Hardening stove enamel

[drossall]

I've just received some touch up paint from Mercian. The instructions point out that it's stove enamel, and suggest putting it in front of a heater, as it won't dry naturally. We don't really have much but radiators. Anyone got any tips or experience?

[giropaul]

I've just received some touch up paint from Mercian. The instructions point out that it's stove enamel, and suggest putting it in front of a heater, as it won't dry naturally. We don't really have much but radiators. Anyone got any tips or experience?

Hairdrier on full heat?

Personally I use nail varnish as touch up. It's available in virtually any colour these days, sticks well and dries naturally.

[henshaw11]

Funnily enough, there's a few posts elsewhere (CC, bikeradar) from someone else with a Mercian, in 2010. No definite answer, tho' one suggestion was it needed to reach 120 C.

Mebbe coat a small area of some sheet metal and try heating that - a hot air gun set low first, for several minutes, and see if it's hardened, if not then try the next setting up.

You might have to be a bit careful around any transfers, unless they're under some sort of clear coat.

[rafletcher]

I suggest you phone Mercian, they're usually very helpful.

[henshaw11]

Worth a try, but it sounds like Mercian are a bit unsure too:

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=16479392

[drossall]

Mercian's suggestions are in my original post, same as in the Bikeradar post. I assume that they find that it works.

I'd have thought that a hair dryer could get the paint hotter than a nearby heater, which is what Mercian suggest.

Good point about transfers though.

Is there a risk of softening existing paint, do you think?

[rogerzilla]

Can you borrow an IR heat lamp?  that's what they use to bake car paint; not stove enamel, I grant you, but you're not going to be stoving at 200 deg C at home.

[drossall]

Dunno. I'll have to ask around

[vorsprung]

I recently sprayed the heatsink on my Cyo light with radiator paint.  This dried in about an hour on top on the log burning stove

[henshaw11]

I've got a little pot of enamel-like paint I bought from a model engineering company about 25 years ago. The idea is you paint it on a steam engine boiler then fire the thing up.
( I think I normally lob it on the oven at about 100C, but that's based on the assumption that an engine boiler of water is gonna be about the 100C mark)

I guess the risk to existing paint is if you use something much hotter than it's intended for - just reaching the point at which it hardens shouldn't be a problem, otherwise they've have to get the frames out pretty sharpish, I'd have thought.

BTW - did they really mean it *won't* dry without heat ? - I thought similar sort of enamels needed to dry first, but then cure hard by heating. Might not make any difference on a small spot tho'..

[rogerzilla]

I've got a little pot of enamel-like paint I bought from a model engineering company about 25 years ago. The idea is you paint it on a steam engine boiler then fire the thing up.
( I think I normally lob it on the oven at about 100C, but that's based on the assumption that an engine boiler of water is gonna be about the 100C mark)

A proper steam locomotive's boiler has the water at about 200 deg C (assuming a working pressure of 220psi as in an Gresley A3).  That would stove it properly.  Of course, the apple-green paint you see is actually on top of the cladding and not on the boiler itself.

[henshaw11]

Ah - 'course, it's under pressure...I obviously didn't think about it in too much detail !