Paint

[mophead]

So where do we go to buy Marakesh Red 658 paint?  Rattle can would be fine.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

Rather than waste time trying to find a BASF paint dealer, just take a part with the right color(battery covers are great)  along with the paint code to any auto paint dealer.  They can match your part or send you to someone who can.  Nowadays, many of these shops can put the paint in a rattle can for you.

Even some of the larger collision repair shops can do a match for you since they have the base and pigments in house.  Trouble is, they will want to shoot it, and their labor rates will kill you.

[mophead]

Thank you!

[gone_ape]

Another option are these folks.
 https://www.66autocolor.com/Motorcycle-Paint-BMW-Red-p/bmw-red.htm

I've used them for my Mystic red respray.  The color is an extraordinarily good match.  You DO have to shoot a clear coat (2-pac system-they sell that as well).  I am NOT a painter but wanted to try my hand at it and try to learn something new.

One can wont do a complete respray.  I needed 4 cans  for tank, side covers, radiator shrouds and tail section, plus 3 for the clear, so you can check those costs vs. what your local paint shop would charge. I thought I would go rogue and do a Ford metallic red until I found that a quart was $400 plus the underlayment plus the clear...ouch.  Mystic Red was Non-matchable to the shops I chatted up due to the metallic  "flake size" in the paint. 66 Color's paint is not the correct "metallic flake size either but it is damn close for my tastes.

Your paint, I believe IS NOT a metallic, so this will not be in play.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

GoneApe, you mention Mystic Red, that is the color of my K75RT.  My local guys match that by slightly modifying the formula for Ford's Fire Red tri-coat.  The cool thing is that they mix it as a simple base coat that doesn't require the base/mid application of the original Mystic Red that is so hard to match.  I have yet to stump them.  They even did a perfect match for Pearl Silver tri coat.

What's nice about going local was that if the paint match isn't perfect they can fix it.  My Mystic Red was a bit pink, so they mixed another batch for free, and let me keep the first which I used for an undercoat to make the right stuff go a lot farther.

Another nice thing about my local guys is that they have tons of product knowledge and are happy to answer questions and help with any problems I might have.  They have also given me stuff like free mixing cups, paint cans, filters and sandpaper.  Their prices are pretty much the same or a bit lower than the online guys, and I don't have to pay for hazardous material shipping.

[gone_ape]

Right on, Gryph...the few paint jobber shops here in my neck of the woods were nowhere near as helpful.  I guess I didn't speak the language of paint and the help just wasn't going to manifest. If only.  I guess I caved when "price for paint" dollar figures  were thrown around and their lack of enthusiasm for a noob novice.  Pushed the Easy Button and learned a lot about my first paint attempt...

[John Lang]

BMW changed their Marakeshrot after 1987 to make it less orange (than my version), so there are two paints with that name but with different numbers. I am not clear what the BMW 'paint code' numbers refer to, more than just actual colour, I think. Here's a site: http://www.bmbikes.co.uk/colourcharts.htm.

I keep putting off a re-spray. When it's too cold to ride it's too cold to spray.

My notes from reading this forum:

Marrakesh Red, Paint Code 222 matches, PPG Jaguar Salsa, 401a, 1964/CHA, 904799(B)

Chrysler Red engine paint a good match for 632 Red (not my Marrakesh, though).

[bocutter Ed]

I am not clear what the BMW 'paint code' numbers refer to, more than just actual colour, I think.

My background is print (ink), not paint, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of difference in lay-down practice.

A 'paint code' is the sequence of laying down a particular set of colours, the base of which will be an opaque colour, followed by perhaps a layer (or 2) of tinted transparent colour, followed by the protective clear coat. The middle transparent layers give the finished product 'depth' of colour.

[Laitch]

I keep putting off a re-spray. When it's too cold to ride it's too cold to spray.

:2thumbup:

[The Mighty Gryphon]

Right on, Gryph...the few paint jobber shops here in my neck of the woods were nowhere near as helpful.  I guess I didn't speak the language of paint and the help just wasn't going to manifest. If only.  I guess I caved when "price for paint" dollar figures  were thrown around and their lack of enthusiasm for a noob novice.  Pushed the Easy Button and learned a lot about my first paint attempt...

Paint guys are always leery of a new customer coming in with a strange paint code for an old bike that they probably never heard of.  That can lead to expensive, for them, jobs trying to mix a formula with nothing to tell them if they are getting it right.  Unless you are repainting in a different color ALWAYS bring a part with you that they can visually match along with the color code on the bike just in case they have it in their data base.  Even if it is in the data base, a part will help them determine if they need to correct to match any sun fading that may have happened in the past 30 years.   

Also keep in mind that the code on the bike is the color scheme, and not the actual paint code.  You need to look up the paint numbers on the internet to get the correct numbers for your color scheme.

If you are doing a repaint DON'T use a BMW bike color code.  Look at the cars around you.  When you see a color you like on a common late model car take a trip to the dealer and check the color code for it.  I personally like Ford colors, and they are common enough that paint guys don't have a problem mixing them.  I used two Ford colors when I did the faux SE paint job on Moby Brick Too.

The paint itself isn't that complicated.  Acrylic enamel automotive paint is what I use.  It's mixed 1:1 with medium reducer and applied with a cheap Badger airbrush.  I like the airbrush because it is almost impossible to f*ck up the base coat with it, and I can clean it in about two minutes with an couple tablespoons of lacquer thinner and some paper towels.  Another nice thing about the air brush is that it uses very little air and can run with a very inexpensive compressor.  Harbor freight has small units that will work with the Badger for only $40 when it's on sale:

https://www.harborfreight.com/1-3-hp-3-gallon-100-psi-oilless-air-compressor-97080.html

For clear I use a good rattle can clear made for automotive professional use.  I like the rattle cans because they don't require adjustments like a gun to lay down a good coat of paint, just shake and spray.  They also don't require any cleanup when I'm done.  Another benefit is that I don't have to worry about them flashing in the gun if I can't do a follow up coat right away.  This is the stuff I use:

https://www.amazon.com/Transtar-6213-Jammin-Clear-Aerosol/dp/B000RI57WG

The spray pattern is beautiful right to the end of the can.  It flashes for followup coats in 5 minutes, and can be handled in about an hour.  It cures to a good finish that can be sanded and polished in about an hour, and gets really hard in a couple weeks.  I try to paint in the fall so the paint has all winter to really cure before the bike goes on the road.

If you want a better than factory, show bike finish, apply 4 or more coats of clear, wet sanding any runs or orange peel with 800 or 1000 grit before the last coat.  After the last coat wet sand with 2500 and buff out with 3M Perfect It EX machine compound:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3M-Perfect-It-EX-Machine-Polish-STEP-2-8-oz-3M-06093-6093/231908350690?hash=item35fed09ae2:g:hDwAAOSw-RRXCUFC:sc:ShippingMethodStandard!14052!US!-1:rk:3:pf:0

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3M-Perfect-It-EX-UltraFine-Machine-Polish-STEP-3-8-oz-3M-06097-6097/331878191220?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

I apply the compound with a Harbor Freight Buffer with a 3" velcro head:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lake-Country-3-Inch-Dual-Action-Flexible-Backing-Plate-LC-43-073DA/183353539195?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

Foam pads for the compound, I get two each of the white and black pads:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lake-Country-Force-3-5-Pads-4-Pack-Special/282849927772?hash=item41db2b625c:m:mOu2pYkYQ1b3WY0papXZNBA:rk:12:pf:0

For the money, you can't beat the Harbor Freight polisher/buffer, especially when it's on sale:

https://www.harborfreight.com/6-in-57-amp-heavy-duty-dual-action-variable-speed-polisher-69924.html

Painting isn't rocket surgery.  Just take your time and make sure you have done the prep work carefully, that's where the critical part of the job is.

[koapono]

I use the following site for rattle cans, touch-up pens and other paint needs.
https://www.automotivetouchup.com/spray_paint.asp

I really don't have a local paint shop nearby unless I go into the city.
The site has a great options to match colors via paint codes, manufacturer colors and color charts.
It can be exhausting to search their data-base but I found a "near-perfect" match for BMW Madison Metallic applied to my 85 K100. Only a critical eye in direct sunlight would note the difference.

I have also had great results with following clear coat, expensive and must use once activated but goes on nicely and gives a nice finish.
https://www.spraymax.com/en/products/product/clear-coats-and-spot-blender/2k-clear-coat/



happy hunting!

[The Mighty Gryphon]

I have also had great results with following clear coat, expensive and must use once activated but goes on nicely and gives a nice finish.
https://www.spraymax.com/en/products/product/clear-coats-and-spot-blender/2k-clear-coat/

happy hunting!

I've used that stuff.  It's really nice, especially as far as resisting fuel around the filler.  I have successfully extended the pot life to a bit over a week by putting it in the freezer as soon as I'm done with it.  I don't use it very often because my paint guys don't carry it, and I usually do my paint work on an impulse basis when need, time, weather and ambition achieve a harmonic convergence.