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what's the best way to remove the clear coat covering the carbon on my frame,so i can re do the frame to make it all beautiful again ?.
removing clear coat
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You might try an automotive paint store. Ask them for some paint remover. Beware...it will remove ALL paint almost instantly from anything it touches. I'd also ask if it's safe for use with CF.
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Gee! I don't know. Can I trust you to difinitively say that it will be detrimental? Have you tried it & had a bad experience? What type / brand did you use? What happened to the CF you used it on?the bull said:
There is a surprising amount of CF used on cars & motorcycles today. Maybe the "bonehead" at the paint store might actually know.
That being said, I'm all in favor of erring on the side of safety. That's why I said to ck it out. If the owner of the bike isn't comfortable with that, let him reasearch it furthur.
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Read the seatpost article.
http://www.velonews.com/tech/report/articles/9053.0.html
I have never used paint remover on Carbon fiber.
I have used paint remover and let me tell you this, my friend, I would not even test think of putting it on anything that was not metal !
I can not comment on the surprising amount of carbon fiber in todays cars unless you are talking about the aftermarket carbon that "racer boy" used to replace the hood and ashtray cover on his 88 civic. The only car I have seen in the shop with a surprising amount of carbon on is the 1/2 million dollar SLR in our dealership, and I doubt the bonehead at the auto paint shop counter will be recommending any products for it, but even a bonehead should know not to use that stuff. :0
http://www.velonews.com/tech/report/articles/9053.0.html
I have never used paint remover on Carbon fiber.
I have used paint remover and let me tell you this, my friend, I would not even test think of putting it on anything that was not metal !
I can not comment on the surprising amount of carbon fiber in todays cars unless you are talking about the aftermarket carbon that "racer boy" used to replace the hood and ashtray cover on his 88 civic. The only car I have seen in the shop with a surprising amount of carbon on is the 1/2 million dollar SLR in our dealership, and I doubt the bonehead at the auto paint shop counter will be recommending any products for it, but even a bonehead should know not to use that stuff. :0
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638 Posts
I have done exactly what you are planning to do.
Results were amazing.
If you wish to just remove the clear coat to remove decals, a fine grain sandpaper will do.
If you wish to remove the paint also, then I would recommend a random orbital/fine sander with 80 grit, while working up to a finer grit for the best results.
good luck.
Results were amazing.
If you wish to just remove the clear coat to remove decals, a fine grain sandpaper will do.
If you wish to remove the paint also, then I would recommend a random orbital/fine sander with 80 grit, while working up to a finer grit for the best results.
good luck.
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wanted to take the clear coat all the way back to the carbon,is sanding the best way to go?.
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Wanted to take it all back to the carbon to get a nice even job done with no join lines any where. Will get a professional painter to do the job but no one really knows the best way to stip the clear coat from the carbon. Getting the paint off the rest of the frame is no problem. Bull, have you stripped the clear coat all the way back to the carbon?
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Not on an entire frame. I have done small parts and forks. You should try to lightly sand out all the scratches. You should not have to strip it down all the way. Just wet sand out scratches. Work your way from a corse to fine paper then buff it to a shine.One word...Water! Sanding the whole frame down to bare carbon will take along time. Your fingers will be killing you. You might not even have to paint it at all, but if you do you can clear coat over clear coat.
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Thanks for the help. Will have a go at the end of the race season.
I stripped my Giant TCR composite 2 winters ago and resprayed it as shown below. I did a long post on the process in the Giant section here on RBR.
I went with using sandpaper and think that's best. The clear coat is tough enough that you'll have to have some pretty strong stripper (made for urethanes and epoxies). That also means that the stripper may well attack the epoxy that's holding the carbon together. I'd highly discourage this method.
I used 100 grit to get the bulk off, being careful to stop immediately once I got through the clear. Finished up with 150, then 220. No water necessary although the silicon carbide paper (black 3M brand Wet-N-Dry) will last longer than the brown aluminum oxide paper.
Make sure you wash the bare frame with wax and grease remover after you're all done sanding. I use adhesion promoter as a base coat to help bond the first coat to the frame. After that, it's up to what type of finish/color you want to do.
I went with using sandpaper and think that's best. The clear coat is tough enough that you'll have to have some pretty strong stripper (made for urethanes and epoxies). That also means that the stripper may well attack the epoxy that's holding the carbon together. I'd highly discourage this method.
I used 100 grit to get the bulk off, being careful to stop immediately once I got through the clear. Finished up with 150, then 220. No water necessary although the silicon carbide paper (black 3M brand Wet-N-Dry) will last longer than the brown aluminum oxide paper.
Make sure you wash the bare frame with wax and grease remover after you're all done sanding. I use adhesion promoter as a base coat to help bond the first coat to the frame. After that, it's up to what type of finish/color you want to do.
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shabbasuraj said:
Here is a thread with pics describing my results at BF....
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?p=2411624&posted=1#post2411624
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did you use the fine paper on the carbon?,
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yes......martyn bruce said:
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