Topic: Where to get paint/ How to do a proper job on Aluminum?

[RustyStuff]

I'm modding a set of old "mermite" can's( aluminum army coolers,) into pannier's for my bike. Going to be needing to haul my tools and books around, that I can lock and are secure.

Currently, they are ugly, and I mean hidiously ugly. Big chips and scratches down to the bare metal,  army green, with tan primer showing though. I'm usualy Ok with ugly, but I would like my bike to be atleast halfway nice.

I'm thinking that if I painted them with the same red metalflake and gold pinstripeing(mabey) my bike has, they would look real good.

Can you get color matched red metalflake, in a spraycan? If you can, is it any good? I'd rather not clearcoat, if there's a paint that will look good without it.
I can post Pic's if anyone wants.

[LesterPiglet]

As far as I am aware all metallic paint needs clearcoated.

[faux fiddy]

Uhh, aluminum is great, but putting a coating on it is hard.

I remember a boat up on the grid and the coating they used was a weird pink color before they did the bottom paint, lemme get back to you on that and see if I can dind out what they use on the underwater part of the boat.


Actually , now that I think of it I did Terry's boat with something like that, not sure what it was. It was not two part epoxy. Just coated the stuff, no blasting just a little cleanup.  Milky looking stuff if I remember correct. I made sure to worm it into the corroded areas with a brush, it was obviously something that had been neglected.

But if it works on aluminum in a marine environment, maybe that's where to look for stuff that will do what it does for Aluminum.

[WhyNot2]

I'd really like to see what you're doing.

[Xnavylfr]

Use EPOXY primer, this will help to prvent corroding. You CAN get your metal flake to match at a mixing store then buy whats called a PRE-VALVE. It is a small paint container (maybe 8oz) attached to sprayer. They call also mix your paint and put it in a small spray can for you. If you still have the color code # it helps .
Aluminum is prepped and painted the same as steel. If you sand the boxes prior to paint don't sand any finer than 320, this gives the primer and paint more TOOTH to adhere to.


Xnavylfr(CHUCK)

[RustyStuff]

Thanks for all the info. I found out today I would need to use Zinc-cromate(I think thats it) Primer. Could that be the pink/milky stuff your talking about?

I'd really like to see what you're doing.

Here's the pics-
Stripping the foam out of the inside-

The ugly-

This is about how it's going to be mounted, Going to bend up a frame from aluminum tube.

Going to add aux turn and brake LED lights.
\

I can lean the bike over till the pegs drag and they never touch down, and theres a 3" gap between the exuast and the box. Also can fit a passenger on it with them.

[LesterPiglet]

Lets see you dragging the pegs with those babies filled with beer.   

[WhyNot2]

That is neat....never would have thought to do that with mermites.

Served a many of meals out of those, in Germany, Korea and Iraq..............man, that is kewl

[RustyStuff]

That is neat....never would have thought to do that with mermites.

Served a many of meals out of those, in Germany, Korea and Iraq..............man, that is kewl

Lots of people put them on enduro's and "Adventure Bikes", thats where i got the idea. It's gotten to be so they are impossble to find unless you are lucky or rich.

Ton's of room for gear once you pull the liners and foam out.  I tried, got 5, 1 gallon milk jugs fit.

Probably could carry enough beer to have your own bar, if only I drank.

[faux fiddy]

Zink chromate is a yellowish- lime green -olive  paint they used in WWII  era.   Anyone who built plastic  models back in the day painted the spurs of the plane this color on the inside for accuracy.  Perhaps another good choice , but I bet that advice was surely from and old timer, not to say it's bad advice at all.

I guess we need those   older guys don't we?

The Flying Burrito Brothers - The Older Guys USTV (full version)

[Xnavylfr]

Zinc-Chromate was replaced by epoxy due to the EPA, and yes it was a LONG time ago, back in the late 70s early 80s we still used it on Navy Aircraft, but then they changed to Epoxy primer and paint. Now most aircraft(aluminum) skins are primed with a WATER based primer then painted with Polyurethane Paint. You might find some Zinc-chromate in spray cans at some military surplus store.

Xnavylfr(CHUCK)

[madmtnmotors]

I'm pretty sure zinc-chromate gives the best results for priming aluminum. Available from numerous sources:

http://www.google.com/#q=ZINC+CHROMATE+PRIMER&hl=en&prmd=imvnsfd&source=univ&tbm=shop&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=7gswT569MNDptge4psy5DA&ved=0CG0QrQQ&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=8771c86f26838881&biw=1920&bih=955

[Xnavylfr]

I didn't know you could still get ZC spray primer. By all means use the ZC primer on aluminum, then to make the inside water-proof ,I would use spray on bedliner coating.

Xnavylfr(CHUCK)

[RustyStuff]

Cool. Good to know it's still available. I'm going to look for white bedliner to coat the insides, I've heard black makes it really hard to see things inside.

[BLUE71TURBO]

  Painting aluminum or galvenized metal you have to use " Self etching primer ".  You can get it at any automotive paint supply shop.  Or the cheap route you can use  self etching primer from a spray can from home depot etc.   I myself perfer to use the same materials from the same manufacture as the paint so you don't run into the paint and primer being imcompatable.   

[RustyStuff]

  Painting aluminum or galvenized metal you have to use " Self etching primer ".  You can get it at any automotive paint supply shop.  Or the cheap route you can use  self etching primer from a spray can from home depot etc.   I myself perfer to use the same materials from the same manufacture as the paint so you don't run into the paint and primer being imcompatable.   

I've ran into  that problem useing clear coat from a different Co. It orange peeled, right before my eyes. It was wild.