DIY: How To Paint ATV and Dirt Bike Plastic

blastermaster01

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Jul 22, 2009
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I saw this on another website and thought i'd post this. Sorry if something like this has been posted before.

The key to successfully painting ATV and dirt bike plastics is proper preparation. Using these procedures, you will be able to prepare your ATV and dirt bike plastic for painting.

Step 1:

It goes without saying that the first step is to clean the plastic. Once this is done, sand the entire surface with 180 grit sandpaper. After fenders have been in the sun and are subjected to the elements, they tend to get a really thin "crust" on them. You need to remove the "crust" by sanding.

atvpainting_01.jpg


Step 2:

After sanding, scrub all the plastic with Scuff Magic and a red scuff pad. This will help to remove any water soluble contaminants and also help to remove any contaminants that may have been ground into the plastic from Step 1.

atvpainting_02.jpg


Step 3:

Sand again with 180 grit to remove any spots or "crust" that you missed in Step 1.

atvpainting_03.jpg


Step 4:


Sandblast everything with 80 grit aluminum oxide, OR just take some steel wool and go over it a few times with straight lines, than a circular motion to clear up the straight lines.

Step 5:

Clean the plastic with Super Clean plastic cleaner.

atvpainting_05.jpg


Step 6:

Apply 2 heavy coats of Plastic Magic. Be sure to allow first coat to flash off before applying the second coat. Allow Plastic Magic to dry completely.

atvpainting_06.jpg


Step 7:

Now apply Black Cat high-build waterborne primer surfacer. The high build will fill any sand scratches and sandblast pits. Allow the Black Cat to catalyze completely before the next step. While the Black Cat is sandable before it is fully catalyzed, it does not get maximum adhesion until it is fully catalyzed.

Step 8:

Because Black Cat is a high-build primer surfacer, it has somewhat of a orange peel finish. Sand the surface smooth with 320 grit paper. Black Cat sands nicely and easily.

atvpainting_08.jpg


Step 9:

Any low spots or imperfections can be filled with Putty Flex and sanded smooth before applying sealer.

Step 10:

Apply a sealer that, when applied, provides a barrier between the topcoat and repair materials and prevents the solvents in the topcoat from attacking the repair material.
atvpainting_10.jpg


Step 11:

Once the selaer dries, you can apply your basecoat and clear coat. Don't forget to add a flex additive to the topcoat. That's it!

atvpainting_11.jpg
 
+1 rep 4 U. Nice info, and I'm sure this'll help many people! Those plastics in the pics just happen to be from a Kawasaki Bayou 220. And guess what quad I just got that needs a new paint job? :D Perfect timing.
 
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dry sanding, i would never recommend dry sanding plastics, it leaves scratches that are hard to fill and never looks right, yeah, they fixed it by putting all those plastic repairs on the plastic, but if they had just added water, it would look better, and you wouldnt be spending money on the plastic fillers.
and expense, not only could sand blasting rip right through the plastic, make it brittle, and uneven, but with all the money spent on paint, clear, plastic fillers, ect ect, you could have just bought colored plastics.
 
dry sanding, i would never recommend dry sanding plastics, it leaves scratches that are hard to fill and never looks right, yeah, they fixed it by putting all those plastic repairs on the plastic, but if they had just added water, it would look better, and you wouldnt be spending money on the plastic fillers.
and expense, not only could sand blasting rip right through the plastic, make it brittle, and uneven, but with all the money spent on paint, clear, plastic fillers, ect ect, you could have just bought colored plastics.

Actually dry sanding is fine as long as the repairs are primed and re-sanded with a finer grit. The reason why there's problems with cracking is people don't add a flex agent or use paint manufacturer's recommended mix ratios for "flexible parts". Automotive bumper covers are pretty much no different than atv/dirt bike plastics.
 
Hey guys, some of the paint on my frame came off (its the red thats on the red and white 2004 blaster). Can any1 tell me what that exact colour is called so i can re paint it?