Trevmust

I was wondering.... Should I powder coat my whole car? or should I just do the bottom... cuz I have been looking at some of the powders the place closest to me has and there are some pretty cool ones. I'm also stuck on whether I should have the car dipped or blasted... (if I went with blasting I'd go Walnut and glass bead on the bottom if its really stubborn). The place that does the powder coat also does ceramic coating and I was thinking I could ceramic coat the whole exhaust... Does this sound too extreme to you guys? or..

BlackenedBird

iTrader: (5)

To start with.....Good luck finding a place with an oven big enough to fit a whole car in.

Trevmust

the place can handle stuff up to 7 feet wide, 5 feet tall and 20 foot long or so

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

They did this on Powerblock. They powdercoated the whole car with primer.

TheEndofanEra

One thing I'll mention is our cars are made with cold rolled steel, which means that if subjected to high enough heat the panels will warp. I'd find a spare fender and get it powdercoated as a test. If that works, how would you go about matching the bumpers to the powdercoat? (I'm not sure if you can powdercoat plastic...?)

If that works, then no, I don't think it'd be to extreme.

Trevmust

well say I can't what would be the next best thing? I just figured powdercoat cuz Id like never have to ever repaint it lol

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

yes it can be done. any any good body shop who paints custom cars should be able to match the color for the plastic stuff.

Trevmust

shouldnt powdercoating plastic be doable? I think they have special powder somewhere...

Trevmust

http://www.wrightcoating.com/special...powder-coating no idea if it would work for our bumpers though...

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

Powdercoating relies on charging the powder and the piece opposite of each other so the paint sticks to it, and then it is baked. You can only do this with metal. You also can't powder coat the final finish onto a car because every car requires some sort of filler to get the panels straight and the powdercoat won't adhere to the filler.

Edit - just read the post above this and lo and behold there is a process to powdercoat plastics now. Most places can't do this. My powdercoater says metal only.

Trevmust

you can electrostatically charge plastic.

Trevmust

so powdercoat can be painted on top of then right?

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

Yes you can powder coat plastics. Depends on the coater.

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

if your just powdercoating the chassis and body for a primmer coat. Yes you can paint over it.

Trevmust

Thanks. No idea where I wouldget it done in British columbia though ahaha

blackbmagic

How much money do you realistically and honestly have to spend on this...?

The answer to that should open your eyes.

In case your still persistent.

You need body fillers that are conductive. Ive seen brass used to fill when powder coating. If its not conductive it will not adhere period. Unless you dip the car in a conductive solution and then coat. In that case the coating is not nearly as bonded as it would have been otherwise.

Plastic can be powder coated but it uses a different newer technology that is more expensive. Only high heat parts can be coated. A minimum of 400º is seen during cure. This means cars bumpers must be coated separate if the bumpers on our cars can even withstand those temperatures.

Also the resins used when making our GFX years ago are old school, they dont hold up well to heat. So unless you remake the kits with newer high heat resins you are taking a huge chance.

Powder coating is extremely thick and hard to remove. In the case of an accident it will be nearly impossible to remove and re-coat to look right. Unless its a removable part you will have to do the whole car again.

Powder coat has extreme orange peel in some cases. Doing a whole car you will have to deal with this OR color sand it out. Good luck, its a tedious process with paint. Color sanding powder coat is like trying to cut steel with a butter knife. It will take A LOT of work.

Trevmust

I have zero expenses. I can spend whatever I want on it. I've never heard of orange peeling with powder coating and the coatings are only mm's thick.

Damon23

Well, in that case who cares about our opinion? Do it and let us know how it works out for you.

82tarecaro

iTrader: (4)

Powder coatings have orange peel. Shoot some pics when it's done.

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

They make LOW cure powders. Ive used some as low as 280* cure temps.
Ive hot flocked parts to and have not needed to ground the parts for the static charge.
Ive done some plastics in a conventional oven.

Yes as with anything if you dont get a even coverage you can get orange peel. It can be wetsanded and buffed just like paint. (depending on colors used)

Trevmust

I want opinions from p who have do e it or done something similar because I'd rather not waste my money, wasted money could be put into other areas.

Thirdgen89GTA

iTrader: (5)

Powder coating a car is a waste. Its better to do it on smaller items that see heavy duty use. If you want to protect the finish if your car 3M makes a clear film that can be wrapped on the front of the car to protect against rock chips, its FAR more effective, and much easier to remove.

Wheels make great items to coat because they routinely see abuse from hot brake dust, and other dirt/debris. It makes cleaning them as easy as wiping them down with a rag. I had my ZR1 wheels powdercoated white. Cleans up so easy with a microfiber towel, some water and a tiny bit of car soap to break the waters surface tension.

This includes me shoving my hands inside the wheels to clean the barrels (which are also coated. ).

Trevmust

I was told that it's impossible to get an uneven coat with powder

Trevmust

I'm worried about rust not rock chips

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

FALSE ! Just like liquid paint. Its all in the technique. Equipment , etc..

and Ive been powder coating since '00. Everything from chassis , home interior parts , industrial parts , etc..

That being said if you have no budget why are you asking here. As your local powder coater if they want to do your complete car. Then have someone do all the gfx , bumpers , etc in liquid paint that will match the powder. Or just use the powder as a primer and have the car painted. but be warned A body shop might not warrenty a paint job if the rest is powder coated. because they dindt prep the chassis for the powder coating. If the powder flakes the pait will come off with it.

Thirdgen89GTA

iTrader: (5)

Powder coat can be uneven, just like paint. It can be applied too thick and too thin. The only difference is instead of spraying a liquid medium you are spraying a dry powder.
Powdercoat will not stop rust any better than paint will.

Trevmust

So just forget about powder coating then? Is there a por product that doesn't require rusty surfaces to adhere?

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

Just get it chemical stripped and e-coated then.

http://www.musclecarrestorations.com/video/ecoat.wmv

Trevmust

There's a redi-strip by my dads. They do the zinc phosphate coating.

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

Thats the way to go then.

Trevmust

What kind of primer do I put on top of that? Wouldn't self etching **** the plating?

UNCLE TOM

iTrader: (1)

i can only hope you have very , very deep pockets . some of your ideas (while good) are just not cost effective in todays world . good luck .

TheEndofanEra

I'd think so, so I'd use a good epoxy over that and then proceed with body work business as usual.

Trevmust

Any brand reccomenations? I think im gunna use duplicolour for everything.

TheEndofanEra

I'm partial to PPG or Southern Polyurethane stuff myself.

Whatever you use, make sure it's automotive grade and even better a 2k (e.g. has a catalyst/hardener).

Trevmust

I'll google It.