Powdercoat then Decals?

Hi, who can advise me on the process they have gone through when having the bike fully stripped, powdercoated and then new decals.

The big question, how do the decals look just stuck onto the powdercoated frame, as apposed to being in the clear coat as they are now on my 1991 Cindercone?

Has anyone powdercoated, applied decals, then clearcoated?

Any examples would be appreciated.


Cheers guys!

I use a two pac paint then decals then laquer, i never find a powdercoat i want

You maybe able to spray a clear coat over the powder coat but would not know how it would fair over time. the lacquers I have had done on my 2x powdercoats had to be baked on as part of the process. Give these guys a shout they will be able to tell you

http://www.realitymotorworks.com/

Having had a reasonably expensive 2 pack wet paint finish (Argos) with decals lacquered in over the top I am not sure I would do it again.

Fitting decals over the lacquer may not be the best for longevity but allows for easy replacement in the case of a knock etc.

I am having a frame refinished on Saturday and I will be adding the decals after the laquer this time around.

A few pics:

Wet paint, decals, clear coat:



Powdercoat, decals, no clear coat:

My Clockwork has just the decals applied to the powder coat. Looks fine to me and as others have said it'll be easy to replace them if they get damaged. Decals were from Gil.

^ did same thing on my Pine Mountain, powdercoat then decals off Gil, the decals don't half finish it off the build.

mine are both powder coated, then laquered, then decals..i was advised if you laquer of the decals eventually the laquer will lift..if one othese get scraped/looks tired..order a new sent from gil..jobs a "good un"

Ernie

This is the way I understand it and I admit I am no painter so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but having dealt with many paint re-finishers this seems to be the general feeling

If the decals are fitted over either a powder coat or a wet coat they can have a clear coat applied as long as the frame is not oven baked to cure the clear coat.

You can use a 2 pack system or an air dry lacquer the decals will be fine, however if you bake the frame the decals will expand slightly, they are a vinyl after all. This is fine until the frame cools down, the decals will then shrink back again slightly and this will cause a fine "crack" in the lacquer around the edge of the decal.

I say all this and then when I have talked to Argos and they have oven baked my decals with no issues, on the other hand Bob Jackson seems to have a real nightmare with my decals ~ Go figure!

I would take to your painter first, he will have the best idea but think the general feeling is your fine as long as they don't bake them

Or as some of the other guys have said, put them over the top and replace if/when need be

Hope this helps

letmetalktomark":1e3xjnxh said:

Having had a reasonably expensive 2 pack wet paint finish (Argos) with decals lacquered in over the top I am not sure I would do it again.

Click to expand...

Just out of interest, why not?

As Gil says really...

I went to Bob Jackson with Gil's decals and they explained to me at length why they wouldn't use them - as well as why they wouldn't / couldn't reproduce boggo Kona graphics (?) and why I would never understand as I am not a re-finisher. I went to Argos and they stoved same set of decals, no worries...

As for paint finishes, Gil's spot on:

* You can clear-coat over powercoat to preserve the decals if you wanted - I would.
* MTB decals will get tatty if they're not protected, but that isn't anything new. My Orange bikes always had decals over the paint, when they got beaten up you could replace them if you wanted.

Initially i was concerned about having to apply the decals to a frame after the baking process. In the end i went with the flow and applied the decals I got from gil_m after baking. Now it doesn't seem much of a problem and i kind of like the idea of being able to replace as and when..