Topic: how much does it cost to paint a tank and seat?

[Stert]

i will be ordering a new tank and seat within the week. i have a friend that paints cars and i asked him how much he would paint them for. he said its normally about $375 but he would do it for $200.
im getting it done green with some minimal striping.

he has quoted me for jobs before telling me he was giving me a deal but turns out they werent deals at all (i was getting a set of drums painted).

so how much would this cost and am i getting a deal like he says i am?

thanks

[jay72chevy]

It all depends on what kind of paint it being used? Base coat clear coat, single stage paint? Where are you ordering your tank and seat from?

[Geeto67]

what kind of paint? what color? 2 tone or single color? how much prep work is he doing? you really haven't given enough information.

Considering that it cost me $1200 to get a showbike quality finish on a 1979 cb750F (1/4 fairing, tank, tail, front fender, and sidecovers) $200 is a bargain if you are getting close to what I got (silver with black center stripe and red pinstirping). however if you are getting  macco job I could replicate that in my garage with a foam roller and $15 in paint supplies.

Most of my local guys won't do it for under $500. Back when I used to spray the materials alone could cost me over $100. That is for a 2 stage enamel or acrylic laquer (base and clear), in a solid or metallic standard automotive color (not custom mixed). The actual spraying is usually the cheapest part - the prep work is expensive.

personally if you don't trust him to do right by you then why is he your friend?

BTW, a buddy of mine works are a subaru dealership with a paint booth and he told me anytime I want something sprayed a subaru color just to give him the parts already prepped (all bodywork done and ready for primer) and he would spray it for $50-$100. The catch is I had to wait until a car the color I liked needed body work. Just a thought for those considering budget paint...

[Hope]

$200 to get a tank painted is a good deal...  Does your fried do good quality work?  If so, $200 is a good deal.  The supplies alone to get my tank professionally painted was $150.  I didn't pay labor (inmates at DCI did it for me)... so $200 means he's just charging you $50 for the paint job.

Pics of my paint job can be viewed here:
http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=28313.0

BTW - 2 tanks, 4 side covers, & 1 helmet were painted.  Supplies cost $300 total for everything you see painted in the pics.

FYI - all supplies were PPG

[goon 1492]

It all depends on what kind of paint it being used? Base coat clear coat, single stage paint? Where are you ordering your tank and seat from?

+ how many coats of clear you want on top...That's to make that super wet look baby! Gotta have it
and if you throw in some airbrushing, it just goes up. Add the word custom and it automatically doubles the price too.

[bgfootball67]

Sounds like a pretty good deal as long as your buddy does good work? 

[Stert]

ok that pretty much answers my question.

its not that i dont trust him. but i was having like a 500-600 dollar paint job on my drums done and i told him what i was going to get it for, and he comes back and says he would do it for like $25 cheaper. i was sorta like wtf? lol i dont care about about $25 when im spending $600.

so hasnt been dishonest or anything. he does good work too. i forget exactly where he works but i have seen some of the stuff he has done.

im ordering the tank and seat from carpy. and getting it painted green with some either black or gold striping.

[Geeto67]

ok so who is going to do the prep on the stuff?

I hope you don't think that just because it is new stuff it doesn't need prep work - at the very least you are going to have to scuff the gell coat so it will take the paint, but most likely you will have to skim coat the tank and seat with filler and sand it all smooth to get a decent finish. Fiberglass parts all tend to be wavy straight out of the mold (press molded tends to be less than hand laid, but all have it). We are talking at least 5 hours of work applying/sanding/applying/sanding before it will look better than cheaply made fiberglass. Since it is labor intensive and not hard I recommend you do it, it will save you a ton and really make your parts look like they were not built in someone's backyard shed.

Ok so green is your base. I imagine you can do a two part green (even a metallic) fairly cheaply so it doesn't sound out of line. Does your painter know you want stripes? usually a much bigger charge for stripes rather than a single color. A gold will also be a metallic color and harder to shoot (unless you use an imitation gold which is more of a mustard yellow). I think your painter should know all this stuff because it is going to change the price. You may want to look into doing vynil for the stripes and having the painter just clear over it. Might save you a ton in the long run.

[bozo4onion]

Do you have pics. Of the drums I mean. I'd love to see a painted kit. Good to know another CB drummer. I've got an old vinyl coated Pearl kit I'd love to peel and paint. I always wondered if you could do it. Oh yeah....good luck with the bike too.

[heffay]

hmmm... interesting that you took it to mean a drum kit and i took it to mean a set of drum brakes.   

a drum set/kit actually makes more sense as drums front and rear makes no sense at all!   

[Steve F]

material alone for my job was over $200, but that included the primer, reducer and hardener plus a few other supplies.  His price is really good.

[Gordon]

You won't really know if you're getting a good deal until it's done.