Powder Coating vs. Painting

[Valbrona]

They seem to like shot blasting before powder coating. Can you only powder coat bare metal?

Not sure which one to go for.

Thanks.

[softlips]

Yes.

Powder coating gives nice uniform covering but requires heat to melt obviously. It can also hide cracks, although this may not be an issue for most on bike frames.

[tim-b]

Hi
Use someone experienced in powder coating bicycle frames
The preparation method and the temperature/time for curing the coating must suit the frame material
Regards
tim-b

[Mick F]

I had a frame that I wanted to rub down and them DIY spray paint, but I got very very bored with trying to rub the thing down, so I looked in Yellow Pages and found a sandblaster. I took the frame and forks round, they were only half an hour away by car.

When I got there, he had no probs, and said it would be ready the day after, and would I like it powdercoating and if so, what colour?
I said yes please, and a nice bright red!

Can't remember exactly, but it was about £30 all in.
Very happy with the result.

[old_windbag]

I've looked into this as a possible renovation project on a lightly rusted frameset. The company I found local to me that gets a good name on bike forums have different levels of finish from basic through to zinc primer and two coats plus lacqeur( yet only around £100 for highest finish ). Plus decals can be supplied and the lacqeur goes on top.

There are many places out there and it seems alloy wheels and motorcyle frames are popular renovations. The company below is an example who have some good images of bicycle frames and the finish/colours. Plus the RAL code range and finishes, plain, metallic, pearlescent... is impressive.

http://www.ctc-powder-coating.co.uk/bicycles/ just one company of thousands but you'll find some names repeatedly coming up on bike forums for quality of their work. Bettablast was the one in my area.

I think the convenience of local drop off and relatively low price for the complete job is attractive. To courier a frameset for respray can add another £50 to respray cost.

[Ugly]

Powder coating, if done properly, is tough and cheap but has a couple of draw backs. It is not so good for restoring classic frame sets, finely cut and filed lugs can loose their sharp appearance due to the thickness of the finish also frame numbers tend to fill in and become unreadable. According to Lloyds, suppliers of frame decals, water slide and spirit slid decals don't adhere very well.

[Gattonero]

I've looked into this as a possible renovation project on a lightly rusted frameset. The company I found local to me that gets a good name on bike forums have different levels of finish from basic through to zinc primer and two coats plus lacqeur( yet only around £100 for highest finish ). Plus decals can be supplied and the lacqeur goes on top.

There are many places out there and it seems alloy wheels and motorcyle frames are popular renovations. The company below is an example who have some good images of bicycle frames and the finish/colours. Plus the RAL code range and finishes, plain, metallic, pearlescent... is impressive.

http://www.ctc-powder-coating.co.uk/bicycles/ just one company of thousands but you'll find some names repeatedly coming up on bike forums for quality of their work. Bettablast was the one in my area.

I think the convenience of local drop off and relatively low price for the complete job is attractive. To courier a frameset for respray can add another £50 to respray cost.

I just had a Brompton frame powder coated from them, more expensive than other places but you get what you pay for: the finishing is excellent, actually better than many other enamel resprays I've seen.

[old_windbag]

Thats good to know. I used this company simply as an example for the number of bicycle frames powder coated and viewable online. For most people they'd go local to where they live but I know the linked company have high facebook reviews for their work( as so the one local to me I mentioned ). I think the car resto and custom motorcycle scene has really pushed this "paint" method forward. Once upon a time a tired car alloy would have been depressing but now you know they can be refurbished back to first class for less than a set of new alloys. All the metal flake/pearlescent/blended finishes open up serious possibilities too.

For classic frames it was a good point about serial numbers and lugs etc. I think some powder coaters have methods here too though. It's finding the specialists and discussing it with them I guess.

[Gattonero]

My frame has been asked for durability, so the thickness of the paint was welcome.

I won't send a classic frame to be powder coated anyway, my view on the subject is that powder-coating is for "day to day" use so is great on commuter, touring, folding bikes and Mtb's as well. On a nice classic frame with lugs and that stuff, I would only have it enamelled.

[Sweep]

Not something I know anything about but may be useful for the future on one or two bikes.

So powder coating is tougher i take it?

What's the finish like? Is it dictated by the process or can it be shiny or matt or anything in between?

[Gattonero]

Powder-coating does not chip off as enamelling.
The downside is that gets quite thick and cannot be made as smooth as a good enamelling. Still, a powder coating that is well done is very good for most cases.
I'm happy with this, having acquired this rusty frame the £120 for respray was a good investment, and less than what an enamelling would have costed me, and surely will last longer

[Sweep]

Thanks gatto.

Powder coating it will be for me.

Not sure what the paint on my hewitt is but it sure isn't tough.

No comparison with three of my old ridgebacks which may have a lived in patina of multiple light scratches but definitely don't chip.

[pjclinch]

I've had a TSR and a Brom powder coated when the original paint jobs were starting to die and I wanted the rust kept at bay. Both were done c/o Kinetics in Glasgow (Ben doesn't do it himself, but there's a Friendly Neighbourhood Powder Coater who does all his frames for him) and I was very happy with both. With each I was given the option of how much prep or rebuild I wanted to do myself. I opted to be lazy and throw money at it, but could have saved by DIY had I wanted.

My impression overall is that, a bit like steel frames vs aluminium frames, the actual approach is less important than how well it's done. I've come across people very happy and very miffed with either painting or powder coating over the years, so I'd check that wherever you're going has happy cycling customers.

Pete.

[PH]

What's the finish like? Is it dictated by the process or can it be shiny or matt or anything in between?

The standard finish seems to be a slight sheen, but you can have a clear layer on top and this can be as shiny as you want. There's also some other effects that can be incorporated in the top coat, metallic, tints... I've seen some good examples from Armourtex in Hackney who've become so popular with cyclists they've branched out and now have a bike shop. EDIT - forget this, I've just been reading on LFGSS forum that Armourtex were taken over a few months ago and the new company are not so good.

[Gattonero]

What's the finish like? Is it dictated by the process or can it be shiny or matt or anything in between?

The standard finish seems to be a slight sheen, but you can have a clear layer on top and this can be as shiny as you want. There's also some other effects that can be incorporated in the top coat, metallic, tints... I've seen some good examples from Armourtex in Hackney who've become so popular with cyclists they've branched out and now have a bike shop. EDIT - forget this, I've just been reading on LFGSS forum that Armourtex were taken over a few months ago and the new company are not so good.

I've had hubs, cranks, frames, derailleurs powder coated. I've recently sent a white rear DT 240 with the black front hub to match the colour, and they did a good job.
You can have satin, sheen, eggshell, gloss, sparkling. Obviously, the final result is as good as the frame was prepared. you need to find some people that would care and take the right steps: a bicycle frame is a lot different from a tractor's bonnet!