Re: [CR]Chipping paint

(Example: Framebuilders:Bernard Carré)

Date: Sun, 25 Feb 2001 15:04:43 -0500
To: "David Goerndt" <davidg@iag.net>, <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
From: "Harvey M Sachs" <sachs@erols.com>
Subject: Re: [CR]Chipping paint
In-Reply-To: <001501c09f5a$bc5b31a0$7a4a1ecf@leonardo>
References: <l03130301b6beeeb59f19@[128.111.200.88]>


At 13:42 2/25/2001 -0500, David Goerndt wrote:


>This is a question directed at the frame painters. I have two bikes that
>have been repainted and have noticed that both have the paint chipped of
>down to primer on both the front and rear dropouts. Is this a common
>problem, or is this the result of a poorly prepped and painted frame? How
>does one prevent this from happening, since it really detracts from the
>overall finish on a bike?

Paint-crushing at the drop-outs is not uncommon under the QR. Anywhere that the paint is not so stressed, it reflects failure of prep. My friend Les Lunas, who painted for some of the best, was always a fanatic about frame prep, to make sure that the primer stuck to the frame at least as well as the paint to the primer. It was time-consuming and painstaking. Not just the sanding and stuff, but the careful scrubbing with an iron phosphating solution (to develop "bite" on the metal surface, and incredibly careful attention to avoilding any oiliness on the surface after the surf prep. The results were worth the effort. Les also was a master at a really hard art: he'd do long, imperceptible fades. One for our son started silver at the fork and finished black at the rear dropout, and you could not tell the joint between the silver and the grey, or the grey and the black. Masterful. And done in Imron, with a single gun. He did another for Beloved Spouse, fading from a faintly purple silver to a rich reddish purple. Amazing. But that's another topic: it all started with incredible attention to surf prep and to getting the primer right.

Good paint is expensive, and I thought it better to comment instead of forcing the experts on the list to toot their own horns.

Harvey Sachs