option. I've used car touch up paint in the past but it's expensive and the color palette is limited. I've also had good luck with nail polish but I'm not sure how that will hold up long term.

[Elefantino]

It's all I use, I also mix and match colors to get them close to being just right.

[joosttx]

Yes! It works. I used it and there was no problem.

[coolplanetbikes]

Thanks! I'd love to invest in a big set but seems like they only have small mixed packs - approx 8 per box.

[BRad704]

Thanks! I'd love to invest in a big set but seems like they only have small mixed packs - approx 8 per box.

Have you looked at craft stores like Michael's or Hobby Lobby? They have racks of single bottles in the model car/airplane section along with all the brushes and anything else you'd need.

[Timdog]

It's what I use on my old Trek. A bottle of blue and white that I custom blend each time to touch up chips. Works great!

[Red Tornado]

Been my "go to" for years when touching up scratches, chips, etc. Can usually find something pretty close, or it's possible to mix "custom" colors. For me it depends on the area of the bike and how visible it is.
Also a fan of clear nail polish over the touched-up area.

[coolplanetbikes]

I went to Michael's yesterday and their prices are super reasonable - about $2/bottle - with a huge range of colors. Felt like a kid in a candy store. Unfortunately their inventory wasn't great and they were out of the colors I needed... I ordered a set of their florescent colors off amazon to try out.

Have you looked at craft stores like Michael's or Hobby Lobby? They have racks of single bottles in the model car/airplane section along with all the brushes and anything else you'd need.

[cash05458]

what I have always used...works great...

[oldpotatoe]

Have any of y'all tried using Testors enamel paint for touching up bikes?

Seems like a durable, reasonably priced option. I've used car touch up paint in the past but it's expensive and the color palette is limited. I've also had good luck with nail polish but I'm not sure how that will hold up long term.

Had a selection of these in the shop..many colors, got pretty good at using the colors to get a match..like red and yellow for orange, type thing..

[William]

Like everyone else, yes it works well. I used it to colorfill the "S" stamps on the BB, brake bridge, and fork crown of the old Serotta Skunkbird. Stayed there for years with no issues.







W.

[Ken Robb]

A couple of times I took the fork of the bike needing touchup paint to the hobby shop to get the best match. In many cases Testors is better for touchups than having a small bottle of the original paint because the original was meant to be sprayed on and it doesn't work too well when applied with a brush.
You should also look at nail polish for a color match because it also works fine.

[bigbill]

If you can match up well with a car finish, the touchup kits you get at auto parts stores are great.

[Joel]

Testors + Hobby Lobby = Cheap Touchups That Work!

[Hawker]

Gosh all of a sudden I'm 12years old again with my Testor's paints, tube of glue and model airplanes. Wait...I think I hear my Mom telling me to get back to my homework. :)

[TimD]

Mac, one of their blues is a good match for Serotta 'Big Boy Blue'.

[Plum Hill]

Gosh all of a sudden I'm 12years old again with my Testor's paints, tube of glue and model airplanes. Wait...I think I hear my Mom telling me to get back to my homework. :)

But Testor’s enamel ins’t $0.29 a bottle anymore, and now you get carded buying paint and glue.

[Hawker]

But Testor’s enamel ins’t $0.29 a bottle anymore, and now you get carded buying paint and glue.

Indeed. You Sir are old like me. I got carded the other day for buying paint thinner....I thought it was weirdest thing. Guess I still looking like a "party guy". :)

[Plum Hill]

Indeed. You Sir are old like me. I got carded the other day for buying paint thinner....I thought it was weirdest thing. Guess I still looking like a "party guy". :)

I got carded for a quart of Kilz primer.
That old AMT model car kit that sold for $2 is now around $24.95.
Yep, old and getting older.

[11.4]

I'd also recommend automotive touch-up pens. They run about $10 each, give or take, but you can match your bike to a color chart in an auto finishing shop and get the pen from them or from Amazon. The pen has more paint, custom formulated as a gap-filler, with both a roller-ball tip and a fine brush tip, and many brands come with clear coat reservoirs to do a two-coat finish. That makes it much easier to reproduce the gloss and depth. It's also more UV and weather resistant, given its intended use.

[Hindmost]

But Testor’s enamel ins’t $0.29 a bottle anymore, and now you get carded buying paint and glue.

Brings to mind these exacto blades I bought a long time ago, they are still in my toolbox.

[whatshubdoc]

Reviving this for a not so quick question:

Anyone tried using Testor's Enamel for painting a Ti frame?

[DeBike]

I believe a titanium frameset is going to take some kind of special preparation.

[Ken Robb]

If you can't find a Testor's that matches try finger nail polish offerings. No kidding.

[wallymann]

yes. all the time. works great.


Have any of y'all tried using Testors enamel paint for touching up bikes?

Seems like a durable, reasonably priced option. I've used car touch up paint in the past but it's expensive and the color palette is limited. I've also had good luck with nail polish but I'm not sure how that will hold up long term.

[glepore]

I recently picked up a unusual Rossin in Max with purple tubes and pink lugs. When it got here, numerous chips and bottom of bb was mostly free of paint and had some rust. Testors to the rescue for the lugs. Googled around and found a Hyundai purple touchup that was perfect for the tubes.

[m_sasso]

A couple of other brands of model paint I use besides Testors.
Tamiya, Japanese acrylic and lacqure paints especially for their candy's and pearl's. Humbrol, British enamel and Model Masters, US made enamel.

They all have subtly diffrent range of colour characteristics.
Like trying to colour match a Zunow or Miata frame with Tamiya paint, much easier than Testors.

[coolplanetbikes]

Thanks for the tips on this. Because I bought a testors mix pack of bright colors to use on bikes and found them all pretty much useless as touch up paint because they lacked opacity (they were partially transparent).

[whatshubdoc]

Thanks for the tips on this. Because I bought a testors mix pack of bright colors to use on bikes and found them all pretty much useless as touch up paint because they lacked opacity (they were partially transparent).

I bought the individual enamel bottles from Michael's/Hobby Lobby and they've worked well. Only Tamiya acrylics have been very transparent - I had to buy a pearl white Tamiya acrylic because Testor's stopped making their pearl white enamel. :(

[m_sasso]

Thanks for the tips on this. Because I bought a testors mix pack of bright colors to use on bikes and found them all pretty much useless as touch up paint because they lacked opacity (they were partially transparent).

In many instances this is just what you require as most touch ups involve filling in a chip which requires layering in the paint through multiple applications to arrive at a paint height and colour slightly exceeding the surrounding paint. Then sanding or polish back the overlaping paint to achieve a final level and pigmentation. If you are attempting to make a seamless repair in a single application your results are likely going to suffer.

[Seramount]

I've been meaning to touch up the anodized head badge on my Paramount, the red part has completed faded away.

so, this thread prompted me to go to Hobby Lobby which is only 0.5 mi from the house...figured I'd grab some Testors and a brush and have at it...seemed like a fun project when it's too effin hot to do anything that's not in an AC environment.

store is gigantic and couldn't immediately find the paint dept, and of course there were zero staff about to ask for directions. after 10 min of searching, finally stumbled across it. LOTS of signs saying 40% off Master Touch paints and brushes. sweet!

however, they were out of stock in every color of enamel...plenty of water colors, acrylics, but no enamel. searched all the racks for another 15 min and finally found a small tube of Carmine Red oil paint on a bottom row that had been pushed all the way to the back of the shelf. score!

naturally, there was only ONE cashier and 20 artsy-craftsy mom types in line...

gotta remember to give HL a hard pass on future shopping trips.

[oldpotatoe]

It's all I use, I also mix and match colors to get them close to being just right.

Yup, what he said. When 'in the trenches' of the bike shop, we had a whole raft of these little paint bottles to touch up frames and forks if they got diggered. And sometimes when the customer asked if we could touch up a ding.