how many "rattle can" coats as a minimum on a 531 frame

[bigbloke]

Hi All,

Teenage Daughter has expressed an interest in cycling and wants to renovate her mums old 531 frame.

Fortunately Ive found a rattle can of Fiat Red-orange that when used with red primer is a perfect match.

the question is ....how many coats as a minimum please ?

and do you mirror finish the topcoat before applying lacquer ?

Regards

BB

[Vetus Ossa]

I wish someone with knowledge would answer this one as I would like to know too. Hits and tips on painting with a can would probably be appreciated by the OP and me also

[Brian73]

I used 3 rattle cans to do a Victorian wrought iron garden planter.

I would say many more for a bike frame, some people use Nitro Mors to strip the old paint off, it's nasty stuff though.

It can work out cheaper to get it blasted and powder coated.

[Vorpal]

Clean it up, get all the rust off, then prime it. After that, once you have even coverage and even colour, it should be enough. The laquer and the primer will do most of the protecting. The other stuff is for looks

[Brucey]

but the OP begs the question 'with what in mind?'....

If the bike is going to be used on sunny days only and the prep is as good as possible then anything that looks good enough is good enough.

If the prep is bad then it doesn't matter how many coats of paint you use, if the weather sees it, it'll rust.

When you are painting with rattle cans all the strength and durability in a proper job lies in the prep and the base coats; the colour coat is just for show.

If you are using a clear coat then the colour coat does not have to be mirror smooth before you spray the clear coat; lumps are unacceptable but a matte finish to the last colour coat is OK.

If in doubt about how the finish is going to look, practice on an inconspicuous area first. The worst that happens is that you have to rub that area down again if it doesn't look quite right.

cheers

[RogerThat]

I've painted a few frames for my son with rattle can. My best advice is very a good few undercoats on, then about 5-6 coats of main colour. If you get any runs, let it dry completely, sand it back smooth and start again. That's how the pros do it!

My absolute best bit if advice I got (from a motorbike friend) is when you're satisfied with the main color, take the frame to you're local car painting shop and get them to put a two pac clear and if possible stove it. My local place will do this for £20 or occasionally a six pack of beer. It gives it a very tough and professional finish.

The only caveat is that it might take a while to dry completely in conjunction with the rattle can paint, about two weeks in a warm environment my guy at the shop recommends to be completely dry and stupid solid. All in it cost me £37. And it does look and still continues a very nice and robust finish.

[mjr]

Previously posted elsewhere:

• Paint isn't a quick option - mine needed two coats with a few hours each coat and a coat a day, assuming you can hang the bike so it can all be painted at once (no frame clamps or dropout mounts) and a couple of weeks to harden - but it can produce an acceptable finish on an old frame you don't want to powdercoat.
• Beware the paint directions. The one I used needs to be above 10 centigrade, so a room heater was needed in winter.
• Prepare the frame before painting it: strip it or sand it, then clean it down, wipe it down and let it dry completely.
• Use a ventilated but not draughty workspace - messing up a frame because something blew onto it would be annoying.
• Use at least four lamps positioned around the bike to see as much as possible even when standing in front of one lamp. A wrist-mounted LED torch can be useful. Head lamps aren't great as you could easily transfer paint to your head if you adjust it.
• Paint roughly top to bottom - paint don't drip upwards - and back to front.
• Large plates (chainguard or mech brackets) welded on are useful things to grab if you paint them last. Small welded-on things like cable stops and pump pegs mainly either create corners that are awkward to paint or gather paint that drips out later: don't trust them.
• Paint pairs of things (stays, forks) together, painting the insides first. Paint the rear dropouts while standing behind the bike.
• At a couple of points on the bike, you may need to join the coat - for example, it's hard to paint seat stays, top tube and seat tube all at once. The places where tubes join seem easier places to join the coat than edges of the lugs. A bit too much paint on some tube joins (some seem hard to paint anyway, especially around the bottom bracket) seems better than filling the edge of a lug, especially if you're planning to highlight the lugs later.
• Leave the paint can in a safe position when moving other things (lamps or whatever) around.

Someone else added:

• fit old bottom bracket cups to protect the b/b threads. Also a wad of rag into the top of the seat tube. make sure there are no loose threads to get onto the top tube.

[RogerThat]

I've observed several professional painters at work and their methods for a perfect finish are always the same: paint on thin, leave to dry, then another layer until you're satisfied with the quality and finish. In between coats they are always sanding and debating the level of finish, basically they will not tolerate any paint flaws at all. And sanding / repainting is the only way to secure that level of detail. Sanding, by the way with the very finest grade paper. A perfect finish is not impossible to achieve for an amateur, it just requires patience and the realisation that any mistakes can be rectified. Paint/sand/inspect and then paint again is the mantra!

[fastpedaller]

My preferred method (only if solid colour ie not metallic) would be to brush paint, but it's important to use the correct type of paint ..... Oil based enamels with a long open time eg yacht paints.

[DaveP]

Well, BB, one rattle can isn't going to come close to doing the job. I tried it once - IIRC I used 6 cans plus primer, There's a lot of wastage because if you get close enough to land everything on the tube you are guaranteed to get runs. I think I must have got to about 10 coats of colour. Then there's the drying time, and the rubbing down, and the rubbing down...Its a really tedious way to go, and I don't know if I would be happy to let any kid of mine breathe in so much cellulose thinners and paint dust.
My advice:
Save time, money and enthusiasm. Have it blast cleaned and powder coated then spend some quality time with your daughter, preferably in a nice warm kitchen, showing her how to build up and set up a bike. I reckon you'll both get more out of it

[Mick Metcalfe]

Im in the business of miniature painting and always see some people trying to take short cuts by applying thick layers of paint on their miniatures. The result,... they look like crap tbh. If I was you, sand the bike down in order for the paint to have something to grab onto. Then apply a light coat or two of primer. Then apply thin layers with an even sweeping motion, keep equidistant from the subject. Then apply the lacquer in a few lyers too. The number of coats will have to be judged by your eye, as the opaque qualities of the paint you are using will only be seen by you. Different paints will have different opaque qualiies, even different batches of the same brand and colour can vary imho. So, unfortunately, it has to be down to your eye to judge. The more time you spend, the better the job. Always leave drying time between layers also. If possible, do not spray in damp/humid/hot conditions, as this will greatly change the properties in the paint. I.e. hot conditions will result in the paint drying prior to reaching your frame, damp conditions may effect the quality of the paint as moister is not the best addative to some paint ranges.

Hope this helps

Mick

[AlaninWales]

In addition to all the above good advice, and as well as shaking the can as per instructions, keeping it stood in a bowl of hot water helps it spray more consistently (as spraying cools the can); shake the excess water off whenever you pick it up ( away from the work-piece ).

[greyingbeard]

If you can get away with one tin !!
Use most of the tin in thin coats, flat out any runs with fine wet and dry, say 1200+, use the last bit to re-spray where you've messed up. Laquer will give it some protection.
Good luck.

[bigbloke]

thanks all for the replies

I'll post up when its finished

regards

BB

[breakwellmz]

I sprayed this fork yesterday(originally mid blue colour)to match the black frame.I`keyed up`the surface with fine sandpaper and wire wool, degreased with lighter fluid on kitchen roll whilst my can of car spray sat in a mug of hot water.
All the paint was applied in about five minutes in short bursts from about six inches or less.I reckon i`ve used half a 300ml can of cheapo car spray.
This is the end result-