Best Rattle Can Paint I Have Found Yet!

Retmachinist said:
I just had to start one more build this winter. There has been alot of talk on here about different paints. Someone suggested Automotive Store Engine Enamel since it is gasoline resistant. I picked up a couple cans of Dupli-Color Engine Enamel with Ceramic at the local Autozone. It is the best rattle can paint I have ever used. Goes on so smooth dries really fast to a beautiful gloss. I have been wanting to do an all orange bike so this Chevy Orange is perfect, specially since I will be doing part of the engine. I have a nice spray gun, but for small jobs like these bikes it is so much easier to just use the rattle cans.

John
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I swear by that stuff. I learned many years ago while trying to paint the tank of a Suzuki Savage that normal rattle can paint doesn't get along with gasoline...or engine heat. It's gotta be high temp and fuel resistant, and this stuff is the best out there.
 
Thanks for the good advice about the Dupli-Color paint. I've never used it, but I have a couple of builds that I'm working on, and I'm going to get some. I hope it resists coastal rust a little, because that's a big problem here. I've had excellent results with Hammerite in this climate, but it has few colors, and Hammerite is more functional than beautiful. It is tough though.
 
Hi Guys, I have mixed results with rattle cans, I too have equiptment (Binks, DeVillbus, and some off brand stuff) but it is a pain for small jobs. The little bike below I did about 9 years ago for my wife, and the white is still nice and shiney, tho the green went to flat and dull. The little Roadmaster is about a 48-53 model, and the pic about a year old at the time.

Mike
 

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So far so good with my paint. I used the same stuff. Found it at Napa. Here is a shot of my tank.
 

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Back in Design school we were taught some techniques with rattle cans. Some of
our instructors had been model makers and had perfected a technique for getting
very high quality paint jobs from rattle cans. Expensive and wasteful for sure, but
when a professional job was required on a short deadline and they were away from
their studio this is how they did it.

They found that there was a lot of fallout in the stream from a rattle can nozzle.
Large droplets fell closest to the can and a finer medium droplet fell after that.
But the "sweet spot" of the stream was at the end where the finest droplets fell
and by standing back from the item to be painted a fine predictable spray could
be obtained. The trick was to use the first 2/3 of the can as the pressure fell
too far after that to maintain the consistant fine spray necessary. So with about
a half dozen cans of spray enamel they could get the quality of coating that
otherwise professional equipment would deliver in the controlled environment of a
paint booth.

The instructors showed examples of what they could do and it was day and night
to what we were used to doing as students with rattle cans. Again the technique
is expensive and wasteful but still practicle for those in that field.

The benefit of knowing about this to anyone else is that it is possible to get high quality
work from rattle cans. The illustration below shows what the class I was in was shown.
If you find some rattle cans on sale for a buck each and want to try this on something small
we were taught using an item painted in dark grey primer an finishing it with appliance white.


(and of course cover your floor and table with newspaper as there will be plenty of fallout on it)
 

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I'm a Hammerite fan also but I'll buy some of that duplicolor to try. I know for scratch resistance Hammerite is really hard to beat.
 
Junster said:
I'm a Hammerite fan also but I'll buy some of that duplicolor to try. I know for scratch resistance Hammerite is really hard to beat.
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Junster,
I have been pleased with the DupliColor paints, they go on nice and dry quick. They stay shiney and they have a great color selection. However I was disappointed in their clear coat. My fuel mix stained it. I applied five or six coats of clear, sanded between coats and my blue and white tank looked good until fuel either dripped or vented on it. The white turned kind of yellow wherever the gas hit and is getting darker as time goes on. Just a word of advice. Next time I'll look for a better clear coat.
Tom
 
I personally agree that this paint is very good...One thing though is the engine enamel has a ceramic ingredient which means the paint does chip a little easier, but I think the look and easy of use makes it the most practical stuff you can use.
 
2door said:
Junster,
I have been pleased with the DupliColor paints, they go on nice and dry quick. They stay shiney and they have a great color selection. However I was disappointed in their clear coat. My fuel mix stained it. I applied five or six coats of clear, sanded between coats and my blue and white tank looked good until fuel either dripped or vented on it. The white turned kind of yellow wherever the gas hit and is getting darker as time goes on. Just a word of advice. Next time I'll look for a better clear coat.
Tom
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Tom, You are exactly right, the Dupli color clear coat cannot take the fuel being spilled on it. That happened to my green bike. I was really happy with the way the tank came out, until I dripped a little gas on it. It became sticky as soon as the gas hit it, then dulled it and discolored it.
No more Dupli color clear coat for me.

John
 
So what is a good clear coat, resistant to gasoline? I'm working on two gas tanks right now, nothing fancy, but I'd like for them to keep looking nice. The guy at Napa told me that until it cures it will not tolerate gasoline. I asked how long it would take to cure and he said three to four months. Not so good. I guess if I did the clear coat right at the end of the season for riding (when snow and zero temps kill any fun on a bicycle) and let it sit through the winter then it would be ready in the spring, but something a little quicker would be nice.
Silverbear
 
I just got a black NEr and a yellow tank and fenders would rock
any thoughts on how to save the embossed Whizzer logo on the tank
whey you paint it,, do you have to hand paint it back ??

Bob
 
Here's an interesting observation I've made buying rattlecan paint:
Alot of cans have net wieght of 12 oz. Usually takes a few coats to get a good even color. Better paints are 14 oz. (more paint solids) for same size can and one or two coats will usually be sufficient.

However...it's next to impossible to find interesting colors w/ net weight of 14 oz.

When painting any custom built rides I always go with Dupli-Color from auto supply shops.
 
2door said:
Junster,
I have been pleased with the DupliColor paints, they go on nice and dry quick. They stay shiney and they have a great color selection. However I was disappointed in their clear coat. My fuel mix stained it. I applied five or six coats of clear, sanded between coats and my blue and white tank looked good until fuel either dripped or vented on it. The white turned kind of yellow wherever the gas hit and is getting darker as time goes on. Just a word of advice. Next time I'll look for a better clear coat.
Tom
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I am glad to find this as I was about to go get it to clear coat my whole frame and tank. I would hate to go through all that trouble of getting it to look so nice, to just have it turn yellow. Do you or anyone know of a good strong durable clear coat? I was also thinking about trying the dupli color automotive clear in a can, for spray guns.
 
A FYI ifn ya hadn't seen 'em before;

For those seeking the higher quality paints but don't wanna invest in a bunch of expensive spray gear - there's always the refillable aerosol spray cans like this;
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You can even pressurize 'em with your bike pump :D

But - I prefer the slightly better 'Preval' one, tho it requires "precharged" canisters (can't just pump 'em up), I like them 'cause they work a lil better with thicker stuff like gelcoats and epoxies... which isn't applicable for our bikes lol
PVE267.jpg


Check yer local hardware stores for availability ;)
 
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