photojoe FSO wrote on 10/10/08 at 19:10:36:Yeah, $13 was a great price. I also get to keep riding with the old tank still on, so no rush. I have all winter. I'll probably start sanding it over the weekend.
What type and grit sandpaper did you use to get the paint off?
I used a sanding block for all my sanding. I scuffed the clear coat with 400 grit. Then I sanded very briefly around the tank with 80 grit. However, most of my sanding was with 220 there after. You will find that sanding around the gas cap, around the speed-o-meter hole and the bottom trim of the tank quite laboursome. You may not get all of it, however I was told that as long as you can sand down to primer and sand some of that you should be ok. The bondo I block sanded with 220 until just about about flat and even with the tank, then I used 400 to smooth it out. Depending on the depth of the dents and creases, at least two rounds of bondo will be needed. A ding I only did one coat of bondo because it looked superficial, ended up showing itself after I painted. The shinyness of the pearls reflected the slight angles of the indententation. Oh well!!! I painted outside and not in a sterile enviro because that was not available, to me, and its starting to get cold here in igloo country (Canada lol) so I got some little bumps in my paint and clear coat. Those get covered by subsequent coats of paint, and clear coat. I managed to wet sand most of the fuzzies away with 2000 grit after the second and final clear coat dried and the paint cured after about 4 days. I buffed away, however I think that I will do a third coat in the spring because I few spots still show.
Good luck and enjoy the process. My job may not be perfect, but this is my first time doing such a job. I enjoyed the process from beginning to end, and am superbly proud of my modest accomplishment. I hope you enjoy yourself as well.