DIY Powdercoating! with Pics!
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Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 6,783
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From: Liberal Kansas
DIY Powdercoating! with Pics!
Hey everyone. I was bored and thought I would do a little DIY on powdercoating. It is very easy to do, and very effective. I'm also 18 years old, so if I can do it, you guys and girls can!
First thing you have to do is buy a powdercoating system. I puchased the WAI Powdercoating system. It doesnt use a compressor so it makes it much easier. Here is a link on ebay for a very good price. Trust me, it is a very good investment.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/WAI-ELECTRI...omotiveQ5fTools
Second thing you need is to buy some powder. It all depends on what color you want to do your parts. I mostly use the color "Black Chrome" which I will be showing here in a second. I get almost all of my colors and clear powder from here:http://www.pendrypowdercoatings.com/shop/ I also get some powder from Ohio Custom Coatings. Which can be found cheap on ebay.
Next, find the part you are wanting to powdercoat. It has to be metal or it will melt in your oven! Also the powder wont stick onto it. For this DIY I did my radiator brackets. If your item is painted, sand it down to the metal since the powder will not stick to paint either. I used a little Acetone and a wire brush to clean up my brackets. If there are spots on your peice, they will show in the finsihed product. So remove all that you can. If there are anything like rubber gromets on the radiator brackets, remove them prior of spraying the powder.
Okay, once your peice is all cleaned up and bare metal. get your cup that is attached to the gun and fill it with the powder of your choice. Hook it back up to the gun and your ready to go. Go outside or to a well ventilated area. Get the power cord that came with your powdercoating set and plug it into an outlet. the big black cord plugs right into the back of your gun, the other little wire with the clamp on the end will hook to your peice. That is what makes the powder stick to your peice. I just hooked it to my metal pan I had my brackets on and it works fine as long as its conductive.
Now you are officialy ready for action. Hold the trigger down and let some of the powder get moving out of the outlet of the gun. Just aim at the part doing the sweeping back and forth motion. Dont worry about putting to much or anything, it will all even out no matter what. Make sure the part is fully cover by the powder. It should look a little something like this.
Once its covered and there arent any specs of anything on your part, place it in your oven. I just went to walmart and bought a little $20 toaster oven for small parts. (Your oven HAS to be electric, not gas to work.) Also if there are any specs of something that fell into your part, it will bake into it and you wont be able to get it out. Just wipe the powder off and re-spray it. On your bag of powder your using it will tell you directions of what temp and how long to bake your part at. I did my Black Chrome color for 8 min @ 375 degrees F.
Once its done get an oven mit and pull your part out. Here is a pic right after being take out of the oven of the first coat.
I wanted to do a second coat of powder for added protection. The key to this is to spray the next coat of powder onto the part while it is still hot. If the part isnt hot, it wont stick well. Just hook back up little power wire to the part or pan its on and respay the part just like the first time. Put it back in the oven for the same time you put it in the first. Here is how it looks after the second coat of powder sprayed on.
While waiting for that to bake, take the cup off the gun go empty the powder out of it. Make sure there isnt any left in the cup. Then fill it up with your clear powder (if your using a clear). Once the part is done baking take it back out.
Now clip your little wire to your part again while still hot, and start spraying your white clear powder onto the part. If its hot enough alot of it will dissapear and the part will start to look glossy. Spray the part until it looks like its a light white color on all areas of your part. Then put it back into the oven, and look at the directions on the bag of the powder. I baked my powder for 10min @ 320 degrees F. Once done, the part should have a very glossy finish to it. Let sit outside for until it is cool to the touch. Put back on any rubber gromets or anything on the part. Now your ready to install your part back onto your car freshly powdercoated! I also have my lug nuts powdercoated the same color as these to match.
Enjoy your awesome looking parts and have bragging rights that you did them all by yourself. Have fun!
First thing you have to do is buy a powdercoating system. I puchased the WAI Powdercoating system. It doesnt use a compressor so it makes it much easier. Here is a link on ebay for a very good price. Trust me, it is a very good investment.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/WAI-ELECTRI...omotiveQ5fTools
Second thing you need is to buy some powder. It all depends on what color you want to do your parts. I mostly use the color "Black Chrome" which I will be showing here in a second. I get almost all of my colors and clear powder from here:http://www.pendrypowdercoatings.com/shop/ I also get some powder from Ohio Custom Coatings. Which can be found cheap on ebay.
Next, find the part you are wanting to powdercoat. It has to be metal or it will melt in your oven! Also the powder wont stick onto it. For this DIY I did my radiator brackets. If your item is painted, sand it down to the metal since the powder will not stick to paint either. I used a little Acetone and a wire brush to clean up my brackets. If there are spots on your peice, they will show in the finsihed product. So remove all that you can. If there are anything like rubber gromets on the radiator brackets, remove them prior of spraying the powder.
Okay, once your peice is all cleaned up and bare metal. get your cup that is attached to the gun and fill it with the powder of your choice. Hook it back up to the gun and your ready to go. Go outside or to a well ventilated area. Get the power cord that came with your powdercoating set and plug it into an outlet. the big black cord plugs right into the back of your gun, the other little wire with the clamp on the end will hook to your peice. That is what makes the powder stick to your peice. I just hooked it to my metal pan I had my brackets on and it works fine as long as its conductive.
Now you are officialy ready for action. Hold the trigger down and let some of the powder get moving out of the outlet of the gun. Just aim at the part doing the sweeping back and forth motion. Dont worry about putting to much or anything, it will all even out no matter what. Make sure the part is fully cover by the powder. It should look a little something like this.
Once its covered and there arent any specs of anything on your part, place it in your oven. I just went to walmart and bought a little $20 toaster oven for small parts. (Your oven HAS to be electric, not gas to work.) Also if there are any specs of something that fell into your part, it will bake into it and you wont be able to get it out. Just wipe the powder off and re-spray it. On your bag of powder your using it will tell you directions of what temp and how long to bake your part at. I did my Black Chrome color for 8 min @ 375 degrees F.
Once its done get an oven mit and pull your part out. Here is a pic right after being take out of the oven of the first coat.
I wanted to do a second coat of powder for added protection. The key to this is to spray the next coat of powder onto the part while it is still hot. If the part isnt hot, it wont stick well. Just hook back up little power wire to the part or pan its on and respay the part just like the first time. Put it back in the oven for the same time you put it in the first. Here is how it looks after the second coat of powder sprayed on.
While waiting for that to bake, take the cup off the gun go empty the powder out of it. Make sure there isnt any left in the cup. Then fill it up with your clear powder (if your using a clear). Once the part is done baking take it back out.
Now clip your little wire to your part again while still hot, and start spraying your white clear powder onto the part. If its hot enough alot of it will dissapear and the part will start to look glossy. Spray the part until it looks like its a light white color on all areas of your part. Then put it back into the oven, and look at the directions on the bag of the powder. I baked my powder for 10min @ 320 degrees F. Once done, the part should have a very glossy finish to it. Let sit outside for until it is cool to the touch. Put back on any rubber gromets or anything on the part. Now your ready to install your part back onto your car freshly powdercoated! I also have my lug nuts powdercoated the same color as these to match.
Enjoy your awesome looking parts and have bragging rights that you did them all by yourself. Have fun!
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 6,783
Likes: 3
From: Liberal Kansas
Thanks guys! Trust me it pays for itself over time. My friends pay me for doing parts all the time. If I had a bigger oven I could even do my wheels easy. The best thing about it, its stronger than paint, never any runs or drips, and if you get it on something, simply wipe it off. 
