Respraying the bike has started...

[skellem]

looking good dude!

Shouldn't be a problem for a man of your Calibra! Presume the wing mirror hints at the finished colour of the Vara? Good choice sir, good choice!

Yes, all black..I deffo think that black looks best

Good luck with the spray job. Remember to take you time and get the preperation spot on before spraying, it pays dividends in the end.

Aye, it takes a while but it's all getting done by the book!

Nice page, looking forward to following your progress. I would think a slightly bigger compressor would be better for a perfect spray, but your result shows excellence ! .... what paint are you using, and what mix ? For the cracked light housing, try to get hold of some model plane CA glue, I used it on my sidepanel and it is good (get that type that do not melt isopor). To make it cure faster you can get a heptan booster spray and it cures instantly. Then again a new housing might be cheaper ..

The compressor just manages to keep up with that gun. I think a non gravity feed gun wouldn't do so well. The housing has already been ordered from Honda, it costs all of £10. I asked for a price for a new side fairing...£180 So I'll repair the one I have!

I suspect the real test will be how it looks 12 months after the respray.
Spraying plastic - even with the special undercoats - is very difficult without a temperature controlled environment.

The undercoat, primer, base colour and lacquer have to have cured to just the right point before continuing to get good adhesion and a lasting, crack free result.

I was told this by my local specialist paint retailer. I continued to spray various plastic bits of my Varadero and was very pleased with the result

12 months later, the cracks started to appear

I do hope you have better luck

I did have that very thought, you never know what will happen with time. If it starts cracking, I'll have to take it to a professional to re-do


One thing I didn't do was make sure the tank was ridden dry before I parked it up. I had to remove and drain a whole tank full of petrol! It filled up 2 petrol containers twice each and I ended up having to put it in the car!