painting plastic?

marc

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Sep 30, 1997, 3:00:00 AM9/30/97

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Hi Folks,
I'm looking at painting my Katana this winter, I've had no problem
finding info on preparing and painting the tank, but no one has been
able to tell me how to prepare the ABS panels. Is there an easy way to
strip the old paint without harming the plastic? Any help would be
appreciated.
Thank You,
Marc

1985 Madura 1200
1988 Katana 1100

Arfur Smithers

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Oct 2, 1997, 3:00:00 AM10/2/97

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marc <mal...@laf.cioe.com> wrote:

>Hi Folks,
> I'm looking at painting my Katana this winter, I've had no problem
>finding info on preparing and painting the tank, but no one has been
>able to tell me how to prepare the ABS panels. Is there an easy way to
>strip the old paint without harming the plastic? Any help would be
>appreciated.

Why strip the old paint? I think you may be taking this weight saving
thing too far!

Just scuff it up with 320 water paper, to give the new paint a
slightly rough surface to adhere too, and remove any old wax, etc.,
fill in any scratches, and spray over top. If you're doing a light
colour over a dark one, you may need a few extra coats, but then you
would have, even if you managed to remove the paint, as the ABS used
to make plastic fairings is usually black.

-as

tr...@mail.col.auracom.com

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Nov 17, 1997, 3:00:00 AM11/17/97

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marc <mal...@laf.cioe.com> wrote:

>Hi Folks,
> I'm looking at painting my Katana this winter, I've had no problem
>finding info on preparing and painting the tank, but no one has been
>able to tell me how to prepare the ABS panels. Is there an easy way to
>strip the old paint without harming the plastic? Any help would be
>appreciated.

> Thank You,
> Marc

>1985 Madura 1200
>1988 Katana 1100

Painting plastic is verry similar to painting metal. I did exactly the
same thing when I painted the plastic on my XT350. It looked great but
you couldn't bend the fenders and such because the paint would crack.
To do it right you have to sand the plastic part, paint it with a
plastic adhesive and sealer, then add a flex adhesive to the real
paint and finish the job. If you go down to the local body shop or
auto body dealer I'm sure they can tell you exactly how to paint
plastic and the right materials to use.

Trevor
85 XT350
79 RD400 (In
/> "Knight Of The Shadows"
/< E-Mail ar...@atcon.com
O[\\\\\\(O):::<===================================-
\< Darkness Will Inherit The Land
\>

Donn Schaefer

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Nov 17, 1997, 3:00:00 AM11/17/97

to tr...@mail.col.auracom.com

> marc <mal...@laf.cioe.com> wrote:
> >Hi Folks,
> > I'm looking at painting my Katana this winter, I've had no problem
> >finding info on preparing and painting the tank, but no one has been
> >able to tell me how to prepare the ABS panels. Is there an easy way to
> >strip the old paint without harming the plastic? Any help would be
> >appreciated.
> > Thank You,
> > Marc

Make sure the paint can stand up to high temperatures. The beautiful red
paint on the fairing lowers to my bike bubbled and cracked after a few hot
rides. Hahaha-and the last owner said he did the work himself :)

donn

Chris Lawson

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Nov 26, 1997, 3:00:00 AM11/26/97

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On Mon, 17 Nov 1997 23:55:02 -0600, Donn Schaefer
<dsch...@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu> wrote:

:

:> marc <mal...@laf.cioe.com> wrote:
:> >Hi Folks,
:> > I'm looking at painting my Katana this winter, I've had no problem
:> >finding info on preparing and painting the tank, but no one has been
:> >able to tell me how to prepare the ABS panels. Is there an easy way to
:> >strip the old paint without harming the plastic? Any help would be
:> >appreciated.
:> > Thank You,
:> > Marc

Go talk to a paint shop and get a recommendation for a compatible high
quality primer for plastics. First, the primer is slightly more
flexible that normal paint primer to help avoid flaking. Plastic
flexes and swells when it gets warm. Most paints don't stick to
plastics very well, especially stuff like nylon, so a good primer is
important.

It is also formulated so that it's solvents or main components won't
attack the plastic or cause it to degrade over time.

After that, you can use any paint compatible with that primer. Just
don't get cheap on the primer.

-Chris