Cycle News

Cycle News Issue 47 November 28, 2017

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

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VOL. 53 ISSUE 47 NOVEMBER 28, 2017 P105 never going to be the same. Once you've made that first big scratch, it's game on, and before I knew it I'd taken off the majority (but not, as I would later find out, all) the red paint and covered myself and everything around me in fiberglass dust. The Gringo S is relatively simple to get ready for paint because it has no air vents, and after giving the helmet a good wipe down (and enjoying a well-earned beer) I was ready to give the Gringo its first coat of paint. Following the first two base coats, I realized the sanding job I'd done wasn't really going to cut it. Scratches all over the Gringo S started to seep through, mean- ing the only way I was going to dull them was to add lots more paint or, start again, like a real professional, and get everything smooth. Cue more paint. With the white coat now in place, I set out to draw the bound- aries for the green paint. This was surprisingly easy as I got a bunch of tape, strapped it onto the Gringo, measured the distance I wanted and simply cut it out. I wanted the lines to be identical in distance from the top of the eye port to the base of the helmet as it curved around. As I still work in the metric system, I measured 2.5cm from the top of the eye port and carried that around the port, down the side of the helmet to where I wanted the curve to come in, and around the back where the two lines would eventually meet. And just to add another headache into the mix, I thought I'd paint in my race number—33—into the back if the lid. Why, oh why… Now it was time for a can of green paint, which equaled about three coats. The project was starting to come together—it'd been seven bloody hours since I started—so at that point I gave up and came back the next day. I needed to mark down the areas for pinstriping. The idea was I wanted to recreate the flowing line of the Z900RS, but I soon realized I may have been out of my depth when it came to ar- ranging the curving corners. For me, trying to make four identical curves on different parts of the helmet which itself is not the same from top to bottom was like asking a blind donkey to take an algebra exam. This, as it turns out, was the most labor intensive part of the painting process, because every time I thought I got the lines right, one looked different to an- other and thus I had to start again. Eventually I got it to a point where I was happy enough with the lines, and I broke out the paintbrush. I should add that the previous day's Thanksgiving din- ner and the subsequent induction of alcohol at Chris Fillmore's place had left my right hand a little quiv- ery and not in the best condition for precision pinstriping, but I was determined to see this damn thing through. I can think of at least three spots on the Gringo that have tiny little black grazes as I ventured off the track limits with the paint- brush, but I think the result looks, well, it looks okay, shall we say. I figure this helmet will look good in photos as I glide on past on the new Z900RS, but if you look closely at it, the Gringo S will resemble something of a dog's breakfast with a face shield attached. I have decided not to show the finished product here as it still needs a clear coat, but I have promised myself I will wear it at the Z900RS intro in a few weeks. Dear god, what have I done? There are two things I have learned in this experience. The first is painting a helmet is way, way harder than it looks, even for an elementary design like this. It takes lots of time and patience— both of which are in short sup- ply at my place—but I did have a surprising amount of fun throwing up all over a Gringo S. The second lesson is that guys like Tag Gasparian, Troy Lee and Brett King are absolute gods when it comes to paint- ing helmets. Just even creating something as basic as this helmet was a ball ache, so to do this as a profession and do it to their level, is nothing short of amazing. Gents, I salute you and no, Tag, I won't be applying for a job any time soon. CN

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