VHT paint?

Could anyone who has used VHT paint on their engines give me some advice? I'm having my cases, head, covers, etc bead blasted. Is there any other prep work that needs to be done? Do I need to use primer?

I used Rollbar & Chassis paint on a frame, the gloss isn't as glossy as regular spray paint so it looks more factory than spray bombed.

As long as it's clean, it should go on without primer. Good thing about off the shelf paint is, you can touch up spots with a tiny brush. I just keep forgetting to get one.
Steve

Yetanotherkzrider wrote: Could anyone who has used VHT paint on their engines give me some advice? I'm having my cases, head, covers, etc bead blasted. Is there any other prep work that needs to be done? Do I need to use primer?

are they blasted yet? Are you doing them? a friend? a regular business?
Proper way to blast is to totally degrease all parts first. Then hot soapy water. You have to get all oils out so the bead media does not cling to it. And of course fill all screw holes in with old or whatever screws and bolts you have. Then compressed air after. then rewash. chase all thread holes with a tap. blow it all out again.
then when your ready to paint. I always sprayed everything down with straight lacquer thinner from the spray gun. let it all flash dry.
But if your in a cold area were you are painting. aluminum holds moisture. I always would use a hand held propane torch and run over the parts. you can see the trail off moisture drying. or fill your house oven with parts and bake.
So after all of that you gonna change your mind :lol: do it right the first time and your parts will last long.
I like VHT but they don't have nice gloss. for gloss black i use PJ1. or even Dupli-color car engine enamel.
All depends what color and finish you prefer.
At least this is the way I have done stuff over 35 years.
10 guys on here will give you 10 opinions!
good luck.

VHT engine paint sucks. It's brittle as glass and not very chemical resistant. I media blasted my engine parts and then primed and painted with satin black. The satin is too glossy but I can forgive that. What pisses me off though is that the paint under a lot of the screwheads has chipped off showing the primer underneath. The primer has stuck decently on top of the aluminum, but the black doesn't stick to the primer.

If I had to do it again I'd use Gunkote.

Another option :https://youtu.be/UamrlZXH69E
Cerakote, water based which is good for the home mechanic. They have a Glacier Chrome color that does not have chrome in it and is polishable after curing.

Yetanotherkzrider wrote: Could anyone who has used VHT paint on their engines give me some advice? I'm having my cases, head, covers, etc bead blasted. Is there any other prep work that needs to be done? Do I need to use primer?

I recall that black and white VHT need no primer. But I think they recommend using white as a primer for the colored flavors. I always used black and silver so I never needed to prime.

You do need to cook the paint on to cure it before running up to full temp.

Nessism wrote: VHT engine paint sucks. It's brittle as glass and not very chemical resistant.

I never found it to be durable on my exhaust pipes either. Oil stained it and it rubbed off after getting hot for a while.

VHT recommends primer if you want to maximize performance. It's not a color issue. I can tell you that even with primer the top coat will chip off. And yes, I baked the paint.

Nothing is blasted yet,but I'm planning on having it done later this week after i degrease everything. It will be done at a local shop. I thought about having everything vapor blasted, but after shipping it's not cost effective. There's also a shop that insisted that they could sand blast the engine with good results, but I've read more horror stories than success stories on sand and aluminum. I wanted to go with a natural, semi gloss aluminum finish on everything but the jugs and maybe the head, which I'd either do in black or a darker silver or cast iron color for some contrast. I don't care about the brand of paint, just that I end up with something that will last a few years with minimal chipping.

It seem like you're not the only one who has had bad results with vht. I'm definitely a little weary to try it.

Nessism wrote: VHT engine paint sucks. It's brittle as glass and not very chemical resistant. I media blasted my engine parts and then primed and painted with satin black. The satin is too glossy but I can forgive that. What pisses me off though is that the paint under a lot of the screwheads has chipped off showing the primer underneath. The primer has stuck decently on top of the aluminum, but the black doesn't stick to the primer.

If I had to do it again I'd use Gunkote.

This might be an option if I could borrow a sprayer for the weekend. It definitely looks good.

kaw-a-holic wrote: Another option :https://youtu.be/UamrlZXH69E
Cerakote, water based which is good for the home mechanic. They have a Glacier Chrome color that does not have chrome in it and is polishable after curing.