powder coating engine casings
- Thread starter chas
- Start date
IMO don't listen to them I've had loads done and will carry on doing so, never ever a problem. One thing I would say is always use a powder coater who knows about bikes ( NOT AN INDUSTRAIL POWDER COATER) I always use N B coatings in Pontefract.
Tony
Tony
Bearing in mind you would need to completely strip the engine to get this done it seems an awful lot of work to smarten up an engine? unless its a minter of course..
Mine has no paint on it whatsoever, I plan to clean off using a dremmel (got one for xmas
), clean off with proper thinners, dry off and spray with u-pol No 8 etch primer, then hammerite 'smoothrite' silver.
Plan to do it end of feb, i'll put some pics up, meanwhile here's the engine now
Its a WIP....
Mine has no paint on it whatsoever, I plan to clean off using a dremmel (got one for xmas
), clean off with proper thinners, dry off and spray with u-pol No 8 etch primer, then hammerite 'smoothrite' silver.Plan to do it end of feb, i'll put some pics up, meanwhile here's the engine now
Its a WIP....
D6
Registered user
i agree cept i use LSN in castleford, same price, but about ten times quicker,
I know steve from NB,s personally but he is just not reliable time wise, specially round xmas, LSN does a top job, as good as NB,S now,
!!!
how about wheels in sat morn, picked up tues aft ,finished, no need to ring 1st he says, they will be done, they was!!!
Christ Smudger that's bad mines no where near that bad and to be honest I'v already painted the front cover and rocker covers but it looks as if its painted by an amateur , I have some spare rocker covers I'd like to get done a different colour and then there's the Harley 
I want the casings on it gloss black so powder coat seemed like a good option hand it all over get them back all nice and shiny job done
I want the casings on it gloss black so powder coat seemed like a good option hand it all over get them back all nice and shiny job done
Christ Smudger that's bad mines no where near that bad and to be honest I'v already painted the front cover and rocker covers but it looks as if its painted by an amateur , I have some spare rocker covers I'd like to get done a different colour and then there's the Harley
You realise that you'll have to completely strip the engine down to bare cases, no internals, no oil seals, remove all the bearings etc. BARE cases. It's a shit load of work!
Yup
Yup
Fair play to you then, it's a bloody great project!
If you're going that far then you might want to send all the fasteners off and have them satin chrome plated, not overly expensive and given the amount of work you'll be doing, very worthwhile
Tony, try a bit closer to home and support your locals! I use "Two Brothers" down at Neepsend. Motorcycle specific and very quick and reliable.
D6
Registered user
Yup
but worth it in the end, itl last longer, and clean up miles easier than getting muck off painted surfaces
Will it?
Powder-coat is just another way of getting a pigment onto a surface. It has the same dirt repelling ability as paint and some disadvantages. It does last longer but only in as much as it's often thicker and takes longer for any corrosive action to break out. Meanwhile the protected surface can be corroding away unseen under that tough coating (until it gets so bad that it bursts out and by then it has done a lot more damage).
Paint and powder-coat have their benefits and their failings. Both have applications where they are better and worse. In my experience, a good heat-resistant paint is better for engines.
+1
My front casing and rocker covers were a right mess underneath the oem powdercoat. Even areas that didn't look bubbled had actually started to corrode underneath sound looking coating.
I used the often recommended Hammerite smooth which looks the same now as when I applied it three years ago (and has the advantage that 'touch-ups' are easily done unlike on powdercoat).
Bendy toy
Registered user
Another snag with powder coat on bare casings (or paint TBH) is corrosion getting under from the gasket faces. It should however be appropriate to cover the gear casing all over. Just make sure all dowel holes are masked.
DO NOT USE SMOOTH HAMMERITE
It is ok for a while but soon becomes brittle and will chip VERY easily regardless of how good the primer is.
Prepare the corroded alloy with a good acid based cleaner and stainless steel or brass wire brush.
DONT USE ALKALI CLEANERS - They cause even more aluminium oxide.
DONT USE AN ORDINARY STEEL BRUSH because it leaves enough iron on the alloy to set up yet more corrosion.
A good 2 pack etch primer can be brushed on and finished with polyurethane or brushed 2 pack paint. If the engine gets hot enough to need heat resistant paint, its broken anyway.
Soda blasting is a great cleaner for alloy then wash it off before the alkali effect kicks off. There are varieties than can be used in spot blasters (many on ebay), just turn down the air pressure.
http://www.britbike.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=243943
One bloke suggests using a dishwasher with only a little powder, but that stuff is strong alkali. If he had used no powder his cases would not have gone black!
DO NOT USE SMOOTH HAMMERITE
It is ok for a while but soon becomes brittle and will chip VERY easily regardless of how good the primer is.
Prepare the corroded alloy with a good acid based cleaner and stainless steel or brass wire brush.
DONT USE ALKALI CLEANERS - They cause even more aluminium oxide.
DONT USE AN ORDINARY STEEL BRUSH because it leaves enough iron on the alloy to set up yet more corrosion.
A good 2 pack etch primer can be brushed on and finished with polyurethane or brushed 2 pack paint. If the engine gets hot enough to need heat resistant paint, its broken anyway.
Soda blasting is a great cleaner for alloy then wash it off before the alkali effect kicks off. There are varieties than can be used in spot blasters (many on ebay), just turn down the air pressure.
http://www.britbike.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=243943
One bloke suggests using a dishwasher with only a little powder, but that stuff is strong alkali. If he had used no powder his cases would not have gone black!
I (and probably others) beg to differ.
I've successfully used smooth Hammerite several times and is proving to be durable and decent looking. As ever with any surface coating, it's all down to the prep. It's also easy to use and is appropriate for "DIY" use. I'd suggest that two pack finishes probably aren't sensible in the average diy situation?...
Bendy toy
Registered user
I used it on a bike frame with Finnigans primer. Within weeks the exhaust hangers looked like they had been hit with a shotgun. For a while I thought it was vandals but other parts of the bike were fine.
I assumed it was my mistake so when I did the frame I used high quality primers. It was OK fort a while but after a few weeks as the paint went fully hard, the front downtube was shot to bits. The front mudguard painted with ordinary cellulose (nothing special) never chipped.
Hammer finish is even worse because the thin (hammered) patches are not always properly protected.
I wont use Finnigan's paints any more. Expensive and unreliable IMO.
I assumed it was my mistake so when I did the frame I used high quality primers. It was OK fort a while but after a few weeks as the paint went fully hard, the front downtube was shot to bits. The front mudguard painted with ordinary cellulose (nothing special) never chipped.
Hammer finish is even worse because the thin (hammered) patches are not always properly protected.
I wont use Finnigan's paints any more. Expensive and unreliable IMO.
Frame done in black, engine done in silver Hammerite 8 years ago, photo taken this year:
Engine, wishbone arm, fork brace and fork lowers all painted with smooth Hammerite about three years ago:
I've used it on swing-arms and final drives with the same success:
Just done these for a forum member:
I've never had a problem with the finish or the longevity of Hammerite. Donkey's years ago, when only "hammered" versions in limited colours were available, I used it on the cars I used to tinker with. It lasted well on suspension components:
Engine, wishbone arm, fork brace and fork lowers all painted with smooth Hammerite about three years ago:
I've used it on swing-arms and final drives with the same success:
Just done these for a forum member:
I've never had a problem with the finish or the longevity of Hammerite. Donkey's years ago, when only "hammered" versions in limited colours were available, I used it on the cars I used to tinker with. It lasted well on suspension components:
I can't match Mike but a couple of bits of mine:
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/hbrgsqboHln1wP5PgfCaOBJAieIP4IByCYmMpeOVcwI?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-aNhhS_X-r-Q/TG_4IdIdJJI/AAAAAAAADps/KqVSuGQNdK4/s800/IMG_5641.JPG" height="600" width="800" /></a>
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/y4-tn4wX9n85O9pH2cyhhsdIjVbFe8lpPsa0N09Tvn4?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-flLNHDKZRlc/TFGhh8eGNbI/AAAAAAAADfg/HaxWq2K1GVA/s800/IMG_5581.JPG" height="800" width="600" /></a>
All still looks fine three years on.
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/hbrgsqboHln1wP5PgfCaOBJAieIP4IByCYmMpeOVcwI?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-aNhhS_X-r-Q/TG_4IdIdJJI/AAAAAAAADps/KqVSuGQNdK4/s800/IMG_5641.JPG" height="600" width="800" /></a>
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/y4-tn4wX9n85O9pH2cyhhsdIjVbFe8lpPsa0N09Tvn4?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-flLNHDKZRlc/TFGhh8eGNbI/AAAAAAAADfg/HaxWq2K1GVA/s800/IMG_5581.JPG" height="800" width="600" /></a>
All still looks fine three years on.
Frame done in black, engine done in silver Hammerite 8 years ago, photo taken this year:
Engine, wishbone arm, fork brace and fork lowers all painted with smooth Hammerite about three years ago:
I've used it on swing-arms and final drives with the same success:
Just done these for a forum member:
I've never had a problem with the finish or the longevity of Hammerite. Donkey's years ago, when only "hammered" versions in limited colours were available, I used it on the cars I used to tinker with. It lasted well on suspension components:
For God's sake Mike - seek help...
Mike
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