Finch
04-09-2009, 08:35 PM
I was powder coating the final few parts on my car tonight and thought I should share the budget friendly powder coat oven I built last summer. To start this is far from being up to code but for those who learned to not touch things that are hot or bare electrical wires when you were young this could be an option for you.
Like most people on here I re-purposed on old range to be a Powder coating oven some time back and it has been great for anything that is small enough to fit. When I needed to fit longer or larger items in I started looking around for powder coating ovens and about fell over at the cost. One day while cleaning out my shop I pull out an old pickup bed tool box I had from several years ago and it hit me.
Since I had the box my total spend for this is less than $50 buying all new parts. I cannot count how many things I have powder coated and it works flawlessly.
Basically I bought a couple new bake elements, a manual thermostat , a dryer cord, and some oven wire. Made a quick bracket, drilled a few holes and away I went. I plan to take the time to build a shield to cover all the electrical parts but who knows if that will ever happen.
Once I had it fired up I used a laser temp gun to set the temp and made a mark on the t-stat. I am amazed at how well the aluminum box insulates and retains the heat. you can hold your hand 1/4 inch away when it is 400 degrees inside and not move it for hours.
I am already on the lookout for a oversized 2 door metal cabinet to make the next bigger and better unit.
Enjoy,
Like most people on here I re-purposed on old range to be a Powder coating oven some time back and it has been great for anything that is small enough to fit. When I needed to fit longer or larger items in I started looking around for powder coating ovens and about fell over at the cost. One day while cleaning out my shop I pull out an old pickup bed tool box I had from several years ago and it hit me.
Since I had the box my total spend for this is less than $50 buying all new parts. I cannot count how many things I have powder coated and it works flawlessly.
Basically I bought a couple new bake elements, a manual thermostat , a dryer cord, and some oven wire. Made a quick bracket, drilled a few holes and away I went. I plan to take the time to build a shield to cover all the electrical parts but who knows if that will ever happen.
Once I had it fired up I used a laser temp gun to set the temp and made a mark on the t-stat. I am amazed at how well the aluminum box insulates and retains the heat. you can hold your hand 1/4 inch away when it is 400 degrees inside and not move it for hours.
I am already on the lookout for a oversized 2 door metal cabinet to make the next bigger and better unit.
Enjoy,