PLEASE DO NOT CLEAR-COAT YOUR ORIGINAL PAINT VINTAGE BIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[catfish]

Never would. Never will.

 

[vincev]

Sometimes a light coat of clear really makes the faded color "pop".I dont really like to do it but I dont think it will hurt the value a whole lot.I surly would not do it on any bike worth any real money though

 

[Jay81]

Thinking of clear coating the Firestone Airflyte.

 

[GTs58]

Clear coats are a good thing on just about every thing. Yah, that'll buff out.

 

[Schwinn499]

Cant see how it helps the value in any way, let alone any aging that a good wax job, maintenance, and proper storage cant suspend just as well. Voids the designation of an "original paint" bike. Given the buy and sell nauture of the hobby it only narrows your eventual target audience when going to trade it in for green or goods. Makes me cringe in my useless opinion.

 

[momo608]

I repaint almost everything and I wouldn't clear an original paint bike, don't see the point in it or the improvement. I do however wish touch up paints existed that didn't make things look worse on the old Chicago Schwinn lightweights with the trans colors.

btw, that black car was obviously a poor repaint that went bad, typical collision shop work working on the cheap and fast. Factory base coat clear coat paint jobs have come a long way since 80's and early 90's and blows away anything from the lacquer days but nothing lasts forever, especially in the baking hot sun. Black paint surface temperature can surpass 160 degrees in the summer, surprised anyone would want a black car in the southern climates.

 

[harpon]

Paint is better than rust is my own thought. I think every bike is potentially different and the variably multiplied by the intent and use of the owner. I almost always would prefer to "Touch up" any possible improvement I could make to some classic bike that Ilike the original look of. It's a challenge to find paint or mix paints and do fine detailing of any nicks or rust. I don't mind repainting missing parts of decals either- not very good at such detail myself, but I'll get better- it requires patience not usually bred into old racers! I don't do show pieces and want to shell out big money for decals- just make the bike reasonably resemble it's original look.

Clear coating to me then is just really a protective layer. If you didn't change the look with touching and rust removal, clear coat is just another layer of protection, not only for the original look of the bike, but to prevent further corrosion- which was also a function of the original paint

Just saw this saddle on ebay, and wouldn't hesitate to replace some old worn out leather thing with it:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Retro-50S-...667964&hash=item2137997089:g:4sAAAOSwkRhZXgjJ

 

[fordmike65]

Paint is better than rust is my own thought. I think every bike is potentially different and the variably multiplied by the intent and use of the owner. I almost always would prefer to "Touch up" any possible improvement I could make to some classic bike that Ilike the original look of. It's a challenge to find paint or mix paints and do fine detailing of any nicks or rust. I don't mind repainting missing parts of decals either- not very good at such detail myself, but I'll get better- it requires patience not usually bred into old racers! I don't do show pieces and want to shell out big money for decals- just make the bike reasonably resemble it's original look.

Clear coating to me then is just really a protective layer. If you didn't change the look with touching and rust removal, clear coat is just another layer of protection, not only for the original look of the bike, but to prevent further corrosion- which was also a function of the original paint

Just saw this saddle on ebay, and wouldn't hesitate to replace some old worn out leather thing with it:
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5335809022&icep_item=142666723465

Those are very low-quality ass-hatchets. Just warning you...

And clear-coating is not preserving anything. It will lower the value & is basically the same as repainting a bike. But like anything, it's yours to do with as you see fit

 

[Obi-Wan Schwinnobi]

Clear coat is not going to prevent further corrosion lol... you paint or clear over rust it’s still gonna be slowly still doing what rust does lol... then when it chips and bubbles and falls off, it will look like crap even more so... just wax the damn things.. [emoji848]


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[Obi-Wan Schwinnobi]

There was a green motorbike a few years back that everyone was drooling over tell we found out it had been clear coated... price dropped a lot... but hey, like mike said, if you want to lower the value of your bike then by all means, spray away lol... it’s your bike after all, and probably forever since nobody is going to give you the money you want for it now [emoji23]


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