I have a 90's welded steel Schwinn road frame that I want to re-paint. I would like to do flat black with no shine. I have found many instructions online and I believe this is something I can do. My questions are:
1, Every list of instructions recommend a gloss coat. Since I want a nice flat black with no shine, is the final coat necessary or will the paint hold on it own?
2, I would like to have some painted decals. I want to paint a "802" on the head tube and "Woodchuck" on the top tube. Both terms are very Vermont-y references. I could not find directions on how to do this. Any tips please...
3, The current Schwinn head badge has rivets and I'm assuming holes to hold it in place. What can I do to fill in the holes.
4, I would love to do this during the winter. Is doing this in cold temps a bad idea?
thanks,
Scott

If your gonna go flat black I'd go the powder coat route. Most powder shops have the whole range of blacks from Cardinal. You'd probably want to do the decals on top because you're right, a clear over decals would probably not be the look you are going for.

If you are looking for a lasting finish don't rattle can the bike. It will not hold up and your paint will be scratched and pitted in no time for the most part. Some people have had good luck with enamel paints and a home built "box" to heat dry the paint in. there are also some engine block paints on the market that seem to hold up well on bikes. On the other hand a powder coat will cost you a little more money (I've seen as cheap as $75 and as expensive as $200) if you go that route make sure you are working with a powder coater who knows bike frames, knows to use walnut shell media to strip it, and packs the threads with paper before spraying. *if the threads are not packed you will have a horrible time cleaning them to reassemble your bicycle* As for decals there are many places on the web that will make you a small decal set to your specifications, decals can't be used under a powder coat because the curing process is too hot. Then when the bike is powder coated, you can apply your decal and spray a matte clear coat over it to protect it from scratching. If you are dead set on using rattle cans, make sure you get the bike stripped down as completely as possible and then clean with mineral spirits. Spray a vehicle primer, let it dry for a couple of days, spray your black enamel paint, wait a good long while between coats (if the paint is not completely dry you will get gummy paint and it will scratch easier) then hang the bike somewhere dry and hot for a week or two. Finally they make a matte finish clear coat, spray that on the bike, and then let dry for another week or two. That will give you the best result with rattle can paints.

Thanks for the replies. My problem with having it done professionally is that I paid 40 dollars for the bike. I want to do it on the cheap. Of course even though the bike was cheap, its rides great.
I don't want to do decals. I'm hoping to paint them on. Any tips for that?

Grease is a lot better than paper for protecting the BB threads. Just spreads a layer in there, and wipe it off when done. Worked great for me, and now bleed like paper would allow.

For painting decals, paint the bike completely black, and let the paint dry completely. Then use painters tape to cover areas around the decal, as far out as you think paint may spray, and spray away. You can get some pretty neat designs if you're creative with the taping.

Hmm... u can do car paint like for - 100 bucks in materials. The issue will be the clear because u want flat, clear alone can be 100 bucks for a quart and activator + a flatten agent. Unless your jobber (the car paint guy) could mix you a single stage black matte finish, always u can ask in the store, then u wont need clear at all. Never heard of single stage flat paint either but dont see why it shouldnt exist.

As for the numbers... for 35 bucks you can get the number and the beaver thing cut in vinyl.

Yes u can take the rivs out and use a metal putty to cover them, sand and ready to go.

U can paint in the winter but I would put the paint in hot water 1st so it gets the right temp. It will run less or wont run, depends of the paint brand and quality u picked.

No, i wouldn't use rattle can but is your pocket.

Good luck.

Decide what color you want for the "802" and "woodchuck". Paint the area in that color. Let dry. Apply vinyl lettering and then paint the final coat. When it dries, carefully remove the vinyl letters and you have painted on "decals". They will have an edge built up around them and there is probably a way to prevent or correct this. Somebody here probably has an answer. I just live with it since it's just a rattle can job.

even a good rattle can job is not cheap........ easily over the amount you paid for the bike to do it well.... meaning either strip all the current paint....or at miniumum scotchbrite it the entire frame really well... then primer, then your finish.

for a $40 bike......just wipe the frame down well with acetone to clean it and then use BBQ paint and expect to repeat the process every so often

All good advice - If you are going to go with rattle can then use Ceramic Engine Block paint - I am sure they have flat or simiflat black - Another option you should consider is reviving the old school Winkle Paint - It is very durable and not that hard to do right - I remember wrinkle painting a Chopped Honda 450 in the 60s (in those days a 450 was not such a small bike) - Also consider some Gettocals (do a search on the forum) as decals - One of the good things I like about rattle can is the do it yourself thing and if you really screw it up you can just do it again...

You add flatener to the one coat color or clear coat when spraying the finish.