It's okay not to be perfect.

(F***ing good job in my case too)

Couldn't wait till tomorrow. I lasted six hours between empty primer cans. The tank and both sidepanels are now white Flat-back tomorrow and then leave for a week to go properly hard before starting the colour coat.


I can't believe that I'm actually enjoying this - and I can't believe I actually wrote that either!!!!!!

Flatted it back this morning and found a couple of tiny dents around the filler cap that need the attention of some knifing stopper (mumble, mumble, whinge) I'm only flatting the areas that can be seen as all the other areas are mostly high-impact areas (such as the underside of the tank, inside of the sidepanels, etc.) and need as much paint left on them as possible. Same will apply for the colour and lacquer coats.

The knifing stopper arrived three days ago. I applied one layer, left it and came back later to sand it down. Once flatted back I dumped a coat of primer on it to check. Horrible - rough as old boots. One small dent needed another layer and I'd done a poor job of cutting some of it back. Next time the primer hit the tank it was almost but not quite perfect. Like me. I shot another coat of primer over the whole tank and flatted it back about five hours later. I left the tank hanging to dry overnight.

First colour coat on tank and side panels this morning. Initially I thought I'd picked up the wrong can (the one I'd just been shaking for the last three minutes) because the colour coverage was lousy. So I shook it for another three minues, no change. The nozzle was not good; very prone to spitting and dumping unexpected amounts of colour. I persevered, paint followed by hot air gun to stop the colour pile-up from developing into runs. Two sags started - both in places you don't normally see - but I stopped those stone dead with the hot air gun.

Then I spotted the water track from the filler cap right the way down to the front of the tank... 

There wasn't any point in getting too pissed off. It just needs to be left to go hard and then the area cut back to the primer again.  At this point I had about 15% of the paint left in the can so I just dumped the lot on the underside of the tank, not really caring too much about the results because it will all be covered with insulation anyway. What happened? A perfect feckin colour coat. ARRRGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just proves the Henry Cooper(Splash it all Over) technique works when least expected

All that proves is that you have to be as old as me.

Dai wrote:All that proves is that you have to be as old as me.

Methuselah is my younger brother.

Wee bastid. The water tracks, not you Moriati!

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/70b.png

After eight hours the paint was a smidgen still soft, so I'll be leaving it a couple of days before applying the next coat. This is the first colour coat paint I've ever had that does not need cutting back between coats because it's that smooth. Mind you, a lot of that has to do with prepping the primer coat correctly before applying the topcoat. As for the bubbly tape... that was a lesson in

a. making sure that you had the correct heat setting on the gun and not the full-out barbeque lighting setting
b. making sure that you don't get distracted and hold the gun in the same place for too long while trying to light the barbeque.

Wee bastid removed with complete malice aforethought.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/71b.png

The shiny bits are just water. The paint is a sort of matt-satin which relies on the lacquer to bring it out properly. The good news is that RS Paints' 'Bahama Bronze' is an exact match for the existing paintwork. I was.... relieved 

When a plan comes together, ,thanks for the clarification being a gentle soul 
i might be hurt NOT

I thought by now that I'd be pretty well finished with this. I had got to the point where I wanted to flat back the colour coat so that the last blow over would be the final colour. Great! Lacquer next week! I carefully hung the tank up over the oil burner (nice source of gentle heat when it's running) and completely failed to notice that the tailpiece which was also sitting on the burner had been moved. As the stretch was taken up on the bungee holding the tank....

there was an oh-so-gentle

!clunk!

and a small patch of paint transferred itself from the tank to the tailpiece, leaving me looking at the last coat of white primer

Deep breath. Come back tomorrow when the last colour coat has gone hard.

So I did. I smoothed over the area with the equivalent of 2500 grade wet and dry and applied more colour coat. Two days later I went out to flat back the colour coat and just as I finished it, I caught the front edge of the tank on the bucket of water.

Somebody must really, really hate me  

No; let's be truthful - it was carelessness.

So, bucket of water not withstanding, rinse and repeat. Last night I sealed the flatted colour coat with a single coat of lacquer and today applied the final colour coat.

Tomorrow we start on the lacquer. At one coat a day and 24 hours to go hard, it should be done by a week this Saturday. The can says you can apply two coats in a day if you're cautious but... sod that. I'm going full-out coward mode.

Dai you need to be leevin a small tot of the good Irish out for the wee people to be enjoying. only then will your luck change.  
Regards Martin.

Holy Mackerel, this paint job is excruciating! 

Just curious, what kind of paint are you using? 

The professional acrylic enamel systems I've been using on my bikes for the past 10 years flash in 5-10 minutes for recoat.  Two part clears flash in 10 minutes for recoat and can be wet sanded and buffed to remove orange peel after 4-6 hours.  Paint jobs with this stuff are pretty painless.

It's just not happening for you is it?
I really feel your pain.

Maybe, whilst you're killing time between coats, it's time to reflect on the whole pursuit-of-a-perfect-topcoat thing. Why has nature programmed us this way? Why do we set such great stock in a silly, rather pointless, microns thick layer of something selected from the visible light spectrum - that simply has to be applied? I mean, we're all supposed to be practical motorcycle guys who can turn a nut, smack something with a hammer, eat our tea with oil-stained fingernails and all that. Why, when it's all built and working do we suddenly go from steam hammers and furnaces to the floaty land of illusion and makeup - and gaze for ages at the light reflecting off a surface, with heaps of suddenly-important consideration? 
Why do we think it 'looks good', why has nature done this to us?

F***ing twelve hundred grit anyone? I can't even feel that anymore!

Hey Chris,
Have you ever thought of writing a book like "zen and the art of ..." or something like that? I tried to read it but never got to the end. I think I could if you put your mind to a pocket book of something like that. You lot over there do seem to have the gift of the gab.

Point-Seven-five wrote:Just curious, what kind of paint are you using? 

The professional acrylic enamel systems I've been using on my bikes for the past 10 years flash in 5-10 minutes for recoat.  Two part clears flash in 10 minutes for recoat and can be wet sanded and buffed to remove orange peel after 4-6 hours.  Paint jobs with this stuff are pretty painless.

Cellulose for the primer and colour coat, with 2K acrylic for the lacquer. Also, NY in the summer is somewhat warmer than NI Some days I haven't been able to do anything because the humidity has been too high. I've been caught out by the 4-6 hours once too often. I talked to RS Motorcycle Paints and they said yes; in theory 4-6 hours is right but 24 hours is better. That matches with my previous experience of cellulose metallics.

As to why being quite so painstaking; it has to match with the original factory finish. I'll hate it if it doesn't.

'Gift of the gab'? - Us lot call it 'talking sh*te'.

And on that theme: nature doesn't like a factory finish; nature likes oxidisation, erosion and, ultimately, death. Is nature challenging us by making us want to fight her natural forces? Has nature spoofed us, because we all, certainly, fail?

Entropy.

It always wins in the end.

First acrylic coat has gone on okay.

What is the flash time between coats? 

The stuff I'm using flashes in 10 minutes and must be recoated in 1 hour.  You can't wait too long because it prevents the molecular bonding between coats.  Otherwise you have to wait 24 hours and sand with 600 to get a mechanical bond which is still inferior to the molecular bond.

Temperature isn't that different.  I'm usually painting in the early Spring or late fall when I'm not in riding season and I can take the bike apart for paint.  Temperatures in my garage usually run between 10C and 20C when I am painting.  Occasionally I need to run the woodstove just to get to 10C which is the minimum I can work at.  You just need to get the correct reducer for the base.  The clear takes a bit longer to flash between coats at the lower temperatures(10 minutes minimum), but it tends to flow out a little better with less orange peel.   I just have to be more careful handling the parts for the first 2-3 hours.


Painted with Ford Platinum tri-coat and Ford Dark Blue tri-coat.  Acrylic enamel and rattle can 2k clear.

https://www.rsbikepaint.com/en-gb/datasheets/2klaqnoniso-instructions.pdf

Unfortunately it's throwing an error 500 atm.

Been talking to RS Motorcycle Paints: the instructions for the 2K rattlecan isn't on the website because they were out of stock for a while. They sent me the PDF for it and (quote from the PDF):


1. Spray 2 coats with 10 minutes flash-off in-between coats. Ensure previous coat is dry before applying the next coat. DO NOT apply more than the recommended number of coats. This will cause the product not to fully dry.

2. Fully dried with 24 hours. Low heat may be used. This can be infrared (at a safe distance).

Recoating after 24 hours is okay.

After yrs of searching i finally got a bargain,Sprint,twin headlight fairing to replace my damaged one(i was never going to pay £6oo,800 for a new one)Planed to respray it myself.BUT plans of mice and men and others,i received a tx .The opp on your eye can now be done THISweek,good old NHS Bugger the virus,Eight to twelve week recovery,no heavy lifting,no bending over(easy sailor)Talked with a local spray shop,I did my best to look old frail poor and desperate  Bring both fairings and ill see what can be done,said the multicolored guy,id seen overspray in my time but his was a Tapestry,3WEEKS THE BUGGER KEPT ME WAITING,Today i collected my fairings.JOY of JOY great job far better than hoped for.THE BILL?? well yes there is that,rubbing his chin and creating a rainbow from ear to ear,It has to be £100 or im out of pocket said he.I could have kissed him but thought better of it.Cost of fairing?? Ebay pile of Kbits and unknown fairing winning bid to my good self 99p

Any body need a good tank with working BMW pump damage free for early K

Not surprised at the bill. Buying paint in pot form rather than aerosol form is a bloody sight (ha!) cheaper. If I still had an HVLP setup I estimate the cost of the paint would have been around £30 and no Dangerous Goods shipping charge.

Anyway, I put the second coat of lacquer on this afternoon.

Beggars like me cant be proud,your probably right about his cost,goodluck with the clear

That's it - clearcoat layer no.6 finished. Now to wait five days to be sure it's absolutely hard before final polish.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/72b.png

Note the secret weapon on the back of the RT. According the RS Motorcycle Paints the biggest problem is people not allowing time for the clearcoat to go off properly before applying a new coat and/or applying a coat that's much too heavy. The result is that the lacquer underneath the top layer is 're-enlivened'; the top layer goes hard but everything underneath remains soft. A hot-air gun on medium heat flashes off the paint/clearcoat so fast that it never has the chance to re-enliven the layer underneath.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/73b.png

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/74b.png

I'm not sorry to have arrived at this stage. See that purple monstrosity hanging on the wall? That's turning Alaska Blue, that is.

Home run - final assembly stage. I cut back and polished the tank and sidepanels this afternoon. The sidepanels are near-perfect but the tank... It wasn't until I got to the waxing stage that I found I hadn't cut it back far enough and that there are small patches of orange peel in places. You can hear when the clearcoat goes from mostly orange peel to smooth during the flatting process but evidently my hearing is going the same way as my eyesight. Based on what I know I did (I used 1000 grade wet'n'dry and applied a reasonable amount of pressure), I can highly recommend that 2K aerosal lacquer from RS Motorcycle Paints because it dries to a really hard finish.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/80b.png

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/81b.png

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/82b.png

I'm having a hell of a time getting the fairing pockets back on without scratching the tank though. I've had to run a strip of 2mm neoprene tape along the pocket where it rubs against the tank. I also found out why so many pockets on ebay are missing the inside hook... because both of mine are now as well.

The more I think about this, the more I know what I'm doing tomorrow. But I'm not stripping the tank down and I'm not taking it off the bike

I also forgot to add that the underside of the tank has a new heatshield.

That's better - and this is before the wax was applied.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/83b.png

The clearcoat was starting to get knicked by the pocket frames, so I glued 2mm thick protective rubber on both sides of the tank and also at the rear where the seat catches it. If you think this picture is fuzzy, that because it is The camera couldn't decide where to focus on the waxed paintowrk.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/84b.png

Almost finished. The backs of the mirror pods fell off when I palmed them hard onto the fairing. I wasn't that surprised because I have another pair of LT mirrors with the backs off and a third pair that feel decidedly loose in places.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/85b.png

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/86b.png

I need to get the pocket lids re-keyed. There's a good locksmith in the town nine miles away but I'm not sure when/if he's open at the moment. If you look closely you'll also see that I gave in with the asthetics and fitted the brand new RT panel for the coolant and fuel gauges. I'll be getting the tyres changed tomorrow too. One of my cats is nearly blind in one eye and he has to see a vet specialist who is some forty miles away. I pass pretty close to the nearest tyre depot which itself is twenty-seven miles away, so I'll drop the wheels off on the way out and pick them up on the way back.

That's the theory.

Looking very good!

stunning paint ,,,wow

Thanks gents. Tyres today   - then it's declared finished.

Okay, so I need new pocket lid keys and I have to glue the mirror pods back on, but apart from that it will be finished.

A good wash'n'polish will help too.

Dai,be proud,be happy,a really lovely job

Oh wow! fantastic paint job. My first boxer RS was that colour with red pin striping. Loved it.
Think you’ve lived up to the ‘good home’ part of the bargain.

  1000 grade wet'n'dry, Car Plan medium cutting paste, some Polish (ha! the country) fine cutting paste and then T-Cut. If you add in Saturday's abortive job, it took less than an hour to get from final clearcoat to final polish.

But I am definately impressed with RS Paints' 2K clearcoat. Not so impressed with the metallic colourcoat unfortunately. The OEM BMW paint is a uniform metallic colour, whereas if you look closely you can see the metalflakes in the RS cellulose. I guess I shoudln't be so picky because you can't really tell the difference from about three feet away.

Plan was followed today! Two new Road Rider Mk.IIs adorn the front and rear hoops for a total pocket-holing £194. Bike will be finished tomorrow!!

But I still can't get a bloody MoT on it.

Finished. Wash, polish and poseur pictures tomorrow. But only if it doesn't rain.

Collar/Tie, and hair combed,for the big Reveal

It didn't go well.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/87b.png

As best as I can figure it out, the green/yellow wire in the three-pin connector was sticking out slightly, the tank sat right on top of it and punched it through the thottle cable outer cover. Start bike, immediate short-circuit, lots of flames and one hell of a panic. There were three cars and another bike in range of that tank if it went up. I know fine well I should have just run but... I knew it wasn't a fuel fire and I was right next to the hosepipe.

The smoke damage has polished off the side of the tank - thank Diety! - but there's a load underneath that needs attending to. Wiring damage is restricted to what you can see (easy fixed) plus a new fuel injector sub-loom because part of the molten tank cushion dripped down onto it. Not a wiring fault per se because doing after-fire test trying to locate a possible short, everything works. Also needs a new throttle cable because that one has melted the inner.

Then to really finish it off, the sidestand broke in the usual place.

Very, very unhappy.

Bloody Hell, that could have turned out worse.

I think you should go in to a darkened room and lay down for a day or two!


Mike

OOOF! 


But, as I'm sure you are aware, if you were cool enough to stop it turning into a petrol fire then it was a good result. No other way to look at it, so a thumbs up from me 

I don't have the heart to go out and start the repair for a day or two. Or a day. Most of it's easy to fix, but the throttle cable has to be bought because of the square block on the end.

Both you and the bike will ride another day.Result

"if it wasn't for real bad luck,
 I wouldn't have no luck at all"

Born Under a Bad Sign: 
William Bell, Booker T. Jones, Albert King

Sounds like you have an aspiring Pheonix.

You got a wry smile for that one.

what ? !!!   

of all bad luck mate ,  thank heavens it didnt go ..too far

rest recuperate and take another stab at it    ...after all the fuss has settled ...no good rushing back in 

fingers crossed for you

Just in case you missed it

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-K100-8V-ABS-RS-LT-K100RS-K100LT-ECU-FUEL-JETS-INJECTORS-WIRING-HARNESS-LOOM/133492407703?hash=item1f14c47d97:g:XpAAAOSw8rhfK-VQ

Nice thought - not tempted If the crap won't scrape off then I'll take a pair of wire cutters to the injector/temp sensor run and just remake that. I'll then reconnect it to the rest of the subloom using a 4-way Molex connector. It'll be faster than waiting for that sub-loom to arrive and a lot less hassle than having to part-strip the bike to get at the entire FICU sub-loom.

I have Junior Timer Connectors 'in stock', as they say.

Dai wrote:It didn't go well.

http://www.simpilot.net/~sc/brick3/87b.png

As best as I can figure it out, the green/yellow wire in the three-pin connector was sticking out slightly, the tank sat right on top of it and punched it through the thottle cable outer cover. Start bike, immediate short-circuit, lots of flames and one hell of a panic. There were three cars and another bike in range of that tank if it went up. I know fine well I should have just run but... I knew it wasn't a fuel fire and I was right next to the hosepipe.

The smoke damage has polished off the side of the tank - thank Diety! - but there's a load underneath that needs attending to. Wiring damage is restricted to what you can see (easy fixed) plus a new fuel injector sub-loom because part of the molten tank cushion dripped down onto it. Not a wiring fault per se because doing after-fire test trying to locate a possible short, everything works. Also needs a new throttle cable because that one has melted the inner.

Then to really finish it off, the sidestand broke in the usual place.

Very, very unhappy.

That`s a kicker, but fair play for tackling the flames! fingers crossed that`s the last of the bad luck!  K.

Simon: I buckled and made the guy an offer. If it's not accepted tomorrow then I will make a complete new sub-loom (not just the damaged part).

Thank you all for the support. It was just 'one of those things' that you cannot account for. I'll be making a new throttle cable too - I've got that 'square end' problem figured out, but I won't say 'beaten' until the cable is made and fitted.

Oh yes.......

and I ordered two fire extinguishers for the garage, one CO2 and one powder. Not ever getting caught like that again 

Offer ignored for the FICU sub-loom on ebay, so today I make my own. He wanted £35 - I offered £30 because some parts of it were insulated with bog-standard electrical tape and would need stripping to check and possibly repair.

I am going to look on the bright side of this. Stripping off the FICU sub-loom, I found a horrendous bodge where a PO had obviously got pissed off with the difficulty of removing the top of the airbox and had inserted six inches of wire into that part of the loom. Good idea but... the solder hadn't really wetted the wire in places and the insulating tape was in the process of peeling off. Me? Chop! - snip! and in goes a four-way connector block to solve that problem.

The smoke damage to the inside of the left-lower fairing all sucumbed to an attack of T-Cut and the residue that had dripped down from the neoprene tank onto the engine washed off with brake cleaner. I made one good clutch switch out of two (one was burnt at the plug end and on the other, the switch didn't work). The damage to the left handlebar switch wiring was superficial in that only the outside of the PVC tubing had started to melt and stuck to the inner wires. That quite literally peeled off. I punched the terminals out of the connector block and slid a new piece of PVC sleeving on, then pushed the pins back into the block.

There's a couple of connector blocks that don't really need replacing but will be replaced because they've discoloured in the heat. Just for once I'm going to say 'hurrah!' for BMW's cloth-wrapped main loom because - no damage at all.

The PHOENIX.has a new home