Adventures with Powdercoating

[fmcandrew]

PATMAX - are you telling me that Eastwood's PRE is not a sufficient cleaner? If so, where do I get liquid Phospate?

Regarding glass beads...I read that they get lodged in the metal (especially porous metal like cast aluminum) and burst when heated...find it hard to believe, but the author said they switch to aluminum oxcide and the issue was gone...

 

[PATMAX]

I have no experience with Eastwood's PRE so I cannot add anything there. I was wondering at what temperature glass changes its chemical properties. I'm guessing it is pretty damn high. Aluminum Oxide is the same media on some sandpapers and obvious effective abrasive qualities. It has to be fairly inert. The Phosphate wash is available at some automotive places but mostly autobody supply houses.


When in doubt...Gas it !!!

 

[06VMAXIMUS]

fmc, that red looks great! Nice work.

 

[CaptainKyle]

PATMAX - are you telling me that Eastwood's PRE is not a sufficient cleaner? If so, where do I get liquid Phospate?

Regarding glass beads...I read that they get lodged in the metal (especially porous metal like cast aluminum) and burst when heated...find it hard to believe, but the author said they switch to aluminum oxcide and the issue was gone...

Yeah I was blasting all my parts with glass bead before I took them to the coater & he told me not to do it any more & said switch to aluminum oxide.

 

[PATMAX]

Ahh, so the glass isn't changing its chemical property, it's just getting imbedded in the substrate and "popping". I would think any silica (sand) type media might do this then but it doesn't. Of course blasting is not just to remove finishes but giving the base metal some "bite" for coating to grab hold of. As I mentioned earlier, Black Beauty is too harsh in some cases and will leave marks or degrade detail in some surfaces. I don't think walnut shell and the like will give any bite to the base metal. That is especially important when going over chrome. You are not stripping off the chrome, just roughing up the surface for the powder to grab hold.
I'll try to do some research on chemical metal before coating. When doing bodywork, we used a 3M product called Prepsolv and a Scotchbite pad to ensure clean metal surfaces. I wonder if that would work or is the same thing as Phosphate in liquid suspension.
I'm glad we have this thread to share our experiences. Thanks to all who are contributing.

 

[PATMAX]

Eastwood PRE MSDS- xylene, aliphatic hydrocarbon, toulene, benzene.
All the harsh carcinogens. $25 a quart.
Same PPE precautions as Prepsolv or most solvents and strippers.
Pick your poison I guess.

 

[fmcandrew]

I don't prep my chrome...just whipe it with PRE and toss on the translucent...I've had great success with my chrome...it's actually some of my best work. However (as can be seen in my pics) the real chrome takes on a different shade than the translucent over the powder chrome (like my scoops). I think there is something to the whole glass beed thing...I'll know shortly when I redu my scoops using the aluminum oxcide to blast. I enjoy doing the PC'ing if you need something done on the cheap shoot me a PM...

 

[customizedcreationz]

As a side note, never ever use silica sand to media blast anything!!!

Silica is VERY cancerous.

If you must use it, wear very good breathing filters and well ventilated area.

Todd

 

[fmcandrew]

Agreed...I've read plenty about the dangers of inhaling silica...I use a high quality breathing device during all phases of the PCing process. Plus, I don't plan on using any kind of silica media for blasting unless it is inert (glass bead).

Thanks for the professional advice Todd!!

 

[PATMAX]

I'd have to research Silica as a mutagen or carcinogen but "Silicosis" is the pulmonary disease associated with breathing that crap in. PPE or personal protective equipment is always worth the cost. I'm much better in compliance at work than at home though. Shame on me.

 

[customizedcreationz]

Yes its not a very good thing to work with. I would rather tell everyone in the world then assume that people know.

I had a neighbor that was buying sand from Home Depot....... as he was unloading it I asked what he was going to use it for. When he told me, I told him just put the sand back in and take it back, come to the shop and use my stuff.

Its always good to have good quality filters and breathing setups when doing anything like this.

I bought a $300 mask for painting. Its awesome. Covers your whole face. Which is another important thing to remember, your eyes are like sponges. If you spray without eye protection, you might as well not wear a mask pretty much. Your eyes will absorb and send it right into your blood stream.

Todd

 

[customizedcreationz]

Ahhh heck, I can't keep posting without showing off a little of my own powder coat stuff from years ago.

I ll probably start powder coating again here since I am getting back into bikes more.

Translucent Red over chrome. ( these pictures are probably almost 7-8 years old )

Bright Chrome Silver

Gold and clear over polished. This was alot of work.....

Polished with clear, blue translucent over polished, purple translucent over polished.

Silver and Argent silver with clear over both.

Heavy Blue Translucent over chrome.

Heavy Blue Translucent over polished.

I ll post up some current pictures when I start to do some things on my current ride.

Todd

 

[fmcandrew]

Gotta love the translucents!!! My bike is getting covered in red as can be seen in my pics above!!

But I do like the blue!!

 

[fmcandrew]

Getting serious now...:eusa_dance:

 

[PATMAX]

Can't tell how big the cabinet is. Looks like a grabrail will fit no problem but maybe not a wheel. What media will you be using?

 

[mr.maxx]

i shure wish you was my neighbor. id keep ya busy!!!:rofl_200: nice workunk:

 

[bazwell]

Getting serious now...:eusa_dance:

He who dies with the most toys WINS! unk:

 

[customizedcreationz]

Did a couple of brake stay arms I just machined in silver powder coat.

Todd

 

[fmcandrew]

It will not fit a wheel easily...but at $100 ready to go it was just something I needed to get (blasted once outside and it sucked!) I initially thought glass beads would be my media of choice, however I used glass on my scoops and got little volcanic explosions in the finish (apparently the glass gets imbeded in the more porus metals and can "pop"...I've read a number of threads from PC'ers that said they've moved away from glass as well...same issue), so now I'm re-finishing my scoops with aluminum oxide...hopefully I'll get better results. Main issue is my crappy Husky air compressor...the cabinet wants 5 CMF @ 90psi...minimum...I'm pushing like 4 CMF (if I'm lucky), so I wait for air and it just takes longer. Otherwise using the cabinet is great...has a light and everything!!!

 

[customizedcreationz]

Aluminum oxide is the way to go. Just lower your pressure to around 40 psi and use smaller orifices dependent on the size of your media your using. Don't blast at 60+ psi or you'll leave a very rough surface and break your media down faster , all the while accomplishing nothing more then what you would if you blasted at 40 psi.

Todd