I'm looking to hand paint the engine whilst still in the frame, so a spray is not really suitable. Does anyone have any recommendations on high temp engine paint for the barrels and heads. It's an old aircooled engine (900 ss) so it needs to be black. Also the bottom end looks like it may have been painted originally but it's hard to tell now as it's just bare metal and rather oxidised. I know that some of the engines came out of the factory as just bare metal. Anyone got any tips on restoring the metal work and then keeping it tidy ie lacquering it. I've been told that brushing ACF50 in there will do a god job.
You won't want to hear this, but the only way to get a decent finish is to take the motor out and spray it. If you've a garage/workshop and some tools, I reckon you could have the motor/swingarm removed from the frame in no more than an hour tops, and I could half that without problems! You only need to disconnect the ancillary parts, eg exhausts/cables/wiring etc, then remove the airbox/carbs/battery, then prop the engine and swingarm upright, remove the engine bolts and lift the chassis off and roll it forward on the front wheel. Then clean/prep/mask the motor for paint! View attachment 2837
+1. Drop the back end out - get hold of some timber/pallets to put everything on: SO much easier to get to everything... do your shims whilst its out - PERFECT access! Halfords do a hi-temp black in tins which is really good! Literally a One-coat? ACF50 will work - but quickly gets grubby & attracts dust & dirt etc. The Scottoiler FS365 is better, but needs more application, especially in the wet?
+1 for Halfords, I used the silver recently, but don't let petrol spill on it until it's heat cured or it'll wash it off! View attachment 2838
TIDY! Yep, the silver isnt great as regards chemicals etc... Simoniz Sperex VHT is lined up for any touchups! Get a good acid etch primer base on there or it will all fall off again anyways :biggrin: U-pol Acid 8 Etch Primer 450ml Aerosol UPOL | eBay
I used Simoniz engine enamel on my 999. Its a spray and I'll echo what everyone else says... drop the engine
Been to halfords and got some high temp paint in gloss. I almost bought the very high temp stuff but it was only available in matt so didn't get it. Well I've got the bike stripped and now its crunch time. Do I paint as it is or lift the frame? This was going to be a basic refresh rather than an in depth refurb but it doesn't seem like too much work to go a bit further. The problem is that it becomes more expensive as the frame and wheels will end up being powder coated too. I've got an Abba stand but not got the bobbins for the SS, but I think I'll invest in some as it should make lifting the frame off that bit easier.
Front stand £10, rear stand £5........You can spot where the bars go through easily using your pic. AL.
Nice job, I knew once you saw the other pics you'd go for it! Depending on how bad the frame or wheels are you could try T cutting them. I've done this before to good effect ;-)
Those stands look good Al, but I think I'll go with the Abba stand as I can then reuse it for other stuff later on.
As expected, this has turned in to much larger job than anticipated. I dropped the engine with no problems. I decided to get the wheels and frame professionally painted so they've been done in two-pack by DW Automotive at Clutton Hill. He's done work for me before and his work is fantastic. I've got the frame and wheels back and they look stunning. The engine however has been a nightmare. I figured I would get it serviced properly by Rich at Louigi Moto whilst it was out of the frame. The plan was to service it then clean up the casings, mask everything off, and paint up the heads and barrels. Nice and quick and easy, right? Whilst the engine was on the bench at Louigi's on Saturday, I said to Rich that I would rather take the heads and barrels off and do the whole job properly. He said "no, don't do it, because I know what I'm going to find. The oil gallery plug will be out and we'll end up with a full engine rebuild". He reckons that 9 out of 10 of the early engines that he looks at have had the plug loose. Anyway, I'm the customer so I insisted, and yep, Rich was right. The plug was clearly loose. So decision time. Rich had an engine which he had rebuilt a while back and was just sat there waiting for the right person to come along. It already had all the bearings replaced, crank balanced, all shimmed up, and a close ratio gearbox from a 748R fitted. The cases had been vapour blasted and look great. So my barrels, heads, clutch casing and alternator casing are going to be painted black, then stuck on to the new engine. We' ve stripped the old engine and I've kept the original casings in case I ever want to put the original engine back together. That gallery plug was a real mess. It was at least half of the size it should have been and I reckon that engine can't have been too far from major failure. This thing should look sweet when finished but the budget is out of the window.
I feel your pain re: crank plug... my engine drop for hi-comps, studs, decoke, shims and paint turned into a case-split after finding my plug was now of the full-race Uberlight Corse variety... The good thing is your motor is now SORTED and you can ride the thing without waiting for it to go BANG.
