Powder coating Calipers

[T3rb0]

Hey everyone, I wanted to extend my hookup ai have for powder coating.. any color you want $225. Most quotes i got were $600-$800 so this is an absolute steal. Its 1 week turn around time. If you’re interested or want to gift it for xmas etc message me.

[Benzivr6]

What's your location in NY?

[SavantAvant]

Honestly dont get why some guys get their calipers powdercoated.....I mean, its a personal choice, sure, I get that....but seems like no one wants to talk about the 600lb gorilla in the room...that being the fact that powdercoating is an INSULATOR....in fact, it is a very effective insulator. Somebody please give me one good reason why you would want to insulate your calipers....? Ours get epoxy-coated, not powdercoated. And the 3M epoxy product we use actually has reverse thermogenic properties----actually helps to SHED heat, not retain it.

And then we'll get some guys that will call in and say things like "well look at the Porsche calipers that are powdercoated in that acid green color, for example"......ummm...excuse me, those calipers are not "powdercoated"----they have a composite plasticote that once again, has reverse thermogenic properties that aid in shedding heat, not retaining it. (And we've looked into buying that stuff...cheapest source we have found is about $1400 per half-gallon, retail. AND it must be heat-treated at a specific temperature with a specific flash cycle over the course of like 14 hours, as I recall....Soooooo.....yyyyah....)

It is true that the powdercoating looks really nice, yes.....and yes it is a bit tougher and longer-lasting than the epoxy coating, yes...and protects the caliper pretty well, if it's done right. None of that is in question...and Im not badmouthing guys that choose to do it. It's a personal choice, I get that, I respect that. Personal choice, it's true. But it is also EQUALLY true that from a sheer "performance standpoint", powdercoating is a significant step back. There is no "maybe" in that equation....there is no "oh so he says".

From a longevity standpoint, and an appearance standpoint, powdercoating definitely has its merits for many parts of the car, no doubt. But it is not a "helper" for your braking system, either. Just sayin'. And if guys want to sacrifice "X" measure of caliper and braking system performance for the looks (and the increased rust/corrosion resistance if its done right), that is their choice. I get that.

Not trying to take money away from a business, that's not what this is (I dont even know whose shop that business is..)......it just also bears merit for folks to understand that powdercoating has its ups and downs. It just is what it is.

[belms4]

Valid points, plus powder coating is thick to add to the insulating properties already there. Think I read somewhere 6 mil thickness at minimum when doing powder coat.

Just to play devil's advocate (I have a set of epoxy painted calipers from you at rotorlab and they still look great after 3+ years and multiple track days)... 99.9% of cars out there are never going to see a track day where they need to actually worry about things like where the boiling point of their brake fluid is. Much less care how much heat is allowed to escape through the coating of their calipers.

Every decision has a trade off. Just thinking of the average enthusiast who drives to meets, work, get groceries for the fam, and the occasional cruise or mountain drive.. I'd assume the decision leans towards powder coat due to the pros people pick this coating for on other parts. Then if you think of someone who tracks their car multiple times a season and heavily researches each decision on parts to get the most out of them, I would think they'd lean much more towards coatings that fit their performance needs when pushing braking parts to their limits.

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[Inferno]

SavantAvant - what are these coatings that you mention? I do my own powder and ceramic coating. I agree that powder coating isn't ideal for brake parts. I use Cerakote. They make a range of coatings - some are designed for improved heat transfer, some are designed for extreme salt spray resistance, some are insulators. One advantage of Cerakote ceramic coatings is that they are thin (around 1 mil). The high performance one are oven baked with a crosslinker (epoxy based I think). I was considering using Cerakote on my calipers, but I want to do it once and do it right. All the time is in prep work anyway (which is mostly the same regardless of powder or ceramic coating as you need to completely clean and disassemble, then sandblast, generally there is alot of masking if you want to do a professional job).