Clear coat over decals?

[Shadow1]

Ok, I'm in the middle of my paint project. I get to paint my bike under the tutilage of an experienced painter. He has over 50 cars under his belt, but he's never done decals. So when he asked last night if the clear would work ok sprayed over the tank decals I have planned, I really couldn't give him a good answer so I told him I'd take it to the forum. Any painters out here want to chime in on this? Thanks in advance...

[dman4486]

you should be fine clearing over decals

[Skipstur]

You should be alright for a while... eventually the decal will shrink and seperate from the clear. Not that it will look bad, you will just have a hair line around it. I would put the decal on after the paint had some cure time. a month or so. Skip (ps some time in the future you may want to take it off)

[nrburkett]

Originally Posted by Skipstur

You should be alright for a while... eventually the decal will shrink and seperate from the clear. Not that it will look bad, you will just have a hair line around it. I would put the decal on after the paint had some cure time. a month or so. Skip (ps some time in the future you may want to take it off)

+10

I am going through the same process and actually asked the people where I am getting my paint. They are a custom paint/affects shop and they said the same thing..... They actually went on to say SOME decals the clear will eventually peal away from, kinda like the older 80's-90's GM cars that the clear would lift up on. They suggested the same as Skip, put them on after the paint cures.

[Mad_bohemian]

Shadow1,
I did a search on a custom paint forum (www.custompaintforum.com) that I'm a member of and I found this:

Originally Posted by JAMMINJ

I don't think I would scuff the decal. It is easy to hit the edge and tear the decal or bury grey fuzz into the edges. Ureathane will burn itself into the decal well enough for good adhesion. If anything, spray a light coat of adhesion promoter. I would start with by 3-4 medium/wet coats of clear and wetsand the whole job with 600-800 until all of the edges around the decal have been flatenned. Shoot 1-2 over reduced flow coats, sand with 1500-2000 and polish. The key is getting rid of any edges, so the decals appear to be painted on. If you use applicator fluid or water to apply the decals, let them dry a few days in the sun before spraying anything over them. Of course you want to be certain the decals you use are ureathane compatible.

Good luck and post some pics of the finished work!!

[thunderglass]

The old XL250 in my signature picture has had mylar decals applied and then clear coat applied over the top to protect the decals. It's been 3 years and still look good as new. I put about 5 coats of clear over them allowing 24 hours between coats. I wet sanded between coats.