Hey Guys,
I like to restore vintage road bikes. I have been trying my hand at painting. Not trying to make museum pieces, just trying to make bikes look nice. I have been sanding with 400 grit wet paper to take out chips, nicks et. After sanding, I thoroughly clean with soap and water, wipe down and allow to dry 24 hours. Then I've been using gloss enamel rustoleum in a spray can. At that point it looks pretty good except where I taped off head badge area. I sprayed that area with clear and it matches pretty good. I was thinking the clear would make the rest of the bike glossier. When I sprayed the rest of the bike, I noticed where there was a decal, the paint and clear coat just wrinkled up. This didn't happen until I applied clear. I assume I left some adhesive in that particular area? It didn't happen every where there was decals, so I am just assuming I didn't clean or sand all adhesive where that clear coat interacted? Also, should I have flatted the enamel again with steel wool or 400 grit wet before I added the clear coat? Trying to get the right process in place. Thanks for any input. Best regards, Doug

you dont need to sand between coats, but follow the instructions on the can(s).

the part that wrinkled up was probably due to the paint not adhering to the frame for whatever reason. did you use primer? primer is very important as the middle layer between your old paint/steel and the new paint.

a degreaser also might have helped vs soap and water.

Yes, I used primer between sanding frame and applying enamel. Everything was good and clean. I am thinking a thin layer of glue was left behind where I sanded off a decal. I used brake cleaner after removing other decals and there was no wrinkle. The last two decals, I was trying to leave on and decide to sand off at last minute. Didn't think to wipe with brake cleaner to remove any adhesive. It's clearly where the decals was, being the length and width that correlates to decal area. Sounds good. I'll see how everything looks after finally dried. I'll have to re-sand, clean and paint the two small areas where the decal adhesive wrinkled. Thanks, Doug

Ah, reading directions helps. I feel a little stupid, but I can't read the small print on the cans. Anyways, after finding some reading glasses and clear coating the forks which had no decals here's the problem. The clear coat needs to be applied within 30 minutes or after 48 hours at 72 degrees. My bike is in the basement, so it's cooler than 72 degrees. I am applying clear coat after 30 minutes, but before color coat is compeltely hardened. Evidently when I am applying the clear coat, the carrier is breaking down the semi-cured color coat and the color coat is shrinking and wrinkling. Seeing the forks do this and they had no decals proves to me that this is the case. Too big of a hurry to get the clear coat on and see what the finished product looks like. I'll let everything dry for 4-5 days, sand smooth and try to get by with just applying the clear coat again as long as I don't sand through color coat. Helps to read instructions :-)
FYI,
Doug

looks like you got it figured out.

fyi, ive done 2 rattlecan jobs where ive went primer (2 cans) to color (3 cans) to clear coat (2 cans) consecutively. they turned out very nice, but you have to leave the frame alone for about a month (which is sooo hard). it takes a month or 2 (maybe 3 or 4) for everything to properly cure. the longer you can hold out the better.

also, leaving it out in the sun day after day will help move things along.

Thanks for the input. Yes, I was too impasient. I have now used steel wool to flatten everything back down, letting it dry, then I'll recoat and allow at least a week between coats. I'll try a test on the forks with the clear coat before I proceed with the rest of the bike.

I likesd reading this thread...funny (already had the same thing happen to me...without decals). Coolest part was to see that Doug is so grounded he tells on himself without prodding. Then he figures out his own problem. Took a lot of courage admitting 1) He needs cheaters to read the small print...I mean...who CAN read that print? 2) He doesn't read the instructions till something screws up. That means he's a man for sure!

I looked up this topic because I am about to spend $45.00 on decals and do not want to screw them up. Thanks DOUG! For leading the way!

Glad you found the thread useful and somewhat amusing lol. I really appreciate the help I get from the members on here and they can't really help you if your not honest. Hell, we all make mistakes, that's how you learn some of the best lessons. As an update, I waitied a week and tried again. Paint is still wrinkling, so I will wait a couple more weeks. It's in-line with the post above that really said his experience was a month. Best to try a small test spot before assuming it's curred enough not to have any issues. I am pretty suborn, so I am going to continue with this effort until I learn the science behind it. Many of the old bikes really look much better if you can re-paint them. Seems like it's absolutely worth while to recoat several times in the 1st 30 minutes to make sure you haven't missed any spots. That was my initial problem was that I missed a good coat in a couple small places. Trying to recover those mistakes has drawn out this job longer than necessary. Good luck with your project and remember to try to get it right the 1st time. If not, patience is key after you get a coat on and need to re-visit. It is tough to be patient when you have all the parts on the bench ready to reassemble and see the final results of your time and effort. Thanks again to the group here for being so free with their time and advice. Best regards, Doug
Here's a picture of an old Raleigh Capri I just re-done. It's a nice bike, but a little tall for me. I'll ride it as I switch among my collection.

Primer is not needed between old paint and new paint, but you need to scuff the old paint before applying the new. Primer is required for any bare metal. You should use a wax and grease remover before and after scuffing.

I've been experimenting with Dupli Color acrylic enamel color and clearcoat. It becomes fairly durable after it dries for at least a month. I may try painting a bike with it, even though I have very good spray equipment. At least I won't have to clean the gun.