Ever Paint a Motorcycle?

[fotodad]

I just bought a 1983 Honda Nighthawk 650. The bike is structurally sound and the engine only has 16,000 miles on it, so from a functional perspective the bike is in great shape. But from a cosmetic perspective it could use a little work. Small areas of surface rust are forming on the frame and mufflers, the chrome parts have blemishes on them, and the paint on the gas tank, side panels, and fenders is terribly faded (originally a rich burgundy color is now turning pinkish!). I asked a local body shop what they got for painting a bike a basic high gloss black: $400.00! That seemed a bit steep, so I'd like to try repainting the bike myself.

Has anyone out there tried this? I'm not the sharpest pencil when it comes to do-it-yourself projects, but I wouldn't say I have a dull tip, either. Is this something for an amateur to try or should I leave it to the professionals? If I do it myself, please offer suggestions, advise, and procedures to follow.

Thanks!

[Black240SX]

You don't have much to lose by trying.

[the other pc]

Was that quote based on them doing all the work, prep, shoot, polish, etc? Would they be removing the parts to be painted? $400 for a good professional job sounds reasonable. That's a tenth of what a medium-to-high grade job costs for a car.

All the painting websites/info/etc apply to motorcycles the same as cars. You can certainly learn to do a decent job yourself but it would be an exercise and you would need to invest in the proper tools.

The part that takes the most specialized equipment and controlled conditions is the shoot.

I'll bet that if you remove the pieces yourself, do the initial prep and then do the wetsand and final polish you can get a painter to do just the shoot for much less.


PC.

[fotodad]

Originally posted by the other pc
Was that quote based on them doing all the work, prep, shoot, polish, etc? Would they be removing the parts to be painted? $400 for a good professional job sounds reasonable. That's a tenth of what a medium-to-high grade job costs for a car.

All the painting websites/info/etc apply to motorcycles the same as cars. You can certainly learn to do a decent job yourself but it would be an exercise and you would need to invest in the proper tools.

The part that takes the most specialized equipment and controlled conditions is the shoot.

I'll bet that if you remove the pieces yourself, do the initial prep and then do the wetsand and final polish you can get a painter to do just the shoot for much less.


PC.

The $400.00 price quote was if I removed the pieces. But other than that the quote was for prep, shoot, and polish.

I like your idea of having a pro do the paint and I do the wetsand and polish.

[fotodad]

What is involved in doing the prep work? Maybe I can save some money by preparing the pieces for paint, too. There are some decals on the tank and side panels that I tried to peel off but they were so long that they didn't come off easily at all. I'm assuming they'd have to be sanded off.