I painted my pedals on my bike, i have enough coats, what should i use to make it stay on better?

i know it wont stay on very well anyways but what should i use to make it last longer? like clear coat or what? thanks

It depends what paint your using use metal paint cover

Yeah, you're on the right track. Some sort of sealant like clear coat would do nicely to preserve it.

Nothing will really stay on very long - even a powdercoat won't last. You can use an epoxy-based clear-coat and that will help but just keep that spray paint handy and be prepared to perform frequent touch-ups.

a clear coat for sure.
that will wear down before the paint does.

This depends on the paint and the surface you applying it too. Preparation is important. If the surface is smooth sanding to a rough surface is important to allow the paint to grip to the surface. You then need to clean the surface with a compatible surface cleaner. If your using oil based paint you should clean with thiner, acrylic paint use a light soap and water. Using a good quality primer is also important. Primer will help the final paint stick.

Now that is prepared, cleaned and primed apply 3 or more coats of paint and allow it to dry. Oil based paint will hold up longer but acrylic will dry faster. The problem with oil based paint it its that it takes upto a year or more to fully dry. A good rule of thumb is if you can still smell paint, its not dry.

As for top coats more is not always better. Paint creates a hard surface that can chip off. Its better to let the paint get a scratch than to have it so thick it chips off in flakes. One other option, is to dip the parts in a clear two part epoxy. This will be the same as applying a coat of plastic over the part. This will make the pedals slippery and might interfere with the function of the pedals.

If the parts are a conductive metal you could also electroplate them. This might last a little longer and will not chip off, but it will scratch. Remove all paint and then clean with paint thiner. Take a twelve volt DC transformer and attach the pedal to the negative lead, and attach the positive lead to an object thats made of the metal you want to electroplate with such as gold bar, copper penny(s), ect. and then emerge the entire setup (except the transformer) into a mild acid (vinegar) making sure the two parts (pedal and gold bar) are not touching in the vinegar. Now turn on the 12 volt transformer and wait.

With the electroplating I would suggesting some practice first. Try using different metals and objects first.

They probably have some kind of topcoat at the hardware store that you could buy.