Framebuilders - Can I powder coat a steel frame?

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Goatbiker
12-01-07, 09:11 AM
I posted in another group that I was going to powder coat a steel diamond frame and a steel recumbent frame.

Rekon asked, ”wouldn't that just DESTROY the "spring like temper" the metal has now?? Powder coating bakes the parts in an oven that’s over 450 degrees for several hours, then cools VERY slowly (annealing or softening the metal)".

I assumed that a steel diamond frame could be powder coated because my steel recumbent frame came powder coated from the factory.

Anybody know the facts on this, as I don’t want to screw anything up. It is a ’94, double-butted, chromoly tubed, lugged frame.

Tom

Nessism
12-01-07, 11:29 AM
No worry. Temp is below the range where anything damaging will happen to the metal. And the process does not take several hours, more like 1 hour or less. Either way, no worry.
Six jours
12-01-07, 09:56 PM
There are several zillion powder-coated steel frames running around out there. It's a non-issue.

cujet
12-04-07, 08:52 PM
No problem at all. But remember that there are different qualities available and certainly different skill levels applying it. Also, some powder coatings do a poor job of stopping corrosion once the coating is breached.

Powder coating is easy to apply and can have a nice uniform look. But quite often a good paint job has better gloss.

Chris