Painting Tins. No really...

[Jim]

Hi Jim,
please prioritize the Speed Twin project, eh? That's a build string I'd love to see and I'll be 83 this August.

We ain't gettin' any younger are we Fred?
After seeing the bike @kawabunga showed off yesterday... an absolutely gorgeous bike, I had an epiphany. So, I just ordered a different rear shock for the speed twin. Should be here this weekend... so I'll prolly be playing around with that next week. If you didn't bookmark it, here's the build thread.

 

[Jim]

'nother tip.
Here's one of Pete's sidecovers. There's a ding in one of the corners. To get a better idea of how big the ding is, take some sandpaper or a red scotchbrite pad and sand over it in one direction so you get a smooth, even metal finish....

Now take something hard... like a single cut file and lightly file over it 90° from the direction you previously sanded. It really makes the ding stand out.

In this case you can not only see the ding I was feeling, but also 2 smaller dings just to the left of it. Now after I bondo it, I have a better idea what the result should look like.
Or.... or, since we have access to the back side of it, we can use a ballpeen or body hammer to slowly and gently tap the dings out. Tap tap tap... and gently run the file across the outside to see where you're at. Rinse and repeat until you no longer see the dings. Took about 10 min. to get rid of these 3 small dings. Yes, it's time consuming... but when you consider the time to fill with bondo and sand down smooth... it's a tossup. It is more fun to do it this way though.

 

[MaxPete]

 

[Mailman]

Look how nice that worked out with your body hammers! I used to have a full set of dollys and hammers and slide hammers. It was Snap On stuff too. They’re all long gone now.....sigh

 

[59Tebo]

Hammer time!...........(can't touch this....)
Steel being malleable, I'd be inclined to try to "un-dent" it too. Nice job and write-up!

 

[Paul Sutton]

Fred, well done!

Fight on......

 

[Jim]

Got the sealer coat on the tank today. I'll let it harden for a day or two and then it's candy time.

Epoxy prime on Pete's sidecovers....

...and these showed up today.

 

[Mailman]

I don’t know Jim, I think I see a little low spot on that tank....needs another skim coat

Seriously, that’s gonna be a looker for sure!

 

[Beags64]

I don’t know Jim, I think I see a little low spot on that tank....needs another skim coat

...and I thought there was something on my screen!

 

[gggGary]

You guys are CRUEL!
Poor Ole Jim's down there right now with an LED flashlight going over that tank with a fine tooth comb.

 

[Jim]

Poor Ole Jim's down there right now with an LED flashlight going over that tank with a fine tooth comb.

Where is it?!??

 

[Jim]

Back in Dec. I put a few test strips of this epoxy primer in a jar of gas with 10% ethanol... about a month and a half ago. Still as hard as ever. Looks like this primer will be a good tank slosh candidate.

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

What about Techron?

 

[Jim]

What about Techron?

No idea.

 

[MaxPete]

You guys are CRUEL!
Poor Ole Jim's down there right now with an LED flashlight going over that tank with a fine tooth comb.

LEAVE HIM ALONE you guys!!!

He’s got two set of my tins and some of his own and he doesn’t need a lot of distractions.

BTW Jim - those emblems go on Demi’s tank (the XS750).

 

[2XSive]

Jim, you probably already stated this, but what brand of epoxy primer are you using and what size tip are you shooting it with? In process of painting another tank myself and learning from you again. Thanks for all your tips!

 

[Jim]

Jim, you probably already stated this, but what brand of epoxy primer are you using and what size tip are you shooting it with? In process of painting another tank myself and learning from you again. Thanks for all your tips!

I'm using this stuff. Leftovers from my airplane days. The guns a StartingLine (DevilleBliss) touch-up gun. Nozzle is a #10. It's the perfect size for motorcycle parts.

 

[Mikey]

Got the sealer coat on the tank today. I'll let it harden for a day or two and then it's candy time.

View attachment 159696


Epoxy prime on Pete's sidecovers....


View attachment 159697


...and these showed up today.


View attachment 159698

Nice job !!

 

[Paul Sutton]

Jim, by chance could that #10 nozzle actually be a 1.0mm? 1.0mm would be in the touchup range. Mine is a 0.8mm which was perfect for the side covers by a tiny bit small for the tank at times.

Has the Candy colour finally been settled on?

 

[Jim]

Jim, by chance could that #10 nozzle actually be a 1.0mm? 1.0mm would be in the touchup range. Mine is a 0.8mm which was perfect for the side covers by a tiny bit small for the tank at times.

Has the Candy colour finally been settled on?

Yes, it could be metric. Candy green.