Paint Color Question???

[Jax]

My 89 Kat is red with gold rims...I just bought a used swingarm off of ebay and I'm having it dipped in acid, to strip the paint completley off, then having it powdercoated in the same color gold as the rims...also going to do the same to the top triple tree...Wanted to know is there a site that has color of schemes of what the manufaturer used so that I can match the rims as close as possible?

[arsenic]

I've always just brought in the piece I wanted the paint to match and they've matched it for me. I'm not sure where you can get the paint codes, but I'm sure somehere does.

[soccersteve]

www.color-rite.com ? a problem you're going to run into with powdercoaters is... that they only have so many options with colors, unless you want to pay A TON of money. so if you want to get your swingarm matched to the wheels, then i would go to a painter and have him do it. then he could do some other various stuff while he's at it? maybe a belly pan or grab bar on the back? jsut a suggestion.

[Mojoe]

If your wheels are just basic gold powder coat, they might be able to match it easily enough. PC holds good and doesn't fade like paint.
However, if you want a perfect match, the cheapest and most failsafe way to do it is do them all together. You will have your back wheel off anyway. Just pull the tires off and take out the bearings. Don't believe all the blah blah about needing new bearings. I have yanked bearings out of one thing to put in another for years. Many people toss bearings WAY before their lifespan...what a waste. If they are still good, put them back in. like steve said, they have just basic PC colors. You can have specialty colors...but even then it is a difficult process to match something with PC. You won't get the match unless your wheels are basic powdercoat. Your best bet is to paint it all. Cheaper and easier....with more color choice.

[Mojoe]

Go here....they have a pc color chart.

http://www.caswellplating.com/

there is a menu tab for powdercoating.

some of you might find some other stuff there...they have ceramic coatings for headers.

Check out some of the colors in the candy top coat section...the have pics of actual parts...some nice colors.

[WildKat]

that is definatley gonna look sweet when its all send and done! i love the gold accents, they add so much. color rite matches stock paint to the T..but powder coating, I couldnt say for sure from what i know of it.

[SweetLou]

Duplicolor sells a gold anodizing paint. I am thinking about trying it out on my bike

[soccersteve]

Go here....they have a pc color chart.

http://www.caswellplating.com/

there is a menu tab for powdercoating.

some of you might find some other stuff there...they have ceramic coatings for headers.

Check out some of the colors in the candy top coat section...the have pics of actual parts...some nice colors.

I've actually done some business wtih them. I bought some chrome plating chemicals, but it wasn't exactly what i was looking for. They are a decent company though. Its possible i'll do business with them.

[soccersteve]

Duplicolor sells a gold anodizing paint. I am thinking about trying it out on my bike

Do they sell that blue anodizing paint? I tried their site, and couldn't find anything like that, any ideas?

[Jax]

Thank you all for the links and the advice...I just took apart the swing arm last night. I bought it off of ebay so that I could still ride while I'm in the midst of this project...It came with the linkage and the stock shock...I wanted to know and Mojoe I think you covered this...I need to get the beaings out...now the center of the bearings came out and the pipe that is in the middle came out...how to I get the bearings out...also where would I buy new ones, without going through the stealership, is there such thing as "after market" bearings? Any benifit other than price? Also the linkage has bearings do I need to remove/replace them? I'm planning to get those powdercoated in red...Last one, I promise,...Can the Stock Shock be taken apart so that I can clean it up and maybe have that modified/painted?

[Mojoe]

Thank you all for the links and the advice...I just took apart the swing arm last night. I bought it off of ebay so that I could still ride while I'm in the midst of this project...It came with the linkage and the stock shock...I wanted to know and Mojoe I think you covered this...I need to get the beaings out...now the center of the bearings came out and the pipe that is in the middle came out...how to I get the bearings out...also where would I buy new ones, without going through the stealership, is there such thing as "after market" bearings? Any benifit other than price? Also the linkage has bearings do I need to remove/replace them? I'm planning to get those powdercoated in red...Last one, I promise,...Can the Stock Shock be taken apart so that I can clean it up and maybe have that modified/painted?

What do you mean the center of the bearing came out? The whole bearing should come out. If you don't have a bearing puller (I don't), do what I do. take a long flat end punch and go in from the left side to punch out the right side...and vise versa. These are sealed bearings on a wheel, so try not to tap on the center part of the bearing. Force (More like place it...don't turn to white face and blue knuckles superman.) the punch up againt the rim itself and down on to the outer edge of the bearing. You just want to make sure it stays to the outside. 2-3 medim taps on one side, then the other....back and forth. Tap at 12 o'clock. Tap at 6 o'clock....back and forth. As far as where you get them...aftermarket bearings....no such thing. A bearing is a bearing. Buy a bearing from suzuki, and chances are you will get a NSK, SKF or a Timken bearing. These are the most common. However, if it is like my kat, there will be one odd bearing out of the 4 that you will not find anywhere. It is thier way of making sure you have to buy at least ONE from them. It is an odd size.
There are 2 ways to get the right size. Take a caliper and measure the outside diameter and then the inside diameter. If it has a 70mm outside dia. and a 10mm inside...then it is a 10x70 bearing. The other way is the part number that is usually stamped on the side. That is a unversal number and will usually go from one brand to another...or can be x-referenced. The fastest, easiest and cheapest way to do it is find an industrial supply store...some place that sells compressors, sandblasters, torches and welders or any other industrial equipment.....these places usually are the cheapest to buy from. Next would be a place like car quest or pet boys...someplace like that. You can also pick up a phone book and look in the yellow pages. There are places that sell nothing but bearing and related items. I have one just up the street from me. Or just walk into an automotive parts store with your old ones and they will set you up. Usually 1/2 the price of a bike shop. For the linkage, yes, you have to remove them. Those are needle bearings usually. Best to replace them if you can.

[Mojoe]

Do they sell that blue anodizing paint? I tried their site, and couldn't find anything like that, any ideas?

First of all, anodize is not a paint in any way shape or form....and it is only applicable to aluminum. When aluminum is not "sealed", it will "grow on itself". Meaning it will grow a layer of aluminum oxide on itself. If left to itself and not sealed, it will become quite unattractive. That is why polished aluminum does not stay very bright for long. It has to be sealed or repolished. Once you polish aluminum, it will have pores. This is where the anodize comes in....or aluminum hydroxide as it is technically called.
Anodize is basically nothing more than food coloring for aluminum oxcide. It is a dye...not a paint. It just dyes the natural proccess of oxidization. Then you seal it with a sealer. The whole process is complicated, yet extremely simple to perform and manipulate...if that makes sense.
They have a kit at the same place. Just click on "plating metal fin." tab. Then in the right side menu, look under aluminum processes. It will tell you all about it.

[soccersteve]

thanks mojoe!!

[Mojoe]

no prob steve.

[SweetLou]

The paint is called Metalcast

http://www.duplicolor.com/products/metalcast.html

It is not true anodizing, it just gives the appearance of it. I was going to give it a try on my rims, and if it doesn't turn out right, or look good, then I will stip them back.

Just figured it would be another alternative. Note that you may have to use a adhesion promoter. Thats still not hard to do though.

Also, wou will most likely want to get a automotive clearcoat put on after words. Any body shop will be able to do that. (Don't go to the big name shops, little mom and po shops will be a lot cheaper)