Bicycle Mechanics - can i respray a carbon frame?

hye guys,

im a bit confuse here. i'm planning to respray my carbon roadie frame. the question is, can i do that? i hope somebody here can give me the answer. btw, my spraying method is by using the can spray. not with the gun and compressor. :)

i'm planning to respray my carbon roadie frame. the question is, can i do that?
Sure you can. But paint out of a spray can is usually so much softer than whatever it was that was on the bike originally, so personally it'd have to be a SERIOUSLY messed-up paintjob before I'd try replacing it with something out of a rattle can.

You might consider leaving the stripped and prepped frame to a car painter or similar and have them paint it instead. If they don't have to do any prep job it shouldn't cost that much. If you're not too picky about the color they might be able to spray it while spraying something else, which would make it even cheaper.

hye guys,

im a bit confuse here. i'm planning to respray my carbon roadie frame. the question is, can i do that? i hope somebody here can give me the answer. btw, my spraying method is by using the can spray. not with the gun and compressor. :)

You can, but you probably won't like the results.

yay but it is not going to look good if you paint it with a spray can

Yeah, I've painted plenty of carbon frames. But spray-can paint sucks. They don't have anywhere nearly the smooth finish of a touch-up gun, and the paint itself is not as good as a 2-part catalyzed paint. You can get those from auto-shops for next to nothing. A 1-quart can of OmniAU with reducer runs like $35 and can easily paint 15-20 bikes. Personally, I like Dupont Imron best. :)

thank for the replies. it will cost me a bomb to paint a bike frame in my country (malaysia). and most of the paint job here doesn't know the value of a bicycle frame. that is why i came up with a can spray job. thanks again guys! :)

Um.... as I understand it any of the two part paints and ESPECIALLY Imron are extremely toxic and are only to be used with a remote fresh air supply mask setup that will easily outprice the spray gun and materials.

I'm OK though since I'm a scuba diver and if I was to do this I'd just use a tank of air to breath from while painting... :D

Seriously though. No two part poly urethanes without some serious breathing supply gear if you know what's good for you. None of the filters were good enough when I looked into this topic some 15 years ago and I'd be surprised if any filter is good enough now. It's remote supply or nothing.

Imron contains cyanide... heh, heh.. :eek:

But you have to consider exposure times and exposure rates. I'm not saying it's a brilliant idea, but the paint has to be really toxic before parts of an hour every odd years will pose a significant risk.

It's not that hard to make a forced-air respirator. You actually don't need a seal at the face-mask. As long as you've got air continuously flowing in, it'll exit out the sides of the mask and keep all the bad stuff away.

sand it down-- put some stickers--clear coat it with a can-- buffit--- clear is less uneven looking....

Thanks for those replies. well, i have my own junkyard at the back of my house. there is an old garage where i think it's suitable for my spray job. I've done a lot of spray can job before. it just this is my first time to spray a "carbon material" frame. i decided to let all the stickers remain. i will not sand it because i'm afraid i will scratch or damage the frame. i will take out all the components and wash the frame clean. dry it, and will coat the frame with a base color. the next layer will be the color that i want. dry it. and the spray it again layer by layer until 3 to 4 layer. then final dry. put on some stickers and finally, spray clear coat on it and dry it. what do u guys think? :D

Imron contains cyanide... heh, heh.. :eek:

Isocyanide, actually.

I thought Imron was banned in Cali?

Isocyanide, actually.

I thought Imron was banned in Cali?

Joe Bell uses Imron. He's in California.

sand it ya wipe it ya--- dont wash it--- ya-----exposed carbon fibre will absorb "stuff" the less chemicals you use the better...