How difficult is it to re-paint a bike?

[RickTaff]

Own a Honda CB500S, and was bought privately. Previous owner changed colour from yellow to silver.

When filling up at petrol station, little dribbles of petrol dropped onto the tank and paint started to run and now looks shite. Was told that it seems he didn't use lacquer; thus nothing is protecting the paintwork.

Now wanting to re-do it but curious as to how hard it is, never done it before so a little dubious.


Thanks

[Hawkeye1250FA]

It depends how good a job you want and how much you have available (both time and money)

Diy job : At a minimum I would suggest a sterile area - made up of polythene sheets sealing the paint area.

Purchase of a proper sprayer - spray cans will not do.

A LOT of free time to do multiple layers / time in between.

Professional job : drop it off - pick it up 5 days later and give them circa £400-£800 for the privilege (varies from place to place)
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[RickTaff]

[Suntan Sid]

The reason the paint has melted on your tank is, the previous owner has resprayed with a rattle can, even if it had been lacquered with a rattle can the result would be the same.
Rattle can paint and lacquer is not petrol resistant.
You can get "2 pack" rattle cans which are petrol resistant, however if you've never spray painted anything, I wouldn't bother!
It's the ethanol content in the petrol that is causing the problem!

Pay to get it resprayed by a professional!
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"Everybody needs money, that's why they call it money!"

[MCN]

And a shit paint job will still look like a shit paint job.
The painting bit is the easy part too.
Pre-Paint preparation is where a lot of the good is done for a good paint job.
And there is a substantial level of skill and experience to get even modest results.
Strip it yourself and give it to a powder coating specialist.
They will shot-blast the frame etc. and poder coat with a colour of your choosing. Or they may blast it with another job and save you some money.
Or just a normal body-shop will paint it but the cost is in the prep again. Even before the cost of materials is considered.
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Disclaimer: The comments above may be predicted text and not necessarily the opinion of MCN.

[Hawkeye1250FA]

+1 for powder coating

Strip the parts yourself and give them to the specialist - you’ll be amazed.
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[Courier265]

Having a tank sprayed will cost a hell of a lot of cash, needs to be done by professionals to get a proper result.

I think the OP should consider a second hand tank.

[kgm]

It's not that expensive. I had tank and two side panels done professionally (and a good job) for £200. I've had a bash at painting things before but the results were never what I wanted and the prep is tedious. A reasonably priced Pro is well worth finding. If you do have a bash yourself you'll want a chemical mask. Nasty shit to breathe in, even with rattle cans and don't do it in the hoise; you'll stink the whole place out.

[Teflon-Mike]

As said, it's streaking because the PO used rattl;e cans, and either didn't top coat with laquer, or used cheap 'petrol resistant' lacquer.

Petrol 'resistant' isn't really, and is intended for patch repairs that are never really going to look that great on cars, around the filler-cap, where it should only ever get 'splashed' petrol shouldn't sit orf puddle on the paint, as it will on a bike tank.

Answer is 2-Pak paint or laquer, that isn't solvent based. Rattle can paints, are for the most part solvent based, the solvent carries the pigment, and then evaporates off as the paint dries... 2-Pak paints are like epoxy glue; say araldite. One 'tube' has the resin in, and that will stay soft and runny pretty much for-ever, until you mix it with the other tube, the hardener, which causes a chemical reaction twixt the two to make the resin 'cross-link' and go hard.

2-Pak paints, then tend to be solvent proof, or certainly petrol hard, B-U-T they are a lot more tricky to work with, as the paint needs to be mixed, like glue, and applied before it cures, and given time to cure before its subject to any stress.. also harder to match and patch, and if its left to go hard in the spray-pot, a right royal pain to get out!

As Sid says you can buy 2-Pak laquer in a rattle-can.... I have used the stuff, and it IS petrol hard.... but it aint cheap. Can has sort of a grenade pin on the base, you pull, to release the hardener into the can and start it curing, then you only have so many minutes in which to spray before it starts to harden. (I could go look at the instructions, I have a couple of cans on the shelf, but ICBA, sorry!)

Now, using solvent aerosols; you can spray thin coats to avoid drips and runs... and at leisure, can nib back if you put it on a bit thick or get a dribble... 2-Pak, you cant... it has to go on in one shot.

IT WORKS... I have done numerous bikes with the stuff, as I dont do enough to justify a compressor and decent spray gear. BUT...

As said it aint cheap. I think the last can of 2K laquer cost me something like £15 and its only 150ml, or half the size of conventional rattle can... and it contains just about enough to do a largish petrol tank on a big-bike... once if you get it right.

Quality of finish is, as any paint, in the prep.... which means strip-back, primer, cfolour coat, then laquer. You may save some elbow grease nibbing back, and putting a 'key' on what you got, then spraying over, rather than going back to metal...

B-U-T.... you have a poor paint job to start with, that has dissolved under petrol splash... so, you would have to sand down a fair way to get rid of that, and you'd still have the niggle of potential cross-contamination, where the layer underneath reacts with the new paint, and or new paint on top doesn't key to old paint etc.

If ME, I would go back to bare metal.. mainly because I have done enough of these to be frustrated by the attempt to get a good top coat over old paint, and trying to salvage expensive paint for the sake of cheap prep.

NOW.... you have a chunk of work on your hands and in for a penny, in for a quid....

POR15.... tank-liner/rust treatment.... Best done BEFORE you paint. Its a paint-like-liner, that goes on the inside of the tank, stops the petrol sitting on the metal, and condensation rusting through it. Its good stuff, and if the tank has started to go, then it can also fill pin-holes and cracks and stop the tank 'going' later.....

HINT: nothing worse than putting some beutiful paint on a bike, making it all look pretty, and a month later, wondering why its starting to bubble!!! Reason probably because the tank has pin-holed, and prepping the tank to paint has dislodged the old rust and silt and paint that was filling the pin-hole.... now you have to go back; repair the tank, to stop it leaking, and fix the paint...... easier to bite the bullet at the outset, invest the £50 or so, and POR15 the tank to start with... THEN start painting.

Again, key is in the prep, and following instructions to the letter, vis cleaning and soaking before you apply the lining treatment... and this is no Sunday-afternoon job! Takes about a day, to clean a tank of old fuel and silt and sludge; another to do the pickling treatments to key the metal for the liner, then another to apply it... and a WEEK for the stuff to cure before you can put petrol in it......

But, do before paint.....

Paint, much like-wise. Prep by sanding; apply primer. If you want a good finish, get a good start, and you dont stint on the primer stages, using probably 3-5 layers, probably over a base-layer of hi-build/leveler prime, and nibbing back between coats... good news, if you have POR15'd is you can do this while the POR15 cures; B-UT leaving over night between coats, this is NOT a Sunny-Sunday job..... Now add your colour coat; again, using rattle cans, thin-coats, maybe three aplications, and a day to let them cure properly between nibbing and adding..... 3 coatrs could take a week-end.

DECALS.... this is the difference between an obviouse rattle can blow-over and what looks like a professional, 'factory' finish. Can be put on top of the laquer.... but better under it...... they dont rub off.... and look better... B-U-T cheap graphics react with laquer... be warned!

Add decals; takes maybe a few hours depending on complexity; they go on with lots of water, so again, lots of drying time before you can put the clear-coat over the top.

Now you can finish with a 2Pak rattle-can laquer..... which after all the prep and scrubbing and care and attension to point, is actually not a huge job...... but again, leave to cure......

And all in, you can expect to spend a week or more on a tank, you cannot use in the mean time; and spend, ooh..... £50 on POR15 to start, then, uhmmm... £30 on primer; another £15 on colour coat, and another £15 on 2Pak Laquer... now add decal;s, and if you just use generic Honda wings and badge you may only have to spend £10-£15 or so... but check sizes on e-bay carefully... CB5 and the like use pretty big wings that cover large area of the side of the tank.... cheap generic stickers are likely less than 3" long and be lost on the panel!

Before asking how hard... ask how much and how long.... that lot totalls in at something in the order of £60's worth of just paint... add PIR15 and decals, and you are possibly pushing the price of another old junker ex-despatch or school bike...... IS the bike worth that much money, let alone effort?

And, in the doing, you have the tank off, you have a week or more of work, when tank cant be filled with petrol, bike cant be used.... if daily ride.. can it be out of service that long?

A-N-D in the balence, how much it be worth? Thisw sort of time and money, starts to make a proffessional spray job seem quite reasonable, if not a lot quicker, and bike still out of service for that time. Makes a cheap rattle can in an afternoon, seem a quick and easy get by, and so what if it dont look great... it works!... and when you get petrol runs? Well... like wot-you-got-now.... for what it costs even for a quick blow over, was it worth it?

Your call....

My advice, IF you decide to do it... do it properly, do it once... means biting the bullet, paying the money and taking the time.... will look good, and should last, and even without much knowledge and skill, IF you take time and care, it should look good..... but wont be cheap

Start by skimping.. you in world of bodge, spending more time and more money, NOT to do the job properly, and save anything.... so live with wot-you-got... take a rag with you to the petrol station, to mop spills; get off the ruddy bike to fill it up, and watch what you are doing!!! No cost, no down-time, and as little mess and messiness as you can get for your money.... Or start spending..... time and money always re-doing trying to make it look 'good', skin-deep.

STILL your call....
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My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[RickTaff]

[Courier265]