Motorcycle Restoration Paint Problem Solver

The Most Common Issues Painters Experience

Air Entrapment

  • Small crater like openings in or on the paint film.

 

Bleeding

  • Discoloration
  • Red or Yellow discoloration in the topcoat color.

 

Blistering

  • Pimples, Bubbles, Bumps
  • Swelled areas appearing as pimples or bubbles in the topcoat film, often months after application.

 

Blushing

  • Cloudy, Milky
  • A milky gray cloud appears on the surface of the paint film immediately or shortly after application.

 

Chalking

  • Oxidizing, Fading, Weathering
  • A chalky white appearance on the surface of the paint film

 

Chemical Staining/Etching

  • Spotting, Discoloration, Acid Rain
  • Irregular shaped pitting, etching or discoloration on the paint film.

 

Chipping

  • Stone Chips, Nicks, Bruises
  • Small areas of damage to the paint film leaving a nick, notch or void in the finish.

 

Color Mismatch

  • Mis-Tint, Off-Color/Shade
  • The original finish and repair exhibit a noticeable difference in color when viewed under the same lighting conditions.

 

Cracking

  • Checking, Splitting, Crazing, Crows Feet
  • Cracks or lines of various lengths and widths in the topcoat finish often resembling the cracking of dried

 

Dust Contamination

  • Dirt or Dust in finish
  • Foreign particles embedded in paint film

 

Edge Mapping

  • Featheredge Lifting, Edge Ringing
  • Raised or lifted edges in the wet or dry paint film that outline sand troughs or feathered edges

 

Fisheyes

  • Silicone Contamination, Cratering
  • Small circular, crater-like openings that appear during or shortly after the spray application.

 

Lifting

  • Raising, Shriveling, Swelling, Wrinkling
  • The existing paint film shrivels, wrinkles or swells during new finish application or drying.

 

Loss of Gloss

  • Dieback, Matting, Hazing, Dulling
  • A dulling of the gloss as the film dries or cures

 

Mottling

  • Streaking, Tiger Stripes, Floating
  • A streaked spotty, or striped appearance in a metallic color.

 

Orange Peel

  • Texture, Lack of Flow
  • Paint film having an uneven texture that resembles the skin of an orange.

 

Peeling

  • Delamination
  • A loss of adhesion or separation of the paint film from the substrate.

 

Pinholing In Body Filler

  • Bubbles, Bondo Pits
  • Small holes or bubbles located in or on top of putties or body fillers.

 

Rail Dust

  • Small rust colored bumps or specks in the surface of the paint film.

 

Runs/Sags

  • Curtains, Hangers
  • Coatings that fall to adhere uniformly, causing beads, droplets, or slippage of the total film.

 

Sanding Marks/Scratches

  • Sanding Marks
  • Dark and/or streaked marks that resemble sand scratches in the paint film.

 

Sand Scratches

  • Swelling, Sinking
  • Visible lines or marks in the paint film that follow the direction of the sanding process.

 

Seediness

  • Grainy, Speckled, Gritty, Dirty
  • Solid particles of various shapes and sizes embedded evenly throughout the paint film.

 

Shrinkage

  • Ringing, Edge Mapping, Bullseyes
  • The repaired area, featheredge, or sand scratches become visible within hours, days or weeks after the repair is completed.

 

Soft Film

  • Soft Finish, Soft Coat
  • The paint film is soft to the touch, and will fingerprint or water spot within hours/days after application.

 

Solvent Popping

  • Gassing, Popping
  • Small bubbles, pinholes or crater-like openings in or on the paint film.

 

Staining / Plastic Bleed Through

  • Discolored, Bleed-Back
  • A yellow-brown discoloration appears in the topcoat over areas repaired with polyester body filler or glazing putty.

 

Tape Tracking

  • Tape Marks/Tracks
  • An imprinted line or texture in the dried paint film following the use of masking tape.

 

Transparency

  • Transparent, Poor Hiding, Translucent
  • The original finish or undercoat is visible through the topcoat.

 

Water Spotting

  • Circles with raised edges or whitish spots resembling the various shapes of water droplets appear on the surface of the paint film.

 

Wrinkling

  • Shriveling, Crinkling
  • The surface of the paint contains irregular grooves or ridges resembling the skin of a prune.