Nice, I would love to have access to a powder coat process. However for now its not an option. Sounds like you need a better mask? Sounds like a much better way of doing it then stripping the paint by hand and sanding it out..
Can't wait to see the final product..
Well, I'm going to be paying for at least one month of membership fees, and will likely have a lot of powder and time left over before I'm done. So if you had something you wanted to be coated, I don't mind doing it along with my own stuff. Hell, anyone who wants some stuff done, give me a buzz. Obviously colors will be limited to what I'm using, unless you want to buy some new media to send with your part (Columbia Coatings ships stuff hella fast). Clearly I'll be doing a lot of gloss black, so I'll be buying a sizable amount of that. I am a complete novice at this stage, so don't send me your gas tank expecting showroom quality powder coating... but it's not rocket science, and I think I can hit up a battery box pretty well! Maybe we can trade services on something. There's a lot of stuff I don't mind farming out to someone who knows what they're doing, if I can do some part myself in exchange instead of having to pay for it. Win-win!
I think the problem with the mask was it just wasn't flush against my skin completely, particularly around the bridge of my nose. So dust crept in there. Plus, the cabinet wasn't sealing 100%, and way more dust was shooting out than normal.
I also can't wait to see it finished!
There's a powdercoating place in Colorado Springs, that can powder coat your gas tank etc.....alot of places can do that, I know, but they can mask off stripes, flames, you name it! when they're done it looks just like paint....very little if any orange peel or anything.
Not a bad idea, but I want to paint my side covers, fenders, and maybe a few other small parts. The side covers for sure won't withstand the high temps, and if everything is to match it has to be the same process. Plus, you have to accept whatever colors a particular powder company offers; there's no way to get a custom color done. There's far too much work involved in getting a single batch made that it's just not worth it for them to invest all the time and effort to get a specific color matched. So if you don't like what you have available, you're SOL.
For dents, I believe there is a bondo that can withstand the powdercoating heat process.
Just wanted to throw that out there!
I would definitely be interested in that. Do you know the brand name? Greasy and I were just talking about that this evening.
Bike looks great Ty.....keep up the good work!
(make sure you clean the carbs before you put on....save yourself the hassle!)
Thanks! And I sure will clean those carbs. I'll sonicate them in some carb cleaner for a while and really get them like-new. Tyler, the PO who's a forum member here, had done some carb work on the bike previously, and they look to be in really good shape. Some rust on the long rod thing (sorry, it's late, I'm too tired to look up the name) but it's not egregious. It will all need a thorough cleaning and de-rusting.
Day 36:
On Friday I stopped by this place in Hayward named
High Lustre Chrome Plating. They do... wait for it... chrome plating! I left them my tach and speedo covers, along with the starter cover for an estimate to re-chrome. Those are the only parts that I know for sure that I want to have re-done. The shifter arm, kick starter, rear brake pedal, and footrests I'm planning on powder coating to match the frame, once I figure out what color to use. The only other part would be the headlight rim, which I can buy from BikeBandit for $52, which is cheaper than having someone do it. Too much damn labor. I got a quote from one guy in Oakland for $85 just for that part alone. At any rate, High Lustre specializes in Harley parts, and has this cool core exchange program going on. Bring them your old part that needs chroming, and you can just take one that's already done right away out the door. Fabulous idea. Of course, you don't get the original back; you're getting one from some other bike, so for purists maybe it's not ideal.
I was able to get the entire tank blasted today, top and bottom, after another 3 hours of work. I think that's what it was... hard to tell, the hours flew by. You sort of get lost in thought while blasting away; there's not much else to do mentally. The bottom was much easier to blast off than the top. Must have been no clear coat, or something like that. It came off really quickly with the aluminum oxide. Had some issues around the seams on the very edges, as I couldn't see inside the cabinet very well and thus couldn't tell whether I'd gotten all of it out. Came out sufficiently clean, though.
With Greasy's help and guidance, I then carefully air dried it, wiped it down with tack cloth, lightly used a water-based cleaner to remove any trace bits of Al
2O
3, then air dried again. Put some EverCoat Lite Weight body filler over the handful of small depressions and low-spots (amazingly, after 35 years, the most serious problem with the tank was a very minor 2" crease in the front left corner), let it dry for an hour or so, then sanded it all down by hand with a block and some 220 grit paper, also with Greasy's help and advice. Spent a good half-hour sanding around the gas cap hole after removing the duct tape used to keep out all the Al
2O
3. A good paint job is all in the prep, right? Another round of dusting it off, tacking, water cleaning, more drying, and it was ready for the first coat of primer. Used Duplicolor Professional's primer again... a full can of it, in fact. Hit the bottom side first, let it dry for 15 minutes (it dries almost before your eyes, but I wanted to be sure), then did the top and let it all dry for maybe a half hour. After inspection, it's apparent that I missed a couple tiny low spots on the surface during my hunt to use up the body filler. Damn. No worries, though, as Greasy assures me that we can use some lacquer putty to fill them in and sand it on down. They're very tiny, and only showed up with the black primer under careful inspection. Must. Be. Perfect.
Left Greasy's at 11:45, just in time to take a quick shower, post an update, and then go to bed! Pics will be forthcoming; I forgot my camera at home before leaving, so they're on Greasy's camera.
