I'm looking to spray paint a bike and I really want it to be close to the "Bel Grigio" color on the Cinelli Gazzetta frame, but I can't find a comparable spray paint color through Krylon or RustOleum. Anyone have any ideas?

Custom mixed two-part polyurethane auto paint at Sherwin-Williams and a gravity-fed detail gun at Harbor Freight. $40ish a pint of paint and $15 for the gun. Borrow or rent a compressor. Wear a canister style mask and woodshop googles. Practice first on objects like beer bottles or cans until you've used up 1/3 of your paint. Let your practice targets dry and look closely at the quality of the surface. Don't be in a hurry. When you learn how to lay down a thin and smooth layer without orange-peel texture shoot your frame. This kind of paint is really tough. If you let some of it harden in a plastic cup for a couple days it becomes the consistency of hard rubber like a toy super-ball.

Krylon or RustOleum <-- u dont want to use this for a bike.

What U can do also is to go to a car paint supplies in your area, pick the closest color from the chips catalogs and ask the buy to put the paint in a spray can. If you dont want to deal with clear what u can do is ask the guy to see if they can do that paint in single stage.

If you dont need to paint that much will be like 20 bucks.

Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, I'm in a smaller town and don't believe we have anyone in town that can make me a custom color to put in a can. I was hoping to find something close that I could order online but not break the wallet. I have a friend that is a professional painter and is a pro with a can of spray paint as far as leaving an even coating/no drips/etc.

What is wrong with using those on a bike after primer and followed up with a clear coat?

I had one of those exact Cinelli frames brand new in my shop the other day and threw it on the alignment table for kicks. When flip flopped on the table, the seat tube was off by 8mm at the top, and the head tube was off by 14mm. Yikes!

Not related to the post just thought I'd share!

Because... hmmm... just do it as you wish and tell us how it went

You certainly can do it with aerosols if you wish. But the readily available aerosols (like Krylon or Rustoleum) will have some durability issues, and you will have a hard time finding the right colors.

There are some custom can fillers which can provide "quality" auto points, in either 1 or 2 part formulations. Sourcing single cans can be somewhat expensive. And you need primer- color and clear coats for the best job. Expect $20-30 per can.

Check out apstowerpaint dot com. They are one supplier of high quality custom mixed aerosols. Lots of info there. Get your "pro" painter buddy to help you decipher the choices if you are unsure of painting systems.

Also- getting an exact match to that Cinelli color will be a little tough. But- A Mini Cooper color called "Oxygen Blue" is a real close match. It's a deep off-blue, non-metallic color. Check it out online.

Thanks!