DIY Powder Coating

[RM1SepEx]

Everyone should investigate doing their own powder coating. Investment is very low to get capability for anything that fits in a std oven

http://www.eastwood.com/powder-gun-promo-kit.html

Share the capability with your friends and build up a good selection of powders, add'l colors can be purchased from sources such as Powder By The Pound http://www.powderbuythepound.com/

here is a shot of some underhood pieces for my old BMW E30 convertible, it is easy to get the classic wrinkle finish on the valve covers. Powder coat, use a flat file to remove the powder from the raised letters. block sand the finish to a nice sheen with some cutting oil (I use WD40)

I also used the capability extensively for my ongoing 818 prep

[68GT500MAN]

I know of people who have an old oven in the shop for the curing process, NOT something you want to do in an oven used for food preparation.

[CHOTIS BILL]

I have the Eastwood system also and it is easy to use and gives great results but can be a little messy if you don’t ketch the unused powder. Harbor Freight also has a system but not sure how good it is.

Bill Lomenick

[skullandbones]

I have the HF system and like you say there are multiple sources for various types and colors of powder (not much at HF). I wanted to try it just to see if I could. There are some possible safety issues with the curing process. That's what's slowing me down at this point. Don't want to build a DIY bomb in the garage! I may take this experiment outside with an old grill. Still checking out the possibilities. Give us some feedback on your success. Thanks, WEK.

[OCCPete]

Here's a couple things I powdercoated using the Eastwood system and a $50 oven from Goodwill:

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/pballent/Cobra%20Build/intake.jpg (http://s2.photobucket.com/user/pballent/media/Cobra%20Build/intake.jpg.html)

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/pballent/Cobra%20Build/PICT009.jpg (http://s2.photobucket.com/user/pballent/media/Cobra%20Build/PICT009.jpg.html)

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/pballent/Cobra%20Build/PICT011.jpg (http://s2.photobucket.com/user/pballent/media/Cobra%20Build/PICT011.jpg.html)

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/pballent/Cobra%20Build/PICT013.jpg (http://s2.photobucket.com/user/pballent/media/Cobra%20Build/PICT013.jpg.html)

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y48/pballent/Cobra%20Build/PICT002.jpg (http://s2.photobucket.com/user/pballent/media/Cobra%20Build/PICT002.jpg.html)

Pete

[CHOTIS BILL]

Make sure the oven is electric and not gas.

Bill Lomenick

[RM1SepEx]

That Hot Coat system is the same as Eastwood's cheap one... http://www.eastwood.com/paints.html

We do it just outside the garage door and blow any excess powder into the wind...

Our electric oven came from Craigslist... FREE the old woman was so happy someone could use her old electric oven that had one dead burner! Make a pigtail to share your AC welder outlet. The oven weighs almost nothing we just drag it outside the door on a nice day... easy to control the dust and explosion concerns.

I'm about to make an aluminum hood to extend the stove for larger pieces and Mark just bought an IR setup to do stuff like motorcycle frames etc.... http://www.eastwood.com/infrared-powder-curing-system.html