Fred Smith

I am rebuilding a early 70s Motobecane Mirage for my wife. The frame is scratched and rusted and the paint color seems to have faded. My wife would like it painted a different color and I’m looking for painting tips, specifically:

1) Do I need to strip off all the old paint or can I just even out the scratches and remove the rust?

2) I plan to use a dremel with a wire attachment or a rotary sandpaper attachment to strip paint – is that a bad idea?

3) Is there a particular type of primer I should use as a base before painting the actual color?

4) Any paint brand suggestions? Can I use auto paint or specific bike paint (a quick google didn’t show any particular bike specific paints)? The frame is 1020 steel – does that impact the paint selection?

5) Any hints or websites you’ve found useful?

Thanks!

kycycler

Strip all the components off and take it to a shop that can do powder coating. The shop will strip the paint off and repaint.

sch

Color and durability factors determine prep and paint. Powder coat is an excellent,
very hard, durable paint but color selection can be a problem, ($) mainly. If you
like their standard colors and can wait for a powder coat batch then this can be
pretty cheap for the quality. Spray can paint works well and fairly wide range of
colors available but durability can be problematic. A good prime coat is essential,
and for best results a chemical or walnut/glass bead blast stripping to bare metal
prior. Be aware that a heavy hand with a sharp sand blaster can strip 10-15
thousandths metal off the frame. Likely your frame is at least 60 thou thick but
avoid anything more aggressive than glass beads if blasting. Automotive paint
comes in a huge color palette but like powder coat requires heat curing and unless
your frame surface is automotive grade you might not like the results. Obviously
automotive paint is very durable if of the heat cured variety. A clear coat is assumed.
Brushing on paint will look like crap. You can
sand the previous paint job and phosphate the rust spots and get a reasonable
result but expect to do it all again in a year or two, especially if you use spray can
paint or any non-cured paint. They are just too soft, and the unremoved bit of
rust metastasizes and eventually pops the paint off.

LarDasse74

I have had good luck repaintign steel frames using rattlecan rust paint.

I start by stripping off all the old paint with chemical paint stripper... the more toxic and dangerous the better, I have found. Then I buff the frame lightly with fine sandpaper - 300 grit or so - then apply very light coats of the base colour with hardware-store-brand rust paint. I allow the paint to fully dry between coats and lightly sand again before the next to remove any paint that has not bonded properly. THe whole process takes about a week to do an elaborate paint job that looks OK, but it obviously amatureish, and still chips a lot more easily than the stock paint on most bikes.

If I was not so cheap I would get them powdercoated.