hammerite

[Sweep]

Very soon my faithful ridgeback adventure will have some surgery/rear rack braze-ons sorted.

Thanks for all the advice in the recent separate thread folks.

This will remove paint of course.

Hammerite seems to be the easiest way to sort this and i stress that i am not too interested in how it looks after the job - in fact one thing i love about this bike, especially as i live in london, is how the bike looks like nowt. Only i know what a joy it is to ride.

The bike is blue green so i may use blue or, hey, just black.

So since my only concern is protection/future rust prevention, i am assuming i just slap it on with a brush and leave it to dry for the apparently recommended two hours.

Or is there a anything else i need to bear in mind?

[Brucey]

it is not at all difficult to do a proper paint job that will last far better. Hammerite is OK on your wrought iron garden gate but it isn't really up to road salt on a bicycle.

My suggestion is;

a) - sand down starting with 150grit and finishing with 400grit paper giving feathered edges to the join onto the old paint.
b) - wipe down with solvent (cigarette lighter fluid is good for this) to degrease
c) - spray the bare metal with 1K etch primer
d) - use several coats of zinc-bearing primer (eg Davids zinc 182)
e) - flat off the primer using 400 grit then 600grit paper using plenty of water
f) - wipe down with solvent until dust free
f) - spray a coat of colour matching primer if necessary
g) - spray topcoat
h) - spray clearcoat if necessary.

On the other (unrepaired) side you can degrease, key with 400grit, then apply f-h. This way you will have a frame with a tidy paint job that (depending on the topcoat you use ) can have a blend into a close colour match or a contrasting colour on the dropouts. More to the point this paint job will (unlike a quick daub with hammerite) actually last more than one winter before the frame starts to rot.

cheers

[Sweep]

Cripes brucey, you know i respect your opinions but is it really that complicated?

If so, i will have to come back with some more questions about some of those technical terms.

And you no doubt have supplies of all those paint layers to hand, but i don't.

[Brucey]

if you want simple then just use two different paint layers; zinc primer and topcoats.
[BTW I omitted to mention that treating the bare steel with a phosphate treatment before any paint is beneficial.]

A two layer system won't be quite as good but it will be x10 better than a hammerite daub. The instructions I have provided you with will, if followed carefully, allow you to create a professional quality finish, at least as good as you can get with over-the-counter materials.

In fairness if the repair heat is localised, the area with bad paint may be very small, and confined to the region that is always covered in chain lube. If so then corrosion is maybe going to be no big problem.

cheers

[Vorpal]

If you want it to last, whetever you use, a paint job is only as good as the surface preparation beforehand.

[fastpedaller]

Hammerite is OK on your wrought iron garden gate but it isn't really up to road salt on a bicycle.

I usually agree with everything Brucey writes, but on this occassion......... In my book there's only one thing to do with Hammerite - put it in the bin!! (not really allowed of course)
Hammerite has to be the worst paint around! Dreadful stuff I certainly wouldn't use it on a garden gate ( I did once and it was a disaster)

I do, however, agree with all the 'Brucey Painting Procedure'
I add, by way of illustration the following......
Having welded some steel gates I abraded the steel with grade 320 to get rid of any mill scale and provide a key, a (brushed) cote of zinc-rich primer was followed by an undercoat and satin enamel top coat..... 7 years on, and not sign of any flaking or rust - I can safely say this WOULD NOT have been the case with Hammerite!
FP

[rualexander]

Just slap the Hammerite on it.
I've painted a bike with Hammerite before, lasts ok, probably need re-doing in a few years but no problem.
I've also used it for major touch up painting, and for painting over heat damage from rebrazing rear dropouts, again no problem, think I used a primer undercoat in that instance.
I also once brush painted a VW camper with green hammerite, directly on the old white paint, worked a treat.

[wirral_cyclist]

Hammerite 'back in the day' was OK but now it's low VOC/safer/ozone friendly whatever - without xylene(?) it really is poor.

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Hammerite is expensive for a small job but if you use the primer (pink or brown) first two coats then two or three top coats it will last a long time.
If rust is present then treat it with "Kurust" first (this is expensive stuff.
Top coat use the smooth "garage door enamel" IIRC, they might of changed the name, NOT plain "Smooth or Crinkle" they are too thick normally but smooth would be ok.
Took me a long time to realise you need the primer first with this stuff.
No need to rub down..........its not antique restoration

I painted my garden gate approximately 15 years ago and only one top coat, its still very good but some rust in small area's.

[Heltor Chasca]

Sweep, I get where you are coming from as I do the posts recommending a 'proper job'. My thoughts always look to the future and whether or not I'm going to sell it on or not. Just a thought...b

[Psamathe]

...
Hammerite has to be the worst paint around! Dreadful stuff :( I certainly wouldn't use it on a garden gate ( I did once and it was a disaster)
...

Used some on a drain cover many years ago and it must have lasted at least a year.

Used some more recently on garage door surface mounting hinges and it didn't last the year.

I'm also not i,pressed with it.

Ian

[fastpedaller]

Hi,
Hammerite is expensive for a small job but if you use the primer (pink or brown) first two coats then two or three top coats it will last a long time.
If rust is present then treat it with "Kurust" first (this is expensive stuff.
Top coat use the smooth "garage door enamel" IIRC, they might of changed the name, NOT plain "Smooth or Crinkle" they are too thick normally but smooth would be ok.
Took me a long time to realise you need the primer first with this stuff.
No need to rub down..........its not antique restoration

I painted my garden gate approximately 15 years ago and only one top coat, its still very good but some rust in small area's.

And in the next year it will probably fall off in large sheets if my experience is anything to go by! - And my experience of this paint dates from over 25 years ago, so probably predates the "Low VOC"
FP

[Mick F]

Hammerite 'back in the day' was OK but now it's low VOC/safer/ozone friendly whatever - without xylene(?) it really is poor.

I agree on that completely.

I wouldn't give hammerite house room nowadays.
Complete waste of money.

[francovendee]

I agree, absolute rubbish for the sort of jobs it used to do very well.
I now use a 'cheap' own brand metal paint from the supermarket and the results are no worse and possibly a little bit better.

[pwa]

Having tried Hammerite on two commuter bikes (exposed to winter crud) I would now try Brucey's methods. Hammerite can look good when fresh (sprayed on in multiple thin coats) but the rust will reappear in a few weeks around braze-ons (especially cable stops) and elsewhere. It just doesn't keep the rust at bay. Even the old Hammerite (with Xylene) was pretty ineffective. I would take a bit of time to assemble the materials to do a Brucey on it, then roll up my sleeves and try to do something that will last.