Painting Barrel In Situ
- Thread starter swooshdave
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My nuts aren’t protected yet. I’m still in the cleaning stage. They’ll get taped off for paint. What I’d really like to do is replace them. I’m thinking if I replace them one at a time it should work?
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I think you know as well as I that if you take the head and barrel off “just to freshen up the paint” that you’ll end up doing a full engine rebuild whether it needs it or not.Shwany I hate to be such a disagreeable so and so all of the time, but I sure wouldn't take an engine top end apart just for cylinder painting. You are likely thinking that a better paint job can be had by removing the cylinder. This is true, but I don't think it's worth the trouble! We might be on a different levels with our cosmetic expectations
Yes the head comes off easily, but it doesn't go back on all that easily and head gasket leaks are a common problem on Commandos. My thought is, if it's sealed up, leave it on there!
Each time you torque things up there's the risk of those wimpy threads letting go, or if already pooched, the helicoils letting go
Then there's lifting the barrel and losing the ring to bore seating- you want to avoid that.
About five years ago, I painted my barrel in the same way Dave is proceeding. It might have taken an hour tops and it still looks good. That was with a spray bomb of VHT gloss black high heat caliper paint.
I like the way Jim paints a tatty frame.
Gets it looking good and back on the road without tearing the bike to bits. I'm sure he can tear it to bits and then put it together a lot faster than I can, but not as fast as this
tires again
Well just like clockwork. The Avon Cobra is at 6500 miles and it's toast. Unfortunately it's has been the only tire I have used so far that I got decent mileage from and still handled OK. And now it has been discontinued and there are no more to be found. Anybody tried a Heidenau K65. I have a...www.accessnorton.com
This bike has a serious patina so no need to get crazy. The worse thing that could happen is that the barrel looks so nice it looks out of place.
maylar
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I'd be OK with that. I'm sure stainless are available.
Fast Eddie
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If you mean will removing the nuts disturb the gasket etc the answer is no, you’ll be absolutely fine.
The barrels below were rough and flaky, a clean up, some of that satin paint I mentioned and new nuts and all is good again.
And yes, I am aware of it’s none Norton nature...
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Earlier this year I had an issue with my rear wheel and the dealer couldn't get the bead to set. They blamed the rusty rim.
I cleaned it up and it looked better. I didn't want to get too crazy as I'd like to put alloy rims on at some point.
This is the stuff I used to treat the rust.
I believe if you use Rustoleum paint it basically treats the rust and coats in one step. I do like the idea of brake caliper paint as it might be tougher. I need to look to see what paint I used on the other bike.
I cleaned it up and it looked better. I didn't want to get too crazy as I'd like to put alloy rims on at some point.
This is the stuff I used to treat the rust.
I believe if you use Rustoleum paint it basically treats the rust and coats in one step. I do like the idea of brake caliper paint as it might be tougher. I need to look to see what paint I used on the other bike.
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Blasters are fairly cheap at Harbor Freight, it's the compressor to run it that costs. I did mine because the DPO had painted the head and barrels black then tried to polish up the edge of the fins on the head. Looked pretty crappy. The blaster not only removed all the paint, it also cleaned up all the chrome nuts on the cylinder base and rocker box covers.
Schwany
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How about some matte black crinkle paint? Kidding
I guess with enough stuff out of the way, it wouldn't be all that hard to get the paint where it needs to go to hide the rust. It's just easy with them off. I agree that it is not worth taking them off unless some other work beckons to be done. I like the shiny paint on the barrels of a Norton. Hiding Norton imperfections would require an invisibility cloak.
I've thought about the 12-point ARP stainless nuts, and never got around to it. I would do them one at at time without hesitation.
I guess with enough stuff out of the way, it wouldn't be all that hard to get the paint where it needs to go to hide the rust. It's just easy with them off. I agree that it is not worth taking them off unless some other work beckons to be done. I like the shiny paint on the barrels of a Norton. Hiding Norton imperfections would require an invisibility cloak.
I've thought about the 12-point ARP stainless nuts, and never got around to it. I would do them one at at time without hesitation.
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Sorry for not answering this sooner. I’m pretty sure I got these from Harbor Freight.
Tube Brush Set, 6 Piece
Amazing deals on this 6 Pc Tube Brush Set at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.
www.harborfreight.com
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Soda blasting cleans up between the fins nicely in situ. The blasting guns are about £20 on ebay and same for a huge bag of the bicarb soda. Assumes you have a compressor. Heat the soda above 80C and you have the perfect sodium carbonate for petrol tank rust removal electrolysis!
I then used Simoniz silver vht paint, again in situ, _and it looks no worse than the lovingly painted satin black bonneville barrels I did on the work bench.
Why silver? Mine is a Mk1 850!
Actually I find home spun soda blasting quite addictive, on everything from electrical connectors and switchgear to rubber gaiters and old spark plugs.
I then used Simoniz silver vht paint, again in situ, _and it looks no worse than the lovingly painted satin black bonneville barrels I did on the work bench.
Why silver? Mine is a Mk1 850!
Actually I find home spun soda blasting quite addictive, on everything from electrical connectors and switchgear to rubber gaiters and old spark plugs.
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No.
Time Warp
.......back to the 70's.
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Correct.
You might be able to rotate/loosen them one at a time and brush them nicer (With a wood handle brass bristle wire brush)
Off topic (Call me Al) of course but when my 1957 TR6 arrived and was looking at the silver painted cylinder thinking Triumph castings were normally quite smooth.
All was revealed when I put a stick between the fins and scraped off not just the paint but the thick oily crud it was sprayed over.
#
I think that cylinder will need some patience and a paint brush to get down in the fins without doing a major masking job (or brush painted masked then an external spray.
You might be able to rotate/loosen them one at a time and brush them nicer (With a wood handle brass bristle wire brush)
Off topic (Call me Al) of course but when my 1957 TR6 arrived and was looking at the silver painted cylinder thinking Triumph castings were normally quite smooth.
All was revealed when I put a stick between the fins and scraped off not just the paint but the thick oily crud it was sprayed over.
#
I think that cylinder will need some patience and a paint brush to get down in the fins without doing a major masking job (or brush painted masked then an external spray.
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Here’s the paint I used. Semi-gloss so it’s not too shiny.
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Second coat on. I’ll wait an hour and then pull off the masking to see how much I missed.
It’s already looking a million times better.
It’s already looking a million times better.
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The two tools I found indispensable was the bore brush and this pry thing. Anything will work but it was great when masking off the head so I could push the tape up way inside the fins.
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