Alternatives to powder coating chassis in UK

[JayPSC]

Now that I've stripped my RCR chassis I think it's gonna be a pain to get it transported to the powdercoaters due to the size of it so I'm looking at alternative coatings I can spray on at home. Anyone got any ideas what I can use? Looking for something with a smooth, matt black finish ideally.

Jay

 

[Jonathan Strain]

I would go with a high quality single stage automotive paint. I would also put a good primer on first.

 

[Doug S.]

Fran has started to offer some form of factory applied coating for the mono chassis--you might want to call him to find out what it is. I'm not sure if it was a catylized paint or not, but it seemed to be a product that was sprayed on after the aluminum was scuffed up a bit. You might be able to source some and do the job yourself. There were a few colors available, although as I recall Fran refused to carry hot pink.

Here's a link to the thread: http://www.gt40s.com/forum/rcr-forum-rcr40-rcr70-p4-mkiv/19130-chassis-coatings.html



Doug

 

[John W]

Jay, look for a good etch primer, and then paint with a good car paint, as Jonathan suggests.

Personally I'd steer clear of any form of plastic or powder coating, as it hides any chassis problems you might encounter in the future. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with the chassis, but if you track it you may miss the tarmac occasionally

 

[JimmyMac]

Jay,
In my opinion, it's a big investment on a beautiful chassis so I would be asking for professional advice from the likes of International Paints.

A high bond, marine condition, etch coating for aluminium on the underside would be useful for the saline roads here in the UK.
I would also consider a thermal coat for the engine bay.
Aircraft fuselage paint ?

 

[Paul Thompson 'Hooligan']

Hi Jay -
As JIMMYMAC says, it's a great looking chassis, so research some specialists before making the leap.

Brian McCarthy wrote a great piece for our club mag some time ago about a product he chose for his GTD in the states. It was onto steel, but might give an insight to the process etc...or possible alternative supplier.

Brian is on the forum..

I've attached it as a pdf - hope it's of interest.

 

[Scott Calabro]

Check out POR-15, they have a good website. I have restored several muscle cars, and they have fantastic chassis / frame coatings

 

[Frank Catt]

Jay, may I suggest that before you do any coating that you assemble the car first, making sure that all drilling of holes, welding, drilling, tapping etc is done before you do a final strip down for final finishing, sounds like a PITA but worth it for the finish the car deserves. Frank

 

[JayPSC]

Going with the POR-15 coating, spoke with the guys at Frost Auto Restoration Techniques - classic car and motorcycle restoration & it sounds like it'll do the job fine.
Works out < £100 to do teh whole car including metal ready undercoat.
No way I'm going to build the car & strip it down again for coating, I cant see it making a massive amount of difference to the final finish.

Jay

 

[JimmyMac]

Jay,
Have you checked that POR-15 colours are stable and light fast ?

 

[Brian]

The typical POR-15 for chassis protection is not UV stable. It should be top coated for optimum performance. By the way, their Marine Clean is the best degreaser/cleaner I have ever used, bar none....

Brian

 

[Peter Delaney]

I have used the POR-15 for all of the "not visible" bits - it provides a hugely resilient finish (matt or gloss) & loves a bit of minor surface rust to get a bite. BUT, it is not a total "show finish" - there are "minor inclusions" in the paint (warning is in their documentation) - tiny lumps/dots, etc.

I ended up doing most of my engine bay in gloss epoxy out of a spray can - big mistake ! Average gloss finish & still packs it in when you leak some brake / clutch fluid on it.

The DRB has f/glass panels which cover the rear of the tanks & goes right up to just under the rear window on each side. These I did with 2-pack gloss & the difference is like chalk & cheese ! The 2-pack was like a mirror (off the gun), is really hard to scratch, & doesn't seem to mind battery acid, brake fluid, etc.

As to the decision regarding matt/satin/gloss, my experience on the Vette is that gloss is the go - dirt doesn't stick to it at all, whilst the other options seem to retain a hint of it no matter hard you scrub !

Sorry to confuse things further !!

Kind Regards,

Peter D.