V50 Guzzi re-paint ie: Therapy

[Guest]

Ah ok, not had any issues myself, I use the app on my phone to upload. It's a little annoying at the moment though as it keeps telling me I'm nearing my limit and it does seem to post "ghost" images which I need to clean up via the organiser, but it hasn't bothered me too much just yet.

 

[Buffalo Bill]

Interesting your way of using epoxy. You glued the fairing together like broken crockery!
I've been including a layer of fiberglass cloth on the hidden side of fairing breaks, for additional strength.
My GS side covers, and CBR600F1 body panels feel like polystyrene, both 1980s bikes.
My CBR600 has large crash damaged lower panels that were repaired with fiberglass cloth and epoxy.
My GSX750F body panels feel more flexible, almost like vinyl, 90s bikes.
I've repaired their side breaks/cracks with epoxy and fiberglass cloth.

 

[nvr2old]

To me, that's the beauty of the 2-part epoxy..it's virtually the same material as the plastic parts. It's really strong and yet flexes at the same rate as the part it's being applied to, whereas fiberglass is rigid. If you try to flex fiberglass more then just a little bit, it cracks..like..glass. Fiberglass for fiberglass, plastic for plastic parts. I also do the same to the inside of the parts. I've even made mounting tabs for broken side covers from epoxy and it works great. When finished, you can't even tell there was ever a repair made.

 

[jsandidge]

What epoxy do you use? I v-grooved some cracks in my 850 side covers and filled with a plastic epoxy. It didn't hold.

 

[Guest]

What epoxy do you use? I v-grooved some cracks in my 850 side covers and filled with a plastic epoxy. It didn't hold.

I repaired some major damage to my side covers, and even fabricobbled an entire missing section using two part plastic epoxy. I used Loctite brand plastic bonding epoxy, but I've used Permatex plastic weld in the past to good effect as well. If the crack is pretty big, I will usually skim some extra epoxy on the back of the crack as extra re-inforcement. I've heard of people using fiberglass + epoxy for reinforcement and also seen tin tape too.

 

[nvr2old]

What epoxy do you use? I v-grooved some cracks in my 850 side covers and filled with a plastic epoxy. It didn't hold.

Strange. If you used a 2-part epoxy specifically for plastic, it should work really well. Especially with the 5-10 min. drying time. I go to any Ace Hardware-type store and it's available for 5-6 dollars for the side by side syringes. Prep is important to having it work, too. Clean, clean, clean, and sanded really well all around the repair area. I also go to the other side, V the crack out there, too, apply, sand, and done. That repair I did to the GS fairing is as strong as it was before the break. Love epoxy.

 

[nvr2old]

Got to the shop today with the intention of repairing the back side of the parts. I like JB Weld, but not for plastic. It doesn't hold for some reason.





Ground down the areas and V-grooved the breaks.





This is the 2-part epoxy I'm using. it stays where you put it and doesn't run or sag.



After sanding it came out nice. A solid repair on both sides now.





Skim coat of filler.





The GS fairing is ready to be sanded and prepped for primer. On to the Guzzi fairing which is rough. The one turn signal mount needed have all the old crusty repair removed..argh. Big hole left.

 

[nvr2old]

I put masking tape down as a barrier on the inside, and then gooed on the epoxy on the outside.



Then filled the back



Spent a lot of time filling and sanding the back side..what a pain..





It took forever to sand the front sides with only a skim coat of filler. Tiny little spaces to get your fingers in, but persistence pays off.





Hard to tell in the pics, but all's well that ends well. The Guzzi fairing is ready for primer, too. The front fender needs to be sanded as do the side covers, but those are a breeze.

 

[Guest]

Wow! Outstanding work on those repairs!

 

[Buffalo Bill]

I'll be buying some of that Plastic Welder epoxy ASAP!

 

[Guest]

Nice one Larry! So far I've just done the ABS offcuts + acetone repairs for plastic which have served me well, but I'm well aware I've gotten lucky with the type of ABS I've been repairing. Good to see what epoxy you use and the technique, I'll keep that up my sleeve and see what we have here locally that'll do the job.

 

[Guest]

I'll be buying some of that Plastic Welder epoxy ASAP!

Same here.

 

[jsandidge]

Same here.

That makes 3 of us.

 

[nvr2old]

Thanks, gentlemen. I truly believe this method will work for anyone that follows the same steps. The sanding is tedious but a Dremel with a barrel sanding tip helps get it close before having to finish by hand. It requires a bit of sculpting, but when it's done, it'll look like nothing was ever repaired. Looking forward to spraying the high-build primer, block sanding a couple of applications, and then on to the red base color and decals. Clear coats are just out of sight at this point....but I enjoy the journey.

 

[nvr2old]

Wasn't able to get the parts primed today. Ran out of time after spending 3 hours alone on the GS fairing. Started with 100 grit to get all the red off, followed by 180 wet & dry to take the 100 grit scratches out. Sanded, literally, till my fingers were bleeding.. Hardly worth posting pics but what the hell. It came out really nice.





Sanded the inside, too. Gonna paint it satin black eventually.



Really happy with the corner repair.



Spent over an hour on shaping and sanding the beaded trailing edge. Not a single imperfection left. I also softened the sharp edges around the headlight opening and wind screen opening, too. Paint sticks to softened edges better then sharp ones, and it just feels good when you run your fingers over it. It's going to look great when it's done.



The Guzzi parts are all sanded and ready for primer, too. Next week, for sure..

 

[Buffalo Bill]

So there's still a blue and another white layer?
So much hand sanding, your fingers must be bleeding!!!
Just cannot use a machine over soft plastic.
Harder that refinishing old furniture, at least that's flat so you can use a sanding machine.

 

[nvr2old]

No Kidding. Using a DA or power sander is impossible with all the body lines and areas that you just can't reach other then by hand. Just like the plastic filler on your 600's gas tank, Bill. The white base coat that was sprayed over the original blue and white is solid as a rock. It sanded down to a really nice, smooth and hardened surface. I took the red completely off because of the stripe ridges possibly showing up in the future.

 

[Buffalo Bill]

No Kidding. Using a DA or power sander is impossible with all the body lines and areas that you just can't reach other then by hand. Just like the plastic filler on your 600's gas tank, Bill. The white base coat that was sprayed over the original blue and white is solid as a rock. It sanded down to a really nice, smooth and hardened surface. I took the red completely off because of the stripe ridges possibly showing up in the future.

I watched some interesting videos about removing tanks dents. Tying off the ends of a small inner tube, stuffing that inside the tank, then slowly filling it with air, popped out a wide shallow side dent. The small dents on both sides of the upper crease of my tank; not gonna work, they're too small and hard. They'd have to be hammered out from the inside. Watched some other techniques too, hot and cold applied, super glue a handle to the dent and pull hard. None were fully successful. The air bladder technique worked well. Cutting the tank open is the very best method.
I'm not that committed to my CBR, next owner will probably be a kid just looking for cheap transportation, and drop it the 1st week, spray bomb it the 2nd week.

 

[nvr2old]

I've never cut open a tank to get behind a dent. That's so much work. The chance of (anyone outside of a master welder) not getting it welded back perfectly causing a gas leak is enough to shy me away from something as dramatic as that undertaking. Although you can watch the technique(s) on YouTube, I've personally never seen using ice or air to pop out a dent ever work. More often then not, it leads to a huge mess, usually pushing it way too far stretching and ruining the tank. If you can reach a dent through the filler with a tool/rod to gently push a dent out, that's fine. A slide hammer, though, followed by a bit of plastic filler is the way to go as far as I'm concerned. Modern materials are so good these days, I wouldn't go any other way.

 

[Guest]

Fantastic work as always Larry, that cowl looks so smooth now! Reminds me of the efforts on the Kat front cowl, all that sanding is painful but so worth it for the end result.