Paint work on the 1000S is almost all done – shot the last clear coats on the gas tank and fairing yesterday. Might do a little dust removal and polish work but the hard part is done.
Gas tank was a real battle; stripped out a failed Kreem job, derusted, and sealed. The tank pooched out during the stripping process due to pressure build up inside, so I had to fashion some hem flange clamps and bend the tank back into shape. Also, we had an earthquake here and a bunch of stuff fell out of a cabinet and landed on top of the tank, thus adding a few more dents, plus a little mishap described below…
Used PPG DP epoxy primer followed by PPG Omni base coat and House of Kolor UC35 clear. Graphics came from Reproduction Decals. This was my first time using the HOK clear and it’s very nice stuff – flows out like glass but tends to run if you lay it on too thick. Once you develop your spraying technique to match the product, it lays down smoother than any clear I’ve ever used. Speaking of laying down, the Reproduction Decals graphics were a real challenge; they are very thin and hard to get to lay down on a curved surface. Using liberal amounts of water and stretching them slightly proved to be the key detail.
One detail that I didn’t capture in photos is when the gas tank fell off it’s support perch just after the final clear was laid down; tank slid forward in slow motion and proceeded to tip forward end down, flip over, and roll sideways so all three sides of the tank were affected. Had to sand down the clear with 1000 grit paper and redo the clear two times before it turned out right; the first recoat didn’t want to flow into the pitted areas so had to sand down and clear a second time before the finish looked right. Glad it’s done.
Starting point – photos look better than the real condition.
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