Powder coating durability ??

[hunt2elk]

Any thoughts or opinions on powder coating vs. paint for a k-frame, upper and lower control arms, and steering linkage? Is it tougher than paint and how does it stand up to oil, brake fluid, antifreeze, power steering fluid? Would it be worth the added expense?

 

[68sportsatelliteragtop]

I have powdercoated all the pieces for my suspension that would fit in my 30" oven. The pieces on my Belvedere have been done about 4 years now and are holding up fine. They have been exposed to brake fluid without any peeling issue. The finish holds up to tools where as paint will typically pop off the corner of fastners. I set up my own oven, free off Craigslist and bought a Sears powdercoat gun off E-Bay for about $50. Powder is fairly cheap. Somebody posted a while ago about the finish not holding up to UV, but for suspension pieces, I don't see any problem. The parts need to be clean, as in glass/sand beaded to accept powdercoat.

 

[hunt2elk]

You must have a great wife to let you cook car parts in her oven. I remember someone talking about the UV rays affecting durability also. Didn't know if it was because of poor prep or just that powdercoating wasn't the greatest for this application.

 

[68sportsatelliteragtop]

I am sure you are aware that once you cook parts in an oven the oven is no longer suitable for cooking food! I got an oven for free off Craiglist,turns out it was an oven with a separate small oven built above it, great for small parts. I don't know for sure about the UV affecting the finish of powdercoate parts but I just bought a set of wheels that were powdercoated and then cleared by the manufacture.

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

i have an eastwood kit that i use for small parts, brackets, pullys, valve covers, and intake manifolds. works great, easy to clean. i also have a dedicated oven. wouldn't even think about doing it in the house.

 

[hunt2elk]

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I am sure you are aware that once you cook parts in an oven the oven is no longer suitable for cooking food! I got an oven for free off Craiglist,turns out it was an oven with a separate small oven built above it, great for small parts. I don't know for sure about the UV affecting the finish of powdercoate parts but I just bought a set of wheels that were powdercoated and then cleared by the manufacture.

That sounds alot safer than doing it in the house. Although I would be willing to bet someone has tried it before.

 

[jessipup]

Dude look up Cudachick She knows all there is to know and if you decide to farm it out Phoenix powder coat is the only company I would consider. Top shelf folks, top shelf work and a FBBO member

 

[68sportsatelliteragtop]

Curing the parts in the oven does create quite the stink! I don't know how much you were quoted for coating your parts but if you have the room and some time, doing it yourself is easy and you can achieve decent results. If it fits in your blast cabinet and oven, it ain't rocket science.

 

[hunt2elk]

What's the deal with all you guys having an oven in your garage? I didn't realize that was a prerequisite for this addiction of ours.

 

[eric383]

Now I gotta start looking for a oven for my shop. Thanks alot!

 

[Meep-Meep]

Nice work guys! When I had my 72 911 I had all the engine tin powder baked and it held up just fine - including the piece over the muffler.

 

[RGAZ]

I deal with Electrocoating and Powdercoating on industrial equipment and a powdercoat finish will be far superior than the majority of paints available on the market. The salt spray capability of powder outshines paint consistently unless the paint is epoxy based (picture marine grade goo paint).

The idea solution is to pre-treat the carbon steel with a anti-rust coating like zinc phospahte or iron phosphate before powdercoating. This will limit the corrosion creep from a scratch. If I wanted it to last forever, I would pre-treat it with a phosphate, primer coat it with e-coat (like cars in white) from a local supplier, then topcoat with powder.

As for the UV resistance. Ecoat is usually poor, but Powdercoat is very very good depending the color. Reds are the worse, whites do the best. The UV effect is a chalking and its not as bad as fading.

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

What's the deal with all you guys having an oven in your garage? I didn't realize that was a prerequisite for this addiction of ours.

just look at it as "your buying the wife a new oven because she deserves it", and you'll just store the old oven out it the garage. :angel7:

 

[Donny]

It's as durable as the preparation is good. I've seen some Powder coating blow off fairly easily, some, is impossible to get off as it was put on so good!

 

[RustyRatRod]

The way I understand it is, powdercoat is much harder than paint, so that makes it brittle. You wouldn't want to powdercoat say, a frame for instance, since it will twist and tweak and possibly crack the powdercoat and cause it to get contamination under it. I may be wrong about that, but that's always been my understanding.

 

[Cranky]

Suspension parts flex.....does it crack off of that?

 

[RustyRatRod]

Suspension parts flex.....does it crack off of that?

I'm not 100% sure. That's why I said "it's been my understanding" because I'm not sure about it. I DO know powedercoating is tougher than paint so it's stands to reason it cannot stand flexing as much. I wish Leanna would chime in on this. She is the Mistress of Metal.

 

[fatecaptured]

Well I can tell you powder will not crack if applied correctly. At my job, we powder coat everything. We have a piece of machinery call a smart till which we warranty for 3 years. We've had them come back for bearing replacements and new tines. I've seen them frames after 2 1/2 years of going through fields and hitting rocks and all sorts of stuff. The paint is still there and not cracked or chipped. Hell I've seen unload tubes which are 20 gauge rolled steel come back with dents and the paint never chiped or cracked.

I wouldn't hesitate to powder coat anything. Mill thickness plays a big part in any finish. Whether it be enamel, acrylics, powder coats. Too thick of a paint job will yeild cracks and chips bottom line. You could be the best painter in the world but if you put 10 mills of paint on something thats going to be moved at all, it will chip, crack, spider web you name it.

Hell I thought about powdering coating for a side job myself. Its easy and you can toss the powder in the trash and its legal to do so.

 

[RGAZ]

I will concur with powder comments. If applied and cured properly it will not crack and will be very durable. Mil thickness is very important, too much really rounds the corners. Watch the voltage and the coating thickenss wil be fine.

You can check a good powder coat with MEK rubs for curing and a scratch test and scotch tape for adhesion. I highly recommend conducting these tests after you are done. Just coat a small sample part with your other parts and test that one.

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

even the cheap stuff seems somewhat flexible from my experience. seems better than "regular" paint in that department