How to Paint Motorcycle Fairings?

Last Updated: December 5th, 20221500 words

While motorcycle fairings are helping your bike to cut the air drag, achieve faster acceleration at lower rpm and lower fuel consumption.

Knowing how to paint motorcycle fairings (enhancing your bike a unique look) could be one of the most obvious ways of defining which rider style you are.

Personal Feeling 2

Thus, if you are a motorcycle enthusiast, start paint motorcycle fairings would give you quite a lot of fun & more control over your bike’s personality. Furthermore, a serious rider needs to have to be able to repair, restore or renew your bike’s fairings.

If you’re planning on doing so, here’s a helpful and descriptive step by step guide on how to paint your motorbike fairings yourself. Follow the right steps would make you like a pro!

Let’s go ahead.

Preparatory Phase

Do make a plan to have the best chance of achieving the desired result, including like:

  1. custom fairing design draft
  2. creating a paint booth
  3. painting budget
  4. painting tool kit
  5. how much time you can spend on this project
  6. how much time your bike is allowed naked
  7. how to remove the fairing from your motorcycle
  8. painting steps
  9. how the painting should be mixed and applied in order
  10. etc…

This does not require you to have great painting skills, so make a set of preparations to keep in order for a successful, effective and fun painting endeavor.

Personal Feeling 1

Done brainstorm?

Let’s dive in.

Custom Fairing Design Draft Example

If you have no clue of doing such a sketch, take a look at below example from one of our customers: Ducati 1199 Panigale Superbike-Coach Fairing Kit

Creating a Paint Booth

Create a paint area where you can make a mess, the best-suggested area is either a garage or storage area.

  • Allocate a large spacious area with even flooring to place your bike for painting.
  • Make sure the area is somewhere you can cope later with the mess that will eventually come as an outcome of the painting.
Large Garage

Large Garage

Now that you have selected the area, here the tips:
  • Cover the walls up with plastic or other material sheets.
  • Secure the sheets with nails using a hammer and sheets with tape from piling over each other.
  • Place a pedestal fan in the area to blow away the fumes and odor so you inhale them in the least in case the room you choose is an enclosed space with windows small in size,
  • Set up additional lighting as good lighting is essential when it comes to working on something that requires concentration that might strain the eyes too much. Enhance a comfortable painting experience

Cover The Walls Up With Plastic

cover the walls up with plastic

Preparing Your Motorcycle Fairing

Bring in the motorcycle and place it at a convenient angle on the platform.

Rider Review Bjarne 2014 Suzuki Gsx R600 Classic Blue Fairing

1. Use the application tool to remove the fairings safely without damaging them

2. Move the bike outside of the painting area after removing all the fairing needed painting, this is to protect other parts of the bike from unnecessary paint stains.

3. Store the bolts in a plastic baggie clearly marked where they are taken.

4. Plug the fairing holes in case they don’t get accidentally filled with paint…

Cleaning the fairing parts

  • Wash all parts of the fairings using warm water and some soap to ensure they are clean.
  • Make sure that all the fairing parts are in the condition of perfect use, and no other work needs to be done on them.

Sand down the fairing surface

  • Tool kit: 400 grit sandpaper
  • Use elbow grease sand down the fairings effectively, you could sand in circular motions applying moderate pressure on the surface until you have removed the old paint.

This part will take some time and elbow grease, take a break if you need, you don’t have to finish them in one sitting. As it’s an important step to make the fairing surface as consistent & smooth as possible to which the primer and the paint will adhere best.

  • Dust off residual sand particles after completing this step.

Smooth the fairing layer

  • Using a body filler to even out any bumps and rough texture apparent.
  • After the filler dries off, repeat the ‘sand down’ process again.

Your satisfaction matters, perform the same process again if not satisfied- but remember to remove the body filler each time.

  • PS: If the surface you’re painting isn’t perfectly smooth, you’ll end up with an ugly, uneven coat of paint on your bike, and nobody wants that.

Primer Your Motorcycle Fairing

Without primer, the paint will not stick properly to the fairings.

Please read the instructions mentioned on the epoxy primer packaging, prepared to apply two even coats of epoxy primer on the fairings.

Primer On The Fairings

primer on the fairings

Warning: Always wear an air purifying mask while painting. Allow plenty of ventilation within your painting workspace at all times.

1. Mix the primer with the correct proportion of hardener and pour them into a spray can or spray gun.

2. Start spray one coat evenly onto the fairing (Spray movement of the hand should be sufficient enough for even application), allow it to dry, then repeat the second coat.

3. Let the second primer dried, use 2000-grit sandpaper to sand it down again with the wet-and-dry method, make sure to even out any bumpy surface.

Wet sanding is a technique that creates a perfectly smooth and shiny texture. Wet sand using 2000-grit sandpaper.

After you have finished wet sanding the entire fairing, ensure that all excess water and plastic particles are removed.

4. Wipe the surface lightly using a thinner, do not rub it hard enough, just enough to wipe down the newly sanded surface.

Painting Your Motorcycle Fairing

Paint to use: get the best paint to use on motorcycle fairings, ensure it is from a good brand.

For more information consult your peers and compare various products.

If you don’t have the second spare spray gun, clean the only one you’ve used. As you don’t want any of the epoxy primer mixing in with the paint you want to apply.

Done clean?

1. Mix the paint with thinner in the proportion as mentioned on the packaging into the spray gun.

2. Spray paint over the motorcycle fairings quickly 3 to 5 coats, leaving a drying interval after each coat of paint like three hours per coat.

3. Sand down the fairings again after drying of last coat, wipe the surface of the fairings to remove residual paint particles before application of final paint.

4. Apply another coat letting it dry after which apply the last coat of paint, wait for 6 to 8 hours for the paint to fully dry.

Clear Coat Your Motorcycle Fairing

A clear coat will protect your hard work of new paint job from extreme weather conditions.

Apply 2 to 3 layers of clear lacquer and allow two hours of time between each coat.

After you have finished applying all of the lacquer, wait a full twenty-four hours before using the automobile.

Benefits of Painting Motorcycle Fairings Yourself

1. You’ll get the Hang of It

With every first experience, curtails the learning bit. If you’re a newcomer to painting the motorcycle fairings yourself, then the whole ordeal will be a learning point for you.

Moreover, it will serve as the motivation and confidence to paint the motorcycle fairings the second, which shall prove to be better than the previous venture.


2. It Might Be a Hit

Often times even the first attempt at doing something gives out remarkable results.

In the same way, when you paint the motorcycle fairings for the first it might even be me a remarkable effort on the very first go.

The positive and successful painting venture might just be your newly attained talent to flaunt!


3. Saving of the Cost

Most of the times we often resort to using labor options for completing and managing certain tasks.

Little do we realize the fact that the unnecessary expenditure could have been avoided if tried to do it ourselves.

In the same way, if you plan on getting custom painted motorcycle fairings then stop for a moment and consider the possibility of doing them yourselves and avoid the extra costs.


4. Creativity Pops Out

Painting the motorcycle fairings will release the creative beast inside you and you might even surprise your own self with creative abundance you had in yourself all this time.

The fun part of doing the paint on your motorbike yourself is that it can also unconsciously serve as a therapy session for your brain.

Now It’s Your Turn

The motorcycle is yours and what better way to add an original touch to it, than to paint the motorcycle fairings yourself.

Go ahead, grab the brush and do it, because there’s no one out there that knows you better than you.

Paint motorcycle fairings yourself and show the world your creative and experimental side.

Do not overwork yourself in doing so, work at your own pace and complete the task with ease whether in a day or a week.

Watch this video for better understanding of painting motorcycle fairing:

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Hayabusa
Hayabusa
April 6, 2021 07:28

Thanks for help

GoMotoTrip Fairing
GoMotoTrip Fairing
Reply to  Hayabusa
April 6, 2021 10:30

We’re glad that this post is helpful for you. Good Luck lol

Willie
Willie
September 4, 2020 11:24

Fucking sick man wonder how much to do that job ?????

GoMotoTrip Fairing
GoMotoTrip Fairing
Reply to  Willie
September 5, 2020 08:59

Hi Willie,

It’s hard to say an exact $$$ as the different painting job varies.
Please double-check the cost of these needed painting materials with a local paint store.

Reminder:
This is going to be a time-consuming job in our experience of producing these aftermarket fairing.
Please make sure that you’re ok with the “coming trouble” before starting.

Jack
Jack
April 27, 2019 21:38

What type of paint would you recommend for ABS plastics and metal for the tank?

GoMotoTrip Fairing
GoMotoTrip Fairing
Reply to  Jack
April 29, 2019 08:25

Hi Jack,

We use the best paint (it’s in Chinese Name…) in China Mainland, not sure which is best in your area; you could ask around the paint shop for it.

They must know it.

Kezza
Kezza
April 13, 2019 04:18

Awsome cant wait to do mine

GoMotoTrip Fairing
GoMotoTrip Fairing
Reply to  Kezza
April 13, 2019 08:22

Thank you lol

bryan arrieta
bryan arrieta
Reply to  Kezza
February 23, 2021 09:00

sir may i know if i will apply the paint in 5 coats, when i apply the 4 coats the let it dry and sand it down after that then ill apply the 5ft or last coat of paint? am i correct sir?? ty