What have you done to your XS today?

Oh, and what do you think would be a fair price for the paint job?

We could have a thread on this, if there isn’t one already here. The price of a paint job is directly proportional to the reputation of the painter and your expectations. The complexity of the job and price of materials will also have an effect on the price. I’ve seen single color paint for tank and side covers come in at $800 and those were magnificent. I had those same parts done for the price of materials. I thought it was great, but not appropriate for a $50,000 show bike. YMMV
 
We could have a thread on this, if there isn’t one already here. The price of a paint job is directly proportional to the reputation of the painter and your expectations. The complexity of the job and price of materials will also have an effect on the price. I’ve seen single color paint for tank and side covers come in at $800 and those were magnificent. I had those same parts done for the price of materials. I thought it was great, but not appropriate for a $50,000 show bike. YMMV
I had MAACO do a triumph for $200. Tank and side covers and fenders. Looked ok. RH Triumph-27 (1).jpg
 
For some reason most auto paint shops in the Phoenix metro area don’t want to mess with bikes. I did find one that would do it, single color for $1000.
I had my XS2 painted at Marble Motors in Texas. The XS2 paint job is complicated, they stripped it to bare metal, filled a couple shallow dents, primed , sanded, base coat of a white/silver metallic and red Candy that has to be applied in layers until the right color is achieved ( kind of an art ) and then multiple clear coats. It cost $1300 just for the paint job, I also paid for the tank to be professionally lined by a third part that specializes in that and I had to pay for well boxed and insured shipping both ways $75 times two.
All in $1500 :yikes: I know a lot of guys don’t like to talk about what they paid. I think they feel a little embarrassed that they spent so much. But I was like you looking for answers once and didn’t get any.
I ponied up for a very specific correct look. Never have done it before, probably won’t again. This bike is a bucket list thing for me.
I did get lucky years ago and got a BMW painted by a local , absolutely beautiful for $500.
You’re just going to have to look around your area. Best bet , I think , would be an independently owned auto body shop.
My two cents.
 
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I’m sure. Each MAACO shop has their own reputation amongst those in the know. I had an autobody shop quote me $200 last year.
I should have clarified I was not trying to match a layered factory color. All they had to do was light sanding of the previous paint and then spray. Given that I have been known to "rattle can" my builds this was a high end step for me. lol
 
Thanks for all the feedback on paint. So far I have 2 quotes from custom bike painters at $1000 each and one from an independent body shop for $500. But now that I have cleaned up the existing paint and successfully removed what I thougt was a huge scratch, I may just keep this old school metalflake job.
 
What have I done to my xs today? I've thought about her all day. Have gotten in 400 miles so far today in 82 deg blue skies weather in South Florida on the '18 Limited. But I keep wishing I was on the xs!
 
If you have a compressor already you can paint yourself. It's incredibly cheap and there is enough free videos and tutorials out there that you can learn from. A super small motorcycle is perfect to learn on. And if you screw up just sand it down and respray! Whatever you do, never touch Rattle can paint. It doesn't have hardener. You can't even paint real 2 stage paint over Rattle can because it will lift, it's that bad.
 
View attachment 134412 Why not take a chance, worst thing that happens is you sand it off.
I rattled canned this and put a 2 part automotive clear over it, I was pretty happy with it.
Rattle can works fine, at least some brands. I did mine with Dupli-Color from Advance. It's lacquer so it dries extremely fast, ready to wet sand in just a few minutes. Did it over Dupli-Color primer. Final step, gave it a few layers of 2 part clear, then wet sanded, followed by rubbing then polishing compounds by hand -- I think about 24hrs later, while it was hard but not yet rock hard. Whatever you do don't breathe the clear. Do it outside and hold your breath til you can step away. Looks totally pro, like rsor's, and saves a thousand bucks.

For anybody who likes flat black, there's a common rattle brand that's fuel proof. No need for 2-part. Unfortunately don't remember what it is :)
 
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Rattle can works fine,
For anybody who likes flat black, there's a common rattle brand that's fuel proof. No need for 2-part. Unfortunately don't remember what it is :)
Was it brake caliper paint? That or header paint is designed to resist fuel and other auto fluids. Ive had good luck with that.
Also, wet sanding is crucial to the process. Here is my xs400 with brake caliper paint. Spilled lots of fuel on it over time. :)
XS400-185.jpg
 
Finished up set #5
View attachment 134417 View attachment 134418
I am SO done doing BS34's (for a while).
So I went for a ride.
You will never get that 2 minutes of your life back again.LOL

Hoo Boy! The Buell is alive! Man I thought you were going to go ripping off down that wet foggy road there for a minute! Looks great! Btw......you scared the dog. :yikes:
 
Was it brake caliper paint? That or header paint is designed to resist fuel and other auto fluids. Ive had good luck with that.
Also, wet sanding is crucial to the process. Here is my xs400 with brake caliper paint. Spilled lots of fuel on it over time. :)
View attachment 134420
I don't think it was, think it was a property it had, but that's a great idea (caliper paint). Is it 1-part epoxy? Do you remember the brand you used?
 
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