Question for all the experts. I have a Carbon fiber monocoque frame (Martec Superbike). For the winter I want to take all the components off, and give it a makeover. Since I will have the frame separated from the components, I was thinking about getting rid of the horrendous factory paint job, and just have the Carbon fiber matrix showing.
What is a good way to strip paint of a carbon fiber bike? Any solvents that won’t affect the layers of fiber? Maybe just sanding it down to the bare? Please help.
I posted this question a little while ago. General consensus was the danger of using some sort of stripper to remove paint from CF would also take off the bonding medium used to impregnate the CF fibres, and cause eventual delamination or breakdown of the frame. Looks like the only way to obviate this is to sand the paint off down to the top coat on the weave. Looks like a royal PITA to me
strip a small section in an area not normally visible first. You may, probably will, find that underneath is not a visible carbon weave. This a more expensive and time consuming exercise that is not usually done to painted carbon frames, I know as that is the case with my Kestrel.
I briefly owned the same frame and tried to do exactly what you are suggesting. I can’t blame you because it has one ugly paint job. You absolutely can not use a chemical paint stripper and if you sand the frame you will find that the primer has settled deep into the pits and low spots. That frame also uses a gray “filler” in some places (like around the bottom bracket) to smooth out the rough spots. As a previous poster correctly pointed out, it does not have a carbon weave under the paint. Once I realized all of this I stopped sanding and had an auto body shop paint it gloss black for $100. They painted it without having to sand all the way through the factory paint thereby alleviating my concern about damaging the carbon layup.
I have checked at many places around here in the Raleigh area, and they said they could not/would not paint it. I don’t know why.
I called Kestrel, and they suggested a palce called Joe’s Bicycle Painting. Has anyone had any experience with them? I would really just like a plain black paintjob with nothing fancy on it.
I will follow the advice and just have it repainted.
I can help with the ugly paint job! We generally do not sand all the way through the factory paint on carbon frames unless the paint is really falling off. Most painted carbon frame use a filler primer to hide the ugly areas. Simulated carbon can be painted in the event of a ugly weave.
As a previous poster correctly pointed out, it does not have a carbon weave under the paint.
I may be wrong, but I seem to recall someone who worked with carbon fiber telling me that for the most part, that ‘weave’ that we all rave about is simply a thin cosmetic layer. As such, not every bike that uses carbon fiber construction is going to have a carbon fiber weave - Trek is a good example - so regardless of the method/means, stripping such a finish off of a frame is going to be labor intensive and probabaly not very productive in the long run due to the reasons already mentioned. Having said that, I am unsure what the consequences would be for the frame, but I would think that a shop that has a bead blaster (some transmission shops use them) could accomplish the task in a fraction of the time as other methods!
I have the $350.00 receipt for a Klein Quantum Pro fork that was accidentally left in the box with a frame to be blasted. My blaster put a hole straight through it. We use many blasting medias for paint / corossion removal. We always hand prep all carbon frames ALWAYS!
Plastic Media - Paint Removal ( will not remove rust or corrosion )
Glass Beads - Remove rust and corrosion not very good on paint
I would wet sand it , 220 - 400 grit to see if the CF looks nice, as others have said, if its painted over, it wont be the "high tech weave " look. If its a polyurethane paint sanding may be tough. I would go with satin black or glossy, maybe metallic tan – brown (wont show dirt ). I have used poly beads on fiberglass, at lower pressures 80 - 50 psi and under its slow going,but better control.
Not to hijack the thread but it looks like 2 of you have owned and ridden Martec’s superbike. Obviously, neither of you liked the paintjob but what were your thoughts on the frame otherwise? I have seen them around pretty cheap in my size and I am kind of intrigued. Do I want to buy one?
As the other poster pointed out, the weave may not be as nice as Kestrel’s Talon SL. That’s what I was hoping for. I am going to see if I can remove the paint by sanding it down, and then sending it off to have it painted. I saw the paint jobs on Allen’s Site and they are beautiful. I don’t want anything fancy though.
Get that black carbarundom paper 220 - 400 grit , a firm foam rubber sanding pad, even a small electric sander depending how thick / hard to remove the paint is. If its a fairly thin coat and you see little surface texture changes, scuffing off the gloss maybe all you need, with a scotch brite pad (like a scouring kitchen pad) found at auto parts / body paint shop suppliers. If your crafty , buy some fuel proof model spray paint , $ 7 -10 a can , over some good primer . Depending on your level of $$$$ or time you need it back.
I purchased the frame after I saw the BP Stealth frame from Chucksbikes.com. I was in the market for a new bike, and I pointed the Stealth out to a friend of mine. he told me that Chucks has it for helluva lot less.
I ended up with the XL frame which is about equivalent to a 59 top tube. It is a very heavy frame with a weight of 3.6 pounds. (weight weenies are going into shock!!!)
I put all Ultegra on it and I am very pleased. It is a very comfortable ride. It feels pretty fast also. The only problem is the tolerances for the front derailleur and the rear brakes are very small. It makes it hard to work on. The internal cable routing gets a bit gunked up, and I have to change shifter cables every two months. Thank god for a great LBS.
It sounds like a lot of trouble, but it really isn’t. The bike rides like a charm and I am very happy with it. I have a great fit on it, and it has hauled me around on a few century rides.
I recommend the bike if you’re not worried about weight.
If you are thinking of repainting the less you work on it the better. I would use 320 or 400 sandpaper for sanding the factory finish. Any rougher and it takes mutiple coats of primer to hide the sanding marks.
Although we don’t show many simple paint schemes we do paint many in a single color / flat black, etc.
