'02 matte gray touch up paint...rant (long) - Ducati.ms

andrucati · Sep 10th, 2007, 9:45 am

I recently ordered some touch up paint for my '02 matte titanium st4s. I had a couple small scratches in my right side lower fairing from a set down on gravel, and wanted to paint the plastic key guard on the tank to match. I ordered a small bottle of touch up paint ($17) for the scratches, an aerosol can of primer ($9.99), and an aerosol can of paint ($33) from CycleSurge. They maintain an eBay store and a separate website, specializing in motorcycle paint and paint supplies. The site led me through the selection process, including year, make, model, and color, and my order was placed for Ducati Titanium for an '02 ST4s. The paint arrived and I cleaned up the scratches and applied some of the touch up from the small bottle (yes, very well shaken). The next day I noticed in the light that the touch up area was more of a silver and stood out from the rest of the panel. I promptly emailed CycleSurge, and asked them what I could do about the paint not matching. Three days later and no response...I decided that maybe the bottle wasn't accurately mixed, being a small quantity, and decided to spray the key guard, figuring I'll eventually replace it with carbon if I don't like the look. Guess what...same thing! The painted part has a steely silver blue appearance and makes the warm titanium color of the tank actually look gold, they are so different. Again, I emailed CycleSurge, expressing my dissatisfaction. Again, no response. BTW, they have no phone number or physical address on their website, so email is the only contact. Since they don't seem to care whether their colors are accurate, and don't seem to know anything about customer service, I would definitely NOT recommend them to anyone looking for any paint needs. My question to the board is....does anyone have a source for touch up paint that actually matches the color it is meant to be used on? Experience with the matte titanium for the '02 St4s specifically. thanks,andrew

guido · Sep 10th, 2007, 11:15 am

Hello
I believe ColorRite may offer the correct paint, but I couldn't be sure with that particular color involved.
I'm in the process of having my side fairing panels repainted due to scratches, after a lot of gnashing of teeth I just sent them to FrostysFinishes in New Hampshire, I believe. He has experience painting the matte colors and I feel more comfortable with that.
Mine are BBG-O-US (Bat Barf Grey Over Used Sandpaper)
-I assume that's what yours are?

Hope this helps...

guido in Houston

Bill_Anderson · Sep 10th, 2007, 11:34 am

One problem with trying to touch up titanium matte (aka BBG/ Bat Barf Gray) is trying to reproduce that matte finish.

andrucati · Sep 10th, 2007, 11:38 am

my problem wasn't with the matte finish...it was that the color was a completely different shade of gray. the color sent to me (labelled as ducati titanium) is a coolish, blue gray instead of the warm, titanium gray. it is not even close. i'll see if i can get a pic that shows it.

Bill_Anderson · Sep 10th, 2007, 11:42 am

It sounds like they might have mistaken "senna" for titanium matte.

andrucati · Sep 10th, 2007, 11:50 am

that's what it looks like to me. even though it was listed under titanium, for an '02 st4s (complete with photo), it appears that they just used a matte version of the senna gray. the containers, both the small bottle and the aerosol can, both say 'ducati titanium'. the biggest irritation is that they have refused to even acknowledge my emails and have no other contact info.

PaulST4s · Sep 10th, 2007, 1:23 pm

IIRC, there is a 2nd part to the paint process for this color, that being an eggshell clear coat. I'm not sure if it matters or not, but I believe that's what I got from Colorite when I used their online ordering system. Of course, I haven't gotten around to trying the paint pens yet.

marxred749s · Sep 10th, 2007, 1:27 pm

About two years ago I had a little bit of a lowside on my '02 st4s matte gray. I just thought since I had some track days lined up I wasn't going to worry too much, but decided to try a quick color match. I went to the local auto parts store and picked up a color in the rattle can It was an import color I think it was from a honda car. It matched so well, that I decided to body putty the scratches and rattle can it. No one even can tell. I was so surprised! The sheen is a bit more glossy than the matte, but I always waxed my bike so it actually matches, the tank particularly well. When I get home this evening I will post the name and part number, this should help alot of us owners.

Mark

andrucati · Sep 10th, 2007, 1:32 pm

pretty overcast today, so the color is hard to really see, but here's a couple pics...does this look like an acceptable color match?

grazi · Sep 10th, 2007, 1:42 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by guido

Hello
I believe ColorRite may offer the correct paint, but I couldn't be sure with that particular color involved.
I'm in the process of having my side fairing panels repainted due to scratches, after a lot of gnashing of teeth I just sent them to FrostysFinishes in New Hampshire, I believe. He has experience painting the matte colors and I feel more comfortable with that.
Mine are BBG-O-US (Bat Barf Grey Over Used Sandpaper)
-I assume that's what yours are?
Hope this helps...

Frosty did work on my 07 matte Titanium S4R Monster. In a word, perfect. I would trust him to match anything. He's a tech freak for paint.