what finish on head and barrel

**Guest** · 04-06-2011, 06:32 PM

I've had my barel's and head powdercoated with high temp powder.

It works good but doesn't fully cure until the bike goes through a few heat cycles and you are prone to scrapping paint off the finish during assembly if your not careful.

If you powdercoat the barel's make sure you support them in a way that the sleeves don't pop out.

like this

Its easy to fix but annoying to have to put it back in the oven and heat it up and tap it back in while trying not to touch the finish :P

If you use regular powdercoating instead of the high heat powder I have a feeling that it would work.

Here is what a plain powder coated case and high temp powder head and pipes looks like.

**turkish1961** · 04-08-2011, 12:28 AM

thanks mekanix for that

hope to take parts in on saturday to http://www.bpblasting.co.uk/ ,will be interesting to see hat they says,
had not even thought of the bores moving

head nearly all striped down just having trouble taking out tacho drive might even see if i can leave it in

vic

**GS750** · 04-08-2011, 12:52 AM

Originally posted by turkish1961

hi
in the process of trying to stop bike smoking new rings ,honed bores
(after blowing a spark plug out on No 3 thread has been knackered for ages, but why now summers on its way and not in november aarrgghh)

while i have top end of ,i want to clean them up looking tiried after 30 yrs ,so i believe suzuki did put a paint/coating over the aliminium finish

iam want to get them bead blasted to clean them up

options are

1
so should i just leave ali finish (but will this got of quickley?)

2
should i just spray with heat resist silver for the barrel
and gloss black for the head {i like the mix}

3
is it possible that i could get them powder coated ????
would it stand up to the heat ?
has any body else had a go at doing this

When I had my barrels off for machining I had them bead blasted and painted them with VHT (brand) engine paint. The paint has a silicone ceramic which copes with heat extremely well and I have had this done now for almost 4 years and 70000km with no problems. They look as good as the day they were done!

I would NEVER advise to leave them bare as they will discolor and oxidise very rapidly.

Powdercoating is a good option but you really need to make certain that it is suitable to the high temeratures.

There are coating companies that speciaise in these sort of high temp coatings and give very good guarantees!

**Hoosier Daddy** · 04-08-2011, 05:15 AM

I am curious as well.
I have been thinking of painting the head and jugs flat black and then block sanding the edges of the fins...
But then I read here that the high temp ceramic paint on them holds in the heat and is not good so it was advised best to leave them raw.

**turkish1961** · 04-08-2011, 06:02 PM

thanks for the imput

hoosier the daddy
i think gs750 coment '' done now for almost 4 years and 70000km with no problems'' says its ok to use ceramic paint

would not leave bare either suzuki didn't so why should we

its just getting it to look right .i sanded the fins on the head and i'll be doing it again [ see pic]

get up tomrrow and see what the blasting company can sugest

spent this evening unbolting engine ,, lifting with sissor jack, some wooded battens under neath engine and on top of lower frame ready to slide out when son is home tomorrow,,think i can only do this because barrel off

fingers crossed

vic

**hampshirehog** · 04-08-2011, 06:14 PM

I've used this stuff a few times. Works and lasts fine, though not as silver as the original Suzuki silver.

http://www.bitzforbikes.co.uk/Simoniz_VHT_Flameproof_In_Silver_(500ml)-ref-9942-181.html

**GS750** · 04-09-2011, 01:29 AM

Originally posted by Hoosier Daddy

I am curious as well.
I have been thinking of painting the head and jugs flat black and then block sanding the edges of the fins...
But then I read here that the high temp ceramic paint on them holds in the heat and is not good so it was advised best to leave them raw.

It is fine to paint them with a very good paint but leaving them raw is not good because it leaves the alloy exposed to the weather and stains very very easily!

They were painted (or powder coated) when they came from from the factory, so why would it be different with ceramic paint?? It has only improved the longevity and reliability of the paint, which also means that the paint's ability to transfer heat is much better.

Ask yourself, have you ever heard of ceramic engine components (such as pistons)??

Most people are against painting bike engines because they either DO NOT put in the effort and preparation that is required to have the paint last or they use cheap crappy paint which looks like crap really soon after painting and also breaks down and flakes off.

Ceramic engine paints are awesome, you will find most drag engines painted in these coatings, or high temp powder coated and lets face it, TEMP is a BIG issue on these engines........

Originally posted by turkish1961

thanks for the imput

i think gs750 coment '' done now for almost 4 years and 70000km with no problems'' says its ok to use ceramic paint

would not leave bare either suzuki didn't so why should we

its just getting it to look right .i sanded the fins on the head and i'll be doing it again [ see pic]

vic

Vic, I really love the way you have sanded the fins down but these model Suzuki's didnt have that "style". I actually did this to my bro-in-law's old 250cc honda that I restored for him a few years back and the finish has also lasted well on that engine. I also used a VHT ceramic clear coat over the top as well so the sanded ends did not deteriorate.

His bike sits out in the weather all day every day and under the hot Aussie sun, 3 or 4 years later and it has no problems.

Going back to my comment about preparation, I have in the past, taken shortcuts and not put in the effort or preparation and as a result.
I have also learnt to do things a certain way and as a result, I ALWAYS use a cheap paint thinner to wash most of the gunk from the engine (tar, baked oil etc wont always be removed with degreaser) and then I ALWAYS use a good quality degreaser and ALWAYS follow the instructions from the degreaser manufacturer then wash down with a high pressure water blaster, and I ALWAYS do this process at least twice to ensure cleanliness for the engine paint.

I am extremely confident that if you put in the effort to prepare the engine for painting and use the best quality paint, then you will not have any problems!

Anyways, that is my 2 cents worth.

**Guest** · 04-09-2011, 06:33 AM

I actually got my cylinders and head wet blasted, which is a non abrasive blasting technique that seals the alloy to make it really hard for grime and things to stain them, but gives them a great shiny natural finish.

From this:

To this:

The difference is phenomenal, and no bearing journals were harmed or anything like that with this process either.

The only requirements the guy had was that I paint strip and degrease first.

I'm sure you could find someone near you to do the same process.

http://www.wetblasting.net

Apparently there's a similar process called vapour blasting, but that's a different process and I don't believe it's as safe for bearing journals and things, although I could be wrong...

**Hoosier Daddy** · 04-09-2011, 06:34 AM

Thanks for the feed back, sorry if I highjacked the thread....

**Flyboy** · 04-10-2011, 12:46 PM

I don't believe you did, the man asked for advice and opinions on engine coating options, and as I see it the thread is still on that topic.

If you want maximum cooling, then black is the way to go, it disapates heat faster than light colours.

**turkish1961** · 04-10-2011, 05:02 PM

''flyboy'' on the button no high jacking going on here,
blacks the colour then, well at least i have got the head the right colour

'pete' looks like that wet blasting has done a gr8 job, still wonder how long will it last all bare metel, or did you do that years ago and it still looks great ??

'gs750 VHT ceramic clear coat over the top as well so the sanded ends did not deteriorate'.
that seems like a good idea to just need to find some

comments on preperation are bang on ,the same as decorating at home 90% preporation

and the idea of wet blasting ,vapour blasting etc seem like best option maybe when it comes to cam jounrnals etc

so fingeres crossed for me took all bits along and they have NEVER had any problems with bead blasting no damage after rebuilds {hope that continues )

so i have gone for a one coat powder coating silver barrels,gloss back head,gold rocker cover {sure some you won't like that ] ,+ gloss black little breather that site in top

got the rest of the engine on the bench now to clean up that now think will get some paint remover clean clean clean then try some silver on that
which need to get done before 16 april as of on a cruise around the canery islands

vic

**Hoosier Daddy** · 04-11-2011, 05:13 AM

Good luck to you then Vic. Keep us updated on the progress

**Guest** · 04-11-2011, 07:47 AM

Vic, the wet blasting is only a few months old and the bike has run for all of 5 minutes since the rebuild, so no idea on longevity of the finish yet. It just looks damn good

Apparently because of the sealed surface of the alloy, it should be easy to keep it in this condition though. Only time will tell...

**turkish1961** · 08-16-2011, 01:44 PM

update

hi any body still there

,its been a while life just seems to get in the way ,
any way going to try and upload some pics but problem is the head i was warned about making sure oil ways are clear, no blasting material left in
them ,
well there loads,,, any tips out there

my biggest worry is the channels where the cam shaft turns in the head the little oil way under that there 1 i have not found a way of poking any thing down there,squited WD40 down used a magnetic screw driver to put down the top and pulled out lot off stuff {so thats not alimimum !}
hope to take to work and try and blow with an air line

any other idea's ,,have you had any horror stories with cams being screwed after putting back to gether

got to get back together going to tail end rally with BMF 9 sept

vic
pics don't seem to work so how do i do that

what finish on head and barrel

what finish on head and barrel

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