I REPRESENT ONE OF THE LARGEST POWDER COATING FACILITIES IN SOUTH FLORIDA!!!
Ok, enough CAPS. lol
First off, powder coating is proven to be much more durable then any wet paint application. Why do you think most wheels are power coated today? Some are still wet painted though.
Second, one of the most IMPORTANT steps in powder coating is the PRE-Treatment process. At our facility, we have a 6 stage automated process of hydroxy and phospheric acids, dionized water, and city water rinses. I cant stress enough about the pre-treatment process if you want the paint to STICK and not be fragile.
Third, the powder needs to be good quality polyurethane. Also, the powder needs to be kept in a temperature controlled enviroment or it goes bad FAST.
Fourth, the paint needs to be cured at the CORRECT temperature and for the CORRECT amount of time. If its too cool or too hot and if its curing to fast or too long, THE PAINT WILL FAIL in the long run.
Fifth, A CLEARCOAT CAN BE APPLIED OVER THE POWDER but NOT a wet clear. We powder coat CLEARS today. The base paint is half cured, pulled out of the oven and then a clear coat is applied over the base and back into the oven for FULL curing. The two coatings meld together leaving you wit ha glossy clear topcoat.
On a side note, I don't know why anyone would ever powder coat something for you for free unless there family. Its a lot of work to do it right. ITs not rocket science but its alot of good work, good chemicals, and good technique that makes the paint stick for long term durability. I charge $100 a wheel for anything 19" plus. We do wheels all the time. They are mainly people who want to coat there factory wheels. The usual color is either gloss black or satin black. GLOSS BLACK does not need a clear coat because its already in the paint. Thats why its glossy. Satin black has a LOWER gloss clear already added to it and flat black has no clear in it and thats why flat black holds and shows all imperfections, marks, and scratches. Most powders already have a clearcoat inside of the formula. There are certain applications with mettalic flakes in them that NEED a clearcoat or the sparkle mettalic will fade and turn dark.
If you have any questions about powder coating, feel free to email me at
[email protected]
There are some CRAZY things we have done to wheels!!!
Best,
Jonathan
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Originally Posted by Bryson
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