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I tried, really I did, but I couldn't paint my bike.
My problems started when I decided that I had to ride a motorcycle. In March of 2006 I bought a beautiful used Katana 750 in Burgundy Red with about 4,500 miles on the odometer. Of course, I low sided her about two weeks after taking my MSF class. Not just any low side but a 30 mph slide down a concrete grooved-for-ice exit ramp (think cheese grater) that really put the thrill of motorcycling into perspective.
I was fine, thanks to my gear, but the bike needed a lot of TLC. Adrenaline pumping, I wheeled it to a friends house taking out the lower fairing along the way (pushed it over a curb, dumb
) The next day I took some pictures and added up the damage. Fortunately, I hadn't bent the frame or worse. But the big long slide had ground down some parts and the upper fairing panel was badly scored. It was going to take a healthy parts order to replace the broken parts and I was in no mood to buy body panels. (Somebody really should warn new riders that fully faired bikes are expensive to repair.
)
Here's a couple pictures taken shortly after the accident.
The fall was actually helpful because it made me realize that a pretty bike wasn't necessarily the best choice for me while I was learning how to ride. So, I repaired all the mechanical bits and pieces. Ran three oil changes through the engine to remove any contaminants and sanded the rough spots down.
This is how the Katana looked for the next 2 years.
And in that time I put 17,000 miles on her and dropped her two or three more times.
Note the right fairing, tip over damage that went unrepaired.
Sometime last winter, I decided to fix the Kat and give it the respect it deserved. And so began the big tear down and repair. The plan was simple. Fill in the repairs, sand it back to shape and spray the repair areas with color matching paint. It'll be good as new...I can do this...
I cleared a corner in the basement for the work and did some research here and at an auto paint supply shop.
Plan A - Repair the damage and paint the damaged areas with color matching paint.
Step 1. Get the right products to fill the low spots on the fairings. I settled on a product called Fiber Tech. It's a two part epoxy filler that contains fiberglass fibers for bulk. Here's a picture of the tube they sold me. (I think I have enough left over to make an entire panel from scratch.)
And here's what I did with it...
Note the masking tape, that's to keep the work areas separate from the clear areas that wouldn't need repairing. (If you see where this is going, it's not a wonder the guys and the auto paint shop kept shaking their heads every time I showed up for more sand paper, sanding blocks, etc.)
I was actually very pleased with my repairs. And that only added to my confidence that I could "touch up the repair areas with a little good paint...
Step 2. Just paint the repaired areas in each panel This is what I bought to paint the panels.
I was so wrong. I could paint beautiful test panels but I had no patience for spraying these curvy parts. It dripped, it blistered, I over sprayed, I swore. Every time I went down to my "paint booth" I wrecked something.
I didn't take any pictures...and months passed, the project stalled.
Plan B - Rattle can paint all the panels.
I bought primer and paint at Home Depot then started to prep all the panels for new paint. Fortunately, I never got passed the prepping part. I went through the dreaded Home Depot returns line and dropped off the unused paint. A healthy dose of "you're not a painter" was setting in.
Plan C - Hire a professional.
What do you think? Did I get it right?
The happy ending...
My color inspiration...
Getting it back together and riding the Kat for the first time in over 8 months was the highlight of my summer. I felt like I had a brand new bike.
Wish me luck...I really going to try to keep in upright from now on.
My problems started when I decided that I had to ride a motorcycle. In March of 2006 I bought a beautiful used Katana 750 in Burgundy Red with about 4,500 miles on the odometer. Of course, I low sided her about two weeks after taking my MSF class. Not just any low side but a 30 mph slide down a concrete grooved-for-ice exit ramp (think cheese grater) that really put the thrill of motorcycling into perspective.
I was fine, thanks to my gear, but the bike needed a lot of TLC. Adrenaline pumping, I wheeled it to a friends house taking out the lower fairing along the way (pushed it over a curb, dumb
) The next day I took some pictures and added up the damage. Fortunately, I hadn't bent the frame or worse. But the big long slide had ground down some parts and the upper fairing panel was badly scored. It was going to take a healthy parts order to replace the broken parts and I was in no mood to buy body panels. (Somebody really should warn new riders that fully faired bikes are expensive to repair.)Here's a couple pictures taken shortly after the accident.
The fall was actually helpful because it made me realize that a pretty bike wasn't necessarily the best choice for me while I was learning how to ride. So, I repaired all the mechanical bits and pieces. Ran three oil changes through the engine to remove any contaminants and sanded the rough spots down.
This is how the Katana looked for the next 2 years.
And in that time I put 17,000 miles on her and dropped her two or three more times.
Note the right fairing, tip over damage that went unrepaired.
Sometime last winter, I decided to fix the Kat and give it the respect it deserved. And so began the big tear down and repair. The plan was simple. Fill in the repairs, sand it back to shape and spray the repair areas with color matching paint. It'll be good as new...I can do this...
I cleared a corner in the basement for the work and did some research here and at an auto paint supply shop.
Plan A - Repair the damage and paint the damaged areas with color matching paint.
Step 1. Get the right products to fill the low spots on the fairings. I settled on a product called Fiber Tech. It's a two part epoxy filler that contains fiberglass fibers for bulk. Here's a picture of the tube they sold me. (I think I have enough left over to make an entire panel from scratch.)
And here's what I did with it...
Note the masking tape, that's to keep the work areas separate from the clear areas that wouldn't need repairing. (If you see where this is going, it's not a wonder the guys and the auto paint shop kept shaking their heads every time I showed up for more sand paper, sanding blocks, etc.)
I was actually very pleased with my repairs. And that only added to my confidence that I could "touch up the repair areas with a little good paint...
Step 2. Just paint the repaired areas in each panel This is what I bought to paint the panels.
I was so wrong. I could paint beautiful test panels but I had no patience for spraying these curvy parts. It dripped, it blistered, I over sprayed, I swore. Every time I went down to my "paint booth" I wrecked something.
I didn't take any pictures...and months passed, the project stalled.
Plan B - Rattle can paint all the panels.
I bought primer and paint at Home Depot then started to prep all the panels for new paint. Fortunately, I never got passed the prepping part. I went through the dreaded Home Depot returns line and dropped off the unused paint. A healthy dose of "you're not a painter" was setting in.
Plan C - Hire a professional.
What do you think? Did I get it right?
The happy ending...
My color inspiration...
Getting it back together and riding the Kat for the first time in over 8 months was the highlight of my summer. I felt like I had a brand new bike.
Wish me luck...I really going to try to keep in upright from now on.
.
Did you do that on purpose or was that an accident?
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