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MX frame Painting

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SellYour4Stroke

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How is the best way to paint a mx frame 

 

its a rm 125 

 

thank you

 

Stripped completely down and powdercoated, but theres always other ways. Spray paint doesn't hold up well. Regular painting takes time and looks patchy if you don't do the whole frame.

 

put an FMF sticker on it.

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eliepinis428

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How is the best way to paint a mx frame

its a rm 125

thank you

I have an rm125 too, but strip your bike down to bare frame. Then have someone sand blast it. Then get someone to powder coat it. Powder coat doesn't chip easy, and looks/ lasts longer then spray paint!
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717 MOTORSPORTS

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A question which I asked MANY times over the winter, and never got any intelligent answers to..  I stripped, prepped, and painted my RM frame. Next winter its getting powder coated. The frame looked so nice, all painted, and clear coated. The bike looked sweet when back together with it's new yellow frame. Looks like shit now. Chips, wear spots, and discolouration from fuel tank overflows...

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mark007

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I have painted many frames and here is the best way to do it.

 

1. Go to an auto paint store and get Urethane base coat and 2k clean coat both in spray cans.\

 

2.  Give the frame a scuff job using 320 grit sandpaper and leaving the original paint there for bonding and rust prevention.

 

3.  Clean the frame with water and soap and let it dry.

 

4.  Paint the frame following instructions on the can;  Base coat first and then the 2k clear.

 

5.  Enjoy a very tough paint job

 

The 2k Clear is gas/oil/chemical and acid resistant and leave a very glossy hard finish. I would suggest that you get an extra can of the base coat for future touch-ups to keep the frame nice looking.

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capecampbell

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I just painted my frame over the winter. I used spray on truck box liner. Looks ok and seems fine. I only have about 6 or 8 hrs of woods riding on it but it is holing up fine. Even wiped out a few times and all it did was scratch it a bit not right through. If I have to spray again I am sure I would do the same.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Grand Master

Wait a while

Posted
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Why waste money on powder coating your frame?  Just Kyrylon dat ish!  Same difference, minus being baked in an oven and losing it's structual integrity. 

When a frame is produced at the factory it is painted and then baked in an oven. The baking hardens the polyurethane paint finish, which makes it the toughest paint finish the frame is ever likely to have. It is tougher than any other paint you will apply.

If you want a tougher finish on your frame you will have to have it powdercoated. The temperature in the oven used to bake powdercoat is not even hot enough to damage aluminium, let alone steel. It's less than 200 degrees celcius (about 400 F). Hot enough to melt some types of rubber, but not others.

Even if you are going to paint your frame it will be worth having it sandblasted to give the frame surface enough roughness (profile) to make the paint stick properly. This will save you hours of prep work. Just make sure you choose someone who blasts vehicle type stuff regularly so they know what they are doing. (Industrial blasters and coaters sometimes use media that is way too aggressive and can really chew into the surface and damage the fine stuff like your VIN number. The main problem there is that it will take heaps of paint or powdercoat to cover the roughness of the surface, which shouldn't be necessary). A personal recommendation from a local who races bikes (try the local motorcycle dealer or workshop) would be the way to go.

The main drawbacks of getting something powdercoated: you must strip the frame completely, bearings and all; the cost; and the limited range of colours.

Some of the cost is associated with the oven, so if you are happy to wait until there is a batch of someone else's stuff to go in then you will save some money, rather than having them fire up the oven just for your frame. 

Powdercoat also looks better than paint. Gloss has a glassy shine compared to paint, and that shine lasts much longer. However the advantage of paint is that you can get a greater range of colours and effects.

If you are going to paint a steel frame then note that if you don't get rid of every bit of rust first then it will grow under the paint and the paint will bubble and flake off in no time. For rust removal and roughing up steel use the red aluminium oxide stuff (about 180 grit). It's not paper stuff it's 'resin cloth' and it doesn't go blunt or lose it's grit as quickly as the rest. Rust is another reason sandblasting is handy. It gets rid of everything in every little crack. If you are not going to sandblast then bear in mind that the factory paint is actually a great finish. So where it is still intact it is doing a good job protecting the metal so don't remove it, just roughen it with wet and dry (800 grit) and paint right over the top. A wire wheel on a drill is a good way to get into the crevices that are hard to sand in and lumpy stuff like welds. Once you have stripped paint from a steel frame do not wait before you paint it. It starts to rust straight away so get it painted asap.

If you are going to paint an alloy frame then make sure you use the right primer to get the paint to stick properly (an etch primer). 

 

If you plan on using spray can paint then use the White Knight Rust Guard or Wattyl KillRust from the hardware store. They are epoxy paints and they are the toughest you can get in a spray can. When it's cured it will not soften if you spill petrol on it. The automotive touch up paints like PowerPlus and Holts are way too fragile for a dirtbike frame.

 

Costs (Australia):

Sandblast a motorcycle frame should be about $40

 

Enough sandpaper to sand a whole frame + a wire wheel for a power drill would be about $15-20

 

1 can of wax and grease remover, 2 cans of primer, 3 cans of top coat will be about $120 

 

Powdercoat will be somewhere between $150-$300 depending on how it's done and who does it (get an estimate first).

So powdercoat is actually pretty reasonable considering it looks better, lasts years longer and you hardly have to lift a finger to get it done.

Paint is a better way to go if you don't want to strip the whole frame or if you just want to mask everything off and touch up the worn through bits on the sides of your frame.

If you prep and paint it properly by hand you will not only have the satisfaction of a job well done, you will also cure yourself of the desire to ever do it again ?

Edited by stinkwheels
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Honda_Power

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Posted

^^

 

When a frame is produced at the factory it is painted and then baked in an oven. The baking hardens the polyurethane paint finish, which makes it the toughest paint finish the frame is ever likely to have. It is tougher than any other paint you will apply.

If you want a tougher finish on your frame you will have to have it powdercoated. The temperature in the oven used to bake powdercoat is not even hot enough to damage aluminium, let alone steel. It's less than 200 degrees celcius (about 400 F). Hot enough to melt some types of rubber, but not others.

Even if you are going to paint your frame it will be worth having it sandblasted to give the frame surface enough roughness (profile) to make the paint stick properly. This will save you hours of prep work. Just make sure you choose someone who blasts vehicle type stuff regularly so they know what they are doing. (Industrial blasters and coaters sometimes use media that is way too aggressive and can really chew into the surface and damage the fine stuff like your VIN number. The main problem there is that it will take heaps of paint or powdercoat to cover the roughness of the surface, which shouldn't be necessary). A personal recommendation from a local who races bikes (try the local motorcycle dealer or workshop) would be the way to go.

The main drawbacks of getting something powdercoated: you must strip the frame completely, bearings and all; the cost; and the limited range of colours.
Some of the cost is associated with the oven, so if you are happy to wait until there is a batch of someone else's stuff to go in then you will save some money, rather than having them fire up the oven just for your frame. 

Powdercoat also looks better than paint. Gloss has a glassy shine compared to paint, and that shine lasts much longer. However the advantage of paint is that you can get a greater range of colours and effects.

If you are going to paint a steel frame then note that if you don't get rid of every bit of rust first then it will grow under the paint and the paint will bubble and flake off in no time. For rust removal and roughing up steel use the red aluminium oxide stuff (about 180 grit). It's not paper stuff it's 'resin cloth' and it doesn't go blunt or lose it's grit as quickly as the rest. Rust is another reason sandblasting is handy. It gets rid of everything in every little crack. If you are not going to sandblast then bear in mind that the factory paint is actually a great finish. So where it is still intact it is doing a good job protecting the metal so don't remove it, just roughen it with wet and dry (800 grit) and paint right over the top. A wire wheel on a drill is a good way to get into the crevices that are hard to sand in and lumpy stuff like welds. Once you have stripped paint from a steel frame do not wait before you paint it. It starts to rust straight away so get it painted asap.

If you are going to paint an alloy frame then make sure you use the right primer to get the paint to stick properly (an etch primer). 

 

If you plan on using spray can paint then use the White Knight Rust Guard or Wattyl KillRust from the hardware store. They are epoxy paints and they are the toughest you can get in a spray can. When it's cured it will not soften if you spill petrol on it. The automotive touch up paints like PowerPlus and Holts are way too fragile for a dirtbike frame.

 

Costs (Australia):

Sandblast a motorcycle frame should be about $40

 

Enough sandpaper to sand a whole frame + a wire wheel for a power drill would be about $15-20

 

1 can of wax and grease remover, 2 cans of primer, 3 cans of top coat will be about $120 

 

Powdercoat will be somewhere between $150-$300 depending on how it's done and who does it (get an estimate first).


So powdercoat is actually pretty reasonable considering it looks better, lasts years longer and you hardly have to lift a finger to get it done.

Paint is a better way to go if you don't want to strip the whole frame or if you just want to mask everything off and touch up the worn through bits on the sides of your frame.

If you prep and paint it properly by hand you will not only have the satisfaction of a job well done, you will also cure yourself of the desire to ever do it again ?

That sounds groovy and all, but powder coat can still chip.  Not as bad as spray-on paint, but still..... when riding dirt bikes, one tend to crash alot.  I'll stick to my Krylon painted frame in gold and rub it in yo face!!

 

BTW, are you a girl? 

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