Finishes & Coatings

Finish work is where good builds are won and lost, because it is the part everyone sees and the part that fails first when the preparation is rushed. Every coating in this chapter depends more on what happens before it is applied than on the product itself.

The chapter also contains an honest disappointment. If you have heat-coloured a set of headers and want to seal that gradient under a clear coat, there is currently no clear rated for the temperatures at a header flange. The options are a compromise, a traditional oiled finish, or an opaque coating that hides the very thing you made. Better to know that before you spray than after.

Every figure on this page resolves to one model and year in the book. Pick your bike and the rows that apply to it come forward, with the rest marked.

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Cerakote — series map

Series	Cure	Service temp	Use for	Notes
Glacier (C-Series high-temp)	air cure — no oven, no catalyst	1,800 °F continuous	headers, exhausts, manifolds	C-7600 Glacier Black · C-7700 Silver · C-7800 Gold · C-7900 Titanium · C-8200 Forge. Survives thermal shock to the point of water-quench. 85% solids, self-leveling, no primer, direct to blasted substrate. Tack-free under an hour; full cure is slow — handle gently for days.
H-Series	oven cure (~250 °F bake)	standard duty	brackets, controls, small parts	The firearms-grade workhorse — hardest film, widest color range. Needs an oven big enough for the part.
C-110 Micro Slick	air cure	dry-film lubricant	piston skirts, internals	The friction-side coating, not a cosmetic one.

Cerakote — the official application spec

Step	Spec		Applies	Notes
Blast profile	100–120 mesh aluminum oxide or garnet	glass bead NOT acceptable	every C-series job	Bead is too gentle to cut the mechanical-adhesion profile. The test: if the surface still looks shiny after blasting, you haven't blasted enough. Worn media loses its bite — replace it.
Handling discipline	no bare hands after degrease	nitrile/latex only	degrease → spray	One fingerprint = one adhesion failure waiting under the film.
Spray setup	HVLP, 0.8 mm tip (Iwata LPH-80 pattern)	100-mesh strainer in the cup	C-series	No thinning — spray as received. Single application to 1.0–2.0 mil. Work the hardest-to-reach surfaces outward to avoid buildup.

Your header problem — sealing a torch-blued gradient

Option	Reality		Trade	Notes
The honest constraint	NO clear carries the 1,800 °F Glacier rating	all Glacier colors are opaque	verified against current range	Cerakote's clears (MC-series) are rated far below header-flange temps. Header skin runs hottest at the ports and falls off fast downstream — a lower-temp clear may hold on the downstream gradient zone but discolor or fail near the flanges.
Path A — clear the gradient, accept risk	high-temp-rated clear on the visible run	test section first	keeps your torch-blued art	Coat a scrap of the same polished mild steel, torch-blue it, clear it, then heat-cycle it against the header with an IR gun before committing the real pipes. Read every clear's TDS temp against YOUR measured flange temps — not the marketing page.
Path B — bare + oiled	the traditional finish	renewable, honest patina	purist route	Blued steel wiped with high-temp oil after rides — the gunsmith's approach. The gradient lives and evolves; costs you five minutes a month.
Path C — opaque Glacier	C-7600 Black or C-7900 Titanium	bulletproof, but the bluing disappears	set-and-forget route	1,800 °F, corrosion-proof, done forever — at the cost of the gradient you worked for. Titanium reads closest to a heat-colored steel tone.

Eastwood — the DIY finishing arsenal

Product	What it is	Key numbers	Use for	Notes
2K AeroSpray system	catalyzed urethane in an aerosol	two-chamber can, pop-plunger activation	tank & bodywork without a gun	Real 2K chemistry: gasoline-, solvent- and UV-resistant once cured — which is what a fuel tank actually needs (rattle-can 1K under gas spills = wrinkled cream paint). Once activated the clock runs; plan to use the can. Isocyanates: NIOSH respirator, not a dust mask.
2K High-Temp Ceramic Engine	650 °F catalyzed engine paint	explicitly NOT for headers/manifolds	engine cases, barrels	Eastwood's own warning printed on the product — 650 °F is engine-case territory, nowhere near exhaust temps. Use their gray 2K high-temp primer under it.
Ceramic Chassis Black	2K satin (25–30% gloss) or gloss	over Extreme Chassis Black primer	frame & chassis parts	The satin version is essentially your frame spec in a can — ceramic-fortified against chips, UV and chemicals. Sprayable alternative to powder for parts you can't oven.
HotCoat powder coating	DIY powder gun + PCS-250 bench booth/oven	—	brackets, small chassis parts	The most durable DIY finish for anything that fits the oven. Remember the m.unit grounding rule: mask bare-metal contact points BEFORE coating (see Motogadget §m.unit).
Prep & rust chemistry	PRE prep · Fast Etch · Rust Converter · internal exhaust coating	—	everything first	Every coating above fails on bad prep. Fast Etch for rust removal, converter for what you can't reach, PRE as the final wipe before any spray.

Part-by-part system selector

Part	Right system		Why	Notes
Fuel tank (cream + copper stripes)	2K epoxy primer → 2K base → 2K clear	AeroSpray or gun	fuel resistance is non-negotiable	Stripe in base color, bury under the clear. 1K rattle-can systems dissolve at the filler neck.
Frame (satin black)	powder coat, or 2K Ceramic Chassis Satin	—	chip resistance	Mask every ground point and bearing bore before either.
Headers (blued)	Path A / B / C above	—	your call	Test section first, always.
Engine cases & barrels	650 °F 2K ceramic engine, or Cerakote H/C	—	heat + oil splash	Barrels: keep fins thin-coated — film thickness is insulation.
Brackets, small steel	HotCoat powder or H-Series	—	durability per dollar	Batch them into one oven session.

Finishes & Coatings

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