Need advice: best way to paint clear on bare metal

I have a valve cover that I have stripped down to bare metal with stripper and wire brush. What is the best way/product to use to put a clear high-temp coat on it? Hopefully rattle can.
Thanks.
Michael

 

steel? aluminum?

 

Well first you'll have to pickle it. As far as I know there is no self etching clear. Muratic acid mixed 1/1 with water.

Then the clear still won't stick, it needs to have something besides bare metal to stick to IE primer.

 

steel. sorry.

 

i have seen a few kustoms with bare metal exteriors with just a clear coat. there must be a way...right?

 

Glad I seen this thread , I have some 18g sheet metal I'M making some trim pieces from , I plan to polish them and want to clear them as well . I have auto clear coat left from when I painted my car. I hope it works.

 

Rub motor oil on it

 

r u serious?

 

Eastwood sells a clear for bare metal that works really weel. I do not know what temp it is rated for but it works on bare steel.

I think it is called diamond clear.

 

In before the rest. Gibbs oil.

 

Por 15 also sells a clear. Don't know how it works though.

 

On my sheet matal scoop. I use paint thinner to clean the metal and let it dry. Then I bought some duplacolor pre mixed clear. I put it in the gun and sprayed it. I put on 12 coats the wet sanded and buffed. It worked out real nice I think and Im happy.

 

Yup ,
Gibbs over bare metal will protect it for months, spry on rub in with a clean rag , done. water just runs right off.

http://www.roadsters.com/gibbs/

That's all Brian Bass put on his coupe to go to Bonneville and back.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=499343&highlight=bass+trip

 

vht.clear
my $.02

 

Thanks for all of the tips guys. I did look into the VHT paint. But they suggest using it over the paint. Not instead of. Here is a link to a forum on the VHT site where a rep from the company says they don't suggest using it on bare metal.

 

I think this is the best idea yet. Thanks.

 

Well, I have been keeping an entire car in bare metal for the last two years. Gibbs works well, but water does not just run right off. Just like anything else, you have to stay on top of it. Eastwood diamond clear seems great at first, but after 2 years and extremely clean metal to start with, everything I used it on is now rusting UNDER the clear coat.

 

I've seen urethane clear sprayed after an adhesion promoter with good results. The metal must be really clean.