CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Posted October 25, 2019 So i got my hands on a CAAD9 frameset, after having been looking around for an update for my CAAD4 for ages.Unfortunately it came with a shocking paint situation; we are talking bubbling aluminium oxide trapped under clear coat, scratches and rubs...the works. Thus, I ventured to diy re-paint my second bike , hoping to apply what i learnt at my previous attempt at diy painting; having painted my Fiancees Scott Spark https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/183174-scott-spark-diy-respray/) so here goes, a semi retrospective account of my last 2 weeks, weekends covered in paint stripper, weeknights sanding paint, and many hours of swearing and schoolfees... and hopefully some sweet sweet outcomes to make it all worth the time. I wasted no time for "before" photoshoots. i got the frame on a thursday, and started stripping by friday. At least there was some time to appreciate the shadows and light play...while breathing in the sweet noxious fumes of paint stripper.
MORNE Posted October 25, 2019 Posted October 25, 2019 snipcool project! next time find Plascon RemoveAll...i promise you'll never use the nasty paint strippers and drop a lung ever again. it won product of the year some time ago and i can attest that it really is an amazing product on any material. Totally safe and eco friendly too....I actually can't imagine how they got that voodoo to work. https://plascon.com/products/products/removall
Schmorglebot Posted October 25, 2019 Posted October 25, 2019 Oh dear, another tease post... TEASE ME!
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 cool project! next time find Plascon RemoveAll...i promise you'll never use the nasty paint strippers and drop a lung ever again. it won product of the year some time ago and i can attest that it really is an amazing product on any material. Totally safe and eco friendly too....I actually can't imagine how they got that voodoo to work. https://plascon.com/products/products/removallIll be sure to give this a go next time. I used stripper from LUXOR Paints, but its pretty nasty stuff, and can be quite hard to clean up and hose off etc.
Hairy Posted October 25, 2019 Posted October 25, 2019 cool project! next time find Plascon RemoveAll...i promise you'll never use the nasty paint strippers and drop a lung ever again. it won product of the year some time ago and i can attest that it really is an amazing product on any material. Totally safe and eco friendly too....I actually can't imagine how they got that voodoo to work. https://plascon.com/products/products/removallalso used that with good results
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 After i cleared out my lungs from the fumes, i could scrape off some residue.The existing paint took two or three coats of stripper to achieve a good clean Bare aluminium frame. #Aluminati in full swing. It took some many hours of deliberation to consider my options from here, bare aluminium just looks so gosh darn beautiful! After one or two rounds of paint stripper, most of the paint was gone. just some decals to get rid of. one last round of stripper did the job, coupled with some scuff pad sanding, i managed to get rid of most of the old oxidation marks and 'wormhole' patterns. Luckily the fork was in a decent state, which didnt require a full strip.
DJuice Posted October 25, 2019 Posted October 25, 2019 Did you look at doing the bare frame look of the Caad 7 frame of Simoni from 2003 Giro.
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 Did you look at doing the bare frame look of the Caad 7 frame of Simoni from 2003 Giro.I didnt look into that at the time no. Clear-coated bare aluminium has also proven troublesome, as you might see in a later post.But the original paintjob actually consisted of mainly clearcoat aluminium. TBH the painting was meant to be an update to the bike, rather than a retro re-make. keep an eye out for the next few posts.
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 So now for some Inspiration. I looked into some retro styling options, but wasnt too keen on the hectic stencil work etc.I quite like a simple paint job, and was set on getting some of the Aluminium bare clear-coated, as a homage of sorts to the old frame paint job, and the characterful markings and scratches. I saw this Specialized paint-job a few weeks ago, and really fell in love with its simplicity and execution; except for the red.Aptly named "Acid Dip" , with the clear-coated aluminium visible at the base, as if it was ridden through a bath of acid. So the plan was, "Acid Dip", but with some Cannondale simplicity, Black only, with some aluminium exposed. This is the original Paint-job, which was stripped away.
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 Motoring ahead, intent on getting this thing painted, i decided to get going...bike received on Thursday, stripped by Friday eve;Come Saturday, i had gotten Vinyl Cutting with the newest Cannondale Logo (2020), along with a Caad9 logo, and the obligatory #aluminati logo, as featured at the base of the Seat tube on the CAAD12. I missioned to the nearest Builders warehouse for some Primer (also to be used as the final base coat, which i learnt works very well) , lots of masking tape and other bits and pieces. Delaminating the bits and pieces of the vinyl, so that you have either the 'positive' or 'negative' to use for masking. if you ever need to cut masking vinyl, be sure to use the cheapest, least sticky variation. these where made to last, and i had real trouble delaminating the mask after spraying, without leaving glue residue everywhere. Masked up, and into the spraying 'room'. aka the Apartment blocks unused outhouse. CANNONDALE LOGO.pdf i was sure to thoroughly rough up and clean up the aluminium with rubbing alchohol and scuffing pads, and always use gloves when handling to avoid any oils on the surface.
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 Next up, after removing all the masking, the paint got a light sanding with 800grit paper, cleaned up, and taken to a Panel-beater for a clear-coat....because you know, they paint things all the time. What could possibly go wrong? Well....Orange peel* is real. and i got it in abundance.On top of that, the paint coating was extremely uneven, that, and after having "apparently" sprayed SIX Layers of Clear coat onto the frame, it was clear that some spots had nearly no clear coat on them. I suppose they aren't professional bicycle painters, so i have only myself to blame. Nonetheless, this was the clearcoated frame: Not too bad in some places.... Attrocious in others... *Orange peel...a rippled effect prevalent in the paint surface, similar to the texture of the peel of an orange. It has many causes, but this was excessive. Optimistic as always, i decided to tackle the Orange peel with some 1500 and 2000 Grit Wet sanding paper.Given the situation, this was not photo documented. And so begins the school-fees segment of this project... As it turns out, Aluminium does not like to be painted. atleast not without an etching primer, or other type of primer/ acid etching system. While wet sanding and polishing the clear, many portions of Clear-coat started peeling off of the bare aluminium. this proved disastous, as about 10% of the aluminium had started 'shedding' its clear coat.Due to the shoddy clear-coating spray job, i inadvertently polished though onto the base coat, while buffing out the finished clear-coat.It dawned upon me that: I either needed to re-clear the frame...or start over. I decided to pay my school-fees without too many tears, or swear words, and started over. Re-Strip paintworkClean up FrameSand down imperfectionsPrime the full Frame black, and... Reluctantly.... leave No Bare Aluminium.
Hairy Posted October 25, 2019 Posted October 25, 2019 Next up, after removing all the masking, the paint got a light sanding with 800grit paper, cleaned up, and taken to a Panel-beater for a clear-coat....because you know, they paint things all the time. What could possibly go wrong? Well....Orange peel* is real. and i got it in abundance.On top of that, the paint coating was extremely uneven, that, and after having "apparently" sprayed SIX Layers of Clear coat onto the frame, it was clear that some spots had nearly no clear coat on them. I suppose they aren't professional bicycle painters, so i have only myself to blame. Nonetheless, this was the clearcoated frame: IMG-20191016-WA0006.jpg Not too bad in some places....10.jpg Attrocious in others...11.jpg *Orange peel...a rippled effect prevalent in the paint surface, similar to the texture of the peel of an orange. It has many causes, but this was excessive. Optimistic as always, i decided to tackle the Orange peel with some 1500 and 2000 Grit Wet sanding paper.Given the situation, this was not photo documented. And so begins the school-fees segment of this project... As it turns out, Aluminium does not like to be painted. atleast not without an etching primer, or other type of primer/ acid etching system. While wet sanding and polishing the clear, many portions of Clear-coat started peeling off of the bare aluminium. this proved disastous, as about 10% of the aluminium had started 'shedding' its clear coat.Due to the shoddy clear-coating spray job, i inadvertently polished though onto the base coat, while buffing out the finished clear-coat.It dawned upon me that: I either needed to re-clear the frame...or start over. I decided to pay my school-fees without too many tears, or swear words, and started over. Re-Strip paintworkClean up FrameSand down imperfectionsPrime the full Frame black, and... Reluctantly.... leave No Bare Aluminium. I would have walked away and come back 6 months later after I had calmed down!
CScriba Posted October 25, 2019 Author Posted October 25, 2019 Now, to Short track the eventual process. With the full flat black primed frame, i wanted to experiment with some paint 'texturing', something i used previously to "hydro Dip" a black frame into some silver paint, which had a beautiful effect. This was to be used on the top, black portion of the frame only. Without any time to toy around, i had some new vinyl cut...the right kind this time.Cheap, thin, and easy to remove. I went with a speckle effect paint texture, created by using a mouth blown atomiser, with a heavily thinned out silver Model making paint from Humbrol. I was really please with the finish it gave me. I decided on some Metallic Spray paint from Rustoleum at Builders warehouse, the "Dark Metal" colour, which has a beautiful metallic sparkle, to imitate the 'acid dip' aluminium base effect.This paint sprays so easily, and covers a surface very evenly.It produces an insanely beautiful surface, which really comes out in direct sunlight. Overall, I am now very pleased with the paint layout, and im super impressed with the quality of the Rustoleum paints. Now i'm faced with a new Dilemma...how do we bring out these beautiful colors and textures with a clear coat? One things for sure, i wont be taking this back to the panel-beater for a spray...
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