Paint, First start-up & Swingarm

[webster]

Hi All

I am getting ready to paint my gas tank and other body parts. Can anyone suggest
an inexpensive HVLP gun that will do a decent job ???

I am also going to start my bike soon ( maybe July ) for the first time since I have owned her ( purchased May 2008 ) be working on her. Will someone let me know of any special
precautions I need to take ??? This is my first 2 - Stroke !!!!

Finally, the swingarm has about a 3/8 inch of side to side " play " .
Is it suposed to be like this or have I missed a spacer or something ???

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Webster

[GT750Battleship]

Prime the oil lines with a syringe of two stroke,hold the pump arm wide open with your fingers at idle until she's really smoking,stop engine check for oil leaks & air bubbles in the lines,reconnect oil pump arm. DO NOT at any stage be tempted to put oil in the fuel tank!!! in the mistaken belief that it will aid the motor from lack of lubrication!!
"TRUST THE PUMP". PS the swing arm bushes are worn out,replace with genuine Suzuki bushes or aftermarket bronze bushes ? Very important you fix these,otherwise bike will behave like a pogo stick at speed & throw you off!!!
Regards,
GT750Battleship.

[Coyote]

There should be no discernible side play in the swing arm. Beware of the aftermarket bronze bushings. I bought a set of those and the fit OD was .009 oversize. Even if I was able to somehow draw them in place, I would have to hone them out as the pivot bearings would never go.. I set them aside and bought all stock stuff and moved on.

[Madbuffalo]

I am getting ready to paint my gas tank and other body parts. Can anyone suggest an inexpensive HVLP gun that will do a decent job ???
Webster

Sharpe Finex FX3000

You can get an inexpensive high-velocity/low pressure gun like a vapor or kobalt for $30-$50 dollars but be wary they are generally around 40psi@5cfm so not a true HVLP (29psi@10-13cmf). The other problem with them is tips are generally not changable so if you get one to spray paint (1.2-1.4mm tip) you need a second gun to spray high-build primers (1.7-1.8mm tip). High build primers are what you see Chip Foose and his A-Team block sanding to get that nice finish. 'Real' HVLP guns start at around $120 and go all the way up to around $500 for Sata. The limiting factor for most people is their air compressor. By the math you need a huge compressor to run a paint gun (not many tools are bigger air vampires) so the lower the gun's cfm requirement the better off you will be. I did a lot of research a little while back (see below) and settled on the FX3000. It has the lowest cfm at 9.5, has great reviews, and is relatively inexpensive at $120 on Ebay. You can buy different tips for around $80. With unlimited air supply I might have gone with the Devilbiss FL3.

Mid-grade:
- Binks SV100G HVLP, 10-14cfm@29psi
- Devilbiss FinishLine3 HVLP, 13cfm@29psi
- Sharpe Finex 3000 HVLP, 9.5cfm@29psi
- Sharpe Finex 2000 Conventional, 9.5cfm@43psi
- Astro EuroHV HVLP, 9-10cfm@29psi
- Astro QUL Conventional, 6-12cfm@30-90psi
- Ingersoll Rand 270G HVLP, 8cfm@40psi

Low-grade:
- Campbell Hausfeld HVLP, 6.3cfm@40psi
- Vaper HVLP, 7-9cfm
- Kobalt HVLP, 5.8cfm


As a side note, if you're just getting into painting it's a very fulfilling experience that I highly recommend but don't do it to save money. It sounds like you want to do it right which means you will probably spend MORE than taking it to a shop and if it's your first time their finish quality will probably be better. They get discounts on bulk paint that you can't and already have all the additives and equipment at their disposal. Just something to keep in mind.

If you decide to forge on let me know if you have any questions.

Josh

[Suzsmokeyallan]

Josh you forgot this one http://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-8-cf ... 67181.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Don't laugh, at that $15.99 price I bought one of these to play around with just to see how good it is. It has all the items in the right place that a very expensive gun has and they are made of the right materials too.
After spraying for many years going back to the early 80s, and using reputable named guns you mentinoned such as DeVilbiss and Sata, this one looked like it would be no more than a 'toy gun' that made a mess of paintwork.
So I bought one to test it about two years ago, since then its painted and clear coated a lot of my bike related parts and it seems to be more than good enough to warrant keeping it.
To make matters worse, I went to HF about a month ago and they had the same gun on special for $9.99, so I bought two more as that price was too good to pass up.

Look at this part close up for the finish, its been lightly sanded, had two coats of plastic adhesion primer applied, then sprayed and clear coated by that Harbor Freight gun, all done at 35psi. The gun can spray at lower psi but I have always used and prefer between 30 to 35 psi for painting.
I cannot see any difference between this finish and what the Sata and Devilbiss guns can produce under the same psi settings which is very annoying, as the cost I paid for them was mind boggling.
This is the true sprayed finish, no #3000 paper has been rubbed over the clear and then buffed etc

[Suzsmokeyallan]

To touch on a topic you raised on high build primers, a few of the painting companies have gone away from the primer/filler range of products you speak of. Naturally I'm looking at whats available today in my neck of the woods so thats mainly Glasurit and Sikkens brands of automotive paint.
I did find these though and its a top quality product in a rattle can. I know you're probably thinking thats crazy it cant be as good as a true auto grade product, but you need to try them before passing judgment.
Its also nice to know you can prime a few items at a time without the hassle of preparing the product and then washing the gun out.

https://www.rustoleum.com/CBGCategory.asp?cid=9" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The primer products on this page I'm referring to are the filler primer spray, the self etching primer, and the 2 in 1 filler and sandable primer.
The 2 in 1 is a medium build item that will fix almost any part on a bike that needs some corrective treatment after media blasting the surface and the rust out of the pitted portions. It sands easily too and has a very good surface texture either done wet or dry.