PDA

View Full Version : what did you use to paint the frame with?



68firebird
04-22-2010, 08:48 AM
I was thinking of using POR-15 to paint my subframe but was wondering what other types of paint you guys used. Just looking into some alternatives.

Happyfunballs
04-22-2010, 08:52 AM
Eastwood Chassis Black.

wmhjr
04-22-2010, 09:33 AM
Powdercoating, baby! I found a great local shop that was incredibly inexpensive for sandblasting and then black semigloss powdercoating of my frame. VERY reasonable and it really turned out great.

68firebird
04-22-2010, 03:18 PM
Eastwood Chassis Black.
Looked into the eastwood chassis black and that's what I've decided to go with instead of the POR-15. I totally forgot about eastwood! thank you!!

68firebird
04-22-2010, 03:20 PM
Powdercoating, baby! I found a great local shop that was incredibly inexpensive for sandblasting and then black semigloss powdercoating of my frame. VERY reasonable and it really turned out great.

I'm not able to pull the subframe out at this time due to room constraints so I'm unable to have it powdercoated, that would be my first choice if I could though.

Gitter Dun
04-22-2010, 03:47 PM
I'm not able to pull the subframe out at this time due to room constraints so I'm unable to have it powdercoated, that would be my first choice if I could though.

Thanks guys, I forgot about Eastwood also.

Happyfunballs
04-22-2010, 04:56 PM
Never could wrap my head around powdercoating the subframe. If and when it chips/flakes, touching up would be difficult....and forget about repainting it.

critter
04-22-2010, 05:09 PM
Krylon semi-flat black. Yeah, I'm poor.

wmhjr
04-22-2010, 08:22 PM
Never could wrap my head around powdercoating the subframe. If and when it chips/flakes, touching up would be difficult....and forget about repainting it.

Don't make it more difficult than it is. First of all, it doesn't flake. Period. And it's hard as heck to "chip". To get my ground connections, I used an angle grinder to get bare metal.

Plus, it's easy to touch up with semigloss paint. Powdercoating is about 100 times tougher than paint and 100 times more durable.

I am lucky though. There is a great metal finishing place not far from me. Powder coating and ceramic coating. I was able to have the frame sand blasted and powder coated for a few hundred bucks within 5 days. I know guys who have paid a heck of a lot more. My sandblaster is junk. I delivered the frame untouched (not even cleaning grease off of it) and 5 days later picked up an assembly that looked like it just left the factory. Actually, better.

wmhjr
04-22-2010, 08:23 PM
I'm not able to pull the subframe out at this time due to room constraints so I'm unable to have it powdercoated, that would be my first choice if I could though.

Gotcha.

Based on that, I'd recommend POR15. I've used both it and Chassis Black, and have found that POR15 for me lasts far better.

Happyfunballs
04-23-2010, 04:01 AM
Take it easy jr, it's just my opinion. I like the ability to repaint things when they fade, chip, etc. I've drug my subframe over one too many speedbumps.....nothing will stand up to that.:rolleyes:

wmhjr
04-23-2010, 06:58 AM
Take it easy jr, it's just my opinion. I like the ability to repaint things when they fade, chip, etc. I've drug my subframe over one too many speedbumps.....nothing will stand up to that.:rolleyes:

Sorry - didn't mean to come across other than just helpful. Just making the point that you CAN touch up powdercoating with paint. I've done it tons of times. If you look at my current project, there are some mods I had to make after the powdercoating was done. You'd never know it by looking at it, but the semigloss black paint blended perfectly with the powdercoating. Lots of people seem to think you can't touch up powdercoat with paint. Probably for odd colors that might be an issue, but for frames? No problem at all. There's less prep work and it turns out great!

Happyfunballs
04-23-2010, 07:25 AM
No probs dude. Having re-read my post, I could see why/if you got defensive. No "dis" intended.:cheers: I look at powdercoating like the point of no return (even though it isn't) Once you powdercoated something, recoating becomes difficult down the road. I believe you can powdercoat over powdercoat, but you really shouldn't paint over it....and stripping it is REALLY difficult. Perhaps NOW I'm making it harder than it really is. :lmao:

armourmark
04-23-2010, 12:47 PM
DP-90 from ppg then clear coat for UV protection. Or if you want to go cheap, John Deere blitz black.

senor_camaro
05-11-2010, 12:32 AM
i sanded the crap out of my frame, 3 coats of primered, 5 coats of valspar semi-gloss black at lowes. cost me 30 buskc and it came out sweet

Jim Nilsen
05-15-2010, 09:08 PM
I used POR-15 and have been happy with it. The good thing about it is the chemical resistance to everything. I have accidentally spilled brake fuid for my clutch on it , antifreeze, gasoline and who knows what else and it cleans up and looks better than the day I put it on.

There are many things these days that are as good or better but it works well and the cost is in the ballpark for most of us.

The debate can get deep but in the long run it is good stuff.

wmhjr
05-16-2010, 05:01 AM
Agreed, Jim. A couple points from some recent discussions around here over the past week.

1) I personally really like POR15 and some like "Chassis Saver". A very good friend who has been of very great help during my project (electrical genius) used Chassis Saver on his truck frame. After about 1 yr, there are spots that don't look great now. Functionally I'm sure it'll be fine, but it's not good enough for either him or I.

2) I'm starting to help my dad on a '54 Chevy truck he wants to redo to a "driver" quality nice truck. Our sandblaster has been giving us trouble, so we planned to have the frame/suspension blasted and then paint it with either Chassis saver or POR15. Adding up the cost of the blasting and the paint, we realized it was almost exactly $100 less than having the entire thing blasted and powdercoated where I had the GTO done. Depending on your perspective, $100 may be just a little or a whole lot of money. I also realize I'm lucky to have the particular shop near me that is both good and reasonable. Having seen and worked with the other stuff I've had powdercoated, my dad realized that for him it was definitely the way to go. Also - I've painted TONS of time over powdercoat when necessary and it has worked out absolutely perfectly.

3) OTOH, for some suspension components, I used silver POR-15 and it has been excellent. It takes a LONG time to set, but it results in a glossy, hard silver coating that's tough - and it's easier to keep away from areas that would be real hard to powdercoat. Like tie rod joints, etc. I'd love to see what an entire frame would look like with it, but it would be significantly more expensive than powdercoat.

Now, if we REALLY want to talk crazy, I wonder what a silver ceramic coated frame would look like? :bsjerk:

TnBlkC230WZ
05-16-2010, 12:48 PM
Never could wrap my head around powdercoating the subframe. If and when it chips/flakes, touching up would be difficult....and forget about repainting it.

Not true. First, properly done, you can sand and paint right over the top of it. I did this on my doors.

Second, the Eastwood Chassis Black is extremely close to the Chassis Black powder coating on my frame, fenderwells, core support and and most any other part I could have done. Paint touch ups are a cinch. The good news is, properly done, you shouldn't need to. I've only touched up where I've drilled new holes.

Bad94
05-16-2010, 12:57 PM
I really like the Eastwood 2K Ceramic chassis paint.

I used it on a truck frame, and it hold up very well.

ponchonorm
05-18-2010, 02:09 PM
Another cheap alternative is Valspar Tractor and Implement paint low gloss black. Have it in quart, 1/2 gallon, gallon and spray cans. I brushed it on the areas of my frame i could then used the spray cans to get in the nooks i couldnt get with the brush. The stuff takes a little bit to dry but is tough as nails when it is. Used it to paint the front control arms on my 65 LeMans and it stood up to agressive use with pry bars to get the springs in.

dhutton
05-18-2010, 02:52 PM
Summit is selling a two part chassis black paint that they say can be applied over bare metal. I applied it over their epoxy and it seems like a good product. You can get satin or semi gloss. It's around $50 for a half gallon kit.

ProjectSideOiler
05-22-2010, 07:51 AM
No probs dude. Having re-read my post, I could see why/if you got defensive. No "dis" intended.:cheers: I look at powdercoating like the point of no return (even though it isn't) Once you powdercoated something, recoating becomes difficult down the road. I believe you can powdercoat over powdercoat, but you really shouldn't paint over it....and stripping it is REALLY difficult. Perhaps NOW I'm making it harder than it really is. :lmao:

Actually if powder coated properly you have an "Excellent" base if it needs to be redone. Treat it like a painted frame but only better.

On my chassis after it was powder coated I decided to install a road race pan so I can Autocross the truck. Notched out frame and spotted it in and its near impossible to see where it was painted.

If done properly by baking first before coat it will never chip, peel etc

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

southernfriedcj
06-24-2010, 04:43 PM
Hammerite Rust Cap is my frame paint of choice. I get the quart and use xylene as a solvent to spray it.

Happyfunballs
06-25-2010, 07:20 AM
Actually if powder coated properly you have an "Excellent" base if it needs to be redone. Treat it like a painted frame but only better.

On my chassis after it was powder coated I decided to install a road race pan so I can Autocross the truck. Notched out frame and spotted it in and its near impossible to see where it was painted.

If done properly by baking first before coat it will never chip, peel etc


It's been years since I messed with powdercoating. Maybe it deserves another look.

1969CamaroRS
06-25-2010, 10:01 AM
Powder coating hands down (less you are picky about "originality"):

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2010/06/FrontSuspension011-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2008/08/FrontSuspension020-1.jpg

Riderz Cycle
06-29-2010, 04:39 AM
Have to agree powder coating hands down...For those of you who don't know most of todays powders are made by PPG, Tiger and Dupont and are made from the similar materials as the paint we use today. Easy to paint over powder just scuff it just like you would paint and have fun....I'm spoiled I have a connection at a powder coating company and I have coated everything metal that I could. Nice part is you can send it over a dirty, greasy and nasty as you want and you get back a part that looks brand new and 10 times stronger...Love Powder.

rlehto
07-13-2010, 06:34 AM
One idea I've been looking at is galvanizing my frame and main components.

They charge by the pound (pretty cheap as I understand) and part of their process is dipping the parts and cleaning them so no prep needed.

This will make sure you have rust coverage inside and out, you can paint it if the paint chips you're still covered even if you scrape off the coating rust wont spread under the coating since its chemically bonded to the steel as sacrificial material.

This leads to the down side once on there, good luck removing and you need to make sure you got your mods done since welding galvinized metal is hazardous.

Just throwing it out there though.

Happyfunballs
07-13-2010, 08:51 AM
Welding galvanized is non-toxic. It may make you sick after welding, but the zinc oxide it produces is no different than that white stuff you put on your nose at the beach. It also doesn't accept paint very well. It will, but longevity is an issue.