I am about to receive some goodies from the Tyga boys, among the goodies will be some new decals to update my Doohan era Repsol. I assume they are ok to clearcoat? That said, what kind of prep should I do to the existing clearcoat? I assume 800 wet? Should I prep the entire bodywork, apply the decals and re-clear or just the spots where i am adding the new decals? I will be taking the bodywork to a shop for the final clear. Thanks in advance.

Michael
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'93 MC21 250sp Repsol "Doohan"

bump
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'93 MC21 250sp Repsol "Doohan"

Decals are ok to clear coat but take a little more care when shooting.

It sounds like you are working with bodywork that has already been clear coated. In that case if you're using P rated paper 800 is a little fine and could lead to adhesion problems. I would use P600 wet with a lot of water and feel whats going on under your paper. Use quality paper 3M or better, it does make a difference. A good way to check your work is sand it and then run some water over it and look really closely, that's how it will look when it's clear coated.

If you are placing new decals on every panel then wet sand the entire panel. If there are existing decals on the panels try not and break through the clear on the edges of those decals. You can do what's called a blend on just the places you are placing new decals but it's harder to get a nice job that way. Much, much easier to shoot the entire panel with clear and be done with it.

Good luck.

Edit: One thing I forgot to tell you since I always do it without thinking is, clean the panels with wax and grease remover or at the very least a strong soap like Dawn before you wet sand.

Apex.....

Perfect post. Nice info on the grit. I will let you know how it goes....maybe get my ride posted here in the forum finally...thanks again.

Mj
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'93 MC21 250sp Repsol "Doohan"