Research continues in to the fairing for my replica, I have a couple of interesting leads that might bring results but have also had quite a few dead ends, it's scary just how many bike and bike related businesses have gone under in the last few years. I found several fairing manufacturers that have gone, a couple of them local that would have been ideal. Oh well, like I said, I have a couple of possible leads, time is on my side, I will go to Newark on Sunday and hope I will find something there.
In the mean time I set about painting the tank, it's almost a shame to hide that beautifully crafted aluminium but to be period correct it needs to be red. The question was - which red? The tail piece had already ben painted and looked about right to me from all the photos and videos I have gathered, so I went with that. A local company called VRS can scan an item and make the paint to match or can refer to their database which suggests the nearest colour. I turns out Ford Red Hot is a perfect match, so I gave them 15 quids, they gave me a 400ml aerosol full of the base coat of the correct colour.
The tank needed a couple of bits filling and then being ally it needed a coat of etch primer, standard primer would come off after a couple of years. On top of the etch primer went some high fill primer, which was then gently rubbed down, that gave me a pretty much perfect foundation for the base coat. It looked absolutely splendid at this stage, it was even better when the first coat of lacquer went on. I left it over night then came back to it the next day as a second coat of lacquer was needed, this is where it all went wrong. The first coat wasn't particularly thick and it had been drying for 12 hours, it should have been cured. However, when I went to put the next coat on I realised I would run out of the Halford's stuff I had used half way through, no matter I had a tin of some Polish stuff, there was more than enough in there. It went on really well for about 30 seconds and then it started reacting. I have never seen a reaction like it, the whole job was ruined. A whole day wasted, the whole lot had to come off and I had to start again, not chuffed. Not one bloody blinkin sodding bit. Oh well, we live and learn, second time round the Polish stuff went in the bin and I used Motip instead, which went on fine. It will need another coat but I am still waiting for the decals and I want the lacquer over them, it looks better and gives them some protection.
While they are on the way I will have a go at making the exhausts, they are going to have to be formed by hand, which may prove interesting as I have never done such a job before. I won't get to it today as the brake master cylinder has arrived for my mate's Mustang and that needs to be fitted.
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