Repainting Gas Tank

[hobnob]

HI,
I'm going to be repainting the gas tank on my '81 XS.

Wondering if you guys have any advice.

I pulled the cap and the petcock, taped up the holes, and already gave it a rough scuff with some emory cloth. Will probably need a few more rounds of sanding. Wipe with lacquer thinner to take dust off?

My question is, what kind of paint should I use, and how should I apply it?

Also what exactly is "clear coat" and how do I apply that, as well?

Trying to do this as cheaply as possibly while still looking high gloss and excellent.

thanks,
hobnob

[spyug]

Hob,
Look at the recent thread in projects.

You can use rattle cans but the paint is not as durable as good auto paint.

Clear coat is just that a clear top coat for paint to give protection and depth (shine).

The most important thing about painting is surface preparation. Sand with finer grades until no scratches remain.Use a good primer, sand again with the fine grade. Don't forget to wipe down before painting and whenever sanding between coats. Use mineral spirits.

Take your time and if you haven't painted before practice on some scrap before you do the tank. If you do screw it up no prob sand it down and start again.

Hope this helps.

G'luck and cheers.

Spyug

[billxs650se]

I've given this much thought since I caught the ad on Horsepower TV on Spike:
www.duplicolor.com/products/mirage.html

[spyug]

Notwithstanding the very good advertising for the Duplicolor products I have tried them and despite what they claim, I did not find the paint to be impervious to gas.

Since the odd gas spill is almost a certainty, no matter how careful we are, I think it is extremely important to paint with a more stable product. After a couple of misadventures and two ruined paint jobs I did a lot of research and moved to the auto paints ( See my earlier post). I am much happier now.

If you use these paints, I would suggest you put on heavy coats of wax on the tank especially around the cap. It might help.

Just my 2 cents.

Spyug.

[billxs650se]

The site mentioned something about a 2-product clear coat, but I'll keep the wax idea fresh in case I get to this any time soon.

[hobnob]

so, i've been doing rattle can duplicolor acrylic enamal on the tank.
i've been very meticulous with prep work. sanding very fine in between each coat and wiping with thinner.

i put two coats of primer on, and about 4 coats of glossy black.

two coats ago i had it looking pretty nice and shiny, but there was one little uneven bit in the middle, so i gave it another coat.
after that it's looked terrible. looking almost gray and not at all glossy.

i sanded again, wiped with paint thinner, and gave it another coat.
covered it nice and evenly, looked nice and glossy, but it's drying uneven and looks grey in patches! i just don't understand it. at my wit's end with this thing.

the paint cans are all the same. i have clear coat ready to go, but i want to get the tank looking decent before i clear coat it.

i'm holding the can close enough to get a glossy look, but not so close that it gobs up and runs. also not too far away that it leaves a textured result.

what should i do differently?

i'm ready to throw this motorcycle off a cliff...

[pops]

Thirty six years ago I tried to repaint the tank on my Bridgestone with rattlecans. Same as you, I was meticulous in preparation. I sprayed on the base coat...everything's fine. Next day, I sprayed on the top coat. It looked gorgeous for about 5 minutes, then turned ratty and dull. Stripped the tank and tried again. Same result. I was mystified, flustered, frustrated and just plain pissed. Took it to a professional, paid the money got it done right. I didn't find out until years later what went wrong. The paint was drying too fast. Temperature and humidity have a lot to do with it. When mixing the paint for use with a spray gun, you can add a retardent if the humidity is low. With rattlecans, you're stuck with what you have at the moment. If the temp and humidity is right, the results can be impressive. If not, you wind up mucho aggravated. Now I leave the painting of larger items to professionals who know their craft. Rattlecans are OK for the small stuff.

pops

[82bobber]

Like pops said, heat and humidity, I live in Florida and use "House of Krylon" regularly I keep a temp/hygro meter outside by the grinder bench, where I do the painting, I just can't paint anything unless mother nature allows it, humidity less that 50%, temp around 75 works good or you get the dull grays , and it actually looks good if you clear coat it ;D

[tomterrific]

It's called 'blush' and it happens when the air is humid. The solvent in the paint cools the surface and condensation forms on the part. Paint the final coat on a day with lower humidity, or in the sun, or warm the paint can and the part, anything to keep away the 'blush' until the paint skins over.

Tom

[chew652]

I'm a terrible painter and my Bondo work is worse. I rattle canned my tank and did the wet sand and thinner wipe between coats. after the last coat I did a wet sand with 1500 and then rubbed it out with rubbing compound. It's not perfect but it is shiney. I know most body shops won't let a car go without rubbing out the paint . Give it a shot with the wet sand and compound before you strip it down again, you might be suprised .

[hobnob]

thanks everyone.
i have to start all over now.

tried following the label more precisely, put on two light coats within 10 minutes, on top of about 12 existing coats. the last coat i let my friend try, who totally butchered it and had runs all over the place. poured thinner all over it in a rage, totally messed it up.

i just tried sanding it out and putting on a few more coats, but it looks like complete junk. i can't believe i didn't just leave the damn thing alone as it looked fine.

so, going to start the prep all over again, rough sand, finer sand, paint.

i'm curious as to how much someone would charge me for this?
i'd do it for $50.

i almost took a sledgehammer to the tank earlier, i was so angry.

thanks again, all,
hobnob

[spyug]

Hob.,
Sorry to hear you are having a tough time with the paint.
As the guys say, the prep s important but it is mother nature that calls the final shot. The heat and the humidity are always the issue. As mentioned, around 70F with less than 50% humidity is what you need.

Now having said that, if the paint dries hazy and not glossy as advertised you can "reclaim" it by the wet sand & clearcoat method. Let the paint thoroughly dry and outgass ( say a week). If the paint has no imperfections, rub off the top coat with 1200/1500 wet paper. Wipe down with mineral spirits and let dry. Tack rag for dust motes. When the temp and humidity is good ( early morning usually) shoot with the clearcost. Repeat the wet sand and recoat. Two or three clearcoats and the shine will be back with depth. Leave another week or so and rub out with polishing compound ( not rubbing compound). Follow witha couple of coats of good carnuba wax.

Time consuming and tedious but that is why the "pros" charge so much. In my neck of the woods, a one colour no design paintjob for tank and fenders can run $500 to $1000.

If you get real good at it you can start a side business and make a few bucks.

Hope this helps,
Cheers,
Spyug

[hobnob]

thanks spy, and to all of you.

well, after nearling mutilating the tank yesterday, i came back today and realized it wasn't too bad. i had wiped half down with thinner, and sanded out a few rough spots. basically was low on paint and decided to hit it with a quick coat or two as a last ditch effort.

it actually came out looking pretty damn good and glossy (no humidity today could be part of it).

i then waited 10 minutes and hit it with the spray on clear coat. the whole tank instantly turned a flat grey.

the clear coat instructions are the same for the paint, and it doesn't say anything about how to apply it on top of paint.

i immediately hit it with another coat of black, and it's back to looking nice nad shiny with moderadely good coverage.

basically i'd slap it right back on the bike as is for fear of ruining it by trying the clear coat. but it would be nice to get the clear coat on without making the tank turn grey again.

do i just need to let the paint "cure" for another week?

what's the trick here with the clear coat?

thanks.

i was SO close to taking the tank to a shop today to have them do it for about $100.

-b

[cautioninc]

If a shop will do it for $100, that's a good price. Especially if it's automotive grade paint. My neighbor is a auto body guy, and he tells me that the cost of material alone (incl. metalflake) is $100+.

[spyug]

Hob,
Keep at it son...you will get it in the end.

One thought I had was if the clearcoat was compatible with the base paint. I assume that they are both duplicolour products and should be but sometimes the formulations are different and the clearcoat is designed specifically for one type of base paint.

Recoating time is also important with paint formulations. In some rare cases the clearcoat must be put on no more than 10 minutes after the base. In most normal applications ,the clear only goes on when the base is fully cured. I have found with rattle can products, you need at least a week at 70F to be sure it is cured and the solvents have all "vented".

When I was trying to figure out the some of the problems I was having with the Duplicolour products, I e-mailed them for help and they did respond to me very quickly. Give that a try, maybe they have some ideas.

I think it is important for you to have a good clearcoat finish as this will give you the hard shell protection against gas spills.
Maybe if you get the colour the way you want it, you could take it to an auto shop and have them shoot on a couple of clears. Might be cheap enough if they are going to spray a car anyway.

Keep us posted and post a pic when you have it done.

Good luck man,
Spyug