Does anyone DIY powder coating

cheezy1

cheezy1

#2
#2
I did my own for a little while. As long as you can find an "oven" to accomidate a frame..it works pretty good. But if you cant..its hell and incorrect to heat it with a heat gun like Ive seen done. Also it can be quite a mess till you get use to it and still alot of powder gets wasted. When you get into "snazzy" colors or 2-3 step colors..it is still expensive.
 
Outlaw Ace

Outlaw Ace

#3
#3
A buddy of mine has an oven he made from a storage container and used an old CL stove to heat it. Contamination is your biggest obstacle so good preparation is crucial, temperature is important too. Some of his stuff looks decent and some like hell. He did the frame on this chopper and a go-kart frame that is no longer hanging in the shop.

 
manco12

manco12

New Member
#4
#4
I've been playing around on some scrap metal the last couple of days. I bought the powder coating stuff a long time ago but never really used it. I just did a couple small pieces of flat 1/8" steel in matte black cured in a toaster oven. Once you get everything setup correctly, it's not hard to do at all. And you can always wipe the powder off and try again before you cure it. You can pretty much tell how it's going to look when it's done right from when you spray it on. Little bumps tend to stay after curing. If you don't put it on heavy enough in spots, you'll be able to see through to the metal in the sunlight.

I just use a Eastwood Hotcoat gun with the upgrades they have for it. Just connect it to any dry air supply, you can even get a portable air tank and use that. Just make sure to use an air dryer, I have a little desiccant one from HF. Then the toaster oven to cure like I said. I also have a portable infrared propane heating lamp I got from Columbia Coatings, which is where I get powder. It is $300 but allows you to cure bigger parts without a big oven. If you do that, you also need an infrared thermometer so you can heat the metal to the right temperature. I bought a somewhat cheap Kintrex one from Amazon.

I've wasted a lot of powder myself, especially in the wind :doah:
 
x-90 rider

x-90 rider

#5
#5
I do a lot of my small parts with a gun from Eastwood and a household oven that we have in the shop. It works great and I do not have to wait on someone elses schedule.
 
bullhead

bullhead

New Member
#6
#6
My problem is that the only powder coater. Is fourty five miles away. And he's not very good from what I have seen. My painter has too charge me more than double now.

I will start looking for a used kitchen oven. And do my own.

Thank Guy's!:thumbsup:

Bullhead
 
rdog348

rdog348

New Member
#7
#7
Outlaw Ace said:
A buddy of mine has an oven he made from a storage container and used an old CL stove to heat it. Contamination is your biggest obstacle so good preparation is crucial, temperature is important too. Some of his stuff looks decent and some like hell. He did the frame on this chopper and a go-kart frame that is no longer hanging in the shop.
Click to expand...
How much for the helmet? :wink:
 
Oldsalt

Oldsalt

Well-Known Member
#8
#8
You guys nailed it. If ya got to drive 20-40- or 60 miles one way to get some parts coated the price of a powder coat gun really looks affordable. The other is that you get your parts done that day!

I use a electric oven that I got for free. Big enough because I don't ever intend on doing anything large. Took out the broiler element that is at the top of the oven and in that area near the roof mounted two 3/8 inch round rods that are attached to the back wall and are open at the front. That way the wire suspending a freshly sprayed part can be easily hung upon the open-ended rods with a lot less danger of touching or otherwise disturbing the un-cured powder on the part.

The temperature numbers on the dial are accurate; used a cheap oven temp gauge that can be got at any grocery store to check it out. The thermostat also works flawlessly so no other modifications to the 240 Volt AC 'built-in' style oven was necessary. It sits outside when not used and the rain and snow has never bothered it.
 
bullhead

bullhead

New Member
#9
#9
Look at what I found on my Amazon Prime.
http://www.amazon.com/Craftsman-Com...TF8&coliid=I1JIY87N449JOU&colid=10HM2ANK9V9SK
There is a couple of You Tubes. Showing how this system works.
The Harbor Freight / Eastwood system's seems to waste a lot of powder. With it's fan spray.

I decited to go with this non compressor system. DIY a couple freezers. To make a big enough oven for the frames and forks. An old oven to get all the heating controls and element. It will have a clam shell set up. The two same size halfs will be on casters.

I'll also go with,https://www.columbiacoatings.com/category_s/1128.htm
Great prices and lot's of colors. Everone likes this company. Good reviews.

The wind blows alot here. So I do have a concern about dust. But I can deal with that.

Thank You guys for your imput.

Let's keep this DIY powder coating thread going. It may help someone else.

I will post asap when I get the project going.

Cheers!:thumbsup:
Bullhead
 
Oldsalt

Oldsalt

Well-Known Member
#10
#10
No problem about wind if you do the powder application indoors. The dust that hits the floor is easy to clean up if you throw down some newspaper. So far I've not had a problem with stuff out of the air sticking to the metal and causing a problem ..never applied powder outdoors.

Just a suggestion; believe it would be a good idea to try your hand at some small parts using the standard kitchen electric oven before going directly to a big unit and doing a full frame. The application of powder is not hard and following the directions as to temp and etc. is also a piece of cake. But ya gotta develop an eye for coverage with the powder and experiment with the manner you hang the parts for spraying and the manner and technique used to transport the part to the oven and hang it without touching anything. Also some experience on how to wire the parts so nothing shows when the part is finished. All easy to do, but if you goof on a a small part that is easier to strip than a complete frame!
 
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