Calling all powder coaters

[flanagan0718]

Hey Guys,
   I've come to my whits end with spray paints. I've been looking at powder coat set ups but its all Greek to me. Where do I start? I know I need a gun, compressor, powder, and toaster oven. What do you guys use? Would you recommend the Harbor Freight system? Brands, links, and pictures would be ideal. I've read and watched a couple of tutorials, seems easier and less involved than spray paint. I already have a compressor so I could Craigslist a toaster oven but I'm clueless about the gun. Thanks in advance!

[AntKnee]

+1 on this!!!
I've had it with paint. Paint sucks. I'm ready to switch as well, and also have a compressor. Been watching a lot of vids.

[rullywowr]

Glad to help. I would highly suggest the Eastwood gun. You really don't need the whole kit however. You need the gun, a compressor, grounding wire, heat proof tape, toaster oven and powder. I also suggest making a rig to hold your boxes while you bake like this:

This rig is simply some tie plates (for wood beams as you get at the home improvement store) and some 1/4-20 screws and bolts.

You may want to get some silicone plugs to stop up holes as well.

For powder I recommend Columbia Coatings.

I intend to do a picture tutorial on just how easy and rewarding the process actually is.  Once you have the equipment, powder is cheap. Nothing more satisfying than taking an enclosure out of the oven after 20 minutes and it's done. No waiting for curing, and no smell. It's way worth it.

[muddyfox]

Could you please elaborate on your working space, Ben?
Does the entire room get covered in powder? Can you do it indoors (think apartment)? How much mess does it make?

[rullywowr]

Could you please elaborate on your working space, Ben?
Does the entire room get covered in powder? Can you do it indoors (think apartment)? How much mess does it make?

I do it in the garage. It can make a mess so if you are doing it inside you can spray in a cardboard box to minimize it. The mess is just powder dust so it wipes off easily and vacuums/sweeps up no problem. You can do it outside but make sure the wind won't blow your powder off the enclosure.

Basically I take the raw enclosure and wipe it down with acetone until noote black stuff comes off on the paper towel. Then I bake the enclosure for 15 minutes at about 385. This gets any last oils or fibers off. It also prewarms the enclosure which promotes powder adhesion

Then I fire up the powder rig and spray the enclosures. You have to ensure they are grounded to the rig. You can tape a grounding wire to them with the heat proof tape or I use my stand rig (Thanks Cody!) to ground it.

A light coat of dust will adhere to the enclosure based on static attraction. Pay attention to get the edges and sides completely covered.

You then will carefully move it to the oven without bumping it or disturbing the powder. Bake at about 385F for 15-20 minutes after "flow out". If you want you can take the enclosure out after 10 minutes while the powder is "wet" and spray it again to ensure coverage.

After the 15-20 minutes is done, you are done!  As soon as the enclosure cools you can do whatever you want to it. Easy peasy. The dust can make a mess but it's not smelly whatsoever.

[Leevibe]

I have the harbor freight rig and I've had mixed results. More often than not I get orange peel so I've reverted back to PPP for now. I don't know if the issue has been bad powder coverage or my toaster oven sucks. I even put an oven thermometer in to verify temp, but still the varied results.

[jimmybjj]

Tutorial by fastocker Powder Coating Tutorial

I have the harbor freight rig and I've had mixed results. More often than not I get orange peel so I've reverted back to PPP for now. I don't know if the issue has been bad powder coverage or my toaster oven sucks. I even put an oven thermometer in to verify temp, but still the varied results.

check this for orange peel issues http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=1785.msg34412#msg34412

[chromesphere]

On the topic of mess and garages:

BE ULTRA CAREFUL where the dust goes when there are cars around.  The car bonnet heats up the powder will cure and stick to it.  The roof will also heat up in the sun and have the same problem. This happened twice with both cars and it got to the point that I was going to throw in the towel as every time I would PC I would end up waxing one of the cars!!  And the stuff STICKS.  One bonnet took over 10 wax jobs to get the PC dust off!

But I was also being very careless with the dust so:

- Spray inside something like cardboard box.  I use a plastic storage box.  Take the box outside and brush it off onto the lawn or anywhere outside the garage.
- Get a long enough hose for your compressor so you can take the air gun outside with the powder gun and spray it off again, outside of the garage.
- use a small dust buster to suck up the remaining powder.

For me it wasn't just a matter of 'sweeping it up'.  It was becoming a huge problem, but now I have it under control.  Save yourself the time and anguish, keep the dust contained and get rid of it outdoors.

Paul

[Leevibe]

Tutorial by fastocker Powder Coating Tutorial

I have the harbor freight rig and I've had mixed results. More often than not I get orange peel so I've reverted back to PPP for now. I don't know if the issue has been bad powder coverage or my toaster oven sucks. I even put an oven thermometer in to verify temp, but still the varied results.

check this for orange peel issues http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=1785.msg34412#msg34412

Thanks Jim. Looks like enough reading there to keep me busy for a while

[slimtriggers]

I have a regular box fan with a furnace filter tied to the back.  I spray the powder in front of that.  The over spray gets sucked into the filter.  Dead simple and it cuts down on the dust that used to go everywhere.

[peAk]

I am interested too

I already have this from redoing furniture, would this work for painting enclosures?

http://www.lowes.com/pd_326053-89183-HV2900USG_4294684405__?productId=3142757&Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar%7C1&facetInfo=

[chromesphere]

Peak, you need a powder coating gun specifically for powder coating.  The gun is powered so electrostatic energy holds the powder onto the metal.  A regular spray gun is not made for that purpose.

[sonarchotic]

I bought the Eastwood kit and it works great. I built a mobile paint booth that contains all the accessories  on a bottom shelf and has a box built on to the back with filter fabric in front of it. In the back of the box is a place to mount my shop vac. The powder clouds get vacuumed up and no mess. I get a ton of satisfaction from pc. Better looking colors, more color choices, quicker, less messy and more durable than spray paint. My booth is similar to this guys but bigger and on wheels.

[chromesphere]

The fan is the only thing im missing from my set up.  I'm going to have hook something up!  I'm assuming low cfm would be what im after as not to disturb the powder?

[sonarchotic]

The fan is the only thing im missing from my set up.  I'm going to have hook something up!  I'm assuming low cfm would be what im after as not to disturb the powder?

By the time the Shop Vac vacuum hits the filter it's not moving much air. Just enough to suck up the hovering dust.