Re-painting a vintage frame

[Spaghetti Legs]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

Heron looks great!

What tires do you have on there?

Challenge Strada Bianca 33’s. They’re the 120 tpi vulcanized version. I know Challenge gets grief from many people but I used these in the tour including 100 ish miles of gravel without a problem.

MerckxMad, that’s a beautiful bike and I like that color!

[Doug Fattic]

Originally Posted by martl

I invested in a mini-HVLP gun by Iwata - technically, it is designed for small surfaces like motorcycle tanks or helmets, so it is a good match for the surfaces on a bicycle frame, better than a "big" HVLP.
But its biggest advantage for me is that it does nowhere near the air volume of those and it is in fact factory approved to work with a rather small airbrush-type compressor.
These are some of my first experiments with it.

basecoat in Toyota pearl white



fork, main colors applied (Mazda green, Mercedes blue)



(finish clear coat still missing in all the pics, so it is less glossy that it will be)

So far, i'm very happy about the control this setup gives me even with my absolute non-experience/skill in painting with a gun. Waterbased colours mean even the color changes are not as much of a hassle (cleaning-wise) as i had feared.

That is some amazing work for a rookie! Did you use a plotter cutter to make stencils? I love my Iwata spray guns. I have 3. They are midsize 300 series with small 150 ml cups. One of them I have dedicated to doing only clears. Doing clears well is the hardest part.

[martl]

Originally Posted by Doug Fattic

That is some amazing work for a rookie! Did you use a plotter cutter to make stencils? I love my Iwata spray guns. I have 3. They are midsize 300 series with small 150 ml cups. One of them I have dedicated to doing only clears. Doing clears well is the hardest part.

Thank you! Of course i picked the photos with the least amount of blunders in them -of which there are many; you go to school on the first, second and third project to maybe some time in the future produce something you're happy with! Failure is always an option, and all that

I bought a vinyl decal set for the logos and the brandname as stencils, the color-field boundaries i just eyeballed and masked off with tape. A vinyl cutter is definitely on the horizon, possibly just a Silhuette or a small Brother, haven't done much research yet.

These are the guns i use

[ultraman6970]

That principia looks great Thanks for sharing the pictures.

[Hindmost]

Originally Posted by martl

Waterbased colours mean even the color changes are not as much of a hassle (cleaning-wise) as i had feared.

Very nice looking results. Waterbased? Automotive? Can you say a little more about it. (I never imagined waterbased in this application.). What about the clear coat?

[ultraman6970]

Im going to take it on this one... water based means that the paint use as a base ingredient to deliver the color, is more eco friendly but is more expensive and doesnt have that nasty smell like urethane. Ive never painted with car grade water based paint tho... cant pay for it to be honest.

As for clear coat that I know of there's no car industry water based clearcoat, so probably the friend in there used polyurethane clear coat.

IN water based paints for hobby stuff you have tamiya for example once dry obviously they wont run if you put water over them as you might think, the water is used as a medium for the color stuff and once the water evaporates the color gets stuck in the surface. Tamiya colors you can mix them with alcohol if you need to thin it, which imo is better because the alcohol evaporates really quick.

Since ive never used water based car paint i do not know if it needs something special like an specific gun tip or even special thinners or even an activator, well havent research on it too much after i asked the prices... so no water based paint for me :/

[SeanScott]

martl - Toyota Pearl as well!
I found the hardest part about a vintage frame is sanding all the lugs, and sanding all the lugs again after primer. The hardest part is the prep.

[bironi]

Originally Posted by NHAero

Just received from Mark Rainey - ready for clear coating!

Looks very nice.
Enjoy!

[martl]

Originally Posted by SeanScott

martl - Toyota Pearl as well!
I found the hardest part about a vintage frame is sanding all the lugs, and sanding all the lugs again after primer. The hardest part is the prep.

nice frame there! I agree, everything takes more time than the actual spraying itself, the most time is sunk in the preparation/sanding (and it should for a good result).

@Hindmost i'm by no means an expert but i belive in the automotive world water-based paints are very much the standard right now (the ones i bought are..), due to environmental regulations. The clear coat is a 2K system (paint+hardener).

[NHAero]

It took a fair bit longer than originally communicated, but it's back now, and looking real sweet. And Mark actually sent me an invoice for less than the quote, but I knew he'd had some unusual issues with the process and had to re-do, so I sent him the quoted amount.

I was wringing my hands about whether to build back up with the Nuovo Record stuff in the drawer, or the current resto-mod version with STI 3x10, and I'm going to go modern. I know I'll ride it more, and farther, with the modern gearing.

[martl]

next home spray thing on the line:


I had this 2003 Scott AFD Scandium Team Issue "Jean Delatour" hanging on the wall for some years now. The frame was polished and clear coated.

After stripping the clear coat off with paint remover (what a sh*t job..),
I masked the brandname etc. right on the polished finish and sanded sort of around the vinyl (homemade on a Shilouette cutting plotter) for the paint to have something to stick to. It still is a walk on a thin line... i hope the final clear coat will help the paint stick better
The grey is a VW "nano grey", the blue will be mercedes "south sea blue"

not done yet fully but so far i'm happy with how it came out. What is now still white in the pictures will become a light medium blue when finished.

As it was some 15 years ago:



current state:








btw that frame is seriously light, 950g naked at 54cm

[Spaghetti Legs]

Originally Posted by NHAero

It took a fair bit longer than originally communicated, but it's back now, and looking real sweet. And Mark actually sent me an invoice for less than the quote, but I knew he'd had some unusual issues with the process and had to re-do, so I sent him the quoted amount.

I was wringing my hands about whether to build back up with the Nuovo Record stuff in the drawer, or the current resto-mod version with STI 3x10, and I'm going to go modern. I know I'll ride it more, and farther, with the modern gearing.

Very nice! Your bike will love you back for taking such good care of it. I have a few bikes with the old 80’s race bearing but for sure you’ll put more miles on it with more modern gearing. I recently put a compact crank on my Campy 8 speed Merckx Century so I could take it on longer and harder rides.

[martl]

Followup on the Scott: Thats the outcome, pre clearcoat. Some finishing touches still needed, but overall i'm happy, for doing it in avery cramped, dusty wooden shed...

[Johnnysmooth]

Originally Posted by C40_guy

I'd second the HotTubes recommendation. Toby is a magician with both torch and paint gun...if your frame needs any restoration work, Toby can handle it.

He's also within driving distance, so delivering/selecting colors/shooting the chit/picking up the newly painted frame will be a lot more fun than shipping and worrying and receiving and unpacking.

Toby repainted my ‘96 DeRosa and it came out beautifully. Like your frame, mine had some surface rust which Toby took care of.

And though I’ve worked w Joe Bell in the past, a true master, this time around working locally with Toby was a lot more enjoyable

[buddybikes]

Keep that pin striping on British frame!