I am trying to restore this Riggio Americana. This is the first time I've ever done something like this. I thought the process for restoring the paint was: remove all the components, get the frame powder coated, and apply new vinyl decals. Vinyl decals because, as far as I can tell, that's what was originally on there. Because Riggios aren't very common, I figured I'd have to find someone to make the decals for me. So, I have completed steps one and two and after I dropped the frame and fork off at the powder coater, I started looking online for someone to make the new decals. The first person I found online who prints vintage bike decals said they didn't have time to take on a new project. Then, to my surprise, I did find a company that already had the decals in their stock, but they only produce ink transfer decals. They've told me that I can use clear coat from the hardware store to apply the decals, while also adding applying them to powder coat can be difficult.
My question is, should I keep looking for the vinyl decals? Any recommended vendors that can create them from scratch? Do any of you have experience applying ink transfers to powder coats? I can't take the powder coat part back now, so I'm just trying to figure out the steps forward. My concerns with the ink transfer are that it won't work and that the clear coat from a rattle can will look bad. My original thought was that I would just use the rattle can clear coat over the decals, but I'm afraid it won't match the powder coat clear.
Thanks in advance for any advice you can provide.
by meniscusbroach