LanceFanBoy

Hey guys, I just got a Free Spirit fs12 for like $20 because i wanted a clunker to practice wrenching on and have a hobby bike to ride around in the city with regular pedals and not care if anyone steals it off the lock.

Anyways, the frame isn't rusted but I want to strip the paint and repaint it. I'm sure some of you have done this before are there and tricks or tips? What kind of paint, sanding, etc. do I need to do to ensure a quality enough job the bike won't get laughed at.

Thanks from a vintage build newbie

FrejusFred

There's lots of info on painting frames in these forums. Rather than me regurgitating it, try doing a search of the forum.

Kinetikx

Plenty has been written about that on this forum. If you do some searches for a tutorial by Dr. Deltron you'll have plenty of info to work with.

I've used chemical strippers since they're easy. There are less environmentally harmful strippers to use as well. I have a compressor so I just used a grinder with a wire brush attachment to remove everything that the stripper didn't. After that it's all surface prep. The more work you do in that regard the better the final result. I'll leave the details of that to more expert posters since I've only done one Schwinn Continental so far.

I decided to use engine enamel for my project. I've heard that it may be more durable but I'm not convinced of that fact. It wasn't that much more expensive as far as rattlecan goes. (used one can of primer, 2 cans of color, and one can of clear)

Whatever you do, if you're rattlecanning the job you'll want to wait as long as you possibly can before assembling and riding to allow the paint to cure. I've been waiting over a month at this point and it's starting to get to me. I may finish mine this weekend or the next.

Thor06

First off, I'd strip it down completely before you start sanding. Sand out the rust spots, but you also want to make sure you scuff up even the good paint as it will aide in adhesion of the coming coat. I did my whole bike in 220 and let me tell you, it was a PAIN. I'd get the three pack of 80, 150, 220 or whatever it was and do the rust with the gritty stuff, but go over the whole thing with 220. You are going to want to do a good tape job too, I dont think you want a bunch of paint running down your steering tube or seat tube. Also, you should hang the bike to paint, maybe with wire from the rafters in a garage. After that, its all kind of up to how nice you want the finish. I personally put on two coats of black primer and called 'er good . I dont know right off hand what procedure to follow to get nice glossy paint, I think a quick google search will do you good.

LanceFanBoy

cool, yeah i plan on searching for more info, thanks for the quick hints so far. just feeling out the commitment to the process. thanks.