going to start my first bike project soon

[kcmop8ntballa]

Hey guys, Ive decided im going to repaint my Kat and Ive been doing some research about some different paint brands. I am more than likely going to use a spray gun and was thinking about using Dupli-Color's Paint Shop brand paint. Im looking to paint my bike a metallic green with a metallic silver stripe. Does anyone have any experience with this kind of paint? It seems a little too easy that it comes ready to spray but this is my first time painting anything like this. Also, ive read that I should probably stay away from Dupli-Color's clear coat, so what clear coat would you recommend?

here is my bike now =)

[puma072806]

This was the paint that I used. I know that others have other preferences.
I used the paint shop paint and I liked how it came out. No complaints really, but then again I have nothing much to really compare it too; it has pretty decent reviews online also, that's one reason why I decided to go with it.

[Mojoe]

.... and was thinking about using Dupli-Color's Paint Shop brand paint. Im looking to paint my bike a metallic green with a metallic silver stripe.....It seems a little too easy that it comes ready to spray......Also, ive read that I should probably stay away from Dupli-Color's clear coat, so what clear coat would you recommend?

I removed some of you post in order to address one topic....Dupli-Color.

and the way I am going to address you is by suggesting you forget Dupli-Color. ya, for sure it easy to just dump it in your gun and spray. it is also a total rip-off. you will pay MORE for a quart of already mixed base coat from Dupli Color than you will for a quart of "pure" base coat from an auto paint supply store. I think Color-Rite was asking like $85 a quart for premixed stuff, which was probably mixed 50/50. that means you are really paying $85 a pint. you can get the same thing for around $50-60 from a paint supply store and it will be a true solid quart that you can mix 50/50 yourself and end up with 2 quarts. do you see the math here?

seriously, when I hear someone saying they are going with Dupli-Color, it makes something ring in my ears. I keep hearing duped! incase you are unsure what duped is, here is a quote from the urban dictionary.

duped

1.v.to f*ck over or trickbag some one.
I got duped on that sack of hydro bud .It was short 3 grams!

if you go with a paint straight from an automotive paint supplier, you will EASILY save 50% for the cost of your paint. you can easily have two quarts of paint for less than $100. and seeing as this is your first time doing this, it just makes sense to go the cheaper route, seeing as the possibility of scrapping it and having to start over is quite great. ask Redkat about that.....he just went through it. so why would you want to pay $85 for a quart of premixed stuff? if you screw up and have to start over, it could cost you $170, just for the paint, never mind the rest of the stuff.

plus you get the added bonus of a greater color selection by going to the auto paints store and buying the REAL stuff. I know this is going to offend a few people who have taken the Dupli-Color route, but that sh*t is for people who are too lazy to mix their own paint, or to research cost effectiveness, or just aren't really fussy and don't mind wasting money. if you don't have a paint gun or compressor, then yes, go for it and use their rattle cans if you have to......but if you have all the proper equipment, well at least get a proper paint to work with.

that's just my 2 cents.....


oh...and here is one more tip. it's "ok" to come on a forum and ask for advice on paint, but it is a crap shoot and you are just going to hear great reviews about "cheap, but expensive" brands of paint like Dupli-Color or Color-Rite from folks who came out with a mediocre paint job at best. and I don't mean that to insult them...just being honest and realistic. that's just the way I am. so my advice....look for an automotive paint supply store and ask your questions there, and listen to them. they are the experts, and you will be guaranteed quality paint and supplies that are 100% compatible. personally, I would be afraid to spray any other brand of clear over Dupli-Color base cuz you just never know how it will react. you have to really live in the sticks to not have a proper paint supplier around. any place with a lot of cars has body shops...and if there are body shops, there are paint supply stores, so there really is no reason not to inquire there. this way once you start your work, you are 100% certain you are starting off on the right foot.

I know I may sound a little harsh, but in all honesty, I can't understand the thought process behind it. why buy inferior paint online, and pay MORE for it, when one can easily make a drive to paint supplier and get better quality and sound advice, for a much cheaper price? if someone has the answer to that, by all means, please enlighten me because it has left me stumped for a while now.

[hardlydangerous]

the dupli-color paint shop paints suck.
I prefer Autoair paints or a quality paint from SW,ppg or HOK.

If you are set on a budget paint job, you are far better using spray cans for a base and then clear it with a 2K clear. Its lacqure paint so any 2 part urethane will work perfectly over top.

The ready to use paint shop lacqure is designed for a high quality HVLP spray gun. My $300 DeVilbiss and fine tip I can spray the paintshop paint at 20-25 psi and have it work ok, But with my cheaper guns its just a mess.
My favorite guns are the cheap $15 Harbor Freight guns, they are great for clear coating and autoair paints. but dont spray the paint shop stuff worth a damn.

I disagree with Mojoe about the price. Quality paints cost more. So unless your painting 1 solid color or plan on doing other painting using the same colors its a waist. To re-paint my Shadow a two tone white black with silver grafix was going to cost me almost $200 for base + intercoat clear .
I got 1 pearl white, 1 silver and the 2 black base for $50 from canadian tire for duplicolor spray cans. I use the clear wheel paint for my int clear between layers when doing grafix.
it cost me $120 for a gallon of SW 2k urethane clear.
So its cost me $170 when it was going to cost me almost $350
I do a lot of painting and have not had ANY problems with using dupli-color spray cans or high quality auto paints. But that paint shop stuff SUCKS AZZ

The problem with spray paints is spray cans are soft and easily damaged, they must be cleared with a 2 part automotive clear.
If you look at the custom paint job thread in the pic section 90% of my work including the 3 Katana's and my 600 Shadow with the custom color shifting flames... its all spray paint cleared with Utech 2k urethane clear. The paint shop clear is just a regular lacqure and not gas or oil resistant.

[Devinjordan]

I went to the paint shop and used nason single stage paint no complaints here. I think a quart of paint and all the other supply's ran me like 70 bucks.

[kcmop8ntballa]

Sweet, thanks for the advise guys. I think I will be making a trip to my local paint store soon then. Glad I decided to ask on here before I bought the paint. I might look into just doing a rattle can job too then clear coating with the Utech 2k clear as harldydangerous said. I will definitely post some pics when my project is complete.

[Devinjordan]

Single stage does not need clear, also it's easy to spay. When your done just wet sand with some 2000 grit, and get some mild polish and you will have good paint

[Mojoe]

I disagree with Mojoe about the price. Quality paints cost more. So unless your painting 1 solid color or plan on doing other painting using the same colors its a waist. To re-paint my Shadow a two tone white black with silver grafix was going to cost me almost $200 for base + intercoat clear .
I got 1 pearl white, 1 silver and the 2 black base for $50 from canadian tire for duplicolor spray cans. I use the clear wheel paint for my int clear between layers when doing grafix.
it cost me $120 for a gallon of SW 2k urethane clear.
So its cost me $170 when it was going to cost me almost $350
I do a lot of painting and have not had ANY problems with using dupli-color spray cans or high quality auto paints. But that paint shop stuff SUCKS AZZ

wow! I don't know how to delicately say it, but imho you are getting hosed. the last time I went to the paint store I picked up a gallon of U-Pol clear, a gallon of U-Pol reducer, some U-Pol filler, U-Pol hardener....all U-Pol except for the paint, which was BASF. I bought two quarts of red. these are quality paints that have been around a while, and extremely easy to work with, imho.

https://www.basfrefinish.com

http://www.u-pol.com

total cost was around that....$350, and that is with sandpaper and everything else. not too mention 2 quarts of red base....red being the most expensive color, or one of the most expensive. enough supplies to easily do 4 bikes. if I wanted to do just one bike, it would have been under $200 for sure. a pint of base, a quart of clear, a quart of reducer, a can of hardener....plenty to do a bike. and certainly well under $350, and I doubt like hell it would have cost me $170. maybe $120-130?

idk....guess we just shop at different places. I go to Car Quest. they are a big supplier to all the body shops. plus I do get "business" prices. my old man has an account there and I was getting my stuff through his, but now they just gave me my own. I save a bit like that, but not so much that it still isn't cheaper for someone who doesn't get shop pricing.

my advice...in general stay way from any brand that is too well known. "word of mouth" is a powerful advertising tool. if you get enough people screaming how good Dupli-color is, then you will have a whole lot of people running out and buying it, which enables them to charge more because "word of mouth" has everyone believing it is really worth it. this site kind of reflects that. mention BASF to anyone, a company that is tried and true and well known in the industrial environment, and they are likely to think of a cassette tape from the 80's. mention U-Pol and they don't know wtf you are talking about.

seriously, you can not even compare Dupli-color with paints like Glasurit by BASF. you will never find Dup;i-color supplying the automotive industry, but BASF has, and I believe still does. you gotta be one skilled painter to achieve a "new car finish" with dupli-color, but your chances are a whole lot better when using better quality paints.

but hey....what do I know? I am not a pro. but I have done enough to come to the conclusion that it's just a whole lot easier, and cheaper, to stick with established brands that don't need the hype to sell their paints. I guess when I really think about it, I see Dupli-color as the harley davidson of paint. you either love or you hate it, and a lot of it's popularity is image and hype, but can't really be considered a "quality product".

I went to the paint shop and used nason single stage paint no complaints here. I think a quart of paint and all the other supply's ran me like 70 bucks.

there you go. I personally have never heard of Nason (maybe I have...I think it is a Dupont brand??), but it wouldn't matter. if it was a shop that I felt was knowledgeable (easy to tell by asking the right questions), I would still buy it before dupli-color.

it's not that I hate dupli-color. I just feel it is a cheap paint and think of it along the lines of tremclad, krylon and such. they started out the same way...making paints for lawn furniture and sh*t, then moved up to "automotive"....which was more aimed for touch up and cheap paint jobs for bikes and such for people who had no compressor or paint gun. BASF never stuck paint in a rattle can so you can paint lawn furniture, as far as I know. so ya, dupli-color does have it's place. if I was going to paint my garden tractor, I would consider it....but not on my bike. not any vehicle I would want to take maximum pride in once it's done. I know my work comes out "new car shiny", and is pretty much flawless. most of that is due to my experience and taking my time, but quality paint plays a big role as well. with U=Pol, I can lay down clear that looks like glass, and the next day I can be wetsanding and buffing it to a showroom shine. I used Dupli-Color ONCE, and the clear looked like crap. it was milky. so I stripped it off, prayed on some more Dupli-color base, and used a good clear I bought at a paint store. the dupli-color base reacted. that was the point where I said "never again".

imho, you can't rate a company on it's base color. bases are nothing.....it's almost like colored primer for the most part. you need to be really bad to make a "bad base". it's the clear that says it all....and dupli-color clear sucks donkey nuts. if your clear comes out milky, then you suck at making your product. at least that is how I see it.

but hey...that's just me. whatever rocks your boat. it's up to the OP to decide what is best suited for him. we've shared our opinions on the subject, and it's up to him to decide. I guess I just made the wrong assumption. you know, assumed that if someone someone dishes out the expense for a spray gun and a compressor and such, that they would buy a better paint than one that mainly comes in a rattle can. and even if it does cost a bit more, I figured they would feel their bike is worth it. you wouldn't buy a cheap chain and sprocket set off of Ebay for $50, why buy cheap paint?