LOOK KG171 paint repair.

Way2many

Retro Guru
Always happens when you least expect it...arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

The bike decided to have a lie down as it was feeling more tired than me, unfortunately putting some good deep gouges into the rear seat stay and the fork blade.

It's gone through the top coat and into the main colour. Tried to contact this place...https://www.paintgear.co.uk/

twice with no answer!!!

Anyone used a similar repair method and where did you get the materials from?

Thanks.
 
Without photos it’s hard to give a definitive answer,being a composite frame iam assuming [from experience] it’s been primered and top coated in 2K [two pack ] paints which are paints that require a catalyst to be added to the primer or top coat colour ,they are available through a professional carbody shop material supplier ,they are meant to be thinned down and sprayed but I often use the primer not in thinned down form to build up chips and deep scratches then wet and dry after it’s cured to get things levelled out before any spraying .The 2K paints ‘bind’ very well to the epoxy composites and obviously very well to the same paint on those products ,sorry for longwinded reply ,very happy to advise ,where about are you ? Cheers Stef
 
I’ve just googled your frame I was thinking it was one of the large tubed ‘aero’ models ,but comment still apply ,also being a European product iam assuming Look chose their colour palette from the Ral colour system ,you could also physically take the frame into a carbody shop and match the frame colour to the multitude of yellows in the ‘colour chip’ book they have ,they could then make up that shade in an aerosol though the paint will most likely not be 2K but normal rattlecan cellulose or similar which can kinda bind to the frame with correct preparation but relies upon solvent evaporation to dry [you can wipe dryed rattle can paint off with solvent soaked rags ]
 
Mines the Black edition, so only a black touch up on the rear stay and clear coat over carbon on the foorks.

I'll try for some pictures over the weekend.

Thanks Stef.
 
These are the marks I'm looking to repair...
 

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Thanks for photos ,can’t tell but on the fork is the carbon ok beneath the lacquer chip ? ,on those two chips it’s absolutely not worth buying 2K/two pack materials ,only last week I bought lacquer and smallest tin was 500ml which is enough to spray a car,best solution would be buying cheapest aerosols in clear and black and a small touch in brush and build up the two chips before blending in level with original finish ,you need to flick off any loose paint first with a blade ,then mask within a few mm of the chips then ‘key ‘ up with 500 wet and dry [used to be able to buy single sheets from Halfords or carbody suppliers],demask ,wipe clean with acetone then allow to dry ,remask ,then v v patiently ‘build’ up the chips with drops of paint allowing it to dry off almost completely between coats [rattle can relys on solvent evaporation for drying,so it’s worth squirting some of the paint into the aerosol lid and leaving for 10min so some of the solvent ‘off gasses’and paint thickens a bit,obviously use a mask when spraying and in well ventilated area and maybe disposable gloves when squirting ],rattlecan paint ‘shrinks’ hugely on full drying so any building up needs to be the height of the masking tape at a minimum,then demask and allow to fully dry for a day or so then ‘sand’ level with 500 to start[if we’ll above level of original] and 1000-1500 to level off/finish using a little flat piece of wood or somesuch to wrap bits of wet/dry around using soapy water as lubricant,then buff back up with t-cut.Would my technique change much if using 2K materials?,no but it would build up better and dry harder and I’d prob polish up with my polisher and polishing compound,the latter is v v similar to t-cut ,it’s very important to flick off any loose paint first ,the ‘whitish/opaque’ look of the chip on the fork is absolutely typical of lacquer that has debonded .sorry for essay ,I could demo technique in about 2min
 
Hi Stef,
thanks for the long and detailed reply...was very much how I was hoping to carry out the repair. Was thinking of using nail varnish as this will 'build up quicker, but I'm not sure how hard it dries?
Spray cans were another option but that will take a lot of layers, any thickening agents I could use?
Thanks again.
 
On the carbon forks assuming it’s just cosmetic it’s worth a try with some araldite expoxy or similar. I had a non crack type chip on a bare carbon finish frame. Feathered back the chip and the area around it with wet and dry, cleaned it with alcohol then laid on some araldite just proud, let it cure hard. Used a small block with wet and dry to flat it down, getting gradually smoother up to 2000 grit then a polish. It’s not invisible but I’d have to show you where it is to see it.
 
All of the above are acceptable suggestions ,most non professional paints rely on solvent evaporation to dry ,paint out of an aerosol is v v thin ,no idea about how hard nail polish drys sorry
 
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