Sticker Bomb | Paint Options - Hot Bike Magazine

Here’s the finished tank on a Sportster.

In the neverending quest to save a buck, we at HOT BIKE are a caring bunch. We wanted to show you a cool way to do something with those stickers you’ve collected over the years by covering your tins with them as an alternative to dropping $1,000-plus on a custom paintjob.

Luckily for us, a buddy of ours works for Tum Yeto (godfather of many skateboarding industry giants: Toy Machine, Foundation). We begged him for some stickers, and he sent a variety from the different companies Tum Yeto represents. As far as stickers, you can go with a theme, try to make a pattern, or do whatever the hell you want like we did.

You’re going to need a proper canvas for the stickers. We called Paughco for a Sportster Flat Bottom King Tank (PN 866, $155.95), and accompanying Ratchet Style Gas Cap (PN 800S, $22.95). Paughco makes quality stuff that doesn’t break the bank. They’re also really cool and friendly to deal with.

Since the stickers probably wouldn’t make it through a winter without peeling off, we headed over to Fineline Cycles in Baldwin Park, California, to have a couple of clearcoats sprayed (approx. $200) over the stickered tank so it will last. HB

01. For the project, we used a Paughco Sportster Flat Bottom King tank, black Rust-Oleum High Heat paint, and stickers.
01. For the project, we used a Paughco Sportster Flat Bottom King tank, black Rust-Oleum
02. We sprayed the High Heat Rust-Oleum thoroughly over the tank to prevent any rust underneath the stickers, etc.
02. We sprayed the High Heat Rust-Oleum thoroughly over the tank to prevent any rust unde
03. Sticker time. There’s no science to this. It’s fun, so just have fun with it. If you don’t like how it turns out, just peel the stickers off and start over!
03. Sticker time. There’s no science to this. It’s fun, so just have fun with it. If you

04. Once you’ve placed all your stickers, there is some prep that needs to be done before the clearcoats are applied. We used a heat gun and razor blade (a hair dryer also works) to flatten any high spots and creases in the stickers around the corners of the tank. Once the stickers were flat…
04. Once you’ve placed all your stickers, there is some prep that needs to be done before
05. …we headed over to Fineline Cycles for the clearcoats. If you want to do this step yourself, check with your local body shop for advice on types of clearcoat to use. Also, Harbor Freight carries very inexpensive paint guns to handle the job. If you decide to do this project, send some photos of what you came up with to hot.bike@sorc.com.
05. …we headed over to Fineline Cycles for the clearcoats. If you want to do this step yo