Hey, I'm the new guy, and have a couple of questions. I am painting a motorcycle. Have done several and they don't turn out too bad for what they are. I don't do anything fancy or use any special paint. This one I just used RustOlem in flat black. I sprayed 2 coats of a sanding primer and wet sanded both coats, then shot 2 full wet coats of the flat black Rustolem enamel oil base. It actually turned out very nice. I want to put on a clear coat that 1: will be good enough to keep from spotting or comming off if I should spill or drip gas on the paint when I am filling the tank with gas, and 2: will be a flat clear coat and not shine to keep the flat black look. Is there such a thing as a flat clear or top coat? I am using a small everyday cup gun and set it at about 35 psi to spray the color coat. Anyone have any help to offer? :sillyme:
Back Yard Painter
- Thread starter JLazyH
- Start date
As long as your clearcoat is catalyzed, this will help if you ever got a fuel spill.
As far as the flat clear, you will need to purchase the clearcoat, along with some flattening agent, and add this to the clear along with the hardener.
The more you add, the less gloss the clear will have.
Also, if you go with the clearcoat, you don't need to spray a flat black base, just a normal black base will be fine. Your clearcoat will be the one that does the flattening.
As far as the flat clear, you will need to purchase the clearcoat, along with some flattening agent, and add this to the clear along with the hardener.
The more you add, the less gloss the clear will have.
Also, if you go with the clearcoat, you don't need to spray a flat black base, just a normal black base will be fine. Your clearcoat will be the one that does the flattening.
This is a picture of my old Harley Roadster that I painted last spring. I bought the paint from NAPA. I also bought the clearcoat from NAPA and it said on the can that it already had the hardner added. The 1st time I gased it I got a few drops of gas on the paint and it took off the clearcoat and went into the base color. Is it best to buy the hardner and add it to the clearcoat, or did I somehow apply it wrong? I put 2 coats of the clearcoat on it 3 days appart?:crap:
Super sharp bike.
Never heard of a paint that has hardener already in it. The whole idea of keeping the hardener and paint or clear separate from eachother is so it doesn't harden. If the clear already has the hardener, then it will...well harden.
I know you said that it was on the can...but I've never seen or heard that before.
Never heard of a paint that has hardener already in it. The whole idea of keeping the hardener and paint or clear separate from eachother is so it doesn't harden. If the clear already has the hardener, then it will...well harden.
I know you said that it was on the can...but I've never seen or heard that before.
Ok, here is what I did and now I need help from someone to bail me out.
I used Duplicoat flat black primer on everything. Let it set up for 3 days and wet sanded everything with a 800 grit. Shot another coat, 3 day wait and sanded again. The primer coat turned out very hard and very slick. Next, and here is where you will probably go ahead and file me in the dumb ass section. I used a quart of Rust-Oleum Professional High Performance Protective Enamel oil base flat black #7578 and added just a little short of 10% of Dupli-Color Acetone and shot it at 35psi. I shot 1 tact coat and 2 full wet coats. It covered fantastic with no flashing, runs or any other problems. It is all drying in even and looks great. Now for my problem. It fuzzed on me just like a laquer will do if it is too hot. It covered so well I don't want to sand it out and try something else. Is there something I can do now to buff or rub it out to elimanate the fuzz and still keep it as my finish coat?
I used Duplicoat flat black primer on everything. Let it set up for 3 days and wet sanded everything with a 800 grit. Shot another coat, 3 day wait and sanded again. The primer coat turned out very hard and very slick. Next, and here is where you will probably go ahead and file me in the dumb ass section. I used a quart of Rust-Oleum Professional High Performance Protective Enamel oil base flat black #7578 and added just a little short of 10% of Dupli-Color Acetone and shot it at 35psi. I shot 1 tact coat and 2 full wet coats. It covered fantastic with no flashing, runs or any other problems. It is all drying in even and looks great. Now for my problem. It fuzzed on me just like a laquer will do if it is too hot. It covered so well I don't want to sand it out and try something else. Is there something I can do now to buff or rub it out to elimanate the fuzz and still keep it as my finish coat?
Finish is not smooth, has a rough almost texture to it. Is this from not getting enough paint on it?
i'm thinkin 2 things: 1) rustoleum need to be thinned quite a bit to get it to lay smooth out of a gun. 2) are you setting the air pressure at the gun or at the compressor? i shoot rustoleum at about a 4:1 ratio with mineral spirits. i think you mentioned using acetone? that could be the problem too. mineral spirits is the thinner for rustoleum i do believe.
well, you didnt do it wrong. you just did it in a way to learn. wet sand with 600 and reshoot it. do you have a pressure regulator at the gun? either way, you'll want to check the pressure with the trigger pulled. and thin it with mineral spirits. it took me a while to get the thinning down with rustoleum and you might need to thin it more.
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its all good!! quit kikin yerself in the ass. we all make mistakes and thats how we learn. i do a lot more woodworking than auto painting and thats where i learned some of the techniques for gun use and thinning stuff. oil based paints , urethanes, and varnishes used for woodworking are a lot thicker than automotive finishes. i made some very costly mistakes. i built a computer desk/ hutch and didnt thin the poly, spraying with a 1.3 tip. i spent a LOT of time sanding out the same texture you have on your tank, pretty much eliminating any profit. but the next one i did came out awesome.
That's what my problem has been. I was in the "trades" interior trim for almost 50 years. I can do things with wood that most people only wish they could do. When it comes to a car or a bike finish I turn into a real ass hat. I don't have anyway of guaging pressure on my cup gun but I do have a tank and gun I can get the job done with. That is what I sprayed my Harley with and got it right the first time. Well I have got some sanding to do, I'll let you know how things work out. Again thanks for the help.
Jess
Jess
It's not wrinkling. It just dried rough like a zillion little bumps in the paint. I sanded out one of the side covers. Man it dried hard. Anyway the "bumps" can be sanded smooth and not sand threw the paint, I'll just sand the whole works out again and shoot another coat the right way this time.
Hmmm, I would say it could be either too thick of paint, or you are just applying it too dry with possibly too much air pressure.
Try again on test panel and thin it out a little more with possibly a little less air pressure (or maybe even a little more).
You want to spray it 'wet', BUT without running it.
My first guess would just be that your paint was just a little too thick. Correct this and work in all the other variables, and this might do it for you
Try again on test panel and thin it out a little more with possibly a little less air pressure (or maybe even a little more).
You want to spray it 'wet', BUT without running it.
My first guess would just be that your paint was just a little too thick. Correct this and work in all the other variables, and this might do it for you