[phudd]

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Hi have a 1976 LTD rare in Australia and need advice on paint,It suffered under its previous owner and has fade and crazed, does anyone have advice on colour and method or some spare panels in VGC for sale would pay fair price for right original LTD panels
Thanks
Dave in OZ

 

[wexy]

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Hi Dave:waving: and welcome to the forum ,I moved you question to the technical forum ,I thought it would get a better response here:1000red: ,,lovely clean bike you have ,,I have no doubt you will get plenty of advice here over the next few days ,,so be patient,,Cheers Ciaran :santawaving::santawaving:

 

[Renegade]

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If you look back in the postings, you'll find several articles on painting these bikes. Should you want to bring it back to it's original colors, search for the company that still sells the OEM paint codes. If not, then any color you desire will do.. If the finish on the bike is cracked, crazed & faded, you must sand the finish right down to the bare surface and begin fresh... That means a primer coat, at least two color coats and a clear finish coat.. If any stripes are required, they must be put on prior to the clear coat. I believe the paint backwhen the bike was newwas enamel. It is critically important that if the parts to be painted are plastic, that any cracks or splits be repaired first... Paint application should be done in at least a 55degree or higher temperature for air drying... Today's eurethane paints are expensive,will last a life time and should be applied by a professional. Good luck and keep us in the loop for the finished product....!

 

[Grouchomax]

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That colour was Candy Brown but I don't know the code, sorry. The gold pinstriping might be hard to get now, but you can probably get them made up anyway.

 

[exavid]

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You could always do real pinstriping. It's not that hard, get some practice on some junk parts. When you foul up just wipe it off and try again. There are also some pretty slick pinstriping tools available. Professional grade units aren't cheap, one I like runs around $100-175 depending on how many accessories are in the kit. They are surprisingly easy to use. But it really isn't all that difficult to get the hang of using a regular pinstriping brush, I got a tablet of 24X18 paper from a paper supply shop and practiced on paper sheets to get a feel of using a brush, after that get some junk pieces of car body or what ever and try your hand on that. It won't take long before you can do a creditable job of simple pinstriping. There are many websites containing good informaiton on the subject.

 

[Renegade]

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Well said Exavid.. That's what I did years ago and it works. With practice, you can even go crazy with some outlandish designs. It's a lot of fun... My hands shake too much to do it any more.Vynil striping is also available at most automotive stores. It comes on a roll and has a paper backing which must be peeled off while applying the vynil stripe. If there is a sample of the old bike color, a good autobody paint shop can mix any amount needed to do the job.. There are autobody paint techs around here that can actually mix the color by eye alone. These guys usually have to match a color for blending purposes when finishing a car repair. They are good at it. A paint supply store for autobody supplies can also mix the colors, but the techs are limited and will onlymix by a specific formula. If you paint the parts yourself with a urethane paint, be sure to wear (at a minimum) a quality filtered face mask.. The hydrocarbons in the paint contain neurotoxins which, if breathed into your lungs, can have an affect on the nervous system... Good luck...

 

[Goldwinger1984]

imported post

If you do have a shaky hand for pinstriping I find that a suction cup guide can be easily fabricated from a piece of wood dowel and assembled. I have also used magnetic strip for this purpose, but, when I striped Corvettes the magnet just didn't cut it. LOL

The biggest trick to pinstriping is knowing how to load the brush full and then going the furthest distance without having to reload with paint. Paint consistency has a lot to do with this and if you use exavid's tips and a lot of practice you'll end up with some great pinstripes.

Vic