"ORANGE PEEL" on new lacquer *help*

[stirlinggaz]

hi,
this is for all you expert paint sprayers, you know who you are & i respect your advice
ok, heres the story, bikes a sports bike & therefore it has umpteen bits of plastic. owner wants them shiney.
i removed them all from the bike, & tbh, the paint work is in fairly good shape. its the original colour scheme, a sort of satin black. (not matt black but not shiney either) & it still has the original decals, but like a lot of bikes, the decals are applied ON TOP of the original paint.

i changed a couple of small decals (which were starting to peel or fade) but left the bigger main decals on the 2 big main side fairings as it would have been quite difficult & expensive to source oem replacements & i didnt think about getting some made

so all i have done is change stickers & washed all the plastics.

i have now put a couple of coats of lacquer on, but at random points it has bubbled & looks like orange peel. & i mean random, some on where the original decals are, some on the bits where there are no decals BUT NOT on any of the new decals.

what have i done wrong?

i didnt use wet & dry on the original paintwork, just washed it in hot soapy water. maybe i should have panel wiped it?

the owner did use that T-cut sh*t on it, the day before i got it, so I thought the abrasive qualities of this would be sufficient, combined with me washing it with hot soapy water & a very light scouring sponge (the type you use to wash dishes) i didnt use the green scotchbrite pads as i thought it might scratch the flat looking paint or decals.

lastly & most importantly, how do i fix this?

TL/DR?

I didnt prep properly & the clearcoat has bubbled & has taken an orange peel type of texture. how do i fix it?

cheers,
GAZ

[mentalboy]

Oh poop!

Bubbling is probably because of grease spots, the whole surface needed keying up before top coating (obviously tricky to do decals, so sand around them).
Orange peel will probably come out using a polisher, firstly with a cutting compound and then polishing - but if it's already lifted then the only remedy is to take it back down and start again. Not very easy to do without compromising decals/original paintwork!!
____________________
Make mine a Corona.

[unitynotsocri...]

As mentalboy,but be aware that some laquers and paints have incompatibilities,which is why I hate spraying plastics .
Many times on plastics its best to use special plastic primers,just seems pot luck that your new stickers are a different plastic.
____________________
nearly a normal tax paying tosser.......with ferrileness suzi100,cg125,cb125scb100n,cb175,cd100,cj250t,kh250,c15,125 bantam,super 6,rickman gs750,xt500,250rs,dt175,lifan125,dolomite1850,metro,Morris220ld,morrisfg,leyland princess,range rover,corsa,vw camper .now struggling with legs. MORE ORDER = MORE CHAOS

[robertw95]

First off if your not willing to put time in prepping your going to get nowhere fast. Scotchbrite is better than nothing however I'd pop down to halfrauds and pick up some 400 and 800 wet and dry. Lightly rub down the full fairing with 400 and water until everything is smooth. Then I would get brake cleaner or something similar to clean with.

Could also be poor technique if using rattle cans, what I would do is leave them in warn (not boiling) water for 15 minutes before painting stops it being so thick. Hold the can 6-8 inches from the plastics and spray in a straight line lightly, a few light coats are better than 1 heavy. Keep spraying after going off the edge and before going back on to stop any splashes. After it has dried again rub down with 800 this time and water then another light coat. Painting is 95% prep work the more time you spend the better the job
____________________
07 Dt125r, sv650s k8, zx6rr 04

[ZRX61]

Soapy water? as in dish soap type stuff? If you used that it's full of salt. That won't help matters.

What kind of clear are you using & how are you spraying it?

Is it orange peel or are they bubbles? Post pics.

Don't get brake cleaner (or soap) anywhere near it.
____________________
They're not one night stands, they're auditions.

[stirlinggaz]

hi,
thanks for the replies.
first off, i have plenty of wet & dry paper. i just didnt use it, because i didnt want to damage the decals.
the decals are not just solid blocks i can sand round. theres letters cut out & stuff.
im spraying by gun using my normal clearcoat & hardner (univar) & never had any issues with it in the past. but this is the 1st time i have clearcoated without painting 1st.
im usually quite good at the preparation, just this time made a few wrong assumptions.

i presumed the abrasive "qualities" of T-cut would have been sufficient to give a good keyed surface. silly i know, but i didnt do the T-cutting. i got the bike after the owner washed it, t-cutted it & decided it "wasnt shiney enough"
yup, i just washed it with warm soapy water (fairy liquid) like i have done umpteen times before, but im guessing it contains contaminates?

looking at it now its full set, its not bubbled. its taken on a dimpled effect, looks like orange peel. at totally random points. most affected areas are no bigger than 20mm x 20mm.

i guess i have just been lucky so far then, cos every time i have sprayed paint or laquer, i havnt had this happen, but i beleive "orange peel" happens....tell me how to fix it.
do i flat back just the affected areas? how coarse? 800?

cheers,
GAZ

[lihp]

Can you post a photo of your issue?
____________________
covent.gardens: lihp is my most favourite member ever

[Ariel Badger]

Flat it back but gentily so you do not go straight through and into the transfers, are you being paid for this job?
____________________
Bikers make great organ donors, get 115 on your licence today.

[stirlinggaz]

[ZRX61]

If the OP issue isn't too bad start with #800 or so & work up to maybe #1500 before buffing. Soak it in a bucket of water for a while before using it (30-min or so). Small squirt of the FL in the water to lube the paper.

FairyLiquid is about 50% salt.

you know to use sanding blocks instead of just doing it by hand?
____________________
They're not one night stands, they're auditions.

[stirlinggaz]

[ZRX61]

A little bit of soap in the water while you wet sand won't cause any issue as it will be rinsed off afterwards. Most dish soap has a huge amount of salt in it. So you're good to go with it for wet sanding
It's great for the first wash before prep work as it removes any wax, grease & oil etc.. but it's bad after painting for exactly the same reason: it strips any protective wax off.

The deal with using sanding blocks instead of doing it by hand is your fingers leave grooves in the finish which usually show up when you're all done & become apparent in sunlight.. which is a pisser.

Do they sell Durablocks in the UK? They're made from recycled tires & can be cut to different size/shape with a bandsaw if needed. They have some they aren't so stiff that will follow contours for the curvy bits. They sell 6 & 7 piece sets that are a good start.

https://www.autobodytoolmart.com/searchnxt.aspx?keywords=durablock

There's also these:
https://www.autobodytoolmart.com/motorguard-ap-2-ultimate-sanding-block-assortment-p-16005.aspx

and these:
https://www.autobodytoolmart.com/style-line-soft-sanders-p-12072.aspx

I use all of em.. & then some .. & before ya know it, you have $400 in sanding blocks.. The durablocks & motorguard brands are my *go to's*
____________________
They're not one night stands, they're auditions.

[stirlinggaz]

[ZRX61]

Amazon UK has em, but pretty spendy....

https://www.amazon.co.uk/DURA-BLOCK-KIT-PIECE-SANDING-BLOCK/dp/B00178T1JU
____________________
They're not one night stands, they're auditions.

[stirlinggaz]

[ZRX61]

6 rubber blocks.. & it appears that whoever is selling them in the UK just swapped the $ for the £ sign.
Just clicked on that Amazon UK link & it now takes me to the US version.
The place I got mine has that £60 set for $40 which is about half the price or less. (£26.75 to be precise at todays exchange rate)
____________________
They're not one night stands, they're auditions.