2000 RX Millenium Paint & Graphics

[etemplet]

This small rectangular discolored patch is the paint I plan to use. It is Base/Clear so it is unactivated and not the true color. Good think I like adventure, I never know what's gonna happen. I am a controlled catastrophy when it comes to painting. I can do good prep but after that.... close your eyes and hang on.

 

[etemplet]

I'm almost done with the taping. What a pain in the azz. I'll finish up masking tomorrow. I'm painting outside so I'm hoping for some good weather. LOL I hate painting. Funny thing is you don't realize how much work it is till you are almost done.

 

[etemplet]

I went out this morning and picked up some sealer for the hull and it rained while I was out. Even with a few showers in the area the weather turned out really nice in the afternoon... just a tad windy. I did say a few prayers while I was painting this thing. The sealer didn't flow like I would have liked but after some discernment I went ahead and painting the Base Coat and it looked pretty good. I was happy for certain and used all my skills to try to get the Clear on there and looking good. I can say this...Boy O Boy these skis are difficult to paint. I'm happy with the way it came out. I can't call the ski ugly no more. Mght go with "Da Sizzler".

This was the base coat. I ended up mixing in a tad more silver to get the color to match like I wanted. Looks like primer.



This is after the clear coat. I'm happy with it for sure.

 

[etemplet]

A few more shots of the process today.

 

[mikidymac]

Looking great!

 

[NCGator25]

Wow, it looks great!

I'm curious what type of sanding you did prior to painting. I've seen others say they simply used 400 grit and that was it.

Did you prime it first? How many base coats? How many clear?

 

[etemplet]

Wow, it looks great!

I'm curious what type of sanding you did prior to painting. I've seen others say they simply used 400 grit and that was it.

Did you prime it first? How many base coats? How many clear?

I sanded with 320 grit and what surprised me is I was able to use my DA sander for a lot of it which made it easier. I used a Sealer and not a primer. I chose the wrong hardner ("medium" I shoulda got "slow"). for the sealer and shite got hard so fast in this heat it plugged gun after I finished spraying.

I use the economy brand of paints when I shoot. "Shop Line" paint and Clear and I used "ACME Finish 1" sealer. The "Sealer" seals the surface and stops the paint from being absorbed by the surface. If you don't use sealer you could have flat spots or discoloration. I used 16 ounces of "sealer" which gave me good coverage. If I'd had the correct hardner I might have put a second coat.... maybe. Each coat is another opportunity to screw something up. So I'm careful.

For the color I bought a Pint which when you mix it makes a quart. I used 2 coats of color (base Coat) It takes a tad less than 16 ounces to cover the ski wih a good coat. I try to match the colors but you'll never get a perfect match and it doesn't matter when you are painting everything.

Clear mixes at 4:1 so it takes more clear and you need a quart of that. I did 2 coats of clear. I don't like putting on a lot of paint. Years ago I saw paint jobs crack because too much paint was applied. You can get away with a lot with the paint job so it's best not to stress too much over each process.

I was blessed with a good day and we don't have the luv bugs we normally have this time if year so I didn't have to fight the little bastards. "Look fresh paint !!! Let's land on it" Gotta also keep in mind that is's a jet ski and nobody gets a really close or cares how perfect it is. If you back up far enough anything looks good. Ha ha. I'm very happy with it. Just remember it takes a lot more time than you think it will and preparation is everything. I have the ski outside today baking in the hot sun. People might be surprised how that pulls out imperfections and help it dry quicker.

Now I have to put it back together without scratching it all up. Ha ha.

 

[etemplet]

OH WELL, I spend Saturday putting the RX back together and you know you have to clean everything and make it all pretty. My wife came out when I was putting the UN-PAINTED hood back on the ski. We determined the Hood Gray looks out of place and I have some Black Metallic paint so.... I'm gonna paint the hood and handle bar cover. Of course you always find broken thing when you take these skis apart. Minor stuff on this one though. I hope to have the Hook painted tomorrow. Not sure how it is gonna look yet.

 

[etemplet]

So, since the hood was already off the ski for painting it was pretty easy to get it prepped. Not quite done but well on the way. Looks like this will be a "one of a kind" RX. LOL

Funny the darker gray didn't look that mismatched on the ski before painting. Perhaps it is because I don't have the glove box to ease the transition. I'm sure the graphics had something to do with it as well. We're working on the graphics.

 

[mikidymac]

Amazing work!

 

[etemplet]

Amazing work!

Thanks I appreciate the kudos but I'm not that good, I'm just persistent. I'll be fighting the weather today and hopefully have the paint drying this afternoon.

 

[etemplet]

It was kinda touch and go painting the hood and all the parts in the yard. I was just about to mix the Clearcoat when decided to take a break in front of the fan. Looking out I see rain drops on the hood. I got everything in the shop... the base coat was dry so no harm done. Took a couple hours off and finished up. I don't like painting but it looks soooo good afterwards. LOL

O hope it don't look like an OREO Cookie with the black on top and bottom and the grey in between. LOL

 

[etemplet]

Not much more for the looks but it's coming together. PWCGRAPHICS has the tracings of the stock graphics so we'll see what we end up with. The hood is mounted and I'm just lacking the handle bar cover. You lose a lot of details with the black metallic. Ski reminds me of the Oakland Raiders now.

 

[NCGator25]

Looks great! My hood is going to be painted black too, so it's helpful to see what it looks like. Also, thanks for the info on you process. My biggest fear in doing it, is ending up with something like Chrome Donkey did on Youtube. His paint didn't dry properly, and he had to pay a shop to sand blast it off. He was painting RXs too. Anyway, still planning on doing mine this fall/winter!

 

[etemplet]

Ugly's transformation is nearly complete. Just the rub rails and graphics left. Using black on the hood definitely made the lines difficult to see see but the graphics will make a difference. I didn't paint the handle bar cover and glove box cover Black Metallic but I used Hammered Silver which gave a little contrast and less time consuming. Here are a few pictures of where we are now.

My wife took a picture of me workin. LOL

 

[etemplet]

CHECK IT OUT BAY-BEE !!! Just about done. Fired it up today and is started right up. I was expecting some resistance since the ski was upside down for 3 weeks but I had the fuel and oil drained. Got the rubrails mounted. Just the mats and graphics left and I'll be waiting on graphics for a bit.

 

[etemplet]

Man I had to share these pictures. Finally got the ski outside in good lighting and a decent background. It just jumps off the photo. So glad my wife goaded me in to painting the hood a different color than gray. I think it looks bad azz. LOL Now I'm just waiting on the graphics. Gonna be too pretty to ride. LOL

 

[etemplet]

Looks great! My hood is going to be painted black too, so it's helpful to see what it looks like. Also, thanks for the info on you process. My biggest fear in doing it, is ending up with something like Chrome Donkey did on Youtube. His paint didn't dry properly, and he had to pay a shop to sand blast it off. He was painting RXs too. Anyway, still planning on doing mine this fall/winter!

That black I have is a bad azz color and has good metallic in it. I found it when I was painting my race bike years ago. I'll have to get the number for it.