Help me decide how to paint the "Widow Maker"

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 6:11 pm

I wasn't sure which section to post these in since technically they're pictures of scooters, but they're really just Photoshopped OCD mockups of scooters.

I'm a little bit partial to all of them, so let me know what you think. For the record, all my friends think these paint jobs are ridiculous. I'll show THEM ridiculous!

WWII-ish

A lot of red, green, and white

Stealth!

Simpler times

Unassuming

Orange Guy · Post by **Orange Guy** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 6:19 pm

Really like #1 and a very close second is #4. Very cool stuff.

kilted texan · Post by **kilted texan** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 6:55 pm

Thank you BadBrains... I just might steal that idea for #3. That looks killer. We just got our black Buddy yesterday.

Gotta talk they wife into it though...

Why not!!!

Sunil · Post by **Sunil** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:02 pm

1 or 3
you have to do the teeth!

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:05 pm

I put #4 cuz it looks super classy. I also like the "stealth" one. Especially if it is a charcoal grey, not black, I can't really tell. Also I don't know if it's just my monitor, but the "green" you called it looks kinda like a tannish puke color. no offense, it doesn't look bad, that's just how I'd describe it. If you went with one of the fighter jet looking ones you should totally make little stencils of different large bugs/small animals, that way if you kill any while driving you can tally them up on the side!

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:26 pm

Yah, the green is very much a olive-military-puke-green. And the stencil idea is pure unmitigated genius! I could even put little stencils of cars and trucks, just to let 'em know where they stand.

So it looks like #1's gonna come out on top! At this point I'd be ashamed if I didn't do the teeth. Now I need to get a hold of a brown seat and grips. I might just buy the brown grips and make a seat out of grainy leather. Has anyone here done that before?

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:50 pm

Not "grainy" but here is Shane Wilson's:

files/100_0641_153.jpg
files/100_0642_250.jpg

SWEET!

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:54 pm

That... is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.

madtolive · Post by **madtolive** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 8:00 pm

good way to stimulate our economy...

brimstone · Post by **brimstone** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 8:13 pm

#1....totally. ww2 fighter plane teeth....you can't go wrong with them.

rajron · Post by **rajron** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 8:30 pm

I also like the flying tiger a lot, but to live with it all the time might be tough so I go for #4.

lojical1 · Post by **lojical1** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 8:35 pm

were u riding 2 up yesterday on a black and silver buddy? I waw driving my sister's car and gave them the Peace sign; I was so happy to see another Bud!

Sharon · Post by **Sharon** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 10:05 pm

#1 and #3....love both of them!

Quo Vadimus · Post by **Quo Vadimus** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 10:54 pm

#3 totally.

Oh, and you don't need to make stencils:

http://www.aerostich.com/catalog/US/Aer ... 16800.html[/img]

peabody99 · Post by **peabody99** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 10:55 pm

while It would not be me (only due to age and gender), I can still say# 1 is the best, then # 4.

nissanman · Post by **nissanman** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 11:28 pm

I say #3 in dark primer grey with some indirect lighting to highlight the features. I'd go red... but that's illegal in all states while in motion unless you're a safety vehicle. You could at least go red leds for the eyes

schlagle · Post by **schlagle** » Sun Apr 27, 2008 11:53 pm

I think if you're really going to name it that then you need the teeth so I vote #1. Of course you could go the ironic route and give it a wicked name like "Widow Maker" and paint it something "nice" like #2.

Just my $.02 tho

thepezident · Post by **thepezident** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:27 am

EP_scoot · Post by **EP_scoot** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:44 am

#1,
I think you need to incorporate some additional detail on the front of the bike as well, though.

nissanman · Post by **nissanman** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:48 am

ooooooooooo, put James Bond machine guns in the front turn signals

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:51 am

nissanman wrote:ooooooooooo, put James Bond machine guns in the front turn signals

two words: HECK YES.

jfrost2 · Post by **jfrost2** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:01 am

Dont worry officer, their legal!

lou76 · Post by **lou76** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 4:05 am

3 or 5... but with blacked out wheels....

kilted texan · Post by **kilted texan** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:55 pm

Quo Vadimus wrote:Oh, and you don't need to make stencils:

I wish they were made in white also.

Also I just thought that if you could do the flying tiger in vinyl it woud be cheaper thatn a paint job. I would guess about $40-$50 for a two tone vinyl sticker.

Quo Vadimus · Post by **Quo Vadimus** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:48 pm

Pretty sure they have 'em in white too - check the previous link (looks like maybe you get one page of each? The description's a little unclear).

Christy · Post by **Christy** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:55 pm

#3!!!

I LOVE THE TEETH!

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:16 pm

KRUSTYburger wrote:
nissanman wrote:ooooooooooo, put James Bond machine guns in the front turn signals
two words: HECK YES.

SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEET I hope you don't mind if I take these ideas and roll with 'em! I wonder what the legality is of adding non-functional weapon-esque details to a vehicle. It would match nicely with the fake bullet holes people put on their cars.

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 5:12 pm

Hey, I came across these that would look awesome on the widow maker and you don't have to worry about modding the front! They're like 140 bucks with shipping, which is crazy, but they would be totally B.A.!!!

http://www.steelthundercc.com/grips_motorcycle.html

Queen · Post by **Queen** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 6:13 pm

I'm totally diggin' #3, that stealth look is hawt!!

iinigma7 · Post by **iinigma7** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 4:02 pm

These are awesome. Out of curiosity what kind of paint do you plan on using? I don't have any experience with spray painting and I would be afraid that I'd end up with a mess.

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 4:52 pm

I had just planned on using a quality matte finish spray paint like Krylon and using a stencil for details. Removing the panels to spray paint sounds like it would be a lot easier than taping them off, and you'd also get smoother results.

robonz23 seemed to have really good results using Krylon:

viewtopic.php?t=2724&highlight=paint

So did okc beer buddy:

viewtopic.php?t=1066&highlight=paint

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 5:01 pm

KRUSTYburger wrote:Hey, I came across these that would look awesome on the widow maker and you don't have to worry about modding the front! They're like 140 bucks with shipping, which is crazy, but they would be totally B.A.!!!

http://www.steelthundercc.com/grips_motorcycle.html

Nicely done! I told myself I'd get the scooter to save money on gas and insurance, but now it looks like that's giving way to "The money I saved on gas and insurance I can spend on STUFF!"

EP_scoot · Post by **EP_scoot** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 6:21 pm

Nicely done! I told myself I'd get the scooter to save money on gas and insurance,

that is how we all start ! "Think of the savings, honey!"

but now it looks like that's giving way to "The money I saved on gas and insurance I can spend on STUFF!"

That is how we all end up. "Huh? . . . Where ARE those . . . savings . . . HONEY?"

Post by **polianarchy** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:16 pm

OMG OMG OMG The shark idea is just GRILLIANT!!!

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:20 pm

polianarchy wrote:OMG OMG OMG The shark idea is just GRILLIANT!!!

Hah, well it's the cheapest grill I can afford. You can bet I'll start painting as soon as I get the buddy. Saturday SATurday SATURDAY!!! (hopefully)

kilted texan · Post by **kilted texan** » Thu May 01, 2008 6:19 pm

Hey BB, called my local Vinyl shop & they said the Flying Tiger mouth might or might not stick well on the textured plastic. I guess the next best cheapest thing to is to tape off the area & spray paint it. Though you might want to remove it from the Widow Maker first.

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Thu May 01, 2008 7:28 pm

kilted texan wrote:Hey BB, called my local Vinyl shop & they said the Flying Tiger mouth might or might not stick well on the textured plastic. I guess the next best cheapest thing to is to tape off the area & spray paint it. Though you might want to remove it from the Widow Maker first.

Wow, thanks for the quality info! Spray paint is definitely the way to go; my only concern now is removing that center panel. I'll be picking up the scooter this Saturday hopefully, so I've yet to actually examine that area. I wonder if it requires any special tools to remove or if it's just screwed/bolted in.

I couldn't find any Krylon paint at the local hardware stores so I've picked up some Rustoleum to test out on some plastic. I'll let you know how that goes and what paint I end up settling on.

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:01 pm

Did you get the Rustoleum that is made for plastic? If not, it is probably better for wood or metal, and may be more prone to scratch. I'm using the Rustoleum direct-to-plastic kind to paint my Bud RIGHT NOW! I'll let you know how it works out. Although now that I think about it, I'm only painting the shiny panels... I wanted to paint the rear fender, but I can't find any tape that will stick to it so I can mask the area off. That's another thing. Masking might be a pain on those textured panels! I used electrical tape on my shiny panels, but it doesn't stick AT ALL to the textured. I also tried regular clear packing tape... better, but still not good enough. Maybe painter's tape work? I dunno, let me know if you find out!

Thanks!

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:28 pm

KRUSTYburger wrote:Did you get the Rustoleum that is made for plastic? If not, it is probably better for wood or metal, and may be more prone to scratch. I'm using the Rustoleum direct-to-plastic kind to paint my Bud RIGHT NOW! I'll let you know how it works out. Although now that I think about it, I'm only painting the shiny panels... I wanted to paint the rear fender, but I can't find any tape that will stick to it so I can mask the area off. That's another thing. Masking might be a pain on those textured panels! I used electrical tape on my shiny panels, but it doesn't stick AT ALL to the textured. I also tried regular clear packing tape... better, but still not good enough. Maybe painter's tape work? I dunno, let me know if you find out! Thanks!

The stuff I picked up said that (along with other surfaces) it would work on plastic, but it wasn't specifically made for it. That would be ideal, but I'll test out this stuff anyway. It's going to be surreal painting my scooter and THEN riding it for the first time after the MSF.

Did you buy the direct-to-plastic Rustoleum from a larger chain or were you able to find it elsewhere?

kilted texan · Post by **kilted texan** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:33 pm

I did use regular masking tape to see if I could get a custom vinyl done. It did not work going from a 3D panel to a sheet of paper, reverse engineering, it buckled in a lot of places. I would suggest to use the blue painters tape with paper as a block. Also be sure to spray from tape to plastic so you do not get paint up under the tape. Use a penny or nickel to really press the tape into the texture so you do not get any bleeding.

Good luck & be sure to take a lot of photos so you can write up a awesome How To.

kilted texan · Post by **kilted texan** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:34 pm

BadBrains wrote:Did you buy the direct-to-plastic Rustoleum from a larger chain or were you able to find it elsewhere?

You should be able to find it in HD or Lowes.

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:41 pm

The Krylon at Wal-Mart did not match the color I wanted, so I checked where I work (at Lowe's) and their plastic paint didn't match either... I ended up going to Home Depot and they had a decent selection of Rustoleum Specialty Plastic paints. I'm sure your stores will probably vary. Also, since you are painting the part under the seat, I think any good spray paint will work since that particular area doesn't get messed with too much... However if you end up doing the shiny panels too, you should probably go with one made for bonding to plastics. Here's a pic of what I'm using:

Drumwoulf · Post by **Drumwoulf** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:56 pm

Allsuck but num 3!!

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Thu May 01, 2008 9:04 pm

Alriiiight, that looks like what I really need, a dedicated spray paint for the task at hand. Thanks for all the tips, Kilted/Krusty!

The inside panel I imagine will become a weekend-long project of utmost dedication/frustration. I'll take detailed pictures and keep notes so that if it all works out (or if it doesn't), I can turn it into a how-to (or a how-not-to).

Krusty, it sounds like you're deep into the process already, let us know how it turns out.

rablack · Post by **rablack** » Thu May 01, 2008 9:24 pm

Not to derail but KRUSTYburger that's a cool avatar.

BadBrains · Post by **BadBrains** » Thu May 01, 2008 9:32 pm

Drumwoulf wrote:Allsuck but num 3!!

Hah, #3 gets all the love.. I'm still torn between #1 and #3, but at least there will be teeth! I mean blood! There Will Be Blood!

nissanman · Post by **nissanman** » Thu May 01, 2008 10:17 pm

As long as you get machine guns they both rock! People would probably think it's from a movie set or something...

renbyrd · Post by **renbyrd** » Fri May 02, 2008 4:23 am

I happened upon this when browsing for vinyl decals and remembered this post. Check it out!

http://www.decalzone.com/cutout/fixedco ... g&aspect=g

PTB · Post by **PTB** » Fri May 02, 2008 7:36 pm

Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.

brimstone · Post by **brimstone** » Fri May 02, 2008 7:46 pm

oh yeah, those are awesome. i wonder if i could make them fit my rattler. hmmm

Modern Buddy

Help me decide how to paint the "Widow Maker"

Which paint scheme offends your sensibilities the least?

Help me decide how to paint the "Widow Maker"