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Permalink Reply by 2slowtrek on August 6, 2008 at 7:37am

Por 15

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Permalink Reply by J Mills on August 6, 2008 at 5:56pm

Steel wool I believe should work for the rust situation. As for some sort of a clear coat? I like the idea of a straight clear coated steel/alum frame. Should be pretty sick. You'll have to post pictures when done.

I'll ask some cats I work with if they have any suggestions as to a clear coat that will adhere to metals.

Cheers

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Permalink Reply by Ivan on August 7, 2008 at 3:23am

hey, did the same with alumiun frame, came out pretty dang sweet! is the rust surface or all the way through? steel wool is nice for it, but..i just hate to get a really smooth surface you have to sand it down with fine grite sandpaper afterwards. i always like CLR, doesn't scrach the surface and easy to cover large surfaces. do you have a stand to put the frame on to paint it? i can send you pics of a cool rig that i did that saved me lots of headaches when i rattle canned frames. good painting, ride-on

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Permalink Reply by Andrew on August 7, 2008 at 4:16am

yeah, the rust is sparse and seems to be only on the surface. I had considered steel wool, but had exactly the same concern about scratching up that nice smooth surface. maybe it's inevitable. I do not have a stand, but I imagine when the time comes to paint, I'll frankenstein something together to keep as little contact to the frame as possible. perhaps hanging it some how? (yeah Ivan, seeing pics of your do-dad would be helpful) Ideal situation for the clear coat would be some sort of spray, (which complicates things being in Chicago) perhaps there is an automotive product out there that would do the trick.

I'm pretty stoked to get it done, I think it'll look dope. I found some clear handlebar wrap that got me even more amped about it. I'll post pics when it's done.

Thanks yous

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Permalink Reply by David Travis on August 7, 2008 at 12:11pm

Get the final paint and rust off with fine steel wool. Then to get it polished further you need to sand it with wet sand paper. Start with 180 and work as far as you want 400 or even 1000. Tip, always put a few drops of dishwashing detergent in the water. It helps to keep the paper from clogging and makes it last a long time. Further polish requires rubbing compound and various polishers (3M makes them for rubbing out paint-they are wax-free). If you have used anything with wax in it you should wash the frame with kerosene and then alcohol. Keep all you finger oil off the frame. Be surgical. If using paint you need not polish it but smooth it out, prime it, and then start laying paint in thin coats. After some build up you can use rubbing compound it it has a mottled or eggshell surface. If you want it metal-shiny then clear coat is the way to go. Remember if it's aluminum, it needs either clear coat or needs to be anodize. You can have it "clear anodized" to retain the metallic look. That costs about $100. Also spray cans work but they are hard to use as you cannot control the pressure or the amount. I've had good luck with the Caswell paints. Website: http://www.caswellplating.com
Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by David Travis on August 7, 2008 at 12:16pm

One last thing. In wet sanding, you will need to use the special wet sandpaper. Hardware stores and the West Marine store in Chicago have various grades. One or two sheets of each grit should be plenty.

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Permalink Reply by Andrew on August 7, 2008 at 1:43pm

Thanks. sounds like good advice. I might not get crazy fine with the sandpaper, but I'll use that strategy.

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