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My project 69 is literally in pieces and so now I start the process of cleaning up the suspension parts. Any thoughts on what should be powdercoated vs. painted. The car will be modded so no worries about originality. In other cars that I have powdercoated parts they were hard to touch up when scratched. I am going to get the frame powdercoated. For those who have powdercoated the frame, what gloss level did you specify?
Last edited by gleninsandiego; 06-13-2017 at 02:00 AM.
My project 69 is literally in pieces and so now I start the process of cleaning up the suspension parts. Any thoughts on what should be powdercoated vs. painted. The car will be modded so no worries about originality. In other cars that I have powdercoated parts they were hard to touch up when scratched. I am going to get the frame powdercoated. For those who have powdercoated the frame, what gloss level did you specify?
Now that's a pile of stuff. Looks like my 69 pile a few years back. I did a semi black frame. The Krylon #1613 semi flat rattle can works well for the parts if you are not doing original which you mentioned. The Krylon also works well for touch up on the frame. Krylon needs to be from an industrial place like Travers.com not of the shelf. That's different.
RVZIO
Hi gw,
The only part of the suspension that I see a benefit in having powder coated is the inner strut rod bracket.
The reason for this is that setting the camber eccentrics knocks the paint off some of the surfaces of the bracket.
At least with a powder coated bracket you have a 'chance' of the coating staying on when you set the camber.
The rest of the components can be assembled with out damaging the paint if you're careful.
Be very careful about the level of gloss you select for the frame. Powder coating does NOTHING to hide a pitted frame and even a semi-flat level of gloss often makes the pitted surfaces more noticeable. Err on the side of a little too flat rather than a little too glossy. Gloss shows up EVERY imperfection. Semi-flat is as easy to maintain as gloss. Flat is impossible to maintain.
The frame on my 71 is powder coated with a coat of Krylon #1613 over it.
Good Luck!
Regards,
Alan
Even though your car will be 'modded' be cautious about how much you powder coat/paint black.
"Parts" were different materials and different colors.
Having everything black, even if it's powder coated, ends up looking like you just went wild with a can of black spray paint.
Hi Glenn,
In that photo:
The differential housing has Cast Blast on it.
The half-shafts have Cast Blast on the u-joint flanges, and the tubes were cleaned with emory cloth and then have semi-gloss clear on them.
Regards,
Alan
I went with Gloss on the frame and suspension parts and find it very easy to clean especially after unexpectedly getting caught in rain. Whatever route you go with I will tell you to make sure you Protect all threads and or studs if you go with powdercoat. My powdercoat guy missed some of the lip on my calipers and it was a major PITA to clean off! BTW the guy gave me the color code that he used on the red so I could retouch anything later if needed to. Good luck!!
[QUOTE=redcruz1120;1594937667]I went with Gloss on the frame and suspension parts and find it very easy to clean especially after unexpectedly getting caught in rain. Whatever route you go with I will tell you to make sure you Protect all threads and or studs if you go with powdercoat. My powdercoat guy missed some of the lip on my calipers and it was a major PITA to clean off! BTW the guy gave me the color code that he used on the red so I could retouch anything later if needed to. Good luck!!/QUOTE]
Wow, striking good look. I know it's not NCRS friendly, but I love it. Nice job.
I went with Gloss on the frame and suspension parts and find it very easy to clean especially after unexpectedly getting caught in rain. Whatever route you go with I will tell you to make sure you Protect all threads and or studs if you go with powdercoat. My powdercoat guy missed some of the lip on my calipers and it was a major PITA to clean off! BTW the guy gave me the color code that he used on the red so I could retouch anything later if needed to. Good luck!!
Powdercoating will last forever. Paint will not. If you plan on keeping the car for a loooonnng time, powdercoat anything you can afford to do. If you see selling the car in the near future, paint it...you can't justify powdercoating costs and you will never get them back at a resale.
Be aware that powdercoating has a significant thickness; you need to have threaded holes plugged and you might have to drill/machine coating on the inside of assembly holes to get bolts back in.
Lastly: I would use the same sheen on powdercoating as came on the new car on the various parts. Chassis parts were semi-gloss black. Rear end parts were generally left as bare metal. You can powdercoat them (or paint them) with a metal-colored paint so that they will never rust/tarnish. I highly recommend doing so.
I did do my serpentine brackets,pulleys and other parts like the front grills in semi flat black powdercoat just to set them apart and to keep them cleaner than the material they came in.
Last edited by redcruz1120; 06-13-2017 at 04:59 PM.
Painting does not compare to powdercoating....powder is the way to go. IF done right, and that means proper preparation, its bulletproof....it will be the last time the frame needs done....ever.
It was a no brainer in my case. Powdercoat! I took my frame along with 30 other pieces to AZ powdercoat in PHX, $620 and a week later I picked them up. All wrapped in plastic. 6 yrs later the frame still is not chipped, its impervious to chemicals such as brake fluid and any oils. The best part, no mess. Drop it off and pick it up. I used semigloss black on the frame and suspension. I paid extra to do the pewter on the parts the factory left in bare steel ie, differential and side yokes, half shafts, drive shaft.
It was a no brainer in my case. Powdercoat! I took my frame along with 30 other pieces to AZ powdercoat in PHX, $620 and a week later I picked them up. All wrapped in plastic. 6 yrs later the frame still is not chipped, its impervious to chemicals such as brake fluid and any oils. The best part, no mess. Drop it off and pick it up. I used semigloss black on the frame and suspension. I paid extra to do the pewter on the parts the factory left in bare steel ie, differential and side yokes, half shafts, drive shaft.
Interesting
Any pics of your rear suspension?
Sounds cool
I'd fill all the pits and then paint everything. Unless you're planning to store it in a field for the next 10 years paint will hold up fine and looks better than pits.
It was a no brainer in my case. Powdercoat! I took my frame along with 30 other pieces to AZ powdercoat in PHX, $620 and a week later I picked them up. All wrapped in plastic. 6 yrs later the frame still is not chipped, its impervious to chemicals such as brake fluid and any oils. The best part, no mess. Drop it off and pick it up. I used semigloss black on the frame and suspension. I paid extra to do the pewter on the parts the factory left in bare steel ie, differential and side yokes, half shafts, drive shaft.
That's exactly what I paid for my frame to be Powdercoated. $620.00 . I thought It was a marvelous deal considering it was blasted,primed,coated ,picked up & delivered from and to my house!. Had I done it it would have been a weekend project with a wire brush, power washer, having to buy degreasers , paint and all the mess and left behind.Not bad considering it was not a NCRS project!
I prefer to powdercoat. I use a semi-gloss black. But that is just me but some customers want different colors and it being shiny.
I also remove all metal parts that are riveted to the floor boards for the seat mounting and either buy new ones and have them powdercoated ( if the origianls are too rusted and pitted).
Fuel tank supports and straps..and like what had been mentioned ..pulleys and brackets, etc...the GAUNTLET!!! The reason is this...it is less expensive to give these parts to my powdercoater and have him prep and do them than it is for me to spend a butt-load of time on painting stuff....especially when a vast majority of my customers are not worried about insane judging guidelines and want there car REALLY NICE.
And I do agree...powdercoating over pitted steel is something that some may find as a waste of time...but...to be honest..I have had frames and parts powdercoated that had some issues and it all depends on how picky the person is going to be about a car that they are going to DRIVE.
As Dub highlighted with the bold face DRIVE.......powdercoating is going to be more durable and long lasting for a car that is driven.....if you just have a museum piece sitting in a garage, lots of things don't matter if the work, or if they are durable.
My problem is I drive too much and too hard. LOL
On past cars that I have powdercoated parts and they get scratched, it was hard to touch up. It was easier to touch up painted parts with paint. That said, the Vette, while driven, probably won't be seeing that kind of abuse.
Glenn in San Diego
Last edited by gleninsandiego; 06-16-2017 at 12:12 PM.
06-13-2017, 01:58 AM
What to powdercoat vs paint on 69 suspension?
