Recycle an Old Girls Bike into Awesome New Boys Bike

But picture the pink bike as one that was ridden by two girls and left outside to weather the elements for five years. Not only was it pink, it was dirty, rusty, and otherwise trashed.

To prepare, we read up on these bike painting tips. Then, with nothing to lose except an old pink kitty bike that no one rides anymore, we went at it.

Todd took the bike apart and started sanding.

A razor blade helped remove all the decals.

The best bike restoring trick we came across was using wet, crushed up foil to remove rust. Seriously amazing.

The bike was dissasembled even more so the frame could be taped, primed & painted. We went with a Rustoleum Painters Touch Matte Black and a gray for the chain cover. We also spray painted the seat (although we should’ve used the vinyl spray paint as it’s already starting to peel).

After one coat of primer, two coats of paint, one coat of clear finish, and ample drying time, it was time to put the bike back together. A new chain was ordered through Amazon. Imagine our surprise when we found a yellow one!

For the final touches, Todd picked up new grips at a local BMX store and I ordered custom vinyl lightening bolt decals (*the decals have started to peel off, making me wonder if I need to get them from somewhere that specializes in outdoor vinyl lettering perhaps?)

A few weeks after we finished up the project, we noticed small white dots developing in the clear coat. Not exactly sure what caused it. We think it might have been the damp, cold weather at the time of painting. Hopefully with a little more sanding and some new decals (including new custom made “Specialized” logo decals), we can get the bike just right.