New Bike, New Paint!

With the purchase of a second 1st generation KLR (documented here), it was time to customize it. Truthfully, I probably would have left it stock green, as I like that paint scheme, but someone had painted the front fairing black and I couldn't leave it like that. Sure, I could have bought a new one off e-bay, but where's the fun in that?

Ideas were tossed around. I was partial to painting it like my '00 KLR, but someone brought up the Swiss Army knife. After all, that's pretty much what the KLR is: not dedicated towards any one thing, but good at lots of little things. Let me edit that: it's very good at giving me a grin on my face. So here's the painting of the '01. I used the knowledge I had from painting the '00 and tried to make it work in my garage.
What she looked like while still living in Phoenix. Looks good and shiny - not at all what a KLR should look like!

The inspiration for the new paint scheme on the '01

Like most bikes, the KLR is dead ugly without her skin. I am taking advantage of this nakedness to install heated grips and replace the instrument lights with LEDs My neighbor asked m who the "kill booth" was for. I guess it does look a little weird. But it keeps the spray from getting all over the garage and the dust off the new paint.
I chose Krylon Fusion paints for the base coats. It bonds amazingly well to the plastic. Inside surfaces would be flat black, outer surfaces are getting a base coat of white.
Showing off the inside black coat
Starting on the red
The bike (minus the tank)
Tank, ready to go
A little overspray is acceptable to me
Lacquered vs un-lacqured
Shiney!
Decal on the tank (yes, I know that I didn't smooth out the original decal edges)
Tail piece and front fender on. Tank and seat "sort of" on
The tank is there for position only. It's currently being lacqured.
Complete and assembled!
View from the front
3/4 rear view
Out in the rain
Yay!
Four of the five bikes, happy in their stable