Hi all. I am in the market for some advice on frame refinishing. Got some recommendations from other sources but wanted to table it here. The frame currently is in good condition but has some fairly bad rust areas where the undercoating has worn out - no holes, and its still solid. I'm looking at sand blasting it down, but I havent decided what paint/rust prevention products to go with yet. Any recommendations? Want to stay close to a factory look!

Thanks


[Modified by Red69, 10:07 PM 10/27/2003]

 

John Deere Blitz Black is the closest thing to the original finish. I'd primer it up good and then shoot the BB to repl9icate the factory finish.

 

I did my '63 as follows:
Dip it
Sand blasted it
POR15 the inside of the frame rails
Shot it with DP90
Shot it with Asphalt paint
Turned out ok


Jack

 

I like the stand... Did you make it yourself? :yesnod: What size lumber did you use for the uprights and cross braces?


[Modified by Red69, 4:27 PM 10/17/2003]

 

Have you considered powder coating? A friend of mine had the subframe for his Z-28 done recently and it looks great!. This is the way I'd go for my next project.

 

Red,

Used 4x6's for the ends, double 2x8's for the center, square stock for the frame mounting and an adjustable floor support post on the ends to spin it. Had everything laying around the house to make it, just had to buy the casters. I also made one for the body, they both work pretty good and the best part is they didn't hurt the wallet to make them.

Jack

 

:withstupid: I powdercoated my 66 bb convertible frame and that is the only way to go, IMHO. Unfortunately I painted my 66 coupe frame long before I came across powdercoating... :banghead: If I ever do it again I will powdercoat it also. :yesnod:

 

I'd have to look arround my area to see who might offer it. I was considering doing all the painting here at the house. What did the powder coat cost? Hows the gloss? For a mid year I would think it would be too glossy.... Mine is a 69 which I'm told was just painted with semi gloss...

Thanks

 

Apparently powder coating costs vary widely (geographically speaking), but for mine (which included all of the suspension components, frame, sway bars, brackets, core support, etc.) all told it ran in the $900 range, if I recall correctly. Keep in mind that everything I could possibly powerder coat was included. As far as gloss, it is really close to being between a semi flat and a semi gloss and definitely not too glossy From an NCRS perspective, it has been well accepted as a frame paint. :cheers:

 

The cost does vary but it's worth whatever you pay. There are a wide variety of colours and gloss options available.

I located a powder coat shop whose main contract was an elevator manufacturer. His degrease & phosphate tanks were large enough to take my entire frame in one dip and his ovens were, well, huge. It turned out beautifully. I had my a-arms, spare tire bracket and various sundry items done at the same time. Total cost- $500 plus a set of before & after pictures for his "examples" scrap book. :cheers:

 

where was it located?

 

Pacific Powdercoating
Sidney, British Columbia

I edited to add the name of the company. The powdercoating shop has it's own office, separate from the elevator manufacturer, to deal with customers. I can dig out the phone number and address if desired.


[Modified by Mac, 9:05 PM 10/24/2003]

 

Here in the Baltimore area, we have at least 2 powder coaters. Cost to do a frame plus all the ancillary pieces (brackets, etc) is in the range of $600.00. Chuck

 

Chuck,

Does that include striping the frame as well?

 

Yes, that includes stripping. In the powdercoating process, the "blasting" process inparts an electrostatic charge to the metal. The powdered paint is electrostatically charged "oppositely" so that it adheres to the metal. Then, it's baked on. SO...even if you blast your own parts, they will be blasted again to impart the charge.

Coaters around here tell us not to bother cleaning our parts. Chuck

 

The coater who did mine didn't have blasting facilities, so I did it elsewhere.

What they did have was a large, heated degreasing tank as well as a heated phosphate tank which chemically bonds to the clean metal to provide the ultimate bonding surface for the powder. After the phosphate coat, they baked the frame dry, then touch up any places where the coating was disturbed by water boiling off and heated the frame again.

They electrically charge their racks to get the electrostatic attraction. They spray the first coat while frame was hot so the powder flows into every nook and cranny, then back into the oven. Once the first coat is set up, they sprayed a second coat (still hot) and then finish baking is completed. The frame (and other pieces) looks as good now as it did three years ago when I had it done. :)

 

I've located a powder coating company near by and I'm considering doing my fram. What about the inside of the chassis rails... you cant really sand blast in there... and the PC wont stick to rust... so, how do you treat the iner areas ?

Thanks

 

get the frame dipped...dipping will remove rust from places sand blasting can't reach.

 

Somebody mentioned that sand blasting imparts an electric charge. That's not true. The powder is applied with an electrostatic gun that imparts a charge to the powder as it leaves the gun. The part being coated is grounded and attracts the powder to the surface. The reason some powder coaters like to strip their own parts is to insure a clean substrate. Some will preheat to outgas and burn off any oil, silicon or other surface residue. Some as Mac mentioned, have tanks to clean and apply iron or zinc phospate coatings. By the way his coater is very reasonable in price, especially for what he does! There are also zinc rich powder primers available that can exceed give 4000+ hrs in salt spray tests.

A couple of informative links on stripping your frame and powder coating from C-1 forum.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=707167
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=706852

Also Rohmand Haas http://www.rohmhaaspowdercoatings.com/index.jsp
has good info on performance characteristics on various type of powders and other technical info. Not all chemical cmpounds are the same, i.e. differant weathering characteristics and impact strengths. I am still researching the topic but I think the TGIC polyesters and polyester urethanes give the best compromise for strength and weathering characteristics. Epoxy is very chip resistant but doesn't weather well. All three are approved for automotive use. Acceptable gloss percentages and finishes are available in in any formulation.

 

I found a place 45 minutes away that will completely clean and blast the frame and "ancillary" pieces and powder coat them all for between $500-600.

Is there a manufacturer type/color code that would come close to being acceptable in judging? Or should I plan to put a semi-gloss black spray over the top if I choose to go this route?