Primer's job, was [CR]Malvern 5 Star Pictures up

(Example: Racing:Wayne Stetina)

Date: Wed, 12 Oct 2005 20:29:34 -0400
From: "Harvey M Sachs" <sachshm@cox.net>
To: Classic Rendezvous <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>, tsan7759142@comcast.net
Subject: Primer's job, was [CR]Malvern 5 Star Pictures up


Tom Sanders asked about storing his Malvern: <snip> "Do you folks think I should prime it before storage, or leave it plain? It has been stripped and bead blasted and I worry about it rusting if it sets for an extended period of time. http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/Malvern-5-Star?page=1

++++++++++ I believe you should worry. The job of primer is to stick real good to properly prepped metal, and to give a great, smooth, base for the paint. Primers, even epoxy primers, should be assumed to be guilty of porosity that will allow water vapor to penetrate and cause rust, unless otherwise guaranteed by the manufacturer.

Somewhere in the abcesses of my brain there is a fuzzy picture of a chopped '50 Merc, in primer discolored by rust. That grey primer was considered cool, but it was not a finish coat (see Jamie's beautiful grey bike at http://centerportcycles.com/pages/framebuilding/framebuilding3.html for what a real finish might look like. the paint provides the rust-proofing, color, and gleam.

harvey "death to hand-rubbed lacquer" sachs mcLean va