Cost to time analysis

[ADyingBreed]

WOW. thats all I have to say about repairing and painting my fairings and tank. $1100 not including shipping to have all my plastics and tank repaired and painted the cheapest white EGP had. While that figure also includes cleaning the tank and having it sealed, thats a lot of money to paint so little plastic. And for a 3-4 week turnaround at that. Paint job more than the cost of bike??!!!!!!

So what I want to know is how much people spent when they repaired and painted the plastics and tank themselves. And of course how long it took them.

Help me out guys!

[hardlydangerous]

$250 $500 will give you a professional looking job depending on how much work is needed and the types of materials you use.
Its the hours involved that cost you $$$ in the long run. repairing a damaged part so its as good as new and no visable flaws takes time.

My Shadow was the last bike I painted and it cost me $250 or so for everything.
I had to fill a large dent in the tank and repaint all the plastics and fenders. I also painted the wheels, and some of the other hardware. While I was hacking it up I made it a solo seat so that required some frame and fender modifications.

[chinto]

all the money in the world won't make it look professional if you don't know what your doing. Don't take the time to learn, and don't have the patience to pull it off.

That being said. As Hardly mentioned, for about 200 bucks you could do a decent job yourself. It really depends on what equipment you have and what products you plan on using.

[ADyingBreed]

all the money in the world won't make it look professional if you don't know what your doing. Don't take the time to learn, and don't have the patience to pull it off.

That being said. As Hardly mentioned, for about 200 bucks you could do a decent job yourself. It really depends on what equipment you have and what products you plan on using.

Well I guess I'm going to be lurking this subforum for a while because I have no idea what equipment or products I have to use.

I was planning on a minimum of 500 to paint it so I guessed about right from what you two have said. Hmm not sure If I will repair the pieces all at once then. May do just the tank at first because i want it sealed.

Or depending on how quickly i get my money back from lemon law case i may just go balls out on paint job.

[teddy]

all the money in the world won't make it look professional if you don't know what your doing, don't take the time to learn, and don't have the patience to pull it off.

Amen to this brother.

Well I guess I'm going to be lurking this subforum for a while because I have no idea what equipment or products I have to use.

I was planning on a minimum of 500 to paint it so I guessed about right from what you two have said. Hmm not sure If I will repair the pieces all at once then. May do just the tank at first because i want it sealed.

Or depending on how quickly i get my money back from lemon law case i may just go balls out on paint job.

One thing you have to remember is that deopending on what materials you use, and color will also play a big role in your cost for materials. I prefer DuPont Chromabase products, some like PPG, Standox, and HOK. DuPont also has a 'cheaper' line of paint called Nason. I don't really care for the basecoat system for Nason, but the clear is awesome for the money. I use the Nason clear over chromabase all the time. ChromaPremier will put you in the poor house, but the coverage on it is absolutely outstanding.

Check out Sharpe as far as your paint gun equipment is concerned, I have two Sharpe Cobalt's, and have less than $300 in the both of them,with regulators.

[katanawarrior]

I use a sharp spray gun for my projects. They make a good product, easy to use, understand, shoot, and clean, all for an affordable price.

When I done the Kat project of mine it turned out great, lots of patience, cuss words, and learning. By the time I was finished I was about through with sanding, filler, primer sealer, I was tired of it all. But, the result, IMHO was worth every single second (and bud light).

http://katriders.com/vb/showthread.php?t=92329

All for under 500$, that includes:

DupliColor Primer Sealer (Cheap and Effective)
Omni "Toyata Speedway Blue" Base coat
Omni Xtreme ClearCoat
Reducer
Hardner (for the clear)
KR Decals

And, with all the money I saved doing it myself, I picked up a Solo Cowl, and a Vance and Hines exhaust

If you don't mind breaking a sweat, a little aching in your hands, and some cleanup, do it yourself, it will make the paintjob more valuable then any 500$ job a body shop will do