To paint or pay or not?

[Guest]

I’ve looked over countless threads on do it yourself re-painting both rattle can and compressor. I have a compressor but the thought of buying all the other materials and trying to set it up in the garage then find the time to do it is just daunting.

The bike is currently bumblebee yellow. I think all I want is all business flat black.

Anyone have pictures out there of some flat black jobs.


Seems it would not break the bank to have it done as apposed to buying the materials and do it myself. Any opinions?

[Griffin]

I'm eventually going to repaint my GS750E. That being said, here are my thoughts on the "three options" as I see them:

1. Rattlecan - I'm not going to bother. It's fine for the plastic sidecovers and maybe the tailpiece (if you have a luggage rack mounted to protect it), but durability makes it unsuitable for the gas tank or front fender. I've painted some plastic pieces this way, and the end quality amazed me. Several people commented that they couldn't believe it was a rattlecan finish. The problem is that the clearcoat doesn't hold up to gasoline at all (instant destruction), and is not hard enough to protect the paint from chipping with only minor contact.

I have yet to try the new two-part rattlecan clearcoat available. I may experiment with it this fall and test the durability. If it is indeed gasoline resistant and can withstand abrasion decently, I may change my mind on a rattlecan job. With proper prep and technique, it can look very, very good.

2. Home Compressed Air Spraygun - Results can be as good as or better than an auto shop, and assuming you already have an air compressor and HVLP gun, with some cost savings. However, the time involved in properly setting up a paintbooth in your garage, with proper ventilation, the proper equipment outlay (including protective equipment for the painter), the risks involved in dealing with potentially deadly chemicals (cyanide-based hardeners), and the expense of the painting/prep materials to me isn't worth the cost savings. Properly done, expect many hours of your time spent for setup, preparation of parts, the painting/clearcoating process itself (which takes the least time of all these steps), cleanup of equipment, and teardown. To me, it's not a viable option.

3. Automotive Body Shop - At this point in time, without testing of the two-part rattlecan clearcoat, this is the option that makes the most sense to me personally. I'm on pretty good terms with a small, locally-owned body shop. The fellow who'll do my painting for me told me exactly how to prep the parts for him to save me a lot of labor expense. Essentially he only has to inspect each part to make sure it is ready, correct any flaws he finds, then shoot them. If I do my part on prep, he'll only charge me for the actual materials he uses, and a couple hours of labor for mixing, painting, and cleanup. It actually would come in $$$ wise about the same as shooting it myself, but without the hassle mentioned above.



That's my take on it anyway. I'm sure others will express different opinions, and that's fine. Take all opinions you get into account, and decide what makes the most sense for you.

[Mark M]

Any opinions?

Silly question around here...

1) Your bike looks fantastic in yellow, don't change a thing.

2) What route you go depends on how you value your time and your bike.

a) If you have lots of time and are willing to tinker, you can save money and get a good quality job.

b) If the bike is not a keeper and you are planning on riding it for a season or two, then flogging it, rattlecans or a cheaper alternative are OK. Again, your time is not valued highly.

c) If you are keeping that bike until you die, and you are busy, and you can afford the $$$, a pro job with 2 part urethane paints is the only way to go.

Also, have you seen the threads on rolling paint using Tremclad / Rustoleum rust paints? I am trying this because it is dirt cheap and I can chip away at it until I am done because the bike is not my daily ride. If it works as well as some I have seen, great. If not, I have a buddy who will paint it with pro equipment and products for a reasonable price.

If it will not break the bank to get it done by a pro, I would go that way, honestly. It will get done in a reasonable time frame (huge deal - many home projects just never get finished due to time constraints), the quality should be excellent and if you have problems with it, you have recourse with the shop that did the work.

Mark

[posplayr]

OK if it has to be flat black

Then get another set of body parts and spray them flat black. Hell bondo, primer and flat black could be done in an afternoon. But don't ruin the history that that bike has by spraying the body.

So everyone else know, and if I recall correctly this bike was in a MC mag shoots back in the day. That is a period Yoshi decal.

If you get a spare set of body parts (tank, tail, side covers) for about $200-300 depending upon condition paint that stuff. If you have to drop the $500-$600 it will cost

Personally I would not touch the body parts myself.

Posplayr

[Sunburn]

1) Your bike looks fantastic in yellow, don't change a thing.

LOL in some ways motorcycles are no different then a hot chick, when you see a hot chick there is a guy somwhere that is tired of nailing her and wants something new.




Or you play dress up!

[groundshock]

It's just my opinion, butI wonder why in the heck you would want to change that gorgeous bike's paint from what it is to redneck-chopper-flat-black.

Don't do it man.

Again, just my opinion. Thats a stunning bike the way it is.

[Ogri]

It's just my opinion, butI wonder why in the heck you would want to change that gorgeous bike's paint from what it is to redneck-chopper-flat-black.

Don't do it man.

Again, just my opinion. Thats a stunning bike the way it is.

I don't understand it either. Surely there is a set of bodywork out there that could be traded out for this set or even purchased as a second set. Don't sacrifice that paint job for flat black.

As for the OP's question, flat black is probably the easiest finish to paint. As long as the coats are evenly applied medium wet across the surface, it is hard to screw up. A caveman could do it.

[Jethro]

My buddy Sean painted his ZRX flat black. The bonus with flat paint is when it gets messed up from gas or just being plain soft (which rattle can paint is) you can re-spray it easy. In fact, you can re-spray it in the parking lot of the gas station if you want.

His bike looks very nice, and definitely all business in the flat black. I'll try to get a picture posted.