Thank you all for your responses, particularly renobruce?s explanation of the paint/bake process and the resultant venting of fumes from inside the tank to outside.
I never cease to be amazed at the excellent info I learn on this website.
As a result of learning this, I visited the body shop today, the same shop that painted my bike a year ago.
First, a little bit of history about the paint job on my bike, and my current need to repaint, which is very frustrating (sorry, long post):
I bought the bike two years ago. I only paid $250 for the bike, which was in rough shape when I got it (and didn?t have a title, which I eventually tracked down and bought for another $50). Other than the usual mechanical/electrical issues that I have more or less learned to fix myself (leaking gaskets and seals, dirty and poorly adjusted carbs, burned-out regulator/rectifier and stator, etc.), the cosmetics were a mess.
The fuel tank was dented deeply in one area and had multiple smaller dents and scratches, the side covers were intact but in primer paint, and the front and rear fenders were different colors (from different bikes).
I first visited the body shop on a referral from a mutual friend, and the guy quoted me $300 to repair all the dents in the tank, and prep and paint the tank, both side covers and both fenders; including all labor, materials and paint. He had some nice metal-flake deep dark blue paint left over from a Corvette painting job (so he said), that suited me fine. (I asked for blue because my other GS 1000 is blue and I only have one license plate and registration and ? well you get the picture!).
I was fine with the deal, but I just asked one question: ?Does the price include a clear coat finish coat?? He responded: ?You don?t need clear coat with these modern automotive paints.?
So anyway, last winter I had him paint the bike. The result was beautiful. Gorgeous, glossy deep blue with a slight metal flake if you looked real close. I was a very happy camper. But within a couple of weeks during the riding season, I noticed that the paint was sort of ?bubbling? at the edges of the fuel filler neck, but was fine everywhere else. I became super careful filling the tank from then on (I had been typically careful before, anyway) but the problem continued, and even got a little worse.
Then, a month ago (November), I was out riding on a cold day (about 40 degrees F) and filled my tank at a gas station just two miles from my house. I rode the bike straight home from the gas station and parked it in my basement garage. (The garage is typically warmer than the outside air during cold days in New England. But, I typically fill the tank after a long ride, and I?ve never had a problem doing that, and I believe that it?s better to have a full tank than a near-empty one to prevent rust inside the tank.)
The next day, my wife said: ?The house smells like gas?. I went downstairs, and discovered that the gas in the tank had expanded and a whole lot had flowed out of the gas cap, all over the tank, the engine, and the floor. Most of that beautiful paint on the tank had turned into a blistered, wrinkled mess. I was frick?n heartbroken.
So, I go back to the body shop a few weeks ago, and I told the guy about the wrinkled paint, and said that I thought that this was a result of not using clear coat. He responded: ?What are you talking about? I always use clear coat.? I explained that that?s the opposite of what he told me a year ago, and he sort of got a sheepish look on his face. I didn?t want to have a confrontation with him, and I said: ?OK, never mind, I just want to fix the tank now, so I don?t have to look at this ugly wrinkled mess of a tank when I ride.?
So he says, ?OK, you sand it, and I?ll paint it. I?ll take care of you.? (We didn?t talk about any price.) Then he sent me to a to-the-trade auto body supply store that has a computerized camera. I took one of the side covers in and they took a picture with the camera system, which printed-out a formula for new paint to match. That little trip cost me $60 to buy one pint of paint!!! ($20 camera charge, plus $40 for the paint)
So today, after learning from renobruce about ?paint and bake?, I go back to the body shop. I learn that this guy paints and cures at regular room temperature. He says: ?Those paint and bake places are high-volume places where they do a few cars a day, and they need to get ?em in and out of the booth quick. Paint cures better and stronger when it cures over a longer period of time at room temperature?.
So now, I?m totally confused, and I?m in somewhat of an uncomfortable situation with this guy. If I push him a little bit, I could get the tank repainted for free (after I sand and prep it, which I don?t mind doing).
My questions are:
Should I have this guy paint my tank for free, or should I blow him off and spend money to have the tank painted at a shop that bakes the paint to cure it? (As usual with a GS restoration, I?m already into this bike for more money than it is worth)
What should I know that I probably don?t know about properly sanding and prepping the tank before delivering it to the shop, regardless of which shop I choose? (For instance, there?s probably Bondo under the paint in a few places, and I don?t want to screw up the previous repair work and make a mess for myself.)
Thanks in advance for your responses.
