Powder or Paint

There wouldn't be much meshing of the old wiring:

The only thing would be the 12V ign and 12V Hot. Assuming that you're getting the whole 5.3 wiring harness, with the alternator, ignition with the coils on the plugs and module, the sensors and every thing electrical on the engine and trans?

Powder coating outlasts paint by years, powder coating is electrostatically applied, then oven baked. Paint on the other hand is sprayed at varying thicknesses, and does not lend it self well to the rocks and coarse dust that the undercarriage picks up.

How do I know this? My vast experience of being a mechanic/bodyman, doing restorations and custom work. Spraying undercarriages then switching to powder coating. I personally will never look back to spraying, unless I can't get the color someone wants in the powder shop I use.

Good luck and hook up all your frame grounds to extend the life of your frame and underbody finish!

Refinish King

. .

I thought it was permanent.

He also said I'd be happier with a urethane paint on the frame... Is this correct?

=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D On Thu, Feb 19, 2004, 11:45pm (CST+1) (Refinish=A0King) replied........

Powder coating outlasts paint by years, powder coating is electrostatically applied, then oven baked.

Paint on the other hand is sprayed at varying thicknesses, and does not lend it self well to the rocks and coarse dust that the undercarriage picks up.

How do I know this?

My vast experience of being a mechanic/bodyman, doing restorations and custom work. Spraying undercarriages then switching to powder coating.

I personally will never look back to spraying, unless I can't get the color someone wants in the powder shop I use.

Good luck and hook up all your frame grounds to extend the life of your frame and underbody finish!

Refinish King =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

If you are going to drive it everyday.....

Spray it.

It's cheaper...it's easier...it last as long as powder coat on a frame....and it's easier to touch up later on.

Powder coating ain't "bullet proof". As a matter of fact....it's bout one of the worst coatings you could use on the undercarriage of a vehical you're planning on driving around all the time.

If your going to be hauling it to shows on a trailer...never driving it....sticking some mirrors under it so's folks can drool over it..... putting about 5 miles A YEAR on it..... and you're after the "Powder Coated It" bragging rights......

then.....

by all means....powder coat it.

Marsh Monster ~thinks yer gonna wanna go down to the burger king and show it off on Fryday nights......maybe scratch a little gravel to show off a bit........ you better spray it .....aye?~ =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

Well, I am planning on driving it everyday. I don't want this vehicle to be a showcase car, I want it to be a clean daily driver. One of the advantages I saw with the powdercoating is that it was relatively cheap. I can get the chassis stripped and coated for about $600.

I thought it was permanent.

He also said I'd be happier with a urethane paint on the frame... Is this correct?

====== ======

On Thu, Feb 19, 2004, 11:45pm (CST+1) (Refinish King) replied........

Powder coating outlasts paint by years, powder coating is electrostatically applied, then oven baked.

Paint on the other hand is sprayed at varying thicknesses, and does not lend it self well to the rocks and coarse dust that the undercarriage picks up.

How do I know this?

My vast experience of being a mechanic/bodyman, doing restorations and custom work. Spraying undercarriages then switching to powder coating.

I personally will never look back to spraying, unless I can't get the color someone wants in the powder shop I use.

Good luck and hook up all your frame grounds to extend the life of your frame and underbody finish!

Refinish King ======= =======

If you are going to drive it everyday.....

Spray it.

It's cheaper...it's easier...it last as long as powder coat on a frame....and it's easier to touch up later on.

Powder coating ain't "bullet proof". As a matter of fact....it's bout one of the worst coatings you could use on the undercarriage of a vehical you're planning on driving around all the time.

If your going to be hauling it to shows on a trailer...never driving it....sticking some mirrors under it so's folks can drool over it..... putting about 5 miles A YEAR on it..... and you're after the "Powder Coated It" bragging rights......

then.....

by all means....powder coat it.

Marsh Monster ~thinks yer gonna wanna go down to the burger king and show it off on Fryday nights......maybe scratch a little gravel to show off a bit........ you better spray it .....aye?~ ===== =====

I will be getting the entire 5.3 wiring harness. Thanks for your input!

Now how can views on powder coating vs paint be so drastically different? March Monster completely disagrees with you.

electrostatically

I have a 1973 ducatti that I am doing a frame off on. I had everything I could powder coated. I should takes some pics to put them up, but it looks AWESOME! He 'sprayed' it black, and cooked that for 15min to "gel" it, then he sprayed clear on it, and finished cooking it. It gives THE glossiest (a word?) look I've ever seen - one so 'deep' I'm scared I'll fall in.

Now I haven't driven it yet, cuz she taint done but my schientiphic esperiment was to find a non-too-visible place and put a screw driver to it.... got it to scratch but didn't see none-no metal. I also took a piece he had lying around the shop and bent it back and forth till it snapped... never flaked off. From what I understand, if done right, it's part of the metal....

~KJ~

It has to do with everyone's experience, and what they were fooling with.

I worked as an engineer for a generator set and light tower manufacturer. We used a galvanized trailer frame whenever we could since these were rental units and would never see any TLC. Next best is powder coat, followed by two part urethane. Note that what I am referring to is REAL powder coat, like your frame guy is going to do. It is sprayed on DRY to an electrically charged frame. The powder sticks evenly all over the surface, leaving no "holidays" that a painter might. Thickness of the paint is controlled with a Knob, not an eyeball. Then it is rolled into an oven, where the powder melts, then dries.

The advantage of REAL powder coating is it DOES NOT CHIP, ever. You can abrasively remove it, or scuff it with a rock, but you will never see a chunk of paint pop off like any other type of paint will do. If you have a skill saw or other hand held tool, the painted parts are Powder coat. Go drag a knife across your blade guard and see how tough the real stuff is.

Would you like an opinion from a guy who did powder and liquid coating for 12 years on just about anything you can think of?

Powder is a great thing BUT the base metal must be almost perfectly clean, no rust, dust, oil dirt or anything else if you want the paint to hold up. Sandblasting is the preferred method of cleaning and prepping for powder, then a good wash with a high phosphate cleaner and a good drying and then coat and bake. Powder failure usually is a result of improper prep, or damage to the base material.

Properly applied powder can last 20 years or more but if it is damaged through the coating it will flake off due to the rusting under it. Also any item that will be outside in the sunlight should be coated using a polyurethane powder and not an epoxy powder, the epoxy doesn't handle UV at all and will dull and powder up in less than a year. One BIG thing to make sure of, any bolt holes or welding or anything else MUST be done before the coating is applied, otherwise you just caused a rust spot and the powder will start to fail. Also make sure that holes are plugged if they are threaded and anything that will ever need to be repaired or replaced is NOT on the frame when it is coated, unless you want to find out just how hard powder is to remove.

If you want any specific info just holler. I still have a lot of links in the business and the shop I worked in is just down the road.

Oh here is a bit of trivia for folks, The Tuned Port Induction plates you see under the hood of a Trans Am or Camaro were all painted by us in that plant (base of argent silver with flattening paste, then hand filed to make the tops of the letters looked milled, then sprayed with a flat clear coat), we also painted black painted EGR valves for GM, antennas for Ford,Chrysler and GM side antenna mounts for Jeep, the rear hatch hinges, inside/outside door handles for the Camaro/Firebird. Also painted the entire first run of the injector bodies on the ZR2 Corvette. Plus a LOT of other non auto stuff. Propane tank cages, AC unit cages for Carrier, fire hydrants, even Christmas decorations, and doctors instruments.

. . =3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D jroy3@ snipped-for-privacy@jam.rr.com (Big=A0Dope) writes in......

Well, I am planning on driving it everyday.

I don't want this vehicle to be a showcase car,

I want it to be a clean daily driver.

One of the advantages I saw with the powdercoating is that it was relatively cheap. I can get the chassis stripped and coated for about $600. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

if you're not after showcase..... if you're only after clean, durable, and cheap....

use undercoating....

Steve W. has years of hands on experience with powder coating, and I do not doubt or debate his personal experiences with it. He knows what he knows.

Refinish King "says" he has years of experience with powder coating and spraying. He knows what he knows.

me...... i'm jest given yuh my opinion from experience too........

:)

marsh ~pours himself a crown and coke ......and waits~ =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

Big question here, how are they stripping it? and does that price include sandblasting and masking? If so that isn't a bad price. But you could probably coat it with Chassis Saver or POR 15 for a lot less, and be able to touch it up when it gets marked up.

For Chassis Saver paint. If you talk to themsay hello to Eric for me.http://www.por15.com/ For POR

Thanks guys. I really appreciate the input. I think I'm going to go ahead and have everything powdercoated, however, before I drop the stuff off, I'm going to make sure I understand the process that the shop is using to prep and apply the material. If it doesn't sound like he knows what he's doing, I'll have my stuff painted since there's only one powder coating shop in town.

Do as much prep work as you can before taking it in, make sure any items that may need to come off in the future are off before coating (they could be coated separately if you like). Weld any cracks,holes or bracing (like a brace for the steering box area to keep it in good shape) on before coating and make sure that if there are threaded holes that they get plugged, trying to use a tap to clean out the powder after it has cured is HARD work and you will break a few taps doing it. All rubber or plastic or anything that can't handle 400-450 degrees for

30-45 minutes has to come off, If you have them paint the suspension parts as well make sure of the same things AND ask them how they correct mistakes if they occur (most shops use a burn off oven to literally burn the powder off of heavy parts, The parts will hit over 1000 degrees and anything other than heavy steel will warp in there, You don't want an A-arm back that has been through that system, it may look OK but it will be warped and weakened) If you have any questions about the process or anything related just drop me a note. falcon @ telenet net add the dot before the net.

. . Re: Powder or Paint Group: alt.trucks.chevy Date: Sat, Feb 21, 2004, 12:40pm (CST+6) From: jroy3@ snipped-for-privacy@jam.rr.com (Big=A0Dope)

Thanks guys. I really appreciate the input. I think I'm going to go ahead and have everything powdercoated, however, before I drop the stuff off, I'm going to make sure I understand the process that the shop is using to prep and apply the material. If it doesn't sound like he knows what he's doing, I'll have my stuff painted since there's only one powder coating shop in town. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

Give the customer what he wants......

I'm sure you'll be happy with the end results, and the finish will be something to brag about to yer buds.

Just keep one thing in mind. Be it powder coating or spraying it, later on down the road when some poor technician has to start pulling parts off the frame rail and substructure, don't go yelling at him because your finish was damaged. It WILL chip off when bolts are torqued down on it, and when bolts are loosened....after being torqued down on it. So....have a heart for the poor slob that's working on it later.

I "would" suggest that what ever color you decide to use.......go ahead and get the same color mixed for touch up purposes. Any type of paint will do for using as touch up on little spots that need it, and you'll be glad later on that you got it.

enjoy yer truck.....

respectfully, marsh

3rd generation body man =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D