painting those gold forks

[cjvan]

i have a black 2011 with gold forks. i'm considering getting those things painted. my gut says they need to be a different color. has anyone done that? any suggestions or pics? many thanks!

 

[DJK1505]

At first I really wanted to paint mine as well. But as I added a few other gold accents I have really fallen in love with the way it looks.

 

[Hoover]

You will have a hard time prepping them for paint due to the texture of the metal. Perhaps a bodyshop pro could give you some advice.
I personaly love the gold forks.

 

[impostor1981]

I think sand blast them first, than gold powder coat and bake it. But it will come out glossy I think. Let us know how u get on.

 

[cjvan]

thanks for the tips. i liked the gold forks until i put on a yoshi exhaust. now with the chrome and the race-style of the exhaust, the gold forks look off. maybe i'll try a few simple decals first. then considering painting as plan b. thanks again.

 

[K-Gr.]

I think sand blast them first, than gold powder coat and bake it. But it will come out glossy I think. Let us know how u get on.

That is exactly the way to go if you want to paint them. It also does not have to come out glossy. Matt paint looks a bit cheap (especially if it is black) and you will have difficulties to keep it looking as good as when new after a very short time. So go for gloss if you can.

 

[Speedo007]

i have a black 2011 with gold forks. i'm considering getting those things painted. my gut says they need to be a different color. has anyone done that? any suggestions or pics? many thanks!

Here's a mockup I made of how it would look with black forks.

 

[Frengo]

I would rather wait until the time of the first fork maintenance... at that time, since they will have to be disassembled, it would be easy to send them to make a new anodization, in black. This is the very best solution, IMHO... since these forks are anodized, why paint them and somehow reduce their finishing to a cheaper one?

 

[MojoRisin]

I like that, it makes it look even more bad ass if that's possible.

 

[Fz2fast4u]

That looks awesome like that

 

[lothodon]

personally i love the gold, but it sucks as aftermarket stuff never matches. i'd recommend bead blasting rather than sand as the heat from the sand will distort the metal if it's not done right. bead blasting shouldn't. as they are anodized and not painted you "MIGHT" be able to paint over them without blasting as your not taking off "paint". if you try to anodize over the top of them it won't work.

i work with a lot of different anodized metal (and finishes), and have been told from our supplier that you cannot anodize over anodize.

 

[FZER]

Honestly, I think it would be easier to paint the exhaust black. Just my two cents. A lot less disassembly and prep. When they have to sandblast your forks, which they will, just think about if they let some of that get inside of them. They would probably tell you that they would have to rebuild them anyway.

 

[Frengo]

i work with a lot of different anodized metal (and finishes), and have been told from our supplier that you cannot anodize over anodize.

Wrong... In the past I had my forks anodized over the existing anodization, just to change color, the result was simply perfect. Even on my Honda SP1 (RC51 in the US), used the hard way on track for some 2500 km, the finishing was the same as the original and lasted without problems till the day I sold it... maybe your supplier was talking about a specific material, not that of forks...

 

[lothodon]

anodized or powder coated? big difference. did you end up with spots from the electrodes or did they "wire" them internally? i'd think the chemical bath alone would muck up the original finish if it were not removed.

 

[SpunkyTheTuna]

Anodizing is basically a process of controlled oxidation and the result is a more or less clear protective layer of aluminum oxide. Color anodizing is just a matter of using a dye in the solution. Shouldn't be a problem going from a light color like gold to a darker color like black. Just a matter of re-dyeing the forks.

 

[Fz2fast4u]

I'm guessing this would require the removal of the forks. I wonder how well a wrap would do I would think cheaper

 

[TundraTim]

My plan was to have the forks powder coated immediately after I bought it. However, I think I am going to Plasti-Dip mine to save the work of disassembling them. Plus, with Plasti-Dip, I will be able to remove it if I decide to sell the bike in order to return it to stock.

 

[sandroon]

The forks are hard-anodized and no painting wil be stable and unscratchable at all. The only way should be mechanic-chemical with re-anodizin threatment. So i suggest you........ sell them on ebay and buy a couple of fz1's forks... You can find it for about 200$... Or inform about a "fork's can change.
IMHO

 

[Deleted member 438]

My plan was to have the forks powder coated immediately after I bought it. However, I think I am going to Plasti-Dip mine to save the work of disassembling them. Plus, with Plasti-Dip, I will be able to remove it if I decide to sell the bike in order to return it to stock.

I checked out that plasti-dip and it doesn't seem that it will be a durable finish.

 

[TundraTim]

I checked out that plasti-dip and it doesn't seem that it will be a durable finish.

I thought the same thing before convincing a buddy to paint his grill with it. As long as there are enough layers, 6 or so thin coats, it's pretty durable. Plus, there is no prep work besides degreasing and wiping down with alcohol. If the finish doesn't hold up, it removes easily. The only problem I can see is not scraping it when the fork tube is put back through the triple tree.

I'll post pics of mine when I'm done, but it may be a few more weeks.