bpeder

There's a thread over at MTB where they are talking about winter projects with vintage rides. I posted there but I thought I'd bring it here too.

I'm stripping my old '82 Ross Super Gran Tour XV. I want to have it powder coated clear but the powder coat guy says they don't have much luck with clear coats. Yes, there is a clear powder coat - but they say it shows finger prints and rust? If the frame was bead blasted and clean in the shop, where would grease and finger prints come into the equation?

Also, (and this makes more sense), they say if they over-bake it, it will take on a yellowed look... But again, wouldn't that be the same problem over a colored powder coat? Finally, he told me that if they do end up with a bad finish, they can't strip it off and re-do it. This guy seemed bound and determined to steer me to a color. He pointed out all the shades of silver and gray, thinking that I would be happy with that.

Can anyone comment on this idea of a clear powder coat and the pitfalls the guy is telling me about? I like the idea of a stripped frame showing all the braze around the lugs, and I'm not the only one judging by the number of "Stripper" finishes I see being offered by bike manufacturers and the way they get snapped up...

I'd also be interested to hear if anyone else has vintage projects going to while away the long winter nights - if they have time after their commutes that is!

Bioflamingo

I saw a motorcycle with a clear powder coat once. Looked amazing unless you got a few inches away from it. You could see every little imperfection where dust or something got on the frame prior to coating. If you're looking for a flawless powder coat, clear is not the way to go.

As for a winter project I'll be done with my new commuter by the middle of the week, so my next project is building up a 5 speed town bike. Using a 60s Western Flyer 3 speed frame because I've always liked their looks. I'm not sure whether I want 26, 27, or 700c rims yet. I guess it depends on what will fit. After this commuter I don't have the money for powder coating, so I'll be using automotive spray paint instead. I've had good luck with it on other applications, so I think a bike will be fine too.

brian3069

there's one on cl with a clear coat

61cm rivendell atlantis -

illwafer

one thing is clear (pun intended)...this guy should not be clear coating your frame.

if you really want it clear, you are going to have to find someone else. at least this guy is being honest about it not looking good (by him).

i would get it blasted first and see if that's really how you want your frame to look. if so, go clear.

SingeDebile

my front rack made by bilenky cycles is clear powdercoated... they said it would be no problem it came out ok, there is some wierd heat distortion bubbling around one of the vent holes (which luciky is facing down and are hard to see).

Fidelista

I had my bike clear powdercoated. I had to do most of the preparation myself. Preparation consisted of having the frame chemically stripped, then sanding out some of the spots missed by the strippers. (!). I sanded it with wet and dry paper, used dry and started with 180 grit and finished with 600 grit. It is a very tedious and messy business. I sanded for about 30 mins. a day until it annoyed me enough to stop. Every time I stopped sanding for the day, I sprayed the frame with WD40 to prevent rust. It will rust very quickly if this is not done and while the rust may not be immediately apparent, it will show later after the powdercoated is applied. I then stored the frame in a large plastic garbage bag until the next session.
When I took it to the powdercoaters, I cleaned it with denatured alcohol (in the powdercoater's foyer) and wiped it with a clean rag then after carefully masking it with powdercoating tape I placed it in a fresh bag and and handed it over. I made sure that the powdercoaters understood to treat the frame with care and not leave any fingerprints on it, although I've since considered leaving a fingerprint under the bottom bracket for ID and as a sort of signature.
I'm reasonably pleased with the results, although,with the benefit of hindsight, I could have done better.
If (and when) I do this again, I would spend more time on sanding. I sanded this one until it looked polished, but the coating dulls the sheen a bit and the surface is duller than it was before coating. I would probably buff it using a mechanical buffing wheel to bring it up to a chrome-like finish, which I know is a lot of work (done it on my hand-tools). I would also specify a double coat of powder. Like all powdercoat, the edges of the lugs will not be as defined as they would with wet paint, but being clear,it won't show as much as an opaque colour. Powdercoat is pretty tough, but it's not invincible and it can still be chipped or scratched. Those chips and scratches will rust instantly, but clear nail polish does a good job of covering them. I would also invest in a set of small riffler files,to clean up the brazing a bit.Incidentally, if the brazing is polished a bit, the powdercoat preserves the sheen. It looks a bit like fine lug lining.

I live in a fairly dry climate and don't ride the bike in the rain...ever. It may be different where you live. The finish has been on the bike for a year now, with no rust apparent, except where I have put nail polish on the very few tiny scratches. I used a tiny piece of abrasive paper to get those few small specks of rust out before putting the nail polish on, and the rust hasn't returned.

It really is essential for a top class finish to get every tiny scratch or file mark out before coating (something else I will do next time). The clear finish will show marks which are barely visible before coating.

The obligatory pictures without no thread is complete...







Good luck with your project.

bpeder

Mercy! Nice wheels! Great post! Thank you! I'm inspired... I guess you could have gone for actual chrome plating but that gets murderously expensive. Although looking at that bike it would seem that money was not so much of an issue. I tried aircraft stripper from the auto parts store on my frame and it did not work. Maybe it was too chilly in the garage...

The powder coat company here in the Twin Cities does a lot of bikes so it's not that I think they don't know what they are doing. They may just think I'm looking for perfection. They can take a frame and bead blast it for 70bucks and then it's 120 to coat it. I guess there's no telling what the frame will look like after the blasting and with a clear coat, that final look is what you get. At least you know that the frame will be as clean as they can get it. I'm not so sure I'm up for all the work you did to keep it clean right up to the moment it went in the booth. But still, it sure looks nice! How did that bike start out in life?

I kinda like the look of that Rivendell a couple posts back. With the darker natural look to the steel, the golden braze stands out a little better. My frame is 80% stripped. The guy says at that point he can reduce the price to just blast the tight areas around the lugs and such but then I'd get areas that look different. Maybe I'll just have the whole thing blasted and then go and have a look see. It might look cool and then I'd just have to talk him into a clear coat. If it looked crappy they have a rainbow of colors... I just could not decide! That's why the natural look appealed to me.

Anyway, thanks for the great comments everyone. It's fun in the winter to have stuff to keep us busy. It keeps us from jonesing for open road although many like me, continue to commute. That's an ongoing winter project too... Keeping the bike clean! My winter commuter is an old Ross MTB with a chrome frame. Now there's a finish that laughs at snow, sand and salt but things still get pretty rasty... The guy that owns the coin operated car wash? I'm putting his kids through college!