Modern Vespa

Hey all. Im pretty committed now to a full nut and bolt restoration on a T5. I needs paint. Long story but essentially it is best if I sandblast it then have my body guy do his magic then paint it.

The cost of sandblasting is astronomical. To keep the project cost effective, I am looking to sandblast it myself. My father in law has a commercial sized sandblaster so I am going to practice blasting some old cowls I have to see how they turn out.

I know well enough not to blast it at full power....maybe not even a direct blast to the metal either bc I can imagine how powerful that sand it coming out hitting the thin metal. I'd like to avoid any warping.

Any other tips or tricks or things to be aware of when sandlasting?

Any others here have done their own sandblasting on their vespa?
Settings you may have used or how far back you stood or how long it took you? Anything to look out for?

I know I may be reaching but it's worth a shot. Thanks so much.

N

You may want to use a media other than sand if possible. Sand will work, but it can tear up the steel unless you really know what you are doing. I don't know why it would be so high to get it stripped, a local powder coater in my area charges $60 to do it (and about another $500 for the coating if wanted). I don't know the T5 model well, but if the headset is cast, plan on doing that by hand as the sand will groove the cast parts.

Thanks for this. Yes. I really don't know what I'm doing. Lol. Hence why looking for suggestions. Unsure if the coarseness of the sand is appropriate. So I'll maybe do a test run on a scrap sheet of metal before hitting the spare cowl. Reassess from there.

I only have one t5 frame. So I'll be erring on the side of extreme caution.

My sandblaster reuses 'worked' media for my frames which is now thinner and doesn't do damage to the metal. Frame will come out 'coarse' so it will need a first pass with an abrasive sheet or pad before epoxy primer…

The metal on these is pretty resilient. It's fairly hard to mess up the steel even with sharp sand.

I went out to double check. You're kinda right. Mind you the glove box metal is flimsier than my morals. Lol.

Make 100% sure you seal off areas where you don't want media to infiltrate. My guy blew through the gaffer tape at the bottom of the fork tube and there was sand everywhere. Nearly impossible to clean it up completely.

You may also want to look for furniture strippers in the area. Some of them have a big enough tank with solvent to dip the whole frame in.

I recently had my P125X completely sandblasted. I hired it out. Make sure you stay away from the sealant used to seal up the seams on the frame panels. My sealant was thankfully not damaged. They are mostly in the tank cavity of the frame. I hand sanded my entire scoot after sand blasting to get a real smooth finish. It was hard work but the results are worth it!

Do not sandblast aluminum parts! I recommend paint stripper for aluminum and plastic.

Hec

I have used sandblasting mostly to remove rust inside the frame tunnel and in hard to reach places. I use abrasive plastic discs to remove paint but usually don't remove original paint if it is in good condition. My home setup is much slower and less powerful than a commercial unit so there's no risk of damaging panels. I also have a blast cabinet for small parts.

Beautiful outcome!!! Great tip on the paint stripper.

I'm at a bit of a stalemate right now. But I'll figure something out.

How about the fork, rims, and hubs? Sandblasting appropriate?

What if I want to powder coat those pieces?

N

I had my fork, brake hubs, battery tray, carb box top, rims, and some smaller parts powder coated. My powder coating guy sandblasted all parts prior to powder coating. The key is to specifically tell him to plug holes and cover parts you do not want to get powder coated. I take pictures of the parts and add circles on the areas to mask and even note the color for each part and hand it to him. That way there is no confusion.

Hec

I figured. I mean the coating will change the dimension.

Thank you.

N

yes powder coating holes makes for headaches. parts I'm using on the vbb fork I'm building are powder coated and they always need cleaning up / out in order to fit again.

Some follow up questuons:

If sandblasting yourself:

1. Any psi parameters when shooting the steel?
2. Any recommendations on how to clean the sanded parts afterwards?
3. Do I need to sand as Hec did? If so, what type of sandpaper? What grit? Wet/dry?
4. How soon after I blast do I prime? Can I prime using spray paint primer?

This is essentially what I'm dealing with.

Looks like you got a good start on the paint removal! I think I would finish the paint removal using the paint stripper in the aerosol cans. I was amazed how well it worked on my horn cast, and aluminum parts. Spray it on let the paint bubble up and scrape it off with a plastic scraper. If the metal is free from scratches or pits from sandblasting, then you should be able to skip sanding the bare metal. Once you have it to bare metal, you will need to epoxy prime all the bare metal. Then do the body work and apply polyester primer. I hope this helps.

Hec

[quote="Hec In Omaha"]
Looks like you got a good start on the paint removal! I think I would finish the paint removal using the paint stripper in the aerosol cans. I was amazed how well it worked on my horn cast, and aluminum parts. Spray it on let the paint bubble up and scrape it off with a plastic scraper. If the metal is free from scratches or pits from sandblasting, then you should be able to skip sanding the bare metal. Once you have it to bare metal, you will need to epoxy prime all the bare metal. Then do the body work and apply polyester primer. I hope this helps.


It does. Great points. Thank you.

Could j just sandblast the paint off?

Epoxy primer? Can I buy that in a resolution form? From store like Harbour freight?

If you sandblast you risk leaving small pits in the metal which you should sand out. More work for you. The paint stripper will leave the metal nice and smooth. You may be able to order spray can epoxy primer on line. Amazon?

https://www.amazon.com/Eastwood-Epoxy-Primer-Spray-Aeroso/dp/B07Q5G8STD/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?crid=3IWWPDKI6FKRJ&keywords=epoxy+primer&qid=1697592369&sprefix=Epoxy+primer%2Caps%2C194&sr=8-3-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

Hec

You say you have free access to a commercial blaster and a couple old cowls to try out? I say go for it but I think the variety of media available can make a huge difference in the result. Do a little research into what's available and how it is used. You should be able to get good results that don't warp your frame or pit the surface unnecessarily. Horses for courses. Here's a media sampler w/ a form you can submit at the end to get their recommendations for your application. https://www.ntruddock.com/products/abrasives/abrasives/

Reason why I ask if I can sandblast the paint off bc half the bike is flash rusted. So sandblasting would remove the rust plus the remaining paint.

1- whatever it takes to remove the paint but not heat up and distort the metal.
2- a blow gun and a leaf blower to get the sand out, then a wax and grease remover to clean the metal. Depending upon what primer you go with, you'll either have to use a solvent or a waterborne based.
3- 80 grit dry. Preferably from a random orbital (DA).
4- ASAP so you can minimize any flash rust from happening. Use an epoxy primer, but not from a aerosol can.

If I knew a guy with a commercial blaster, I would have it stripped bare. 80 grit media leaves a perfect texture for epoxy primer, which will not be smooth enough for final paint. Usually filler and/or high build primer will go over the epoxy primer. Primer/filler coats are sanded with progressively finer grits until it is ready for paint.

You can treat the flash rust with Ospho.

And make sure to research the primer that you want to use. Many (if not most) will require you to remove ALL the Ospho before you prime!

Guys. You are all masters in your own right. Your experience and knowledge goes beyond what I would learn.

What that being said, in going to let the baker bake and take the frame to a sandblasted snd bite the bullet. He will blast prep and prime appropriately and my body man will be happy.

I thought j could DIY this, but it's too involved. Especially doing it alone without in person guidance.

I want to thank you all for your contributions to this thread.

If you feel like you would be in over your head, then you are probably correct.

If you can line up good work and farm it out, then I would do that. You will still have plenty of DIY to do to get on the road.

Best of luck with your project.