Learn to paint your motorcycle!

This guide is courtesy of Glenn Merideth from Bridger, Montana. Glenn learned to paint mostly on his own and was kind enough to put together this concise page on the basics of what you need and how to do it.

OK, first things first, the "must have" equipment and supplies;

Air Compressor. I cannot stress enough just how important having the proper spec'ed air compressor is. For this application at least, you are going to be using an "HPLV" paint gun. That’s short for High Pressure (60PSI) Low Volume.(A small amount of paint is being supplied to the tip, along with a higher pressure which gives nice light, but even coats, especially metallics).

When you go to purchase that HPLV gun, take ALL the specs of the compressor with you! I recommend using a Sears Craftsman pressure regulator mounted between the tank pressure gauge and the air hose. With the regulator mounted there, you can limit the exact air PSI in the hose itself, instead of adding the extra weight and bulk of having it mounted on the bottom of the gun grip, which makes it much easier to control the guns’ angle to the work!

I can supply pics via email for those who want an exact picture in their heads of what I am talking about, yes, it is that important!

The compressor that I used when I sprayed that Pearl Metallic Gold paint and one that was designed with automotive HPLV guns in mind, is as follows; Compressor model # 919-167620, 120V, 33 Gallon, 150 PSI, permanent.lube.These next specs are the MOST IMPORTANT; 6.3 scfm @ 40PSI, 4.9 scfm @ 90PSI. With those two specs in hand, and knowing the other specs, when you go to purchase an airgun for shooting automotive paint, the sales pro will know exactly which guns to show you. (and remember, that compressor will power any airtool there is, as well as lots of other stuff!)

If you only plan on painting about 2-4 bikes a year, and just basic painting, no flames or "ghosting" or murals etc., then Harbour Freight has a nice set of HPLV guns that actually do a very good job in laying a very even metallic coat for about $100 on sale! If you plan on painting a lot of bikes, like 15-20 a year, then you had better step up to the pump and be ready to fork over $250-$1500 for very high end guns!

Next we need personal protection, as we want you alive to show off your work afterwards! You will need a painters’ gas mask. Preferably one that is re-usable with changeable filters, as the fumes from this paint is deadly. And you will also need a box of toss-out non-latex exam type gloves, sold in any paint shop!

For painting a bike in ONE color, I used a 2X12ft board on waist high workhorses (you can hang your pieces from a rack using wire as well) and had the tank, 2 side panels and both fenders set a little over a foot apart, upside down. After I shot 6 light coats, and let it set up for 30 min I flipped them all over, having the gun now set perfectly for the visible top side. Then did 6 more light coats, waiting 10 minutes between each coat. The instructions that came with the paint called for 3 coats, but I have personally found that with single stage paints, many light coats give a much better final finish, as the pictures will attest). After 24 hours, it was set hard enough to put my bike back together. However, you cannot wax it for 6 weeks! It takes at least that long for all the chemical reactions to set up properly.

Ok, now your thinking,"this is all good and well, IF you know how to shoot paint!” Well, I had no experience at all before this first attempt, but, I DID have some good advice, and was instructed on how to practice and learn on my own. Here is how it is done. First, you obviously need the equipment. Then like I did, go down to a good junk yard, and buy an undamaged car hood or trunk lid for cheap. These are your "practice objects" as well as some large cardboard sheets and a gallon of paint thinner. Use the thinner to practice shooting a liquid out of the guns against the cardboard until you learn how to hold the gun right.

Shoot at 90 degrees to the object AT ALL TIMES! You ask “why”? Take your hand and move it from side to side. Notice how it actually moves in an arc? If you do that you’ll have a thin coat on each side and a too-thick, runny coat in the middle. Hold the gun at a perfect 90 degrees to the work about 12 inches away and move your entire body from side to side. Practice with the paint remover on cardboard until you master this important movement 100%. You CANNOT shoot paint until you have that down pat!

Now you will learn how to prepare the surface to be painted! Take a rough grit paper (about 300-500 grit) keep it wet, and keep sanding until all blemishes that you can feel with your bare hand are gone. Then take 800 grit, and smooth it down more. When it it almost as smooth as the proverbial "babies bottom” you are now ready for the 1500 grit final smooth down. It should feel like the smoothest pottery you have ever felt! Any imperfections that you miss will be magnified greatly with any darkish color!

At this point, you are now ready to try your first practice PAINTING! Start on the hood or trunk lid and keep moving. Most people move WAY TOO DAMN SLOW!!!! When I shoot the side of a pickup, I am walking about as fast as I can from front to rear with each coat! So, speed is another item that you will need to learn. If you get a run, STOP, wipe it down fast, then resume the painting, giving a very light coat over where the run was wiped down until you have finished the whole layer.

It is easier than you think, and it does not take long to master holding the gun right, moving at the right speed, and knowing when to stop! Painting two colors, like on a Harley Davidson tank, will require more skills and knowledge, but after you have mastered the basic painting skills, buy one of the many "how to” books out there. It will give you all the info on which color to paint first, how to mask off , and how long before you remove the masking tape so it does not pull up paint with the tape!

Right before you start to paint your own pride and joy, there is one more practice that I would recommend. Get a junk yard tank, and when you can paint THAT tank without any problems and you are pleased with the final outcome, then, you are ready to tackle your own stuff! I have written this guide with NAPA's "Crossfire" Automotive "single stage" paint in mind. It comes in no less that over 500 shades/colors, and if you have the manufacturers paint codes for your bike/car, then they can get an awful close match. Close enough that you cannot tell any difference!

The clear coat is already blended in, which is why it is called single stage. I had a 35 MPH slide on a mountain switchback curve where the road was covered in loose gravel, and me and the bike went for a 25 foot slide into the mountain side. My helmet was scraped up pretty good as was my leather jacket sleeve and my chaps. The only damage to the bike was scraping up the baffels real good, and shearing off the right footpeg. Not a mark to be found anywhere on the paint! That is just how hard it sets up!

And another good piece of news. The paint starts out at about $65 a quart (for tractor colors, like John Deere green) to about $200 for pearl/metallic mix which is what mine is, as well as more exotic colors. If anyone who is reading this, and is seriously wanting to attempt to customize their own bike would like to have a talk about any aspect of this, or there is a professional with some better learning techniques, then, by all means, speak up in an email!

Contact me at glenn.merideth@gmail.com . Here is my photobucket site: http://s481.photobucket.com/albums/rr176/montanaghost/ .

Hope this was helpful in SOME WAY for SOMEONE!

Glenn "Casper" Merideth

90 Golden LN Bridger, MT 59014