Paint and Plastic Repair

[MamaMo]

Ok I have a question on Paint. I have been reading the treads on here and other sites about Painting. But what is the difference in urethane, lacquer, and enamel? Still don't get it. What kind do you use when repainting a RSV? Need to do some plastice repair on trunk. What is the best way to do this? Please help guys. Want to try and do some of this work myself. Also Planning some special painting on the bike in different colors. Hope to be able to paint myself. What can you get for that kind of painting (picture) paints? Would model car type paint work? Just a thought than Clear coat over it. Help!

[BradT]

Good questions. I too asked but never asked it correctly.

 

Waiting for the responses

 

Brad

[Boe]

For the paint repair use Color Rite urethane, they have the exact paint code to match. Check out there web site.

Most painters do not use lacquer or enamel because they do not do well over time if fuel hits them.

 

Good luck!

[MamaMo]

Bump. Come on Guys really asking this seriously. Just because I am a lady asking don't mean that I won't be doing the work. Yes I will have help with the painting but I have to do the plastic repair (it is the bottom of the trunk and a few cracks in other areas) before we start and I will be offering to help the guy in any way possible. Repainting whole bike. Putting on new pinstriping. Need information on best way to do plastic repair and best type of paint for painting the whole bike not touchups. Yes it will be Clearcoated. I would like to have the plastic repair done by the middle of May. HELP

[rod]

Look at the tech section for plastic repair. Urethane paint is what I would use. Prep is everthing on paint, the more time spent on prep the better the end result. Rod

[eagleeye]

Painting I don't know about, but fixing the plastic bottom of your trunk I have done.

 

I used devcon epoxy and fiberglass cloth. Spread a layer of devcon over the cracks, then your precut fiberglass cloth, (the shape that you need) and push it in so that the devcon comes up through the cloth. Hard to explain, but the cloth should end up being impregnated with the devcon. (you might need to put a little more on top of the cloth) I used two layers, then, after it dried spray painted (the inside) the trunk black again.

 

If you don't have any fiberglass cloth, I bought way too big of a piece when I did mine and would be glad to send you a nice big chunk.

Good Luck, It's kind of a messy opertion but rock solid when your'e done,

 

Steve

[BoomerCPO]

JB Weld is excellent for plastic repair. Once is has cured you can sand it down to the point where you can't even see where you applied it.

 

As for painting...I will leave that to the Pro's.

 

Regards.....Boomer

[SilvrT]

I've also done fiberglassing as well as used a product like JB weld specifically designed for ABS plastics. I've also done plastic welding using a standard soldering gun with a flat tip on it. It really works well with a bit of practise but ya still have to use either the JB weld or the fiberglass depending on how bad it is. I only used the fiberglass when there was a piece missing soas to cover the hole left.

 

For finishing, use a high-quality primer/filler over the repair. SEM makes a good product and available in a spray bomb. I'd stay away from "Plasti-coat" or enamel based primers because your topcoat paint that you choose might have a bad reaction with it. Lacquer based primers work well coz they are compatible with most top coat finishes.

[SilvrT]

Here's what I did to paint mine (actually, a re-do from last year). I went to an auto paint supply house that has a spray can filling machine. I had them mix up automotive paint into the spray can for the color coat. I got myself a good compressor and spray gun and bought some professional automotive clear (comes in 2 part clear & hardener). After I got the color coats on (generally 3 coats), I then applied 2 coats of clear. I waited for that to dry overnight and then I wet sanded with 1200 grit very lightly especially at the edges. Cleaned that all up and shot a final coat of clear. Awesome!

 

The reason for the re-do is coz I had a couple "screw-ups" that I wasn't happy with and the clear I used a year ago (spray can) didn't produce as good of a job as I really was looking for (although it wasn't too bad...I'm just real fussy).

 

I could have gone without using the spray can for the color coat but they wouldn't sell the reducer needed for the paint in smaller quantities than a gallon! ... wayyyyy more than needed.

 

hope some of my info is of some help for ya.... have fun!

[MiCarl]

I used devcon epoxy and fiberglass cloth. Spread a layer of devcon over the cracks, then your precut fiberglass cloth, (the shape that you need) and push it in so that the devcon comes up through the cloth. Hard to explain, but the cloth should end up being impregnated with the devcon. (you might need to put a little more on top of the cloth) I used two layers, then, after it dried spray painted (the inside) the trunk black again.

 

If you don't have any fiberglass cloth, I bought way too big of a piece when I did mine and would be glad to send you a nice big chunk.

Good Luck, It's kind of a messy opertion but rock solid when your'e done,

 

Steve

 

I do a similar thing, except I use pipe welding solvent to apply the fiberglass to the plastic. Slather solvent on the plastic with the applicator in the can, then lay the fiberglass cloth in. Then I topcoat with the epoxy to reinforce the glass.

 

You can get a small can of pipe solvent at walmart for under $2. They also have fiberglass cloth and epoxy.

[Redneck]

Ok Ramona let me first say I am not a professional painter but I have sprayed most types of paint. Lacquer started back in the 20s as nitrocellulose lacquer it was derived from wood pulp. the same base was used in early enamels. Alkyd enamel was developed around the 30s and was a major advance in enamel paints and is still used today in cheap industrial paints. lacquer and enamel later began using an acrylic (plastic) base and that is what they still use today. Lacquer drys much faster than enamel paints in fact un catalyzed enamel will never completely dry. Enamel paint has a much better gloss and durability than lacquer. In the 70s-80s polyurethane and acrylic urethane were developed have been the standard in auto paint sense. The new trend is water born and powder coating to get rid of the solvents. I used chromabase base coat and urethane clear on mine and that is what I would recommend. It will be cheaper to have a painter do the painting because by the time you get good at painting you will have spent a fortune in paint , sandpaper and time. Keep in mind I am just a redneck and none of the above may be true. good luck.

[V7Goose]

All the plastic work on these bikes is ABS plastic - even the chrome windshield trim. If you are not missing any pieces, all you need is ABS pipe compound (glue) that you can get at any hardware store (plumbing section). You can use either the stuff specifically labeled just for ABS, or the multi-formula stuff labeled for ABS, PVC and CPVC. This stuff dissolves the plastic and lets the two pieces weld together into one solid piece of plastic - much better than any glue or fiberglass that is supposed to stick the two pieces together. I have also used this solvent to fill gouges in the plastic. Any surface to be painted must be wet sanded, since plastic is relatively soft and gums up dry sandpaper, and you will need glazing compound to fill the imperfections and tiny air bubble holes.

 

If the two pieces fit together nicely, the welded repair using this solvent is absolutely as strong as the original. After you have sanded and prepped the surface, you can paint it with any appropriate paint. To match the original color, I think Color Rite is the only real option.

Goose

[mini-muffin]

Wow ya got some info here Ramona. Hope it goes well for ya. I'll be looking forward to seeing her all done.

 

Margaret