Thinking about painting the bike... Whats the best non peeling or chipping paint. Not spray can probably they all chip. want a nice paint job.

 

Spraycans are fine. You can even get them in a two-part basecoat/clearcoat system. Unless you want to spend the money to send it to a bodyshop, or have access to a giant compressor and a pair of guns, they're the next best option. Just try and get something that has a picture of a car on it and you should be fine

Here are some tips

-The cheap cans will spray in a round cone pattern, while the nice ones will spray in a fan shape. Get the fan ones if possible

-Paint peels because it's either improperly prepped, or because it was painted while still being bolted together (bridging)

-If you want a nice paintjob, the key is to prep the panels properly. Clean, free of grease, sanded to P600 (or grey scotchbrite). Don't neglect the edges. The old paint needs to be totally dull in order to get good adhesion. If there's bare metal or plastic, it needs a primer (those are available in rattlecans too)

-I always recommend detrimming the part as much as possible. It's way easier to paint something when it's off the bike, and it'll make it way quicker to clean/prep as well

-Don't spray if it's colder than 15 deg C (don't know what that is in fahrenheit)

-Spray 1-2 light coats before finishing with a medium coat

-Hold the can 6-8 inches from the work surface, and move quickly

-Spray the edges first, then the flat sections. This helps prevent sags

-If you mess up, you can let it cure for an hour, then scuff/sand and respray

-If overspray gets on the bike, it's best to remove it right away with mild solvent. If you let it harden it'll be tougher to remove

-Paint will be soft for 1-7 days after spraying, so wait a while before reassembly, or speed up the process by letting it cure in a warm area (25 deg C is ideal)

 

Get quality automotive paint, avoid the cheap 99c to $5 no name cans - they will cause problems.

Good prep is key to a good finish, don't rush it.

Available in 1k - add thinner and paint (lacquer, enamel). Enamel is soft, takes a good few weeks to cure properly, dries by air. Lacquer dries faster, solvents evaporate.
Also can use 2k - thinner and hardener added with the paint. This is what is used in body shops. Spray baked, warmer the temp quicker it sets. Durable finish in comparison to 1k products.

I have painted bike panels in 1k lacquer and even 5+ years on they are still very shiny and look great. I used the Lyndar paint system from Supercheap Auto.

Tesco's, Pepboys, Autozone - depending where you are - will have a paint mixing station maybe a different brand but as long as it is automotive it will be fine.

Spray can or gun? Some cans will have 2k paint in them, make sure they are shaken really well. No mixing - just spray away, cheaper than a spray gun set up. Downside is cans need more sanding to achieve a decent finish and will need polishing.

Spray gun gives you more control - you can adjust air pressure and the fan pattern of the paint. It's not as easy as just spraying away with a can, the control you have more than makes up for it, less over spray you can overlap further apart than with a can thus saving paint.

Expect to spend money and time. Think my last bike I spent maybe close to $250 NZ on in it - plastic adhesion primer, primer filler, spray putty, color, I had pearl flake too, then clear. This finish is 1k Lacquer with spray cans. I did 4 coats of clear, after 2 I let it sit for a couple of days, wet sanded with 1500 grit, then 2000 grit, repaint clear again let it sit, then polish. Really brings up the clear. In cold weather, put the paint cans in hot - not boiling water. Paint flows nicer when warm. These pics are 4 years after I painted the bike. The rear cowl is damaged, I touched up the paint a while after I took the photo.

 

I agree with SmokinJo. You can get a good finish with cans, but in my experience you’ll need to flatten each coat back with wet and dry and also cut the final coat back with cutting compound, so it ends up probably four times the work as getting it painted properly with a gun.

 

Smokin jo doesn’t look bad if that’s paint cans! + 1 for what Smokin jo said.

 

Some good points. If you're serious about getting a good paintjob, go to an autobody supplier and get some solid advice from someone who knows the product. For a newcomer it's also pretty easy to get overwhelmed with the various paint terms, and a lot of those guys/gals have a merciful heart so long as you don't bug them when they're super busy or anything. If you buy from them make sure to get datasheets for everything

For the record, 2k vs 1k just means 'with clearcoat' or 'without.' 1k systems are commonly called single-stage. Really, you can clearcoat over almost anything so it's not a very specific term as far as paint composition or quality. I've noticed both lacquer systems and urethanes in single-stage spraycans, and they'll be available in 2k systems as well Edit - This is totally incorrect. It refers to whether the paint requires a hardener or not, and there are bc/cc and singlestage systems in either. Stay in school

Urethane is definitely the good stuff. With a bit of practice you can get a really good result with a urethane rattlecan, and I rarely bother to polish it. For example, here's a valve cover I did in a single-stage urethane from a can for a coworker on the weekend. It's not as easy to find though, so you might need to go to an autobody supplier to get it

Lacquer is commonly sold off the rack in hardware stores and is a step down. It's still fine though, just maybe a bit more work to get it to look nice. Also has some compatibility issues, but for convenience I still use it for a lot of smaller parts or when I can't really be bothered

Enamels aren't really made of enamel - it's kind of a misnomer. It usually refers to a hardened paint suitable for high-heat or chemical resistance. It's super expensive but also has it's uses. A lot of it has to be baked on or it won't set properly though

Going up to a spraygun/booth is a lot of expense, but as others have mentioned, it lets you get very close to an OEM paintjob. You need a big honkin compressor, and even 60 gallon top-of-the-line consumer model is cutting it close. As someone who sprays regularly at home, I love my system but it's not as convenient, higher upkeep, and much tougher to learn. Also wastes a lot of paint and makes a huge mess unless you've got an enclosure

Just my 2c

 

Nope! Check out here: http://www.eastwood.com/1k-coating-vs-2k-coatings

Btw, to my experience 1k clear coat is NEVER as hard as 2k. And it takes weeks or even months before it has really dried up.

 

Huh. You are absolutely correct. I guess I should have paid more attention during my apprenticeship

I've never tried the 1k clearcoat in a can. I usually either go for a quick singlestage 'scuff 'n spray' if it's a small part, or bc/cc (acrylic polyurethane, from a gun) for anything I want to look nice. I remember being a little bit shocked that our local automotive 'big-box' only sold acrylic lacquer systems, even the clearcoat. I guess they last longer on the shelf, or may be cheaper to make. I learned on PPG so I'm super spoiled

Then there's waterborne...

 

PPG is awesome. I painted my car with it 11 years ago in a booth - 2k urethane, clear over base during a short course. Still looks really good even today, albeit stone chips and such from daily use. Cost me $1000 back then to paint think it was $100 a liter just for color - I got Pantherschwartz Mica (Panther Black - Ford Europe). Black is the most expensive shade to be mixed as well as pearl and flake. Cheapest is white as a solid - no flakes etc. I'm a hobbyist rather than the master painter - my industry experience is very small. Most stuff I did was industrial - painting plant boxes, poles etc so I never really had to bother with all the fine grade sanding which needs to be done for automotive finishing, that said I do bother when it is automotive - a good finish is all in the prep.

 

Also a hobbyist - I've been out of the trade for about 10 years, so I'm having to relearn a lot of stuff I've forgotten

I miss PPG, but when you buy your own materials, economics matter. I've been getting good results with Valspar for about half the cost. Next time I'll step up to the high-solids clear though. Motorcycles are small enough that you may as well get good paint