So I want to either strip the clear coat and decals off my bianchi pista and clear coat it so that it’s a flat chrome, which I assume is just a matter of using a chemical paint remover or some such and then applying a new layer of clear coat, right?
OR I want to completely change the color of the bike. I’ve done some preliminary internet research and the tutorials on wikihow and the like are a little less specific than I would have hoped for. Basically if I want to turn my bike from a chrome to a nice shade of blue or something, what is the best way to do so?
Now I know the first answer might be to get a professional to powdercoat it, but powdercoating takes lots of time and lots of money that I don’t have, seeing as I’m strapped for cash and my bike is my primary (and one of my only) means of transportation that I use every day. So it seems that’s not the greatest option.
So is there a DIY alternative, such as a good rattlecan method, that will get me a nice tarckarific end product?
If you want to strip it, and leave it as bare chrome, just get some aircraft stripper and you should be good, the stuff will basically melt off anything on the frame, and that would eliminate the stickers. then you could just carefully spray clear varnish onto it and bam! chrome pista.
Unless you really, really, really like sanding and waiting for multiple coats of primer to dry, I would advise against painting it yourself. especially if this is your daily ride- I just painted a frame myself using basic internet-found rattlecan methods, and just waiting for the paint coats to dry properly the process took about 5 days. especially considering yours is chrome, I expect you would need MUCH more sanding and many more coats to get a good color on in the end.
and even then, the results really aren’t that great. I put lots of effort into making my self-painted job look good, and it still came out kinda meh. it looks fine, really, I like it because it is anything but flashy, but realistically, considering you don’t have tons of time, either get it powdercoated (expensive, sure) or strip off the logos and call it good.
you’d have to really rough up the chrome if you want to paint or powdercoat it i’d think.
the decals are under the chrome i assume?
like sam there said, stripper would probably be ok.
here’s what i did with my non-chrome frame:
aircraft remover to soften the paint (it didn’t just “melt” off easily for me, but your current paint may differ)
wire brush on a drill to get all the paint off and out of the corners/seams
smooth out the wire brushed surface with some 320 grit sandpaper
prime it with a couple coats of high-build filler primer
sand that with 320
shoot white sealer primer
sand that with 600
shoot the color in several thin coats, going by the directions on the can of 10 minutes between coats
let it cure for a week
9a. you can wetsand with 600 or 1000 here if you want - right before the clear - if there are imperfections or if you want a seriously smooth surface. i did, but only in certain places
shoot a couple coats of clear the same way as the color
let it cure for a week
wetsand with 1500 grit
hand polish with some high-cut compound. i had some old turtle wax rubbing compound that worked alright - the brown stuff. use whatever you can find i guess as long as its a pretty aggressive cut. im not sure if meguiar’s medium cut would work but it might. if you can get your hands on some diamond cut or the light blue 3M finesse-it for the rough-buff that would be ideal.
go over that with meguiar’s swirl remover 2.0 or white 3M finesse-it
meguiars cleaner wax. . or whatever wax you like.
make sure you use the same type of paint for the clear and the color (and primer too) or you’ll screw it all up. i.e. if your color is enamel, your clear needs to be enamel. if your color is laquer, your clear has to be laquer. you technically can put laquer over enamel and vice-versa but it has to be really really cured first. it generally isnt a good idea though and i cant think of any good reason to do that. also you prrrrobably dont need to let it cure for an entire week, i let it because the only day i have off to do anything is sunday so it just worked out that way.
The only way to paint a bike is to spray paint it with out removing any components. Doesn’t everyone know this by now.? Go ahead paint the chain,tires,cranks, headset, and bars. It will turn out just as amazingly as you imagined. (Shitty) This post won’t help other than the fact that I’m drunk and it entertains me. And really what is more important than that.
i’ve painted 2 frames, both times it was a waste of my time. get those decals off and clearcoat…or dont, just leave the chrome exposed, unless it will rust, im not sure…
