I am kicking around the idea of repainting my bike this winter. My tank has an emblem with what appears to be decals under the clear. Do I need to strip the tank, or can I just block it down smooth, and maybe put some primer on it? I am just worried about it "ghosting" through the new paint job

Thanks guys.

 

Following as I am currently doing this and interested in what others have to say. I don't have my results yet to answer the question though. I can tell you there is paint but no clear coat under that decal though.

 

Not a great pic, but here is a pic of my tank.

 

Are you sure those are decals? It looks like paint, but I I don't know. You would feel a ridge in the clear coat at the edges of the decal if it is.

 

You shouldn't have to strip the tank down to bare metal, but if it's indeed a decal, I would suggest getting it completely off. At that point, you can sand down to the base coat or factory primer and go from there.

As noted by Jay, there would probably be a ridge if it's a decal and I don't think you'd be able to sand it smooth without getting down to the decal itself. At that point, I would remove it to avoid any issues.

My two cents. Good luck!

 

l am currently in the middle of that exact process on wifey's sportster which have a color scheme pretty much like yours. It is paint and just a 180 grit sanding should plentyful to remove the clear and from there you prime and sand again with a finer grit. You can take your emblem off with an hairdryer and a fishing line (l used dental floss and it went fairly well... Good luck

 

I have bought another complete set of mismatched tins to sand down and paint. When they are done I will switch them out and sell my original parts. Thanks all

 

they are cleared over decals, I honestly never liked this process.. its a double edged sword, smooth it out as much as possible or cut deep enough get it all out and cause more work for your self, I honestly always just cut down deep enough got it out of there that way you know whats under you primer and no risk of it paying you a visit in the future

 

Not sure if this project was completed, or even attempted, or not, but I did a garage paint job on my '09 Crossbones which had pinstripes and emblems. Here are a few pics I took in progress.

I should point out that this was a WWII bomber nose art paint job I did using rattle can (Rustoleum, hammered finish) spray paint in combination with water slide model graphics and finished with professional automotive clear coat. Anyway, there was no bleed through whatsoever. Anyway, just my input.

 

Nice work, man.