Carlton Course de primes - re-build

[Black Sheep]

Hi everyone, long time member but been in hibernation.

in 2006 I finished re-building my dad's old Carlton Course De Primes to use as every day transport, it was quite shiny and I was quite happy with my efforts. The paint was not original (being Ford Focus ST Orange in the hopes of being more visible) The build topic is somewhere on the forum but I've not found it.

The plan was to one day put it into correct colours (pale blue with yellow and white bands) but in the meantime the bike served me well as transport during my extended tenure as a student and a few years beyond until finding myself working too far away to cycle to work anymore and with less time and many more hills (she's only a 5 and a half speed) my waistline has gained 10 inch.

Back to the bike, I'd guess she's done a fair few thousand miles over the years and now (as you can see) she's looking quite tatty, I think it's possibly been washed 5 times...

I'd love to paint her properly and do a proper restoration, but I simply don't have the time or money, what I need is something usable, enjoyable to ride with a finish that reduces the 'want' of a shiny new bike (that I can't afford)

If you were hoping on a shiny restoration, look away now as I'm considering Hammerite as a cheaper and quicker option than powder coating while being very durable.

First stage will be to strip it and clean it.


On a brighter note, the wheels I built back in 2007 for it still appear to be straight

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

View attachment 397136

I'd love to paint her properly and do a proper restoration, but I simply don't have the time or money, what I need is something usable, enjoyable to ride with a finish that reduces the 'want' of a shiny new bike (that I can't afford)

If you were hoping on a shiny restoration, look away now as I'm considering Hammerite as a cheaper and quicker option than powder coating while being very durable.

Nice bike, don't spoil it by doing it with Hammershite, it's terrible stuff, and thanks to all the EU tree-hugger busybodies, it isn't even good durable paint any more. It seems to be water-based these days and it's crap. Good metal brushing paint has hydrocarbon solvent in it, if you can't get high on it in a confined space, then don't use it!.
What you want is a tin of solvent-based brushing enamel intended for use on agricultural tractors or industrial machinery.
I got some off an eBay supplier called arc-rite welding supplies and the paint, the price, and the delivery service were all excellent.

 

[Black Sheep]

Thanks for that, the paint work on it currently is tatty and quite worn in places, especially the top tube near the saddle where on one side we're down to primer, on the other we're down to metal where my jeans have rubbed against it.

I have no where to re-spray it myself anymore, hence looking for a product that brushes on but gives a good finish, I'll look at the seller you've suggested.

 

[Black Sheep]

Nice bike, don't spoil it by doing it with Hammershite, it's terrible stuff, and thanks to all the EU tree-hugger busybodies, it isn't even good durable paint any more. It seems to be water-based these days and it's crap. Good metal brushing paint has hydrocarbon solvent in it, if you can't get high on it in a confined space, then don't use it!.
What you want is a tin of solvent-based brushing enamel intended for use on agricultural tractors or industrial machinery.
I got some off an eBay supplier called arc-rite welding supplies and the paint, the price, and the delivery service were all excellent.

Not found the seller you mentioned, but is this what you mean? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1-LITRE-...412446?hash=item33b9bb9cde:g:FhQAAOSw1vlUwmKo

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

You'll probably find the paint is a bit thick as it comes from the tin, and would benefit from being thinned a bit so it flows out better. The stuff I've got needs Xylene thinners, not white spirit, plus you'll need thinners for brush cleaning, surface wiping etc. As it's a decent bike, use a decent brush, not a pack of cheapies from the 99p shop. I used that type on my hack bike where it doesn't matter, but cheap brushes always shed bristles into your fresh paint.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Not found the seller you mentioned, but is this what you mean? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1-LITRE-...412446?hash=item33b9bb9cde:g:FhQAAOSw1vlUwmKo

No, I'm not familiar with that stuff. If you go on eBay and search under "protective radiator enamel" and "arcforce tractor enamel", you should find the stuff I've used myself. The radiator stuff is particularly good value, as it's only £20 for a 2.5 litre tin so the leftovers can be used for other jobs. I've got a vintage car to paint at some time as well as bikes, so I got a full 5 litre tin of the tractor paint. You can ask for any "standard", i.e. BS 381/BS 4800 or RAL shade by paint code and they'll mix it to order same day.

 

[stalagmike]

This is good to know about in case of need for all sorts of uses. Thanks @SkipdiverJohn

 

[midlife]

To save all the prep and finishing a one colour powder coat would be my personal choice. My local powder coater in Carlisle does bikes. Here's a pic lifted off their website.. 40 quid in 2012 . There's a thread on Retrobike about this bike but the pics are missing because of photobucket closing non paying accounts

 

[Black Sheep]

Think I've found the stuff, they're not a huge distance from me so it's tempting to actually pop up.

Thinking a litre should cover it but wondering if 500ml would.

the current surface is poorly sanded back primer with a blast of automotive spray, thinking a bit of scotchbrite to try and smooth this a bit and paint on, I presume it self levels so you don't see brush-marks etc?

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Powder coat can be a good option, but factor in the carriage costs unless the coater is local to you. Remember you've got to send it to them in the first place, and then they've got to send it back to you when done.
I prefer paint because you can re-do it later if it gets tatty or touch up any damage using the remnants of the tin. If you chip a powder coat frame, you'll need to source the same shade to touch up, and paints vary between different batches let alone between suppliers.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Thinking a litre should cover it but wondering if 500ml would.

the current surface is poorly sanded back primer with a blast of automotive spray, thinking a bit of scotchbrite to try and smooth this a bit and paint on, I presume it self levels so you don't see brush-marks etc?

More is better than less, because you''ll probably want to do two coats and paint never goes as far as it says on the tin when applied in a DIY environment.
Prep and paint brush quality is 90% of the work in getting a good paint finish on a bike, car, front door - whatever. Bikes are fiddly and tedious because the surfaces are curved not flat. I've used emery-coated sponge sanding blocks for heavy paint removal on a bike frame, but over-coarse ones will leave scratches that will be visible under the finished new paint. If your existing surface is sound, I'd just roughen it enough so the new paint will stick properly, and wipe it down with a thinners-dipped non-fluffy rag.

 

[loopybike]

As a bit of a curved ball.....
Wire brush the old paint off. I use one in an angle grinder. Then paint with epoxy primer. This is a modern 2 part paint. You can get it from car paint suppliers in any colour. It's waterproof, brushable, rust resisting and can be overpainted as long as you don't use cellulose.
I use it for loads of stuff from chassis to my vice!
The best thing is that you can paint it on to bare metal and that's it, no need for a top coat! Obviously to get the shiny deep paint look you will need to top coat it. But for a daily hack I'd just leave it primered.