General Cycling Discussion - Painted a bike. Total cost - $8.

The paint is purchased at Auto Zone, deep green, dupli color, automotive paint, 3 something dollars a can. Used two cans.
The job took all together about 2 hours of work, with 24 hours for the paint to dry.

Used 600 sand paper to prepare the surface, and alcohol based surface cleaner.

Here are the results. It looks even better in real.
Easy way to make a bike look better.
Sorry for large pictures.

http://www.angelfire.com/al2/misha18male6/mvc/MVC-011F.JPG
This is how it looked in the beginning.
http://www.angelfire.com/al2/misha18male6/mvc2/grey_frame1.jpg
Frame ready to get painted.
http://www.angelfire.com/al2/misha18male6/mvc2/green_frame.jpg
After spraying... approximately 10 layers...

And here is the final result:

http://www.angelfire.com/al2/misha18male6/mvc2/green.jpg
http://www.angelfire.com/al2/misha18male6/mvc2/green_front.jpg

Looking good!

Thanks :D

The last shot shows how nice the paint looks!

looking good......

just one question. Why didn't you take off the fork before you painted the frame?

Thanks. Because the fork was going to be painted anyway, and I didn't want to mess with the bearings. I oversprayed a little on the Schwinn emblem, but it doesn't bother me. :)

yes i've noticed a little overspray... its ok.. you can rub it off if you want...

BTW, did you use acrylic paint?


I asked(about the fork), because I had a really hard time taking out mine(about 2-3months ago).. The expanders/stem rusted and was stuck.. I used a lot lubricant to no avail and ended up ruining the fork, and the stem.. (a perfect excuse to buy a new fork, headset and stem):D

I don't know much about paints... and also didn't use the clear coat after, which would probably be a good idea. But I used this kind of paint on the car before, and it held fine for a full year, hope this will not be much worse.

As far as fork, yeah, this is another reason I didn't want to take it off, I had a fear of loosing bearing balls, finding a big wrench... etc.
Also, with fork attached, frame can stand byitself. :)

if you used those in a spay can.. most of those are either acrylic or enamel, and the more expensive ones are urethane... you can apply clearcoat on acrylic coats.. But it not advised to be used on enamel...

Nevertheless, your bike looks beautiful.. Is that the $20 bike you bought?

Oh, I see. If any scratches will accur, there is still some paint left in one of the cans and clear coat could be applied later, if needed. Time will show.
Yes, it's the bike for $20. It's coming back to life after being almost on the junkyard/cemetery. Only some time later, after I bought it, I realized what bad condition it was in.
Anyway, thanks :D

Clear coat is cheap another $3.. and will help protect the finish I would suggest getting some rubbing compoud, it makes a BIG difference on the smoothness of the finish.

Looking really nice! Noticed you also have added a rear rack, brake pads, handlebar tape, and are those new tires? Anyways, aren't you glad you didn't go with a Walmart bike? Yours has much more character. Way to go!:)

Use those locks! With it looking so nice someone may try to steal it.

I've thought about putting a new paint job on my bike, but I want to have the Trek decals on it afterwards. Is there any way to purchase good Trek decals?

Great job Inoplanetyanin. You wouldn't think it was the same bike. By the way, how does it ride?

"Captain Kangaroo says, 'Schwinn bikes are the best.'" :)

Your final result looks good enough to tempt me to try repainting one or both of my Peugeots sometime, although I would prefer to remove the bottom bracket and headset before proceeding. I am currently spending $$$ to have the Capo professionally repainted, and it is going to look fabulous, but I cannot justify that kind of expense for any other bike I have ever owned, particuarly a daily driver.

My biggest challenge in home paint jobs has always been establishing a dust-free environment.

I have seen various bike decals, including Trek, for sale on eBay.

Nice paint job..:D