Paint cost
Not real sure where to put this, there are so many forums.
I have a Raleigh Sports I want to paint. Oh, wow, so many options.
1. Spray can. Seems to be cheapest. But it is not very durable, and I want to use the bicycle not display it.
2. Powder coat. Seems reasonable, very durable. But the sheet metal parts (fenders and chainguard) need body work and I understand that you have to start with bare metal, and I would definitely have to farm it out. However this might be a good way to deal with rusty brackets and the like.
3. Polyurthane/catalyst (Imron). Durable, but difficult for the do-it-your-selfer. I checked at the local auto paint dealer and it would cost $76 for a pint (Note: red or metallics are higher) of the stuff with catalyst. BTW, there seems to be at least five different types of Imron.
4. Auto body paint. Fairly durable if baked on. $18/pint. I figure I could use a couple of infrared bulbs to bake, doing it in sections.
Then there is the primer. Most think that you just spray a bit of primer and then the finish coat. Not so, you really should use an anti-corrosion primer on any bare metal. Then a primer filler, several coats sanded amost off each time to fill in any imperfections. Then a primer sealer. That is three coats of different primers. And only then the color coat. And maybe a clear coat over the color coat.
For the poly stuff the paint store quoted me a $125 for everything. And we think painters who want $200 are cheating us (head shake).
So what do you folks who have done this recommend?