Recommendations On Paint Shop For Bicycle Frame

[wynzlo]

Looking for a place that will strip and re-paint my steel touring frame. Not looking for anything elaborate, just a solid color and a clearcoat. Anyone have experience with this?

[Hog Head]

powdercoat it

Richco Powdercoating on Whuali Rd does excellent work

[junglechef]

Would love to have my carbon fiber mt bike frame painted, anyone know how different this is than having a metal one done and if a good job can be done here?

[T_Dog]

Three years ago I had a car paint shop just before the Banana Tree restaurant on Canal Road do my aluminum Klein Mantra. I thought the car paints would be too brittle but it has held up much better than custom bike paint jobs in the USA. They did a fabulous job even around the many drop outs and fittings which are tough to paint. I went with Toyota silver and the total cost was 900 baht with a three day turn-around.

[T_Dog]

Would love to have my carbon fiber mt bike frame painted, anyone know how different this is than having a metal one done and if a good job can be done here?

You have to use compatible paints if you are putting it directly on the carbon fiber. Normal solvents can completely destroy the strength of the carbon fiber. You would probably be okay however if you only sanded the current finish and then painted on top of that. Safest bet is to send it to someone experienced with painting carbon fiber materials.

[wynzlo]

powdercoat it

Richco Powdercoating on Whuali Rd does excellent work

I had the frame powder coated there last year. The result looked nice, but now rust has surfaced all over the place from underneath the coat. I also didn't appreciate the cost doubling from the original estimate when I picked up the frame.

Three years ago I had a car paint shop just before the Banana Tree restaurant on Canal Road do my aluminum Klein Mantra. I thought the car paints would be too brittle but it has held up much better than custom bike paint jobs in the USA. They did a fabulous job even around the many drop outs and fittings which are tough to paint. I went with Toyota silver and the total cost was 900 baht with a three day turn-around.

Thanks for the tip! I'll see if they're still around. That toyota silver came out great. Did you strip the original paint yourself before you brought it there?

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

Steel and powdercoat is easy to screw up. Its common to get spider web oxidation and flaking due to the porous nature of powdercoat. That's even with a clear top coat. Some companies do it well but its not so commonplace or easy.

For steel its better to use a primer and lacquer followed with a clearcoat.

Aluminum and powder coat get along great.

Carbon is generally easy to refinish. Acetone to remove stickers etc. Wetsand remove old paint and clearcoat. Chemical clean and dry. Paints can be Imron, Deltron, PPG, spray can, etc. Google it as their are lots of sites and video's that document the process.

It's worth noting that covering in paint can make it harder to tell when the frame starts to crack or delaminate.

Edited October 1, 2012 by CobraSnakeNecktie

[T_Dog]

powdercoat it

Richco Powdercoating on Whuali Rd does excellent work

I had the frame powder coated there last year. The result looked nice, but now rust has surfaced all over the place from underneath the coat. I also didn't appreciate the cost doubling from the original estimate when I picked up the frame.

Three years ago I had a car paint shop just before the Banana Tree restaurant on Canal Road do my aluminum Klein Mantra. I thought the car paints would be too brittle but it has held up much better than custom bike paint jobs in the USA. They did a fabulous job even around the many drop outs and fittings which are tough to paint. I went with Toyota silver and the total cost was 900 baht with a three day turn-around.

Thanks for the tip! I'll see if they're still around. That toyota silver came out great. Did you strip the original paint yourself before you brought it there?

I started to but stopped at the primer as it was so hard. Only did a few of the deeper scratches down to the primer. The paint guys agreed in just sanding the top coat and leaving the primer.

[Hog Head]

I have had several motorbike frames powdercoated over the past 20 years and no problems.

The last one done by Richco is holding up great after 5 years

[onthedarkside]

4 posts removed - no need to place personal/commercial messages on the main board. Just sent PMs

[wynzlo]

Just to be clear here, Richco did a nice job on the frame, as I wrote in a previous thread. The issue with the price was a little strange - I was quoted 1500B, when I went to pick it up they said 3000B because of the time it took to mask everything (wasn't a surprise, we discussed the masking). We negotiated down to 2000B, which was fine.

Steel and powdercoat is easy to screw up. Its common to get spider web oxidation and flaking due to the porous nature of powdercoat. That's even with a clear top coat. Some companies do it well but its not so commonplace or easy.

For steel its better to use a primer and lacquer followed with a clearcoat.

My frame is steel and that "spider web" oxidation is exactly what's happening all over the frame. Maybe it could have been avoided with some kind of primer. Maybe the matte finish I picked was a poor choice because it's extra porous.

Richco contacted me and said they're willing to refund and/or redo the frame, so I plan to bring the frame in to see what can be done.