APPLYING THE PAINT

With the frame set sanded clean of all paint and then cleaned of all debris, begin with an application of primer.  Primer is a forgiving paint to begin learning how to best apply the paint.  Though someone can offer suggestions as to how to apply the paint, that is only the theory side of getting a good finish.  Practice is the other necessary ingredient to a good paint job.  And by the time you have applied seven coats of paint(three primer and four color - two more if you choose to clear coat), you will have had enough practice to learn the technique.

After each primer coat has dried thoroughly, sand it lightly to smooth the surface.  Place a bit more effort in areas that have paint built up, such as a paint run but be extra careful in areas where the paint appears to be thin.  Attempt to smooth not just the spot but level the entire surface area.  If you do this with each coat, chances are you will begin to feel a bit impressed with the results.  I am amazed at how good the finished product looks when I consider how awful coat one presented itself after drying.  Ugg!  But persevere.  It just might prove to be worth it.

Select your main color and decide where to begin painting.  A bicycle frame set is sort of divided up into parts and the natural division boundaries seem to be the lugs.  I tell you this because you can actually paint just one part of a frame set at a time.  Let's say that you get a run in the top tube.  You can just lightly sand the top tube to smooth out the run and then paint only the top tube again.  There is no need to paint the entire frame set at one time but it is a good idea to do so if at all possible.

Before getting started with the actual paint application, take the time to locate any necessary masking tape.  Remember that you had defined where paint ends and chrome work begins earlier.  You even took the time to use a felt marker to record this important information on the chrome work itself.  Referring to your measurement, apply the masking tape evenly and ensure that the edges are pressed down tightly.  You don't want any paint to leak under the tape and create more work for you at a later time.  Once the paint edge is defined with tape, I always finish taping the entire surface that I do not want the paint to adhere to.  When painting with a brush, this is not entirely necessary.  These surfaces included the fork blade and stays ends.  I also took the time to cover the steering stem.

With the paint edges defined and the masking tape applied, it is almost time to begin painting the frame set.  However, immediately before beginning to apply the paint, take the time to Tack Rag the entire frame set, blowing out each and every nook and cranny that you can.  Even with this precaution, you will still pick up bits and pieces of debris as you apply the firs coat of paint.  But don't let the trapped debris force you to give up.  You can get rid of it when you apply subsequent coats of paint.  And while on this topic, even paint runs can be dealt with later.

With this in mind, begin by painting the head tube and head tube lugs.  Then move on to the top tube, down tube and seat tube.  Finally do the stays.  Dividing the frame set up into areas makes it easier to understand a painting plan.  Do NOT plan to paint one entire side of the frame set and then move on to the other.  This sort of paint plan will definitely leave very noticeable marks in the paint.

You don't have to work super fast but you can't take forever fussing with the applied paint to get it just right.  In other words, don't fuss.  Try your best to achieve smooth blended surface and do not worry about cover.  You will not be able to completely cover the frame set with a single coat of color no matter what you do, so don't try.  You will most likely have to apply a minimum of three color coats, each lightly sanded before applying the next.  And here is the beauty of this process...  With each coat you will learn how to apply the paint, get better at doing it and the final coats will look pretty good.  But at first, your paint application effort will look just awful!

NEXT - THE PAINTED SURFACE LOOKS AWFUL!!!