# Restoration paint for your prewar/postwar schwinn



## WES PINCHOT (Oct 13, 2011)

I HAVE USED AARON THOMAS"S RESTORATION PAINT WITH GOOD SCHWINN COLOR MATCH AND RESULTS.
CHECK IT OUT AT www.VintageSchwinn.com FOR COLORS AVAILABLE.
WES PINCHOT
FENDER DOCTOR


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## Freqman1 (Oct 14, 2011)

This is a carry over from the resto thread but as stated there the aerosols are good for touch-up and you can get an ok job on a complete bike but for a really nice paint job its gonna take a gun. The other thing that was brougth up, and is kind of peeve with me, is that people are not very forthcoming with paint code info. I have asked several times for codes and get evasive answers like "you'll have to get a match from under the headbadge". For something as common as Schwinn coach green this shouldn't be an issue but restorers seem to want to guard their secrets? A lot of the paint used on bikes was automotive colors so I'm not sure what the problem is here. Regarding cost paint has gotten very expensive. I bought two quarts, reducer, and hardner-$280! The good thing is they were colors I can use for other projects and I should be able to do at least a few. If anyone here has started documenting codes for certain bikes I'm sure others besides myself would be very interested--and grateful! v/r Shawn


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## VintageSchwinn.com (Oct 14, 2011)

Hi Shawn

I can only speak for myself, but the reason I don't freely hand out the paint codes is, first of all, I had to find and buy original cans of usable 50- to 70-year-old paint to match.  Then I had to pay a color tech to match them, which was not cheap, believe me.  I'm just not willing to hand that over as it's my proprietary paint code now for both color and formula.  That's one thing people often do wrong is use the wrong TYPE of paint.  I have had mine matched to a T as far as the formula as well.  People often want to use a clearcoat on their paints, well, Schwinn didn't use a clearcoat, at least on the paints for which I sell.  They did on some of the '60s and '70s stuff however.   You also need to use the right shade of primer to achieve the color and finish as Schwinn intended it.
If you take your time and use proper procedure, you can definitely achieve a professional result.  Take a look on my website at the brown/tan and the tan/brown 1935 Cycleplane/Motorbikes.  I did both of them 100-percent from rattle cans to demonstrate this, as well as my 1938 Cobalt Blue Motorbike.  The "rattle cans' are not the type you'd find on the shelves of Home Depot or a hardware store, they have a much different flow and fan spread and spray much differently.  They are automotive grade cans, which are used to spray door dams, roof pillars, etc, and work very, very well.

If people are interested in paint by the pints, I'm happy to accommodate those requests.  Often people are shocked at how expensive it is, though.  For example, a lot of people are unaware that ANY paint that uses a red pigment?  More expensive (such as Cobalt Blue).  Maroon and Red ??  Very expensive, nearly 175 percent more expensive to be exact.  I sell most all of the prewar/postwar non-metallic colors, Pete at Hyper-Formance in Arizona has the '60s and '70s colors for Sting-Rays and some of the metallics as well.


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## J.C. (Oct 14, 2011)

*Good Stuff!!!*

*Being a Schwinn guy myself, I have found the VintageSchwinn.com paints extremely helpful on many of my restoration projects.  I try and keep all of my bikes 100% original, but if I get a request from someone interested in one of the bikes I have for sale, such as wanting a rear rack, a headlight cover without paint chips (many suffered paint loss) etc, Aaron's paints are the way to go when trying to color match and provide them with these items in the same color as the rest of the bike.  Quick, spot on match, and the cans spray very nicely.  I have had to go and send parts off to be color matched (especially Chicago Cycle Supply Co. bikes as they tended to use weird colors) and just the cost of having a certified paint match specialist match it is astronomical.  Then you have to either have it put in to a spray can (at an additional cost...which aint cheap), or buy the required amount of paint by the pint, quart, etc.  That also aint cheap!  Oh, then you need hardener and reducer.  Guess what, them aint cheap!!!  Ahhh, then you need an air compressor, a spray gun, a paint booth (the stuff flies everywhere), a respirator (unless you wanna get stoned).......need I go on?  Bottom line, we should be very happy and appreciative, not bitching, that people like Aaron and Pete have gone the extra mile to collect NOS cans, have them matched (and paid for that themselves), put them in cans, etc.  We can whine all we want about spending $20+ for a can of spray paint, but when you want it done right, that's a very cheap price to pay! *


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## atencioee (Jun 14, 2019)

VintageSchwinn.com said:


> Hi Shawn
> 
> I can only speak for myself, but the reason I don't freely hand out the paint codes is, first of all, I had to find and buy original cans of usable 50- to 70-year-old paint to match.  Then I had to pay a color tech to match them, which was not cheap, believe me.  I'm just not willing to hand that over as it's my proprietary paint code now for both color and formula.  That's one thing people often do wrong is use the wrong TYPE of paint.  I have had mine matched to a T as far as the formula as well.  People often want to use a clearcoat on their paints, well, Schwinn didn't use a clearcoat, at least on the paints for which I sell.  They did on some of the '60s and '70s stuff however.   You also need to use the right shade of primer to achieve the color and finish as Schwinn intended it.
> If you take your time and use proper procedure, you can definitely achieve a professional result.  Take a look on my website at the brown/tan and the tan/brown 1935 Cycleplane/Motorbikes.  I did both of them 100-percent from rattle cans to demonstrate this, as well as my 1938 Cobalt Blue Motorbike.  The "rattle cans' are not the type you'd find on the shelves of Home Depot or a hardware store, they have a much different flow and fan spread and spray much differently.  They are automotive grade cans, which are used to spray door dams, roof pillars, etc, and work very, very well.
> ...





Aaron, sent you a pm here and again at your email address.


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## markivpedalpusher (Jun 14, 2019)

The Schwinn Lord has risen from 2011


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## rustjunkie (Jun 14, 2019)

markivpedalpusher said:


> The Schwinn Lord has risen from 2011






https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/how-to-ask-the-seller-questions-in-sell-trade-forum.85538/


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## atencioee (Jun 14, 2019)

rustjunkie said:


> https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/how-to-ask-the-seller-questions-in-sell-trade-forum.85538/




Haha! I'm actually not looking to rattle can...just wishing I can find the code for Schwinn Coach Green to air gun a Phantom & parts and a chain guard for one other bike.


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## Mymando (Jun 14, 2019)

So how can I get some of these rattle cans if they work well enough then not much point in getting crazy with all the rest of the other stuff, are they 1 step with no clear coat? Any help would be greatly appreciated! I don’t mind shelling out for good paint in good cans with good tips! I’ve had them done before but as you said they aren’t cheap to buy the paint 2 colors and have it put in cans when you can buy it already mixed! It’s a no brainer! Thanks for any help.


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## Mark Johnston (Jun 15, 2019)

Mymando said:


> So how can I get some of these rattle cans if they work well enough then not much point in getting crazy with all the rest of the other stuff, are they 1 step with no clear coat? Any help would be greatly appreciated! I don’t mind shelling out for good paint in good cans with good tips! I’ve had them done before but as you said they aren’t cheap to buy the paint 2 colors and have it put in cans when you can buy it already mixed! It’s a no brainer! Thanks for any help.




https://vintageschwinn.com/


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## Arababindigo01 (Aug 26, 2021)

J.C. said:


> *Good Stuff!!!
> 
> Being a Schwinn guy myself, I have found the VintageSchwinn.com paints extremely helpful on many of my restoration projects.  I try and keep all of my bikes 100% original, but if I get a request from someone interested in one of the bikes I have for sale, such as wanting a rear rack, a headlight cover without paint chips (many suffered paint loss) etc, Aaron's paints are the way to go when trying to color match and provide them with these items in the same color as the rest of the bike.  Quick, spot on match, and the cans spray very nicely.  I have had to go and send parts off to be color matched (especially Chicago Cycle Supply Co. bikes as they tended to use weird colors) and just the cost of having a certified paint match specialist match it is astronomical.  Then you have to either have it put in to a spray can (at an additional cost...which aint cheap), or buy the required amount of paint by the pint, quart, etc.  That also aint cheap!  Oh, then you need hardener and reducer.  Guess what, them aint cheap!!!  Ahhh, then you need an air compressor, a spray gun, a paint booth (the stuff flies everywhere), a respirator (unless you wanna get stoned).......need I go on?  Bottom line, we should be very happy and appreciative, not bitching, that people like Aaron and Pete have gone the extra mile to collect NOS cans, have them matched (and paid for that themselves), put them in cans, etc.  We can whine all we want about spending $20+ for a can of spray paint, but when you want it done right, that's a very cheap price to pay! *



What do you recommend for removing surface rust on 1939-1940's schwinns?


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