Painting aluminum parts?

[Mike198]

I want red tripple clamps, but i dont have the money to buy them so i was thinking of painting them. will it come out looking nice? can i get it to look like a metalic red? were can i go to get this done for cheap? can i paint the aluminum frame and swing arm too? thanks for the help

 

[Glitch]

You can buy a nice metallic red spray paint at auto stores. Not sure if it will work on aluminum, or how good it will look.

 

[yzeater]

Get them anodized...it'll last longer, and look better

 

[Jasle]

Originally posted by yzeater
Get them anodized...it'll last longer, and look better

i'll second that. if you rattle can your swingarm or other parts they will be scratched up and look nasty in about one ride. anodized and red looks great. you can also powdercoat aluminum and it looks nice too. fairly inexpensive. I had my frame and swingarm powdercoated for $90 and that included sandblasting them. they came out show quality and the only scratch so far on the swingarm came from a tossed chain.

 

[Mike198]

cool, what exactly is powder coating? i was thinking of anodizing my tripple clamps and rear susp linkange on my 03 crf 450 when i get it, i was also thinking of anodizing the frame and swingarm, just thought a metalic red frame would look interesting. im also wondering about the rims, can you anodize those to or is there another process?

 

[Jasle]

powder coating is a way to paint metal. basically you charge up the metal part and it attracts the paint to the metal. then you bake it and it hardens. Anodizing looks way cool. Powdercoat comes in tons of colors but a little cheaper if you stick to basics. Also the powdercoat will be smooth like thick paint.
the problem with a rattlecan is that it will be way too thin. even with 10 coats you will scratch it of super easy.
When you consider the amount of labor to tear your bike down to the frame and remove swingarm and such you really only want to do it once. With powdercoat or anodizing it will last much longer.
Jason

 

[Jaybird]

OK, if you aren't completely serious about wanting top notch clamps at home...do not follow this link:

http://www.focuser.com/atm/anodize/anodize.html#top

 

[yzeater]

Have you ever anodized parts at home Jaybird?

 

[Jaybird]

LOL...are you kidding? :)

 

[Mike198]

I've read that thing at least 10 times. I get how they do it, but i dont know how to make all that stuff, like the box, and the tub with all the wires. Seems hard, i think ill find someone to do it for me.

 

[Rcannon]

I apinted a shaft drive housing on my 1982 Yamaha XS 1100. This area runs very hot! The first time the paint fell off.

The second time I happened to mention it to an old mechanic at the mc shop. He said to wipe the aluminum with vinegar before painting it. I did it and it worked.

It looked so good I ended up painting the fork sliders gloss black with epoxy paint.

To this day I do not know why it helped (the vinegar) but it did.

 

[jake949]

the vinegar is acidic and it etched and cleaned the aluminum

 

[MXSparx]

Mike, I see your in Il. Drop an email or PM to Aj Waggoner (dirtweek forum Mod) he knows a guy that does it. Had his CR500AF done black one year. And it looked sweet!!!