What tips do you have on painting a bicycle using a spray gun?

I have a few bicycles in need of a respray. Their original finish is completely gone. I was wondering what spray gun do you guys use to paint your bicycle frames and any tips you might have for doing a professional job, like the type of paint you recommend, the type of clear to use etc...

Warm day, no wind. Thin coats, 5-10 mins apart until happy with coverage. "It's all about that base!" Sand/primer/fine sand/primer... Etc.

like nick said ... its all about prepping the surface. and when adding recoats..... wait till its very dry before recoating.... take your time....be mindful of too much paint in one section...lots of light coats is better than long runny drips, but remember the original factories did leave runs on paint jobs....they were cranking them out and some less than perfect paint jobs made it out to the masses.

I hope you realize that a guy could spend half a day answering a question like this. I'll put something together quick with the understanding you have at least some knowledge. Starting with a spotless clean bare metal smooth frame. I will also assume you can figure out what primer to use. Partition off a section in your garage or basement with plastic sheeting. Using a box fan or similar, make a rudimentary ventilation system by a door or window. You must do this to keep the bugs out and the over spray mist to a minimum. The best paint jobs these days are done with base coat clear coat systems. Metallics and especially pearls are the most difficult to achieve an even finish, solid colors are much easier. Any automotive brand base coat is fine, from Pete's paint to ppg or the cheaper stuff like Nason, they all work the same. Base coats go on pretty dry so running paint drips are almost hard to do unless you are a clod. You want a fast dry clear coat. This helps against runs and keep the bugs out of your final finish. I usually apply four to five coats of clear, starting with a mist coat and then laying it on heavy on the last couple coats so it goes on smoother. Let it sit for a week and then wet sand the frame with 2000 and hand buff it out with compound. I use 3M parts A and B. You will need a full pint of pearl paint to do a bike. You will need about half that with a solid color. Best to get a primer or sealer that is close to the desired final finish color. A rougher texture in a solid base coat color is hidden by the clear. A rough texture in a metallic or pearl base coat can be seen through the clear. So it is critical to start with a smooth as possible primed or sealed finish before the color goes on.

Clearing over decals requires more steps. One thing for sure, you must wet sand and buff to get decals to lay down without silvering.

I highly recommend this clear. I also use this spray gun. I bought an expensive touch up gun but it is no better than this cheap one, in fact the expensive one wastes too much paint. All professional paint products have tech sheets available. You can find them online or your supplier can make you a copy. READ THEM!

http://products.axaltacs.com/dcat/us/en/dr/product/HC-7776S.html

http://www.amazon.com/Grip-HVLP-Air-Touch-Gun/dp/B000GFIB8W

Clean hands, low humidity, and not near dusk (moisture), no wind, bugs, cats, dogs near!

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If you use single stage automotiv paint with a hardenr, they won't look over done like dipped in plastic in momo pic.

Definitely single stage enamel.

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momo608 said:

Not one up vote for being helpful but three for a cheap shot. I love it!

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This is the CABE, reason, as you know it, does not reign supreme here. Your answer sounded like it was backed up by years of experience and you were very forthcoming, so I'll be happy to give you a thumbs up for that, however I know absolutely nothing about painting other than you did an excellent job on your bike, from what I can tell.