Seymour Snerd
Lifetime Supporter
For a while I did some powder coating using the Harbor Freight unit (Powder Coating Gun with 10-30 PSI Powder Coating System) and a combo microwave/convection oven I found on Craig's list. The HF unit works OK although it is somehwat of a hassle to set up since I have to change the regulator on my compressor and there are a lot of wires to mess with along with the coater, it's electrics box, and the clumsy bottles it uses to store the powder.
The oven was a disaster in that I did several jobs that had worse orange peel than I expected, and finally I tried some clear that simply didn't harden fully. Having eliminated all the other possibilities I checked the oven and found that when set to 450 it was topping out at 350. Stupid me for not using an IR thermometer but I had misplaced mine.
Next step was the largest toaster oven I could find at Target, for <$100. Checked it immediately: got a little over 450.
At about the same time I got an e-mail from Alsa Corp. (makers of the soft feel paint) with an introductory offer of their new powder coat gun for ~$80. Looking at it I realized immediately it's the more self-contained one that Sears used to sell, and ordered it.
Powder Coating System
It is far easier to use than the HF unit, partly because it is easier to get an even powder flow, and because it is so easy to set up. In fact, these days I just leave it on the bench near an outside door loaded with satin black powder, and whenever I make a little box or bracket I just turn on the oven, grab the gun, shoot the part and bake it for ~45 minutes. Done.
In case you haven't done/experienced powder coating, the resulting surface beats any Rustoleum satin-black paint job I ever did hands dow, especially for durability but also because I don't have to wait 24 hrs for the work to harden while worrying that I'll find some bug embedded in the paint. If I don't like the powder result I can either sand and lay on another coat or I can blast it all off and go again. Done over in 45 min.
Speaking of blasting, as kind of a lark I bought the Harbor Freight 15 lb soda blaster and am surprised and happy to say it works very well.
Soda Blaster - 15 Lb. Portable Soda Blaster
I have a large blast cabinet in which I have used glass beads, aluminum oxide, plastic media, etc., but I really resent the shop space that thing takes up given how frequently I use it.
With the HF unit and soda (their XL grade) material removal rates are similar to what I got with the blast cabinet with glass beads at ~12 CFM. It took just a few minutes to strip the battery compartment lid of my SPF GT40 (which BTW just barely fits in the toaster oven).
But with the soda blaster I just take it out in the driveway, blast the part, sweep up or hose away the soda, and I'm done.
$75 for the blaster with my July 4th 25% coupon; $40 for a bag of soda.
The oven was a disaster in that I did several jobs that had worse orange peel than I expected, and finally I tried some clear that simply didn't harden fully. Having eliminated all the other possibilities I checked the oven and found that when set to 450 it was topping out at 350. Stupid me for not using an IR thermometer but I had misplaced mine.
Next step was the largest toaster oven I could find at Target, for <$100. Checked it immediately: got a little over 450.
At about the same time I got an e-mail from Alsa Corp. (makers of the soft feel paint) with an introductory offer of their new powder coat gun for ~$80. Looking at it I realized immediately it's the more self-contained one that Sears used to sell, and ordered it.
Powder Coating System
It is far easier to use than the HF unit, partly because it is easier to get an even powder flow, and because it is so easy to set up. In fact, these days I just leave it on the bench near an outside door loaded with satin black powder, and whenever I make a little box or bracket I just turn on the oven, grab the gun, shoot the part and bake it for ~45 minutes. Done.
In case you haven't done/experienced powder coating, the resulting surface beats any Rustoleum satin-black paint job I ever did hands dow, especially for durability but also because I don't have to wait 24 hrs for the work to harden while worrying that I'll find some bug embedded in the paint. If I don't like the powder result I can either sand and lay on another coat or I can blast it all off and go again. Done over in 45 min.
Speaking of blasting, as kind of a lark I bought the Harbor Freight 15 lb soda blaster and am surprised and happy to say it works very well.
Soda Blaster - 15 Lb. Portable Soda Blaster
I have a large blast cabinet in which I have used glass beads, aluminum oxide, plastic media, etc., but I really resent the shop space that thing takes up given how frequently I use it.
With the HF unit and soda (their XL grade) material removal rates are similar to what I got with the blast cabinet with glass beads at ~12 CFM. It took just a few minutes to strip the battery compartment lid of my SPF GT40 (which BTW just barely fits in the toaster oven).
But with the soda blaster I just take it out in the driveway, blast the part, sweep up or hose away the soda, and I'm done.
$75 for the blaster with my July 4th 25% coupon; $40 for a bag of soda.