Painting Calipers

[suzukizone]

Had to tear down rear calipers on Roadkill, my '81 GS850G. Cleaned & scrubbed & wire brushed painted surfaces and have now a half & half paint/metal situation. The remaining paint is on solid. Looks like it's peeling but stuck tight to metal. I didn't want to chemically strip it, was hoping to just smooth it out a bit more & paint. (Neither I nor my bike are showpieces, just ugly working geezers).

Rust-Oleum says use their Caliper Paint on this job without any primer. Others say prime then paint. You Tube seems to show non aluminum (cast iron or steel I guess on cars) caliper work & the few MC clips seem to be very sloppy and lack detail info. Mostly cosmetic work on calipers where the paint wasn't bad.

So, Strip the paint??? Prime??? Etching Primer or basic stuff.

Any tips appreciated. Going to begin taping up the caliper halves tomorrow to prepare. See attached image for reference,\\Thanks as always,

I remain,

DH%22Paint%22 detail.jpg

[Kiwi Canuck]

I recommend removing as much paint as possible, you need to get more off as the photo shows a lot of loose paint, if you have a wire wheel that you can install in a cordless drill , or one on a bench grinder works as well.

Clean the part really well and finish with really hot soapy water and then clean hot water.

If you have some of that open cell foam used for packing computers, not styrofoam, cut out pieces and stuff it in all the holes, takes a few minutes and works really well.

I only use VHT paint or in a pinch Duplicolor, never had good success with Rustoleum paints.

Use the satin finish (SP739) as it hides imperfections and matches the factory finish better than the gloss finish.

No primer and no clear for me, just paint straight on bare clean metal.

https://www.vhtpaint.com/high-heat/vht-caliper-paint

[suzukizone]

I recommend removing as much paint as possible, you need to get more off as the photo shows a lot of loose paint, if you have a wire wheel that you can install in a cordless drill , or one on a bench grinder works as well.

Clean the part really well and finish with really hot soapy water and then clean hot water.

If you have some of that open cell foam used for packing computers, not styrofoam, cut out pieces and stuff it in all the holes, takes a few minutes and works really well.

I only use VHT paint or in a pinch Duplicolor, never had good success with Rustoleum paints.

Use the satin finish (SP739) as it hides imperfections and matches the factory finish better than the gloss finish.

No primer and no clear for me, just paint straight on bare clean metal.

https://www.vhtpaint.com/high-heat/vht-caliper-paint

Thanks KiwiCanuck, you sound very geographically diverse. Appreciate the input, trying to gather as much feedback as poss before I make final decision. Too cold to paint here for at least a week as can't do it in house. I like the foam tip, will definitely use that for sure. Rear caliper is a bit more complex but it is split so shouldn't be too diff to tape and cover.

Thanks again, Be Safe

DH

[chuck hahn]

Soft wire wheel on bench grinder does a great job as does a buddies blasting cabinet. I use Duplicolor caliper paint the bake it at around 150 or so for half an hr or so. seems heating it hardens the paint a bit...least thats my opinion

[tas850g]

I used a bench grinder wire wheel to clean off old paint....taped off the necessary area's and put in an old bleeder screw and banjo bolt

Wiped cleaned with mineral spirits to remove any oil/dirt substance from handling etc.

Heated them up in toaster over for about 10 mins at about 350 degrees

Sprayed with VHT black semi-gloss caliper paint from Autozone........a couple of coats....don't think I reheated in between coats - used wire hanger to hang them while spraying

Let dry to the touch then reheated them in toaster oven.....laided them on mating surface when heating

They came out just like Kiwi's and have spilt brake fluid on them too many times to count and the paint has not peeled off....yet.

[hannibal]

I cleaned off the old paint with a brass wire wheel on a Dremel. Taped off the empty bores with blue painter's tape and painted 3 or 4 coats of VHT. Looks decent but I didn't heat cure them and a little paint is peeling where I got fluid on them during assembly. Will definitely bake them if/when I decide to repaint them.

[Jhurt]

Blasting it will always be the best route to getting a clean/consistent surface if you have a way to do it, if not the suggestions above will work. As far as paint I settled on something designed for guns when i was refinishing my small parts. I’ve used 2 different products: Norrell’s Moly-Resin and KG Guncoat, both applied with an airbrush then baked on. They smell the same and cure about the same. I like it because of the chemical resistance, the brake fluid is very corrosive and tends to eat paint. The Norrell’s product says right in the instructions that they offer a reward if you can find a chemical that will take it off after it’s properly applied.