Mercian cycles and paint codes, painter in Nottingham area.

Have dealt with Mercian a lot through work.They sprayed my forks up on the Ritchey Swisscross and put a longer steerer on.The results were good.I know there colour range isn't extensive.Someone wanted to create a Raleigh Pro-Race flouro green.Came back a Bianchi green! Customer was still happy.Workmanship on frame repairs have been spot on I.M.H.O
Thanx Max

clunker":3lqjl3vq said:

Best to put it in a bike box and send it to Argos. Will cost more but will do a top class job.

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I have an argos sprayed bike and I'm not overly impressed with the results.

Hi guys,

Thanks for all the suggestions. There is a lot of info to take on board.
I don't think I'll be trying Mercian after all that.

Thanks to Roger P, Anthony and others for suggesting how to find a powder coater. I might give Hutchcoat a call. I don't think (crosses fingers) there should be a problem with my colour as it's just a standard Ferrari type red.

Roger P, can you possibly tell me how much they cost you? Also do you have any before and after pictures of their work?

I have some small dents n the swingarm that need filling, a cable guide needs re-attaching, a brake boss needs securing/welding and I would like to get the swing arm and shock spring painted, can anyone else suggest what this should cost?

Thanks a lot.

Have a look at this lot:

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=33003&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=165

It is towards the bottom of the page, also on the next page.
If the pictures are not up to scratch or not clear enough for you, let me know and I will PM you the originals.

Hutchcoat did fill a slight dent, and because there is at least 2 coats of powder I cannot honestly see it.

The total job cost £80.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Roger

It looks excellent. Did you visit them or were you able to do everything over the phone/emails with pictures?

Finally, did they put the decals on and laquer over them or are they just over the top of the powder?

I think I will give them a go thanks for the help.

Initially I phoned them, as they are based near to Castle Howard on the outskirts of York, just off the A64, which is a little remote.
We spoke about what I had and what I wanted, which was essentially a refurb, but with powder rather than wet paint, as I had read about the problems with the orange and white Clockwork paintwork done by Bob Jacksons and also the issues with availability of the colours. I knew nothing about powder coating and even posted on this forum about what was possible, which is why my frame is powder coated fluorescent orange with the pearlescent white fade painted over the top, which they recommended.
Have a look at a RAL colour chart and note the colours you like and ask them about availability. I would suggest going with a colour they have in stock, but as previously said, they can be inventive when getting hold of powder for you.
They were very reassuring and confident about being able to do the work (they do a lot of motorcycle frames and are happy about filling dents prior to powdercoating, but they did insist on seeing the frame before they say how good a repair it would be), I even gave them an ultimatum, which was: If you are not 100% happy and confident with what I want - then say! Needless to say I am very happy with the results, the bike is a lot brighter in real life, I did leave them a "before" photo so they knew how I wanted the end result to look like.
The decals were supplied by Gil_M on this forum for £19 delivered by registered post. I believe (although not too sure) that Gil's decals can survive being laquered and heated, but mine have helicopter tape over them, but bear in mind Gil is very busy and if you want something custom (I did as he did not have the 92 available, so he had to do mine from scratch so to speak) it might take time, but they are very good - in fact better than the originals IMHO.
You will have to ask about decals being applied prior to laquering as I do not know.
Again, if you need any more help just ask.

Cheers,

Roger