# With Info gained here ....



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

With information I received in this column regarding primers I set about restoring my vintage mountain bike forks ...

This is how the forks looked at the start. id never seen rust like this before. The original finishing process may have involved chrome plating or anodizing. The rust was in horizontal lines across the forks... very strange :?









After lots of graft this is how they are now ...


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

And here is how i did it...
its all in the prep. Because of the deep pitting caused by the rust i thought the forks may have been beyond salvage. lots of high build primer and lots of sanding was the key to covering the pitting and bringing them back from the dead. 
i was going to have the forks satin black but after spraying them satin black i wasnt happy with the finish so lots of flatting back with wet, wet and dry 
more coats of satin black... more flatting ...then more flatting ... followed by a few coats of 2k clear coat. this stuff is the dogs .... dont waste your time the stuff from Halfords, HS 496 Auto clear is what you need ...



Etch primer, high build primer , satin black



wet sanding (use washing up liquid in your water to stop paper clogging) reveals deep pitting caused by rust ...



Deox gel (very low odor, doesnt burn your skin, safe to use indoors)



Its a faff to use...but once coated, wrap with cling film to stop the gel from drying out. leave overnight...





Yiles ! are they worth bothering with ?



Panel wipe between every paint stage ...



Etch primer ...



Lots of flatting before High build primer ...







Lots of wet flatting ...



Final coat of high build primer ...



And this is where i would have left it ....



But i wasnt happy with the finish...


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

So more flatting, couple more coats of satin black then clear coat...











Im quite pleased with the results. Taking my time, Carful preparation and decent product proves you can achieve acceptable results with rattle cans.


----------



## Blazefan13 (Apr 19, 2015)

Wow great job, and good to see the steps you went though to get, thanks op.


----------



## sprocketser (Aug 4, 2012)

That s some great turnaround ! Must have taken lots of hours to do !


----------



## m4rkymark (Aug 17, 2014)

you have made a good job but to be honest I think the rust will come back through time. ive never seen marks like that before on anything. interesting.


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

Blazefan13 said:


> Wow great job, and good to see the steps you went though to get, thanks op.


Thanks


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

Blazefan13 said:


> Wow great job, and good to see the steps you went though to get, thanks op.





sprocketser said:


> That s some great turnaround ! Must have taken lots of hours to do !


Yeah took a while but the best thing is unlike working on my car which is my daily driver, so any work done on the car needs to be done on a daily basis ... This was done at my leisure.


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

m4rkymark said:


> you have made a good job but to be honest I think the rust will come back through time. ive never seen marks like that before on anything. interesting.


Yeah it might do! Still, it was good practice using this combination of product together.


----------



## stuartr (Mar 11, 2014)

Wow well done... looks great


----------



## waqasr (Oct 22, 2011)

That finish is lovely. Though ive used HB body "2k" and its not 2k clear. Its ok stuff but not amazing, its not very durable. If you do decide to take on another project id recommend the Proxl 2k cans with built in activator, this is a true 2k clear.


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

What's the issue with durability mate ?

The clear coat you suggested seems to be proper 2k with activator . I don't have the required safety equipment for using it !


----------



## rich9 (Jan 28, 2014)

Nice to see a proper treatment of rust instead of bodging with kurust or the like.

I don't think the rust will come back. I believe the rust was due to micro fractures in the paint letting in moisture over a long period of time, that's why it was in that formation. Now that you have removed the rust and applied a decent paint it should be fine.

The issue with paints other than true mixed 2k is their resistance to chemicals, abrasion and UV and their gloss retention. What you have used is OK though rather than topflight, it's a decent job. You can get masks for 2k but you have to be careful getting the right one and also they are pretty much single use.


----------



## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

rich9 said:


> Nice to see a proper treatment of rust instead of bodging with kurust or the like.
> 
> I don't think the rust will come back. I believe the rust was due to micro fractures in the paint letting in moisture over a long period of time, that's why it was in that formation. Now that you have removed the rust and applied a decent paint it should be fine.
> 
> The issue with paints other than true mixed 2k is their resistance to chemicals, abrasion and UV and their gloss retention. What you have used is OK though rather than topflight, it's a decent job. You can get masks for 2k but you have to be careful getting the right one and also they are pretty much single use.


Wouldn't want to spray 2k without an air fed mask.


----------

