Process

I have provided this information to give the customer an insight into the custom painting process and the steps that Rebel Creations will go through from the start to finish of a paintjob. Custom paiiting is a specialist, labour intensive type of work that involves a lot of skill in order to produce a completely one of a kind paint job - but the results are well worth the effort.

As an example I will use the process of custom painting a motorcycle in this section as this is the most commonly seen process within the Rebel Creations service. There are some slight variations to this process depending on the type of paints used in a job, however the process below is the one most commonly followed by Rebel Creations.

Stage 1 - Initial meeting of a client for discussion of ideas/theme for their paintjobInitial meeting of a client for discussion of ideas/theme for their paintjob:

Here the client talks to me as the painter/artisit/designer and discusses any preliminary ideas they have for their motorcycles paintjob. As the artist I can usually help develop their ideas pretty quickly and suggest possible adaptations that would make their ideas more aesthetically pleasingwhen complete. I would usually look at the assembled bike and take pictures of it with my camera, or be given a picture/s of the bike by the owner (which are usually kept for reference purposes), during this meeting. This stage of the process is important so that I can consider the shape, lines, and overall loook of the bike and I can get a feel for what it will look like with potential new paint scheme ideas.

Stage 2 - QuotationQuotation:

After an inital meeting has takebn place, a quotation can usually be given a few days later. If the customer is happy with the quote we then move on to the next stage of the process.

Stage 3 - Sketch/Virtual digital concept of design creationSketch/Virtual digital concept of design creation:

From the ideas gained from the inital meeting I would then either do some sketches or create a virtual (computer based) design of what the bike will look like when complete. I may either use Adove photoshop or sketch the design depending on the complexity of the paint scheme. My past experience in Transportation design aids me in this process. The sketches/ computer based design would then be presented to the customer for final approval before painting beings. Any changes can easily be made in this stage to tailor the paint scheme to exactly how the customer wants it.

Stage 4 - Delivery/Pick-upDelivery/Pick -up:

After final approval of the design/artwork on the new paint scheme the bike parts are either delivered to my premises by the owner, or collected form the owner at an additional charge. Bikes must be disassembled into prts for the painting process. The customer can decide whether they wish to simply give me the already disassembled parts, or leave the bike with me and I can disassemble the parts myself for an additional charge.

Stage 5 - Prep WorkPrep Work:

After collection/delivery of parts, prep work begins. This usually includes stripping of any of the original paintwork off metal parts, (such as the petrol tank) right back to metal. This decreases the risks of any imperfections in the paintjob due to reaction between chemicals in the original paint work and the new paint work. If you are simply painting on to metal and not on top of an original paintjob then reaction between chemicals are removed as you know exactly what paints are involved in the job. At this stage any dents or dings in the metal work would be corrected and filled, then smoothed to form the shape of the original piece.

Stage 6 - Spraying of Printers, Sealers, and Base coatsSpraying of Primers, Sealers, and Base coats:

With prep work complete, usually 3 to 5 coats of primer are sprayed first. I usually use a high quality build primer that has etching qualities so can be sprayed directly onto metal. (If plastic parts are being painted, the parts are propely prepped and sanded before an adhesion promotr or a primer sealer is used depending on the pastic and its condition).

Once cured, the primer may then be wet sanded. This gives a completely smooth and perfected finish for the rest of the paint to be sprayed on top of. The prep stage of the process is much more important than some people think - this stage forms the foundation for the rest of the paint job and if it is not done correctly then this will show through the rest of the job. With design references to hand a primer sealer coat is then sprayed on top of the primer to prevent any seeping through or leaching of base coat paint into the primer. Some painters miss out this stage although I consider it to be essential in creating the highest wuality, long lasting custom paintjob. The seal coat also gives the bike parts a uniform colour such as black, white, silver or grey so that when the base coats are sprayed there is no difference in colour throughout different areas of the parts. Different coloured seal coats can also give different effects when using transparent paints such as Kandies.
The seal coat only usually takes a short time to dry (around an hour), before the base coats can be sprayed. Usually between 4 and 7 basecoats colours are sprayed (depending on product) to give a rich and even colour and coverage throughout bike parts. The base coats give base/or background colours for airbrush artwork (if there is any artwork on the job- in this case we will assume there is), or provide the first stage of a multi-coloured paint job.
If multiple basecoat colours are to be used in a paint scheme an inter-coat clear, (more info on this below), would be sprayed between each colour so that the masking off of the desired section of basecoat below can be applied safely without damaging the basecoats finish. A building up of different coloured layers with different shaped areas of masked off sections is how many two, three, or even more, multi coloured custom designs are achieved.

Stage 7 - Application of Artwork (if the design contains airbrush work)Application of Artwork (if the design contains airbrush work):

Often a clear coat or two, known as an inter-coat clear, will be sprayed before artwork to protect the base coat underneath from tape marks or blade marks that may occur if using masked stencils, plotter vinyl’s or fine line tape for laying out traditional style flame designs. The clear coat also means that any minor mistakes or imperfections, in the artwork can be removed much more easily using fine grade wet and dry paper without damaging the basecoat below. If a pearl, metallic, kandy or other special effect base coat is used, then it would be ruined if sanded on top of to remove any imperfections, as the pigment in the paint which gives it is special finish would be damaged without the protection of the inter-coat clear.

After the inter-coat clear is sprayed and allowed to dry the airbrush art work is applied. This is often the longest part of the custom painting process due to detail, multiple masking techniques and time needed to complete high quality artwork properly. It could honestly be described in a ‘Process’ section of its own.

Stage 8 - Clear coating/laqueringClear coating/laquering:

Clear coating/ lacquering is the final spraying of liquids through the spray guns in the custom painting process. Usually 4-7 coats of clear are sprayed in custom paintwork to give a very high gloss, glass like shiny finish, which gives great depth to airbrush artwork and special effect paints below. The clear coats are allowed to dry properly before the first  wet sanding of clear coats stage.

Initial Wet Sanding of clear coats:

Wet sanding is used in custom painting to provide the customer with a immaculately finished new paint job. All the bike parts are rubbed over with wet and dry paper which removes clear coat for example in areas where artwork below has caused this section to be slightly higher than the rest of the paint work. This smoothes the top surface of clear and gives a completely floorless finish as the wet sanding also removes any dust or dirt nibs which may have stuck to the top coat of clear whilst drying.

Stage 10 - Doubling up on Clear coatsDoubling up on Clear coats:

Sometimes in custom painting after wet-sanding of the initial clear coats, the painters will choose to spray another set of clear coats to really finish off the work.

This secondary application of clear firstly re- applies any clear that has been removed through the previous wet sand- helping to protect any areas that may have become a little thinner/lower than others due to wet-sanding, and flatting of artwork etc in the initial clear coats.

Application of a secondary set of clear coats also helps give a real look of depth and deep shine that is so prominent in the highest quality custom paintwork.

After the spraying of the secondary sets of clear, any of the basecoats and artwork in the paintjob become even more buried by the clear coats, helping to protect these lower coats, and therefore increasing the durability of the paintwork.

Stage 11 - Spraying of underbodySpraying of underbody:

After some partial curing in the booth the undersides of parts, (metal ones especially) are sprayed in underbody. This is a sticky black tar-like stuff that protects the undersides of the metal from corrosion and rust, as well as neatening up the undersides and finishing off the job properly.

After the spraying of underbody the parts are left to cure properly for a few days before the final stages of wet sanding and polishing.

Stage 12 - Final Wet snading and polishingFinal Wet sanding and polishing:

The final wet sanding takes place after completely burying the art work in the second lot of clear coats and then allowing the clear coats to cure and harden properly. Because artwork etc has already been buried and then sanded in the first wet sanding stage (unless multiple overlapping graphics are involved in the design and therefore more clear coat or inter-coat stages are added- 1 per paint layer as previously),this final wet sand perfects the top surface of clear and removes any specs of dirt or dust ready for polishing.

The surfaces are firstly sanded with 1200 grit wet and dry paper to remove any of the natural ‘orange peel’ effect that occurs through any spray-gun applied paint.

The 1200 grit also dulls the paintwork however so I then repeat the sanding of all surfaces with a 2000 grit paper to get back to a more satin like finish

A product called a Trizact pad is then used wet on a DA sander on all surfaces. This is a very, very, fine abrasive pad which removes any final score marks left in the paint from the sanding with the 1200 and 2000 grit wet and dry.

I then use a paste polish and sponge compounding head to begin the polishing of the surfaces. Polishing brings back the high gloss, shiny appearance of the clear as the wet sanding knocks the shine and leaves the bike parts looking dull in appearance.

Once all surfaces have been compounded with the slightly courser paste polish I go over all surfaces once more with a finer polishing compound which gives a floorless finish to the pieces. The final wet sand and polish should provide a glass like finish, removing imperfections and making sure the top surfaces of clear are perfectly smooth to the touch. The compounds used whilst polishing help protect the paintwork from the weather as well as from petrol stains and corrosion.

Stage 13 - The custom painting process is now complete and parts can be returned to the customer for re-assemblyThe custom painting process is now complete and parts can be returned to the customer for re-assembly:

There is a lot more work involved in custom painting than most people think which is partly why I have explained the process here. I must re state that custom paintwork is very specialist. It is labour intensive and requires a lot of skill to master techniques that are not easy. At the end of the day you are also getting a completely one off product, that’s why it doesn’t come cheap! If someone says they can do you the same job as a professional custom painter in half the time, and for half the price, then there is physically no way that their paintwork will be up to the same standard. At the end of the day you are also getting a completely one off product, that’s why it doesn’t come cheap! If someone says they can do you the same job as a professional custom painter in half the time, and for half the price, then there is physically no way that their paintwork will be up to the same standard. If care and attention is not involved throughout the whole job from the very first prep stages then there’s a good change you could have problems with your paintwork as time passes down the line. Problems such as de- lamination of paint or bleeding, fading, and patching of work are common with paintjobs that have not been carried out in the correct environment. If you want a custom paintjob then have it done right! There is no benefit from thinking you’re saving by spending a bit less money from a ‘back yard’ painter- because in the long run the results will not be satisfactory never mind up to proper custom paintwork standard.

At Rebel Creations we expect the highest quality of each and every piece of work that leaves our shop! It’s how we build our reputation where it counts- on the streets! By using the right sort of high quality paints, taking the right amount of care and attention in our paintwork, and most of all cutting no corners on the hard labour side of the paintwork, Rebel Creations can provide you with the highest quality paintjob you are looking for. In my opinion you get what you pay for and it is definately worth considering that in the world of paint work - the choice is yours!

 

Rebel Creations 2009 © | Designed by Bobfolio