Do you have an old, worn out looking bike? Do you want it to look as fast as you can go on it? Here's how to do it.
The story behind the bike that I am holding in front of the camera is as follows
My father destroyed his bike frame when he was younger and asked to "borrow" one of his friends bike frames. The friend was into bikes and had some extras. My father then put all of his old bikes parts onto the new frame. Unfortunately for my father, he didn't like the color yellow. He promptly fixed this by painting most of it red. Thirty years later, I get the bike and I also don't like the color combination. So I am going to show you how to change that color by repainting it.
The story behind the bike that I am holding in front of the camera is as follows
My father destroyed his bike frame when he was younger and asked to "borrow" one of his friends bike frames. The friend was into bikes and had some extras. My father then put all of his old bikes parts onto the new frame. Unfortunately for my father, he didn't like the color yellow. He promptly fixed this by painting most of it red. Thirty years later, I get the bike and I also don't like the color combination. So I am going to show you how to change that color by repainting it.
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Signing UpStep 1: Materials
Here is the list for materials needed. This list doesn't include tools because I used a pipe wrench on everything that didn't want to come off correctly.
Paint - I used Rustoleum indoor/outdoor paint (I chose black and silver)
Sand Paper - I used some 3M wet/dry 220 grit and 400 grit paper
Paint Remover - I used some environmentally safe stripper I found at Rural King
Masking Tape - I used blue tape from 3M to mask my project.
Bondo - the brand shouldn't matter as long as it is made to be painted over
A Mask - I used one I found laying around (has paint grade filters on it)
Polish - I used the Nevr-Dull from Eagle One on all of the chromed parts (including wheels)
An assortment of tools - I used my 'Bucket O' Tools' located in my garage
A next door neighbor that knows more about bikes than you do
Paint - I used Rustoleum indoor/outdoor paint (I chose black and silver)
Sand Paper - I used some 3M wet/dry 220 grit and 400 grit paper
Paint Remover - I used some environmentally safe stripper I found at Rural King
Masking Tape - I used blue tape from 3M to mask my project.
Bondo - the brand shouldn't matter as long as it is made to be painted over
A Mask - I used one I found laying around (has paint grade filters on it)
Polish - I used the Nevr-Dull from Eagle One on all of the chromed parts (including wheels)
An assortment of tools - I used my 'Bucket O' Tools' located in my garage
A next door neighbor that knows more about bikes than you do
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http://www.hydetools.com/featured-tools/multi-tools/tool/2312
If that link ever dies it is called a 6 in 1 multi-tool with blade. I was using just a flat putty knife and it was going slow, but then I found one of these lying around and I probably saved myself at least an hour. I wouldn't do it again without one.
And those are awesome shifters. I have an older Murray Sebring roadbike from about 1970-1980 sitting out behind my shed with the same thing, except mine has plastic shifters.
Although someone in my area is selling an old Blue Schwinn from the 80's that looks real nice with metal shifters. Perhaps I'll buy it and touch up the paint....
I've got my frame hanging primed in the basement, waiting to finish drying so I can throw on the paint. Which is why I wanted to know about sanding between coats.. Thank you! Great instructable!
I would probably sand after you get all of you paint coats so that you actually have a base of paint to sand on, instead of incredibly thin layers of paint. Make sure that you clean the frame really well before adding any additional paint / clear coat once you've sanded the bike after painting. Good luck, and feel free to post your bike here once you've finished.
years ago i redid an old bike and really was gratefull for a tip from a friend of mine who told me to take the frame to a radiator shop to have them dip it in their radiator cleaner.... the thing came back almost silver!!! knowing what a pain stripping anything is, it really took a lot of the not fun part out of the project.....
take care, and again, NICE JOB!
Since you have already sanded down the bike, you may want to do a light sanding and then wipe the bike down with some mineral spirits because aluminum oxidizes quickly (iron rusts, same process). Then apply your primer, I used a general Rustoleum Primer. This should be fine, but it will not last as long as a primer made specifically for the metal of the frame. An automotive repair man i asked said that my bike would not last long with the primer I used, and so far I have had one paint chip (near the bottom of the bike due to a metal bracket moving down the tube because it wasn't quite tight enough) and no other issues.
I hope this helps. Post pictures of your finished paint.
So the next time you think that you can decipher an air of arrogance through a single sentence, try to realize that I point out nearly everything in my pictures. I even pointed out my address in that picture.
Also, thanks for taking a look at my Instructable, I appreciate your business.
I think I covered what needs to be done, but if anyone has anything else to add, or thinks I'm wrong, just reply to this.