Touch-up Paint for Red Valve Covers

[Guest cdtyler]

I have a small nick in one of the valve covers on my Rosso Corsa. Can someone point me in the direction of the correct touch-up paint?

 

Thanks,

 

Carl Tyler

Millbrae, CA

2003 Rosso Corsa

[al_roethlisberger]

As noted in another recent thread about red paint matching, MG does have paint codes for their bikes, but they aren't well documented, and no paint shops have those codes(typically), and no touch-up vendors make specific MG formulations either.

 

... perhaps someone has found a specific touch-up paint color that works OK, but if no one offers a suggestion, here's what I did for the original "pork chops" on my '02, which were the same color as your covers(well close anyway)....

 

So what I did was .... I went down to my local drug store, and bought every bottle of nail-polish that I knew would be "close". I think I ended up with about 5, so a ~$10 investment... and then went home and made some sample paint chips, and with a little trial and error, found one that was "close"

 

I doubt you'll find a perfect match, but you should be able to figure something out that is a reasonably close match, at least from a distance.

 

al

[RichMaund]

I thought the covers were anodized and then clear coated. Correct me if I'm wrong. But if so, a close match is all you can get. No touch up paint can replicate a multi layer finish like that.

[Frank]

Hi Rich,

 

I had a revelation about 2 weeks ago. I was looking through Eastwood's catalogue and saw information on powdercoating. There is a powder called anodized red and an example of an old Triumph primary cover powder coated wih a transluscent coating. I believe the valve covers and hamcans are powdercoated over aluminum.

 

Frank

[Guest cdtyler]

"I went down to my local drug store, and bought every bottle of nail-polish that I knew would be "close". "

 

Drug store?? Heck, I'll bet there's something in my wife's closet.

 

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Carl

[RichMaund]

I love the Eastwood catalog. Very cool stuff.

They make "clear" powdercoats. So no doubt that special red and a clear would work.

 

But it's been my experience that powdercoats aren't as UV resistant as good catalyzed urethane paints are. They chalk up with sun exposure. Kind of like the way most CF accessories do. I think I would try that anodized red powdercoat and then use a good catalyzed clearcoat atop it done with a small HVLP gun.

[al_roethlisberger]

The MG "anodized" red of the "porkchops" and valve-covers on some models, is paint. MG put a sort of candy finish to achieve the appearance of anodization, but in fact is a liquid application, and a thick one at that. This is readily apparent once one sees the gray/silver undercoat, and the thickness of the finish once it chips... and it chips very easily, especially around bolt holes.

 

Because the valve covers are cast aluminum, they cannot be anodized.... well, technically they *can* be anodized, as all that is aluminum oxide But because of the impurites in the cast aluminum(sulfer predominantly if I recall), the anodization will turn black/dark-gray and splotchy.... unsuited for staining, red in this case.

 

There are a couple past threads on this topic, and all concur, as well as after my visit to a couple well respected anodization shops here said the same thing.

 

I am uncertain if the pork chops would have the same issue, as they may not be the same poor cast aluminum

 

 

That all being said, I had two sets of valve covers, and one set of pork-chops, anodized a "candy" red.... that looks very good, and matches the bike well. A more "orange" red(which I have on one set) would be closer to the MG red, and perhaps one could find a "anodized red"(as referenced earlier in this thread) powder coating that would also work well.

 

But mine is called lollipop red and looks more-or-less candy apple, perhaps a little brighter. With the pork-chops coated the same red, it goes well with the other red accents on the bike. But if you had a red-framed bike, I think this color would clash as the MG red is a bit more toward the orange end of the spectrum, than my powder coating, which has a darker hue.

 

Anyway, I found the powder coating to be very durable, and great looking.

 

I cannot speak to long term durability, but the PC shop I used coats lots of bike/auto parts and said the product has worked well for them in various applications.

 

al

[leafman60]

Ok boys , go down to a hobby store or craft store with a good selection of Testor's enamel paints. You know, the ones in those itsy bitsy bottles that are so hard to shake up. They have a "metallic red" which can closely match the red porkchop, valve cover look. But wait, dont shake it up too much. Experiment with various degrees of metallic dust in the mixture to get the correct tone. I just open the top and brush down in the littlle jar and pick up red with a little metal to get the right look.

[callison]

 

I did away with the red entirely.

 

I really, really like that red the 2002 LeMans had though. Actually, it was pretty disconcerting. On the way up to Yosemite National Park with Al and bunch of the other semi-local Guzzisti a few years back, the sun kept glancing off of the red LeMans behind me and when I glimpsed it in my mirror, I thought it was the red light of a Highway Patrol cruiser. I must have gotten that impression a half dozen times. It was just plain frightening. A lovely color...