painted mid panel on original tank

I just finished painting all of the panels- except the tank cover- on an 08 CBR600RR Pearl Fire Orange. This is an almost impossible color to match since it is a tri-coat with a base, mid and clear. Since I had no idea where to start, we decided to go ahead and spend the big money on ColorRite’s paint. The results are pretty good. The shade and brightness of the orange is very good, but the size and clarity of the metallic flake is not quite right. Since I had the original tank cover to compare with, it was pretty easy to see that the original paint has more of a bass boat look- the metallic is bigger. The ColorRite paint is more of a pearl. In the bright sun, they look very close but indoors, you can see the difference. Still, this is probably as good as you will get with a pre-mixed formula. Here are a few other observations-

1) The 86.00 1/2 pint base coat is just plain white. I was so mad when I saw this. Next time I need to use this color, I will just use a regular white base and save a lot of money.

2) The Orange Pearl top coat took 5 coats to get the right shade. That’s crazy. Why they didn’t tint the 86.00 base coat a bit is beyond me. I guess they just need to sell more paint.

3) They are not kidding when they tell you to do spray out panels. This is critical to getting the correct shade. See the pictures for the test panel. You will not get a decent match without test panels.

4) If you want a close color, get a pint of PPG hot licks orange. It is basically a very bright Harley orange. Then get a half pint of the ColorRite orange and use it as a mist top coat for the metallic. You could also put some of it in the clear to add some 3D depth like the original paint has.

spray out test panel on original tank

close up comparison

Some of the custom stuff was amazing and NCR Ducati had a bunch of exotic stuff there along with lots of vintage Ducs.

Check out the gallery of photos…

Schwantz's Norton

Barber always puts on an excellent event and the weather is going to be outstanding, so don’t miss it!

Vintage Truimph

Press Release-

Moto Guzzi, celebrating its 90^th anniversary, continues to honor the tradition of timeless style and old school cool with the release of this classic limited-edition machine. It’s been about 60 years since café racers, a type of motorcycle, started to turn heads and raise the sound levels on the streets of London. The Moto Guzzi V7 Racer is an ode to the café race motorcycles of the 50’s and 60’s.

Moto Guzzi V7 Racer

V7 Racer detail

This is the facility where they test all of the dirt bike, street bike and race tires for motorcycles. Very cool place for a motorcycle guy (or girl)! I’ll post a few pictures that I took with my phone over the next few days. Here is a shot of the paved course where they test street bike tires and race tires. They have sprinkler systems installed so they can do wet testing under controlled conditions. Inside it is like a candy store for motorcycle junkies. Yes, that is a Yoshimura GSXR1000 2nd from the end – 196 RWHP. That is what it takes to test these tires.

Dunlop Proving Grounds

Test Bikes

But wow, what a great bike. I really like everything about it from the seating position to the power and handling. It is really a fantastic bike. I’m trying to decide if I want to custom paint it or leave it black. I’m tempted to paint it British Racing Green and use the same gold logos on the tank to match the wheels. Or I may paint it in one of the vintage 60′s and 70′s greens that Triumph used. Any of the greens will look great with the gold wheels- but so would red. Hmmm.

2010 Street Triple R side

Street Triple rear quarter view

After pioneering the concept of antilock brakes (ABS) on motorcycles 23 years ago, BMW Motorrad USA announced today that it will be the first motorcycle manufacturer to offer ABS as standard equipment on its entire range of 2012 model year motorcycles.

“Plain and simple, being able to stop a motorcycle faster and more predictably helps prevent a rider from becoming a statistic,” said Pieter de Waal, Vice President, BMW Motorrad USA.  “It’s time for all of us in the motorcycle industry to embrace the benefits of ABS.  Extensive testing by safety experts, law enforcement authorities and journalists around the world consistently demonstrates that ABS reduces overall crashes and saves lives.”

BMW